There haven't been many shows in recent times that have been more anticipated than "Hamish and Andy's Gap Year"...
During their specials on Ten, they often had in-studio links between segments- these were the weakest parts of those shows. If these (which this time will be longer and likely feature guests and other hijinks) are less scripted and contrived in their Nine show, it will be the best thing they have ever done."
And in response to that, I would say that tonight's show was unfortunately was a bit too heavy on the "slap-dash" and the "casual" and not heavy enough on the "edgy"... but bear with me as I run through the first wobbly part- it did get better.
The opening segment was always (always) going to be a rusty one, and without wanting to cut them too much slack, they were justifiably nervous- this is, after all, a live show on a new network, with more than a couple of million dollars riding on it.
But the opening monologue slash introduction did fall flat, and it wouldn't have impressed many newcomers to the Hamish and Andy brand. The set looked very cheap indeed, from the desk which wasn't even joined in the middle to the unpolished wood and bricks surrounding them.
And I know it was meant to be a bit rustic, or charmingly scruffy, but for a primetime show, I'm afraid I wasn't that impressed.
Hamish kicked off the "joke" proceedings with some Dimitri Martin-esque drawn graphics... Which also seemed more cheap than endearingly immature (their usual stock-in-trade).
Hamish and Andy also introduced their house-band made up of buskers (see above for what I thought of that), Hamish's electronic drum-kit, their "Traxedos" and their "butler" Cackling Jack.
For fans of their (now weekly) radio show, seeing Cackling Jack, is a great in-joke- they would know that last week on the show they discussed his attire and his role quite hilariously. Same goes for their "traxedos" and the drum-kit. The latter has long been raised the ire of Andy on their radio show.
... But for the initiated, all of this would not be delightfully wacky, but confusing, unnecessary clutter.
Yes, I believe that the key to their long-term success on TV is successfully translating their radio show into a visual medium, but it doesn't mean that they need to transplant everything.
A five day a week radio show allowed them to meander in your focus, it allowed them to engage in various flights of fancy and wacky ideas - TV doesn't, especially not the pilot of a primetime variety show.
The links in between guests and segments were always going to be the weakest part of the show (they were even the weakest parts of the Caravan of Courage/Christmas specials), so they need to make sure they hone their focus next week and be more authoritative- but hopefully this will come naturally as they settle in to the show.
I think it's fair to say the audience weren't in raptures at this stage either, and the acoustics of the "plastics factory"didn't exactly help.
BUT, with all that behind us, and with the promise of a pre-filmed segment and the Taylor Swift interview still to come, I knew things would improve.
And did they what- the "catfish noodling" segment, which featured Hamish sticking his leg in a swamp hole to catch a fish was classic Hamish and Andy- putting their body on the line for laughs.
Hamish saying he would be risking his "noodle" by doing this "noodling" and describing to the police officer that he was a "leggy" 6 foot 3 was quite hilarious.
Then the Taylor Swift interview was a big relief for the studio part of the show. Swift is one of the best guests going around, she was accommodating and unpretentious... and it helped that she was very talented.
Their first guest interview also allowed for Hamish and Andy to relax a bit- it took their gaze away from the cameras pointed at them and brought out the chatty charm that won them two million radio listeners.
It also allowed for them to improvise a song with her: an instant YouTube classic.
There was also a surprise guest in Neil Patrick Harris (or was he just a last-minute pick-up?) promoting The Smurfs. And even if the interview wasn't as funny (or as memorable) as the Swift interview, at least it was relaxed enough to allow Patrick Harris to appear as if he cared about being there.
And we also were treated to another one of Hamish and Andy's "Ghosting" style pranks- admittedly, it wasn't as funny, but it was another memorable moment. After "Ghosting", you could almost call this one "Sleep... ing", because they slept in various social situations.
It's good, clean, harmless fun- and funny, most importantly. Watch for that one on YouTube too.
There were other hijinks aplenty, such as Hamish revealing he had the show's time slot tattooed on his arm. Did I mention they put their bodies on the line?
All in all, yes, it was a bit shaky at first, but it lived up to all my (high) expectations.
I never actually thought the pair were going to burst out of the gate with a polished product, but it did show some promising signs; the guest interviews allowed the pair to relax and their pre-filmed segments were strong.
Granted, it wasn't a complete departure for the pair's usual TV style, but if anything, it was the closest they've ever, ever got to bringing their very successful radio show style to the small screen- and that's a very good thing.
If they can just polish a few things for next week (lose the hand-drawn graphics, perhaps) it will not only seem a more confident product, but will be able to elevate the show from a great one (arguably where most of their shows thus far have sat) to an excellent one (arguably unchartered territory for the pair). And after seeing their transformation from two shaky kids on Hamish & Andy (Channel Seven) all those years ago to the two most powerful men on radio, there's no reason they can't be launched into the stratosphere (there's a Hamish and Andy radio show in-joke for you).
Perhaps tonight's show wasn't the best thing that they have ever done, but at this rate (and hoping that ratings are at least 1 million) it will progress in leaps and bounds from week to week.
Something people might forget is that in the past three or four years, Hamish and Andy have had not had the chance to string two successive live TV shows together. Yes, they appeared on Rove quite often, but they only got the chance to host their own show two or three times a year on Ten.
Once they start to string together three, four, five weeks of their show, there is no telling how good the show could be, but if they improve even a little each week from their "OK" premiere (how can anyone say it was terrible, by any stretch?) it could well develop into one of the best Australian shows on TV in recent memory.
Despite its slow start, did it live up to your expectations? And if you weren't a Hamish and Andy fan, did this show make you a convert?
