To say that I love reviewing these old Worzel Gummidge episodes would be a huge understatement as it's something that not only love doing but it's also something that I actively look forward to doing each and everytime that I decide to do one. As there just something about this really simple show with very old fashioned tastes that makes it enjoyable and really fun to watch at times well with the same thing also being true for his episode and so then join me as I review the episode that sees Worzel and Aunt Sally form a double act with the episode in question being called simply just "Worzel In The Limelight" enjoy.
The plot of this episode is when they find out that the grand prize for winning the local talent show is ten pounds Worzel and Aunt Sally decide to enter. Now then interms of what I personally thought / felt about the actual plot that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode well then in all honesty I in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt that the actual plot that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode was in all honesty really good with this episodes plot being just as fun and as simple as you'd expect it to be not only because of the fact that it's kids shows but also because of the fact that the episodes premise is one that's simple and it's that kind of simplicity that really does work well enough in this episodes as while yes granted there does come a point in the episode where you know where the episodes plot is going it's still fun to see just how it is that the episode reaches that point with this episodes plot also being really childlike in nature which would normally be viewed as being nothing more then a bad thing but here because of the fact that both Worzel and Aunt Sally themselves are basically children it is something that not only works well enough in this episodes favour but it's also something that adds an extra layer of charm to the episode as well with this episodes plot also being really rather entertaining and as well as being really rather engaging as well in my freaking opinions anyways / at least.
Starring in this episode is Jon Pertwee as Worzel Gummidge , Jeremy Austin as John Peters and Charlotte Coleman as Sue Peters. Also starring in this episode is Mike Berry as Mr. Peters , Norman Bird as Mr. Braithwaite , Myrtle Devenish as Mrs. Edgeworth , Percy Herbert as Mr. Oakshott , Megs Jenkins as Mrs. Braithwaite , Frank Marlborough as Mr. Lucas , Michael Ripper as Mr. Shepherd and Una Stubbs as Aunt Sally.
Now then interms of what I personally thought / felt about the actual acting that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt that the actual acting that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode was in all honesty really good. With all of this episodes actors turning in some really good performances in this very episode which is really nothing new for this show as this show even in it's worst episodes has always had some really good acting in alot of it's episodes and while the acting in this episode might not be as dramatic as in previous episodes that's because of the fact that this episodes does have more of a focus on it's comedy rather then it's drama and heck there's really only one dramatic moment at the end of the episode and even then the acting from series lead star Jon Pertwee is still just as good as it was in the more comedic parts of the episode with this episode also giving us the chance to hear him do a Swedish accent which he does pull of really well and alot of what makes the acting not only in this show but also in this episode as good as it is is the fact that series director and producer James Hill also directed several feature films and infact comes from a feature film background and he there for brought all of that over to a TV show where he expected nothing less then the best acting that he could possibly get and that is something that really does really well in this episode with the actin that's in this very episode also being helped by the fact that this episodes script is just so good that all this episodes actors have to do is just say the lines as they are written and a good performance really will come out of them naturally and that is something that really does help to raise the overall quality of the acting that's in this very episode.
As Aunt Sally is a main character in this episode the episode does end rather predictably with Worzel trying to get her to marry him only for Aunt Sally to hurt Worzel emotionally and make him cry. Which was just something that really didn't work in this episode as it was something that did come of nowhere and ind of felt forced as there was no lead up to it and it there for didn't have the emotional impact and those kinds of scenes do typically have in this show as something like that is usually something that they build up all throughout the episode with it then effecting how Worzel interacts with others during the events of the episode where as here it's only mentioned once at the start of the episode and it doesn't really effect how Worzel interacts with the other characters in this episode as he just interacts with them how he usually would with the episode then bringing it back into play to close out the episode which is a solid way to end the episode as it does remind you of just how horrible of a person that Aunt Sally really is but at the same time tho there should have been more of en effort to make that part of the story be an actual part of the story and not just something that's mentioned twice and that's it as all that does is cheapen the effect that a scene like that can and does have this is despite the fact that the scene in question is wonderfully acted and directed but if it was something that actively drove Worzel in this episode and we actually got to seem him try harder then usual to win the talent show and even have a scene with The Crowman even warning Worzel that Aunt Sally could hurt him again only for him to ignore him it would then make the scene at the end where Aunt Sally takes the winnings that she had promised to keep safe in her tea pot only for her to then go and spend the lot on a dress for herself all the more upsetting and heartbreaking.
This episode is not only acted like it's a part of a feature film but it's also shot like one as well as alot of this episode from a visual standpoint. Not only looks very visually stunning but also looks like that could be in a feature film in it's own right with this coming from the fact that the whole crew of this show really did treat each and every single episode of this show like they were working on a feature film and because of that we got alot of really visually stunning shots that you just wouldn't do in kids TV shows then and most certainly wouldn't do now in kids TV show or TV shows in general for that matter as kids TV show was always seen as being lesser then alot of TV shows and yet it's shows like this and this episode in particualr that really do prove that if you have a cast and crew that are deeply passionate about something and that won't to make it the best that they can do with the very limited budget that had on this show then they will make something that's feature film worthy and make you pay attention to it because of it and it's that kind of thinking that really does need to be brought back as alot of kids TV shows today look like exactly that a TV show and yet if they had cast and crew that actually wanted to make it better and make there product look better then alot of kids TV shows today regardless of it there live action or animated will look a lot better then what they already do and the people who love those show will love them even more because of it.
Like Are You Being Served? would do after it this episode also does take advantage of the fact that Mike Berry was a singer. By having his talent actually be singing which was a nice way to make a nod to that with the episode even showing alot of his performance which does have it's downside to it as well the first of which being nobody watching this episode wants to what his characters talent is that's not a knock against the actor by any means it's just that the shows young target audience are more interested in seeing Worzel and Aunt Sally and his song performance does take away more screen time for them and the second problem with this is is the fact that the song he's given to sing isn't that good in the first place as it's just a song about a cowboy and his horse and that's really it which is great as there learning into the country western theme a bit but if your going to do that then go all out and have the cowboy doing something or have his horse doing something interesting or you could make it a love song where the cowboy falls in love with someone in the town that he's in just anything would have worked and yet because of the fact that whoever it was that wrote that song chose not to that we are left with a song that despite it being very well sung just doesn't hit as well as it really could have done but it is a solid song for this episode to have in it tho it's just one that really could have been alot better given that Mike Berry was a singer and heck they even could have shown him messing up the song just to keep in it character for Mr. Peters.
What was kind of surprising to see in this episode is that for a small portion of the episode not only do Worzel Gummidge and Aunt Sally actually get along but they also make for a really good double act. As there act very easily could have been two people trying to put on an act but failing miserably and that's where the comedy would come from from it and yet because of the fact that Aunt Sally really can't stand working with Worzel they both end choosing different acts with her act being a badly done ballet act and his act being a half decent magician's act which is something that doesn't really fit in with his character as if anything Worzel would do more of a kids comedy act which is something that he does kind of try out near the midway point of the episode when he puts on his Swedish circus clown head that he swapped with someone from Sweden and even tho he does alot of the bits that you'd expect a clown to do he messes them all up all of which only serve to make Aunt Sally mad at him and poke him with holes with the farmers pitchfork something which he does later use as part of his magician's act but Aunt Sally doing a ballet act is something that is in her character as it;s something that she's openly expressed about either liking or doing herself and as such it does make sense that she would think that she's really good at it only for it to turn out that she's actually really bad at it with her act only being saved due to Worzel coming on stage ad messing it up for her.
Now then this episode has / and an exact grand total running time of exactly twenty six minuets and five seconds. Which is pretty much the bogstandard running tie for this show and to this episodes credit that's all the running time that it really does need to tell it's story as this episode really does have just the right amount of plot to really cover that amount of running time with the episode even making the best use of it's running time for the most part as while the big emotional moment near the end of the episode isn't set up all that well all of the characters are really developed and there personalities pretty much set in stone thanks to the previous episodes and as a result of that is the fact that this episode really doesn't have to do any of that altho what made have made this episode better was if we the audience got to see more of the talent show as then we could have seen other characters from the series like the Crowman or even Mrs Bloomsbury-Barton both of which could have had some acts of there own which would have felt totally in character for either character and it's also something that really would have made this episode alot more fun to watch as well as we'd get to see a side from the shows actors that we don't usually get to see on this show either but those scenes are also scenes that would have added nothing to the overall plot of the episode and would have slowed the episode down quite despite them being something that really could have been alot of fun but I really will admit that this episode really does have some really good pacing to it tho.
So now then as this is a comedy that really does mean that I have ti actually talk about the actual comedy that's actually feature / presented to us inn this very episode well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt that the actual comedy that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode was in all honesty really good. With this episode having alot of painfully funny moments in it alot of which do some from Worzel and Aunt Sally trying to put an act together for the local talent show and all of the jokes work in this episode as all of them feel like jokes that the characters would make even Worzel messing up his clown act does work as he doesn't know before hand that the water in the bucket is meant to be replaced with confetti and so when he sees a bucket of water he does the whole act including throwing it all other Aunt Sally which is a cute moment as is the fact that they both enjoy a good laugh when Worzel starts leaking something which he does use to end his magicians act with even the failed ventriloquist act that they try to do does somehow still work as of course Worzel wouldn't know that your not supposed to move your lips with this episode really going to show you that you can knock it out of the park comedy wise in a kids comedy TV show if you create jokes that are actually not only really well done but also come across as being character driven jokes as well which is something that really does work well enough in this episodes favour in my freaking opinions anyways / at least
Overall this was a really good episode as this is an episode that proves even an episode with the most simplest of plotlines can work just as well as the more emotional and emotionally driven plotlines of the show as well with this episode being just a fun filled episode of the show to watch in my freaking opinions anyways / at least. Now then i've talked about all of the good and as well as all of the bad things that are in this very episode in this very review and as such that really does mean that this very episode really does earn itself a grand old score of exactly an 8.5 out of 10 from me.
Now then interms of where I personally got all of the images that I personally used in this very review well then boys and girls and as well as ladies and gentlemen I personally got all of the images that I personally used in this very review from Amazon . Co . Uk and Google Images. With my personally preferred website to use to get the images from this very episode that I used in this very review being the really great Google Images really simply just due to the fact that really alot of if not really all of the images that are all really from this very episode with alot of them being better quality then what you'd really think of and all of the images are really of course up and really on Google Images are also really all fairly high in quality and as well as them all being really fairly freaking high in definition.