Ideal: Complete Series 1-7 Box Set [DVD]

It took me a while to get into Ideal at first - in fact I started watching when it was first broadcast but stopped watching a couple of episodes in as it just hadn't gripped me and seemed a bit obvious and one-dimensional. Thankfully I did go back to it at a later date, and I'm so glad I did as I would have missed out on one of my favourite shows in a long time.I think it's fair to say it's certainly something that found it's stride as it went on, with things getting progressively stranger and darker as things ramp up with time. It all revolves around Vegas's hapless stoner selling weed from his flat and the interactions with his customers etc, and at first seemed that it was going to be a fairly straight-forward affair, but things rapidly turn a bit odd.Whilst it can be hilariously funny at times with some great dialogue it isn't a show that had me in stitches every episode, but what's important is you'll find yourself engrossed in the world that's created here. My wife commentated after one cliff-hanger ending involving a major character (I won't give any spoilers here but fans will probably guess who I mean) that we were more emotionally attached to these characters than to those in plenty of other supposedly more worthy serious shows we also watch.Ideal is the perfect vehicle for Johnny Vegas and he really shines in it as the likeable Moz. It a real shame that the show was cancelled when it was, and as such there's no real ending here and things are left as if there was to be a series 8, but that never happened.As for the box set itself, it was £26 when I ordered and that's a great price for 7 series of a wonderful show spread over 13 dvds (with plenty of commentaries, outtakes etc - all the stuff we loved when DVD was a lot younger!).In conclusion then this is a really great show, and one you should look at if you've not seen it.

Funny, surreal, completely whacko at times but full of heart and soul as well. Quality looks great on the discs, sound is good, extras are good. Well worth it IMO.

Ideal is the most unique sitcom you are ever likely to see. It is innovative, messed up, surreal and very filmic. Set in just three flats in one landing, the show still feels like an epic, due to it's style and themes.The main 'hub' of the character's is Moz's flat, Moz being the lazy but well-natured weed dealer played brilliantly by Johnny Vegas. The show concentrates on the seemingly endless stream of customers and guests that are forever knocking on Moz's door.But this is where it gets troublesome. Trying to explain Ideal's storyline is a herculean task. It's soap-esque storylines to do with which character is cheating on who and which character will turn traitor next are mixed with the most bizarre plots and people. Before you say 'Wait, I hate soaps so why would I watch this?' let me say that you would not find a mute hitman with a glued-on mouse mask called Cartoon Head in Corrie.The character's are the real stars, and drive the comedy. Whether it's the screwdriver-wielding Psycho Paul, the flamboyant gay bachelor Brian "Oooo, innhe scrummy?" or the useless small-time thief Colin "I'm on probation!" you will be drawn in to this world.What makes this show really stand out is how it starts like a gloomy kitchen-sink Mike Leigh-style show and ends up as an off the wall surrealist piece, still keeping some realism but getting nuttier every episode (this is a show that can turn in to a full-blown musical at the blink of an eye). The hallucination moments, sometimes accompanied by CGI elements are fascinating. In what other situation comedy would you see a dream sequence in which a bird scuttles out of a bullet wound and picks out a 'worm' from the wound, which is actually the shot person's intestines?Graham Duff, the writer of the show, created something totally unique and wonderful in Ideal. The scriptwriting is impeccable and it is a massive shame that he was forced to end it when he did. Axing the show was a huge error of judgement on a misguided BBC3 controller's part, and the show ends on a big cliffhanger to which will never be unhung. Apparently they didn't want a hugely creative series to keep on going and instead make room for a load of old cobblers. It's fantastic and should never have been discontinued.

First of all, a health warning. This is a fairly racy comedy, not suitable for work, children or probably anything else. It's filthy black comedy, with violent scenes, drug use and the odd terrible shellsuit.I loved this when it was first broadcast. Sadly, virtually no-one has heard of it and it wasn't on any of my usual streaming services- so I paid a modest amount for a physical boxed set, for shame!The best thing was that it turned out that I'd missed quite a few episodes, there was lots that I hadn't seen. The writing is whip-smart yet daft, horrible yet touching. The cast is excellent and brings a few surprises too.Graham Duff deserves to be treated as some sort of minor deity for his work on this. Few people would have the guts to let jokes burn for years before paying off. Easily Johnny Vegas' finest hour, too. An utter treat. Very happy that I tracked it down again.

Excellent comedy . Highly recommended iirs Johnny Vegas at his best I watch the whole 13 disks In a day .

A real trip.

Very happy with this dvd

He has me in stitches