As you can probably gather from the last few years of "Saturday Night Live," sketch comedy shows can be disasterous. For every great bit like "Wayne's World," we are tortured by painfully unfunny sketches that make you reach for the remote. Of course, SNL isn't the only sketch show out there. There have been countless popular sketch comedy shows like "Mad TV" and "Mr. Show." One of the more recent sketch comedy programs is British sensation "Little Britain." While not every sketch or character is a winner, the program is head and shoulders above most of the dreck on American TV.

"Little Britain" is a three season sketch comedy show in which a hilarious narrator (wonderfully played by "Doctor Who" vet Tom Baker)shows us various fictional people throughout the country. There's the bratty, fast-talking teen Vicky, Lou and his lazy, faking invalid friend Andy, the Prime Minister and his assistant Sebastian, mental patient Anne, weight loss motivator Marjorie, and countless others. As with any sketch show, "Little Britain" is hit-and-miss. Series one starts out strong as the Lou and Andy, Prime Minister, and hypnotist sketches had me roaring with laughter. I also found the little visual gags in between the sketches refreshing. It's hard not to laugh when you see names of places like Steven Spielberg Hospital, the Kelsey Grammar School, or the Scarecrow And Mrs. King pub. As fun as series 1 was, it quickly became apparent that the show's creators (Matt Lucas and David Walliams) were simply repeating the same jokes over and over in series 2 and 3 (not to mention adding more repulsive vomiting and urinating sight gags). On top of that, instead of inventing new characters, Matt and David resort to using the same old characters like Vicky. I realize the Vicky character is immensely popular, but I don't see the appeal. She's basically a rip-off of Catherine Tate's Lauren character only she's nastier and louder. Also included in this 8 disc set are 2 amusing "Little Britain Abroad" episodes in which several characters go traveling and a "Little Britain Live" stage show. While the stage show isn't as funny as the scripted episodes, I did enjoy the crazy audience participation bit during the Des K segment.

The widescreen picture quality is far from perfect. The picture can sometimes be blurry or grainy, but it can also be clear as day. It depends on the location that is being shot at. The Dolby Digital Stereo track could have been stronger as the thick accents can be a little hard to hear, but the track is perfectly suitable for a sketch comedy show. Subtitles have also been included.

Disc 1 * BBC America Ad, BBC 3 Idents, Character Playlist, and 45 minutes of Deleted Scenes (mostly from the pilot). * A 12 1/2 minute Jonathan Ross Interview with the show's creators Matt Lucas and David Walliams. * The original 29 minute pilot. It's fun to observe all the changes the show went through from the original pilot to the season 1 pilot. * Commentary on eps 1-4 with Matt Lucas, David Walliams, and Myfanwy Moore. While the commentaries aren't as lively as the show, the 3 provide fun tidbits and discuss the show's origins as a radio program. Disc 2 * On episodes 5-8, Steve Bendelack provides commentary along with Matt and David. * Character playlists, "Kids In The Hall Season 1" ad, "League Of Gentlemen- The Complete Collection" ad, and a 5 minute "What Does Britain Mean To You?" survey with various characters from the show. * 14 1/2 minutes of "Teenage Cancer Trust" sketches, the most notable of which are of course consist of Andy and Lou and the Prime Minister and Sebastian. * A 28 1/2 minute "Best Of Rock Profile," which is an earlier show by Matt and David in which they pretend to be musicians like The Bee Gees. Good concept, flat execution. * A 32 minute Radio 5 Live Interview in which Matt and David discuss characters and inspirations. * "How To Make A Little Britain" (36 mins.) is a featurette that shows viewers radio show footage, TV rehearsals, behind the scenes shots, etc. Disc 3 * "Knowing Me, Knowing You" and BBC Americaads , Character Playlists, and commentary on all series 2 eps by Matt Lucas, David Walliams, and producer Geoff Posner. Disc 4 * "The Comic Relief Special" is my favorite extra of this entire set as Matt and David really went out all to make this bigger and better than a regular episode. Highlights include appearances by Elton John and George Michaels. There's also an optional commentary track for this special. * "The Office- Complete Collection" ad, a 2 minute DaffyDD sketch, Jonathan Ross TV and Radio show interviews, a 1 minute "Richard And Judy" sketch, and nearly 3 minutes of outtakes (mostly from the Comic Relief Special). * A 43 1/2 minute "Little Documentary" that is essentially a making of series 2. * The Chris Moyers Show interview is little more than a promotion of DVDs, CDs, Books, etc. * "Little Britain At The NFT" (43 mins.) is ANOTHER interview with Matt and David talking about how they met, etc. * 50 minutes of mostly forgettable deleted scenes (with optional commentary) aside from one amusing bank bit. Disc 5 * "Doctor Who Season 1" ad, BBC America ad, Character Playlists, and commentary on all 6 episodes by Matt and David. Disc 6 * 44 minutes of deleted scenes. The highlights are a few sketches with two supermarket employees. It's a shame these characters never got the attention they deserved as they are better than 90% of the ones featured in episodes. * "Little Britain Live" trailer, Richard and Judy interview, a 9 1/2 minute segment of David Walliams appearing on "Top Gear," and Matt and David talking on the "Heresy" radio show. * "Little Britain Night Highlights" (36 mins). * "South Bank Show Special" (49 mins) features behind the scenes footage of Matt and David working on the show. Disc 7 * Comic Relief trailer with Lou and Andy * 5 minutes of deleted scenes. * A 59 minute documentary titled "Little Britain Down Under." The docu gives an extensive look at their tour in Australia and people they meet along the way (such as Dame Edna). * A 49 minute "Little Britain Live Does Comic Relief" special that is nothing special. Disc 8 * BBC America and "Little Britain" ads, a 2 minute "Lou And Andy Blackpool" gag, and 5 deleted scenes (23 1/2 minutes). * A nearly 14 minute featurette titled "Making The Tour" which shows the usual rehearsals, tour conversations, etc. * A nearly 12 minute "Making The DVD" featurette. * My second favorite extra is a serious, moving mini-doc called "Little Britain's Big Swim" (58 minutes) which follows show creator David Walliams whom is training to swim the English Channel. A must watch.

Seeing as how the one-joke "Little Britain" characters become tired in series two and three, I would recommend just picking up the hilarious first season instead of the complete collection. You'll save money and you won't be subjected to jokes that have been run into the ground.