The Sarah Silverman Program Season 2, Vol. 1

It’s nice that Sarah Silverman finally has an appropriate venue for her distinct brand of humour. No one is better at playing inadvertently offensive characters or combining the sweet with the vulgar. The first season of The Sarah Silverman Program was a brilliant representation of her comedy and a long overdue starring vehicle for the comedienne, who as been making people laugh with poo and AIDS jokes since the ’90s. The second season of her show was eagerly anticipated but sadly didn’t quite live up to the first season. There are still some amazing episodes (probably some of the best she’s made yet) but the series also became inconsistent for the first time — not a good sign for a show only in its second season. Episodes like the one in which Silverman paints herself in blackface to discover what it’s like to be black are amazing and manage to push buttons without ever being upsetting. But while most of the second season maintains this level of quality, there are also many unfortunate dips. Silverman bases too many episodes around a single bathroom joke or her relationship with her sister, which always ends up feeling like an in joke between the Silvermans that we will never understand. Still, these episodes are rare and don’t drag the season down too much. For the most part, the show is dedicated to Silverman’s sweetly naïve character dealing with such issues as abortion and immigration. Whenever the episodes focus on taboo subjects or Silverman’s hilarious gay neighbours, played by Brian Posehn and Steve Agee, they can be the amongst the funniest 22 minutes on TV. This second season DVD comes packed with extras, dramatically more than the first season. We get commentaries on every episode, a few featurettes, an extended interview with the cast and crew at Comic-Con, and some short sketches originally filmed for the internet. All of the special features are funny and informative, showcasing just how much fun the cast and crew have making the show. The only problem with the set is that it only contains just the first half of the second season. Why studios are starting to split up TV seasons into two sets is beyond me. It’s irritating and unnecessary. Seriously, stop that you guys. It’s a pain in the ass.