I'm at a loss as to what we were supposed to make of Channel 4's new comedy drama ( and I use both terms lightly ) Babylon. No doubt writers Jesse Armstrong and Sam Bain thought they could transport The Thick Of It formula over to the Metropolitan Police, how hard can it be right? But on this evidence they are satire lightweights, certainly not in Armando Iannucci's league, or anywhere near it. The main premise, of the show, was a public relations obsessed Met, lead by Commissioner Miller ( James Nesbitt, and as we all know British television cannot survive without the constant participation of Mr. Nesbitt ) brings in an American spin guru Liz Garvey ( Brit Marling ) to herald in a brave new era of communications transparency. But on her first day, a drive by shooter goes on a deadly spree in London. Cue all sorts of hilarity. Well no, because the tone was uneven, Babylon was directed by Danny Boyle, no stranger to uneven tone. So how were we supposed to take the murders? Should we have been gripped, and shocked, fearing for the safety of the cliched, cartoon Police characters; or laugh at their screwball antics? It was hard to tell, as the second rate farce kicked in. Just making people a little bumbling and a little incompetent doesn't a biting satire make. Perhaps Armstrong and Bain should have read a few Tom Sharpe novels to see how this stuff is really done. Babylon rambled on and on, nowhere near as funny, exciting or satirical as it thought it was and ending up with a general feeling of who cares? But, not to worry, we can carry this feeling over to the upcoming series, which Channel 4 proudly announced before we had even seen the show. There's misplaced confidence for you.
Over
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