'Allo 'Allo! - Series 8 & 9 [1992] [DVD]

'Allo 'Allo was an incredibly long running and successful comedy series. It stands out as the TV highlights of my youth. A blend of superb characters, really complicated plots built up from very simple premises and lashings of double entendres made this a must see program. Like all good things though, it had to come to an end. By the time it had reached the two series presented here it was starting to run out of steam a little. The decision was (very wisely) taken to end the program after series 9. But I'm not trying to say that these are poor episodes - far from it! It's just that compared to the towering heights achieved in series 4 and 5 both scripts and cast seem a little tired. They are still very very funny and eminently watchable however. The decision to end the series meant that a final episode could be filmed which brought all the plot strands together, and satisfyingly shows what has happened to all the main characters many years later. An excellent couple of series, well worth watching.I do have a bit of a gripe with the presentation. For the price being asked I don't expect too much by way of bonus material, booklets and liner notes or decent packaging, so I'm not as upset about the lack of these as other people seem to be (doing a decent job a la Dr Who DVD releases would have pushed these out of my price range). What I AM upset about is that the episodes are not presented in the correct order on the discs. The Christmas special that came between series 8 and 9 is at the end of disc three, so a bit of DVD juggling is required to watch them in the correct order. I can see no good reason for the episodes being presented in this order, it's just annoying.So, not quite full marks for the episodes themselves, and no marks for the packaging. 4 stars in all.

For a change we've only had a few months between this release and the last, and as always it is great to catch up with the Allo Allo gang.Two years have passed since the last series took place and many things have changed, including the loss of Captain Bertirolli and the two British Airmen. All other characters remain, apart from Richard Gibson (Herr Flick) who steps down at the end of series 8. David Janson steps into his shoes in series 9 and does a good job.These are the last two series of Allo, Allo and maybe they aren't as good as some of the early ones, but believe me, there are still plenty of laughs.These laugh out loudmoments usually involve Richard Gibson or the other Germans. Rene again finds himself torn between the Germans, the Resistance, the communist ressitance and his wife. It's such a hard life!This comedy is still much better than modern comedies and that's for certain. It's a must see for fans of the series and is very enjoyable to see the Allo, Allo cast acting together.The only other real 'nit pick' is the fact that the 1991 Christmas Special that follows on from the last DVD release is on the last disc after series 9. This is very unusual since every other episode has been in the right order for every previous Allo Allo release.It is also a crying shame that there are no extra's on the DVD, with both The Best of Allo, Allo (1994) and the Return of Allo, Allo (2007) not included.All together there are 14 episodes including the 45 min 1991 Christmas Special. Still plenty of laughs, but would be even more better with some extras. Reccomended for fans of the series, but if you don't own an Allo, Allo DVD, it's far better to start the story at the beginning, but even so, this is very addictive!5 star comedy, 3 star release!

It's been a long time coming, but here we finally have the last two series of 'Allo 'Allo, one of the all-time great sit-coms. By now, much has become by-the-numbers, with silly accents and tired catch-phrases very much the norm, but that was always one of the joys of the show, and anyone who doesn't get it is surely missing the point: 'Allo 'Allo is in the grand tradition of panto, with its grotesques, its over-the-top villains and inept heroes. And they're all here: Michelle of the resistance, Crabtree spooking fluent Fronch, Herr Flick with a cunning plan to catch-out the resistance and General von Klinkerhoffen dreaming up suicidal plans to assassinate the Fuhrer.It may be true that, by this stage, the show was past its best, which may be why the decision was made to end it after series nine, but the bad jokes are glorious as ever, the characters mad as ever. As noted on another review, the odd decision was taken to put the Christmas special at the end of the last disc, rather than at the beginning, where it belongs. It is in this episode that we find out that cafe waitress Maria is pregnant, that the Italians have left, and that the British airmen have returned home, finally. Also, and rather strangely, Richard Gibson left the show with one series to go, and was replaced by David Janson, who gives a very creditable performance, having appeared in series eight as a Hitler look-alike.The only downside is the lack of extras: a brief documentary or biographical features on the cast would have been welcome, but, overall, this is a fine end to a wonderfully silly show, and fans are guaranteed plenty of laughs.

Very un-PC but very funny. No Double entendre left untouched.Not something that would get commissioned now.