This truly excellent series plumbs new heights (or depths) of logical surrealism as Arthur invites Michael to a "soupover". This involves pyjamas, although it takes place in the afternoon, and numerous rituals including watching VHS tapes of black-and-white horse races from yesteryear. Rory Kinnear draws on all his Royal Shakespeare Company training to do justice to the horror of it all.

All sitcoms must arrive here eventually: an episode where the whole gang visit a safari park, with near-death consequences. But the Count makes everything his own by playing on the pseudo-paternal bond between the two leads. Either can be the dad and today it's Arthur (Steve Delaney), taking Michael (Rory Kinnear) on a well-meant but disastrously cheap birthday trip. As they go, comic seeds are, as always, deftly planted for harvesting later.