Well, I threatened to do it and now I have. I did say that once I'd retouched my CHERILEA ROBIN figure, I'd show him in all his restored glory, alongside his crime-fighting chum, BATMAN. So feast your eyes on the pair of them above - doubtless looking even better than they did on the WOOLWORTH'S counter they both would've adorned back in the '60s.
They look more like Del Boy and Rodney going to a fancy dress party. Ooh err...
ReplyDeleteH'mm, now that you mention it...
ReplyDelete(Saw that episode when it was first broadcast - that scene had me laughing out loud.)
I don't remember Del Boy and Rodney as Batman & Robin - for me the two most hilarious moments were the blow-up sex dolls and their bungled attempt to clean that chandelier.
ReplyDeleteAnd don't forget him falling through the bar hatch, CJ. The Batman & Robin scene was in one of the 3 part Christmas Special episodes, which was meant to be their final appearance. They did eventually return of course.
ReplyDeleteKid, I never thought the bar hatch scene was funny because it was totally unrealistic - if you fell like that you would automatically throw out your arms to save yourself. The best comedy has to be realistic I feel. The chandelier scene was so funny because it could happen (if you had as dopey a trio as Del Boy, Rodney and Granddad of course).
ReplyDeleteI think if you were leaning back without looking, expecting support to be there, you'd be off balance and be on the floor before you knew it. Regardless, some allowances must be made for visual humour on occasion. As for comedy having to be 'realistic' - Laurel & Hardy, Morecambe & Wise, Hope & Crosby don't really fit that theory, yet their still funny. As for Del & Rodney's chandelier scene, I never found it THAT funny because it was obvious what was going to happen.
ReplyDeleteWell, it certainly wasn't obvious to me what was going to happen, Kid. But when it was first broadcast (in 1981) I was only 15 and you'd have been 22 so perhaps you were sophisticated :) It's still one of my favourite ever comedy scenes from any TV show and I still think it's hilarious to this day.
ReplyDeleteJust to pick up on the humour topic, my feeling is that humour is transient, you might laugh at something one day, the next you'll find it hard to comprehend what you thought was so funny. I used to find The Goodies hilarious (The only? comedy team to be documented as having caused someone to laugh themselves to death) today they leaving me scratching my head. Sullivan was a pretty good writer though, you have to have something behind the humour to act as a foundation, like the relationship between Laurel & Hardy. I think Del and crew were, for me, slightly beyond their sell by date when they did the Batman thing but they kept it going because it was proven winner, so I didn't find the double take humour that funny. I still like the chandelier though and the bar top, odd that, because it's the predictability that makes me laugh.
ReplyDeleteYup, that sounds like me in 1981, CJ - sophisticated. Well, as sophisticated as any collector of comics and toys can be.
ReplyDelete******
What made me laugh about the Batman scene, DSE, was the sheer visual absurdity of Del and Rodney in costume - they just looked ridiculous, which is what made me laugh. As for The Goodies, I think the visual humour of the series can still raise a chuckle, but a lot of the 'comedy patter' doesn't hold up so well.
Oops - I meant to say "perhaps you were MORE sophisticated", obviously I was sophisticated too but you were even more so, Kid. I have to agree with DSE about 'Only Fools..' being past its' sell-by date - it went on far too long and became too soap-opera for me, Del Boy and Raquel and their baby..yawn. The best comedies like Porridge, Fawlty Towers, Rising Damp and The Good Life only had two or three series at the most and didn't outstay their welcome. Even dear old Dad's Army went on a bit too long to be honest. In my house neither of my parents liked Morecambe & Wise much and so we never watched them and the fondness for them always puzzles me a bit - we were much more a Two Ronnies family :)
ReplyDeleteThe Two Ronnies was a brilliant programme, but I feel that Morcecanbe & Wise were excellent when they were at the top of their game. After they moved to ITV they lost some of their sparkle. I also felt that Only Fools went on too long. David Jason was excellent in the part when he looked as he did at the beginning, but once he went grey, fat and balding, he didn't look quite so good as Del boy anymore.
ReplyDeleteThe David Jason revamp of Open All Hours is pretty dire. I hope the Dads Army film, which can never touch the genius of the TV series, does not prove to be a disappointment.
ReplyDeleteKen.
I haven't seen the new OAH, Ken, but I can't imagine it working without Ronnie Barker. It would be nice if the Dad's Army movie is a success, but people our age will automatically be comparing the new actors to the originals.
ReplyDeleteI've never heard about this new Dad's Army film - I'm sure it'll be awful though. There's so little originality now.
ReplyDeleteHow about On the Buses, I'll concede it's flawed but I've got a soft spot for Reg Vaney's luckless character also Michael Robbins is good as the feckless brother in law. Its reputation suffered a bit from those dreadful films, which took their cue from the later carry ons. I've even dug out, Love Thy Neighbour on Youtube, it's not nearly as bad as its reputation and some it is even pretty funny. One show I could never connect with was, last of the Summer Wine, I just never understood it.
ReplyDeleteThe Dad's Army movie is going to have to be very good to succeed as the critics will be waiting with bared teeth, CJ, but if the story is right (and it's funny), it might have a chance.
ReplyDelete******
Haven't watched the On The Buses movies in years, DSE, and remember little about them, but I've seen a few episodes of the TV show on Freeview and thought they were okay, but very dated. Michael Robbins was always very good 'though. One TV programme that is timeless is Whatever Happened To The Likely Lads from the early '70s - and the 1976 movie is probably the best spin-off movie from a TV show of all time. Very funny.
That Likely lads film is pretty good, the first Steptoe flic isn't bad either.
ReplyDeleteThey look great Kid!
ReplyDeleteThanks, AJ. And they're all mine! (Maniacal cackle!)
ReplyDeleteTalking of 'On The Buses' - Reg Varney was the first person in Britain to use a cashpoint machine !
ReplyDeleteKnew that, CJ. It was when they were first introduced and he did it as part of a publicity push.
ReplyDeleteOops! In one of my responses above, I misspelt 'they're' as 'their'. Typing too fast and not paying attention.
ReplyDeleteVery nice job on the Cherilea restorations, Kid. With regard to the Batman model - did you have to remove any glue from the peg under the head and cowl, or have to file down the peg slightly, to get the head and cowl to fit snugly?
ReplyDeleteNope, no glue-removal required, B, nor peg-filing. I don't think the figures were ever glued - the ones I had as a kid certainly weren't. If yours is a replacement, perhaps the previous owner glued the cape and cowl into place?
ReplyDelete