Most Helpful Customer Reviews
|
|
33 of 34 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Worthy Sequel To The Masterpiece That Is Porridge, 19 Mar 2007
Going Straight is of course the sequel to one of the all-time great comedy shows, Porridge. Now this is a problem when the original show is perfect, how on earth do you make the sequel better? Well the answer is that you don't. The only thing that is possible is to try and match the brilliance of the parent show and Going Straight almost pulls it off.
Sequels are dangerous things to make, get it wrong and you risk alienating the loyal viewers of the original programme and in some cases the original show is even tarnished by the reputation of the newer instalments.
Fortunately the creators of Porridge, Dick Clement and Ian LaFrenais had already done the impossible by writing the sequel to The Likely Lads in the form of Whatever Happened to The Likely lads? which proved to be even better than the original and so knew what they were doing.
The first episode of Going Straight could almost be classed as the 22nd and final episode of Porridge itself as it begins with Fletch being released from Slade Prison and begins his journey home, a couple of familiar faces such as Fulton Mckay and Tony Osoba are on hand to help smooth the transition from the world of prison to freedom and thus set up the scenario for the remaining five episodes.
Those remaining five episodes then show Fletcher struggling to cope with life on the outside, getting a job, trying to get respect from his family and having to cope with his daughter's marriage to his old cell-mate Lennie Godber, portrayed superbly as always by the late Richard Beckinsale.
The contrasts of Fletcher on the outside from his time inside is quite noticeable, in prison he was top dog with other prisoners looking up to him and treating him like a kind of hero figure whereas by contrast on the outside he is practically a nobody struggling from one mess up in his life to another and this leads him to the point of almost comitting another crime to prove his worth and pay for his daughter's marriage.
All this makes it sound rather grim, it isn't, the show is very funny indeed and it won a BAFTA award for the best comedy of the year, there were rumours that a second series was planned but the death of his co-star and good friend, Richard Beckinsale seemed to have convinced Ronnie Barker to stop and maybe it was the right decision to go out on a high with huge viewing figures.
As a follow-up Going Straight is a wonderful continuation to Porridge and is good enough to be judge on it's own merit and is a testament to the fantastic writing partnership of Clement and LaFrenais and to the magnificent working relationship between those two comedy geniuses Barker and Beckinsale.
I would like to give this set 4.5 stars out of 5 but as I can't it will have to be the maximum five because it's as near to perfect as possible, Porridge will receive 5.5 when I get around to reviewing that.
Treat yourself to six episodes of pure comedy gold.
|
|
|
39 of 51 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Second servings, 6 Sep 2004
Going Straight was the follow-up to the very successful Porridge. Only six episodes were ever made, originally airing in 1978.At the time of airing the series was deemed not funny enough, however seeing these episodes today they are not as bad as the memory suggests. They are well worth another look if you remember Porridge with fondness. Three hours of entertainment very reasonably priced. Go on traet yourself...
|
|
|
21 of 28 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Missing Link, 14 Aug 2006
Having just seen Going Straight for the first time on DVD, I'd have to say it's terribly underrated. A sequel to Porridge that was so different (being set "On the outside" and with most of the Slade prison supporting cast gone) was always going to divide audiences. There are some brilliant episodes and moments though- including Fletch bumping into Mr. MacKay on the train home (in one of their best ever scenes together they part company getting drunk together and even shake hands).
A pre- Only Fools And Horses Nicholas Lyndhurst is excellent as Fletch's vague son, Raymond too. Most interestingly though, along with the Porridge film, Going Straight represents a kind of missing link between the gentler `70's writing of Clement and La Frenais with series like The Likely Lads and the earthier, more realistic style of Auf Wiedersehen Pet and The Commitments.
Whilst it's still mainly broad, old school sitcom humour, Going Straight has several more serious moments as Fletch and his family struggle to make their way without him having to return to crime, the episode in which he helps a cynical teenage thief to change her ways is particularly poignant.
The looming threat of Thatcherism hangs over this series like some huge dark shadow about to turn the British working class into the underclass and unscrupulous, upwardly mobile "Greed is good" types- as the writers would go on to explore with Auf Wiedersehen in the `80's.
Clement and La Frenais have done an incredible job, not just with their almost unbeatable comedy writing (only John Sullivan comes close as far as I'm concerned), they have also left us these brilliant documents of British social history over the past forty years. Going Straight is just as much a valid part of this as Porridge, The Likely Lads and Auf Wiedersehen.
|
|
|
Most Recent Customer Reviews
|
![Going Straight - The Complete Series [DVD] [1978]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/413XGD50MQL._SL75_SS50_.jpg)
![Porridge - Series Three [1974] [DVD]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41AJPRX057L._SL75_SS50_.jpg)
![Porridge - Series Two [1975] [DVD]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41TM8QPFNHL._SL75_SS50_.jpg)
![Porridge - Series One [1974] [DVD]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/4157ZS5S06L._SL75_SS50_.jpg)
![Porridge - The Christmas Specials [1975] [1976] [DVD]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51YEFHZPTJL._SL500_SS90_.jpg)
DVD ~ Ronnie Barker
![Porridge - Series Three [1974] [DVD]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41AJPRX057L._SL500_SS90_.jpg)
DVD ~ Ronnie Barker
![Porridge - The Movie [DVD] [1979]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51RQQ3DRZRL._SL500_SS90_.jpg)
DVD ~ Ronnie Barker
![Porridge - Series Two [1975] [DVD]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41TM8QPFNHL._SL500_SS90_.jpg)
DVD ~ Ronnie Barker
