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Show:		9.0
Picture:		7.0
Sound:		8.0
Extras:		9.0
Score:		8.0

Director(s):	Martin Shardlow • Mandie Fletcher • Richard Boden • Paul Weiland
Writer(s):	Richard Curtis, Rowan Atkinson, Ben Elton
Starring:	Hugh Laurie • Miranda Richardson • Stephen Fry • Tony Robinson • Rowan Atkinson • Tim McInnerny
Genre:	Comedy
Release Date:	October 20, 2009

List Price:	DVD - $58.99
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If it doesn’t already, it should sadden you that Rowan Atkinson’s most well known role is Mr. Bean. Sure, attempting to remove your underwear in public has its comedic merit, but only if you’ve never seen Atkinson’s stupendously idiotic turn as the self-appointed Black Adder in the times of olde. The series spans different eras with each of the seasons taking place in a new one. Then, to further the adventures of the unfortunately inept title character, three of the specials created after the series’ conclusion are included on their own disc. It’s not the first “all inclusive” set to be released but it does a good job rounding up most of the extras that have been created for the show over time – though true Black Adder connoisseurs will notice that some of the smaller events (The Shakespeare Sketch in 1989 or the theatrical show Blackadder: The Army Years) are absent from the set – though they haven’t appeared in any other sets either. Someday a studio will figure that out.

The Black Adder

Edmund (Atkinson), the cowardly Duke of Edinburgh and son of King Richard IV (Brian Blessed), sports a ridiculous bowl cut and has piss-poor luck. He receives promotions to positions no man would want and engagements to women (a prepubescent girl, actually) only he deserves. You see, he’s not so much a hero or even anti-hero as he is just a scumbag. Plotting and conniving his way towards successes he never quite achieves, Edmund takes his two flunkies through one misadventure after another that often come with hilariously great consequences.

Blackadder II

Jumping ahead to the Elizabethan era, a new generation of Edmund has found a higher status in the court of Mad Queen Bess (Miranda Richardson), but the truth of his life remains the same. Try as he might to further his standing in the world, the unusually sinister hand of fate smacks him back and forth every chance it gets. Assigned with impossible goals and absurd titles, Edmund’s second incarnation keeps up the high-quality comedy of the first series. Stephen Fry makes for a pleasant addition to the series and continues on into following seasons.

Blackadder The Third

The next stop on the timeline of Edmund’s ancestry sees the protagonist as a lowly butler to the Prince Regent (Hugh Laurie) and, again, suffers at the hand of his own inadequacy. Whereas Edmunds past always thought themselves the smartest man in the room, in the case of this incarnation he’s occasionally right (assuming Laurie’s prince is the room’s other occupant). While not as sharp as the two proceeding seasons, Laurie and Atkinson play terrifically off of each other. Laurie’s casting as the Prince Regent was a stroke of genius and you can’t help but feel like you’re watching the predecessor to his later character in Jeeves and Wooster.

Blackadder Goes Forth

World War is afoot and Edmund finds himself on the frontlines – and doing as little as he can while he’s there. The show still has a monstrously great sense of humor and it never fails to amuse – even coming off of a somewhat weak Christmas special in the interim between the third and fourth seasons.

DVD Bonus Features

There are no extras on the first disc, but the second, third and fourth all have audio commentaries by the likes of the series’ writers Ben Elton, Richard Curtis and John Lloyd or actors Tony Robinson, Tim McInnerny and Stephen Fry. Well worth the listen. The Blackadder specials (Blackadder’s Christmas Carol, Blackadder The Cavalier Years and Blackadder Back and Forth) are found on the fifth disc along with a selection of production videos and a few little audio clips detailing the history of some of the famous figures featured in the show. Finally, the sixth disc has “Blackadder Rides Again”, the documentary about the series and should be (if it hasn’t already) seen by any fan of the show.

The added bonus of the whole set, as you may have guessed from the title, is the restored video quality. The distinct cinematic style of this BBC program gets a badly needed touch-up in the remastered edition and hasn’t looked better – though the last time I saw the series was on VHS – so take that opinion based on that fact.

If you’ve never heard of the show until just now – it’s time to remedy that empty hole in your life. Black Adder Remastered: The Ultimate Edition has the most features the show has ever released in a single set despite not including some of the smaller more obscure pieces. Considering the price this is well worth the purchase.