MrsLogicFromViz
Thursday 6th November 2014 4:45pm [Edited]
suburban south London
2,834 posts
Quote: Hercules Grytpype Thynne @ 6th November 2014, 8:50 AM GMT
No you are not. 
He is OK I suppose, but (I have brought this up before elsewhere) it annoys me when he explains his jokes on HIGNFY and if you look at old episodes of Whose Line Is It Anyway, he clearly is lost when they have to do improv., often repeating what the "experts",for example Sessions, Stiles, Mochrie, Lawrence and Proops do, and yet he is supposed to be good at it - can't see it.
I write as someone who really admires Merton's work and even sat through his live Palladium Show in the 90s where Richard Vranch sported a red bikini (yes, really). Merton's great when he's allowed to indulge his surreal flights of fancy and if paired with Ross Noble the whole thing goes completely hatstand. However, we must not lose sight of the fact that HIGNFY is a topical news quiz and should try and keep on track as much as possible. He's also mercurial and often just sits there looking bored and explaining failed jokes straight to camera.
As for WLIIA? Absolutely agree, he was bloody awful - physically awkward with no drama training; the others managed to salvage any scene he was in. I went to The Comedy Store to see The Comedy Store Players live once and he was the weakest performer. Josie Lawrence was fab though.
