Monty Python was a very talented and smart group of six mostly university educated individuals who took established British humour and molded it into their very own creation.They took aim at anything that was stale and staid in then English

Society,shot it up,turned it upside down,flattened it and called it Mr.Gumby!!

What on the surface seems a simple enough point about the troupe but usually goes unnoticed today is their original appeal and impact.Python came out of the 60s rebellious era and while that trait alone wasn't surprising what was was their own nationality(British),their feigned attempts at portraying themselves as part of that staid and stuffy society all the while taking stabs at every English sacred cow and then some such as the police,the armed forces,the BBC,war vets,etc. which made it definitely "something completely different"! There has never been a program like it before or since.

Each program was filled with several sketches tied together more or less with animated segments by Terry Gilliam,the only Yank in the group.

Having watched the entire set with it's 16 DVDs I was favourably impressed by the quality of the transfers.They are pretty sharp and crisp.The only disappointment is the "Live at the Hollywood Bowl" film.The film is not in good condition and the colour is quite washed out.It is a full screen version and I wonder since some of the credits disappear off the screen that there isn't a widescreen version out there,hopefully in better condition than this.Time will tell.

I also noted that the sketches "Proust","Bruce" and "Biggles" have some quick moments that have slight cuts/jumps in them.I know the BBC is responsible for the first one but the other two I'm not sure of the who or why.There may be others but those are the three I noticed off hand.One will also notice that there are some film glitches and other various defects.From what I can determine these are things that are inherent in the original film and there's nothing that really can be done to excise them.

All 16 discs come in their own thin slip cases and are one sided(less chance of scratching!).Each DVD interactive menu if quite neat and each has its' own trivia spot about the particular ep you're watching and some neat special features including trivia question contests and more.There are alas no interviews with the cast mano a'mano but the 'Live at Aspen' DVD makes up a little for this.

Overall this is a set every Monty Python fan should own or a lover of good comedy.If you're one of the politically correct crowd I wouldn't advise you to buy this set as the guys leave NO stones unturned in their comedic efforts to offend and delight us all at the same time.It's a set I will certainly be watching again and again and you will too.