Sam and Cy Unhinged
Note: This review is from 2001
The most accurate criticism of this mediocre sketch show comes from Sam and Cy's agent, a Godlike character overseeing the on-stage shenanigans.
"You need more gags," the booming disembodied voice says. And he's right.
For this likeable duo have a knack of skirting around funny, without being able to close in on an actual joke.
It's not that they can't write them, for there are four or five great lines here - but that's just nowhere near enough for a 55-minute show.
Some of the ideas are great, too, such as the prankster pyschiatrist, but others such as the loud, accident-prone America tourists have very little substance.
And all too often the slightly surreal whimsy just comes across as too lightweight, with no punchline to justify it.
It's a bit of a shame, because the audience is always on side, willing the ideas to succeed - but they have a marked tendency disappear smoothly into the next sketch, without raising much more than a titter.
Review date: 1 Jan 2001
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett