TV Review "Saxondale"

 Steve Coogan stars as Tommy Saxondale an ex roadie who toured with rocks biggest acts back in the 70's and 80's. Now in his late 40's still dealing with the aftermath of a messy divorce he works as a pest controller and lives with his girlfriend Magz played by Ruth Jones and his young assistant Raymond played by Rasmus Hardiker. Both Magz and Raymond are left to deal with Saxondale's recurring anger issues and unwillingness to part with the life he lived as a younger man.

We are introduced to the character of Tommy Saxondale in an anger management meeting where he makes his feelings abundantly clear that this type of counseling is in his words is “horseshit”. Saxondale dons an Alabama State T shirt, a long mane of thick grey hair and a scruffy salt and pepper beard, the get up gives off a feeling of white trash trapped in a Brits body. His slurred speech throughout the dialogue is very monotone and he hails himself as a free thinker, making his ideologies known to anyone who will listen.

Coogan who has gained a reputation for his loony and often over the top portrayal of his characters has seemingly toned it down in this. In Tommy Saxondale the audience see's a character who knows his best years are behind him and appears to just be going through the motions in life. Once you get over the quirkiness of the character a lot of the charm is lost.

The dialogue in many instances is completely ad libbed, another thing Coogan is known for, but in this case it tends to fall flat on it's face. There is a scene in the pilot where Saxondale is interviewing potential new employees to help him with his pest control business. The scene is a relatively simple set up with cameras fixed on each subject. Coogan is left to ramble on about a multitude of different subjects ranging from Trans Ams vs Mustangs, DJs, and the topic of Anthropomorphism or the attribution of human characteristics onto animals or non living things. What you are left with is an overwhelming sense that it all is just a big inside joke that only Coogan knows the context to. The scene seems as though Coogan is simply bouncing anything and everything he can off of these unsuspecting actors hoping to yield something, the problem is nothing genuinely funny ever surfaces. It's a bit that's short on laughs and heavy on confusion.

Saxondale also suffers greatly from the fact that the audience is never allowed the opportunity to step outside of the mind of Tommy Saxondale and look at him subjectively, seeing how absurd this man really is. The dialogue and secondary characters are simply there the react to whatever this man says and does, never do they have a say in how the story progresses or how Saxondale goes about his business. This makes the show so one dimensional that it is hard to stay invested. After awhile you know what Tommy Saxondale is all about and no longer need to be fixated on him in every facet.

The show does have is shocking and vulgar moments of humor that Coogan has always done but this time it's not enough. The laughs are to few and far between to warrant sticking with these character for an entire season. The shows slow pacing is hurt by it's low budget, the same familiar settings where the action takes place ultimately becomes tiresome. Saxondale certainly has it's moments but consistently leaves the audience wanting more not only from it's characters but the manner in which they are presented and interact with each other.