Saturday 18 August 2012

TV: Veep (S1) (8/10)

After the success of The Thick of It and the American cross-over film In the Loop, Armando Iannucci delivers what is an all-American take on his razor sharp political satire in Veep.

Set in the Vice-President Selina Myers' office, the series deals with her struggles to make her mark on the administration from what is a position of power in name only, similar to Nick Clegg being Deputy Prime Minister. The show features all the incompetent bumbling characters you would expect and has a fantastic script to match.

Some might call the acerbic put-downs and head-butting crude and maybe its just my sense of humour but when somebody says "that this bill is a f*cking disgrace and I'm going to see to it personally that it gets chewed up like a dead prostitute in a wood chipper" I laugh. Sue me. There are some fantastic lines in the script, often from the Veep herself.

It's not just all swearing and school ground teasing though, the episode plots are credible and well thought through and give ample opportunity for the Veep and her staff to screw up at every single turn. That said some episodes are stronger than others. All the characters are well played and the acting is excellent. 

Overall, a really strong first season and I'm pleased to see it renewed for another.

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