Amazon.com reviews for
"Blackadder II" (1986) More at IMDbPro »

Complete Black Adder (8pc) (vhs):

Amazon.com Essentials: One of the best comedy series ever to emerge from England, Black Adder traces the deeply cynical and self-serving lineage of various Edmund Blackadders from the muck of the Middle Ages to the frontline of World War I. In his pre-Bean triumph, British comic actor Rowan Atkinson played all five versions of Edmund, beginning with the villainous and cowardly Duke of Edinburgh, whose scheming mind and awful haircut seem to stand him in good stead to become the next Archbishop of Canterbury--a deadly occupation if ever there was one. Among tales of royal dethronings, Black Death, witch smellers (who root out spell makers with their noses), and ghosts, Edmund is a perennial survivor who never quite gets ahead in multiple episodes. Jump to the Elizabethan era and Atkinson picks up the saga as Lord Edmund, who is perpetually courting favor from mad Queen Bess (Miranda Richardson) and is always walking a tightrope from which he can either gain the world or lose his head. Subjected to bizarre services for her majesty (at one point, Edmund is asked to do for potatoes what Sir Walter Raleigh did for tobacco), Edmund--as with his ancestor--can never quite fulfill his larger ambitions. The next incarnation we encounter is in late-18th-century Regency England. This time, Blackadder is a mere butler to the idiotic Prince Regent (Hugh Laurie in a brilliantly buffoonish performance) and is caught in various misadventures with Samuel Johnson, Shakespearean actors, the Scarlet Pimpernel, and William Pitt the younger. With a brief stop in Victorian London for a Christmas special, the series concludes with several episodes set during the Great War. The new Edmund is a career Army officer, but a scoundrel all the same. Shirking his duties whenever possible and taking advantage of any opportunity for undeserved reward, this final, deeply sour, and very funny Blackadder negotiates survival among a cadre of fools and dimwits. No small mention can be made of Atkinson's supporting cast, easily among the finest comic performers of their generation: besides Laurie and Richardson, Stephen Fry, Tony Robinson, and Tim McInnerny. --Tom Keogh

Black Adder Series 2 Part 1 (vhs):

Amazon.com video review: Part one of Black Adder II features the very funny story "Bells," in which Lord Edmund is distressed to find himself developing feelings for a fellow named Bob (without realizing "Bob" is an attractive woman in disguise). "Head" concerns Edmund's appointment by mad Queen Bess (Miranda Richardson) as Lord High Executioner, following which he cuts off the head of an important man. Finally, "Potato" finds the cynical Edmund stuck with walking in the footsteps of Sir Walter Raleigh by reluctantly going on a quest for potatoes. Brilliant, now-classic material by one of the best casts in television history. --Tom Keogh

Black Adder Series 2 Part 2 (vhs):

Amazon.com video review: The key to the Black Adder saga is the lineage of the title character's family, and this second series jumps ahead to the Elizabethan period and the life and times of Lord Edmund. Perpetually courting favor from England's mad Queen Bess (Miranda Richardson), Edmund is constantly walking a tightrope upon which he can either gain the world or lose his head. Also onboard are Tony Robinson as another generation of the dim-witted Baldrick, Tim McInnnerny as the luckless Percy, Patsy Byrne as Bess's companion, Nursie, and Stephen Fry as the imposing (in every sense) Lord Melchett. Part two of Black Adder II includes the episodes "Money," featuring a nasty bishop with a hot poker; "Beer," in which Baldrick falls for a large turnip; and "Chains," in which Blackadder is tortured by a Spanish interrogator. Hugh Laurie guests in the latter tale. --Tom Keogh