Lost has recently gotten all kinds of credit for juggling an insane number of characters, but NewsRadio
was probably the finest small-screen comedic ensemble collection of the
1990s. Created by Paul Simms, the series never achieved the sexy
zeitgeist heights of a show like Friends, or even the sturdy ratings of something like Frasier, but for those in the comedic know, it was home to laughs born of irony, crisp joke-writing and serial silliness.
What makes NewsRadio
so smart and funny is its blend of disparate comic styles, and the
screwball manner in which it captures the absurdity of inner-office
politics and romance. The show is set at WNYX, a New York radio station
owned by Jimmy James (Stephen Root), an oblivious and eccentric
billionaire. Overworked but perennially positive-minded news director
Dave Nelson (Dave Foley) struggles to juggle the multiple personalities
of his staff, including ambitious ex-girlfriend Lisa Miller (Maura
Tierney), who spells him as boss some this season, and preening,
bombastic anchor Bill McNeal (the late, great Phil Hartman). Rounding
out the cast are distractible office idiot Matthew (Andy Dick),
bubble-headed slacker secretary Beth (Vicki Lewis), electrician Joe
(Joe Rogan) and Catherine (Khandi Alexander).
In all honesty, this season of the show isn’t its finest (half-)
hour. The series was constantly facing cancellation speculation, and
consequently its narratives feel somewhat clipped and uncertain. Too
many episodes recycle old conflicts. While this wouldn’t be the series’
last season, it would be the last one with Hartman — who can take a
simple line reading like “And how!” and turn it into high art — and his
sudden, heart-rending absence dealt the already hamstrung show a blow
from which it would never recover. Still, middling NewsRadio is
better than a lot of sitcoms hitting on all cylinders, and there’s
plenty of piecemeal amusement to be found herein. One episodic
highlight is “Beep Beep,” in which Jimmy gives Matthew a toy car in
which to tool around the office as a birthday present, and also tries
to get Dave and Lisa back together in an effort to goose their
productivity. Also scoring are “Copy Machine,” in which Dave is forced
to eulogize an employee who dies in a tragic office mishap, and the
two-parter “Who’s the Boss?” in which Dave and Lisa’s attempts to teach
Bill a lesson backfire to humorous effect.
Spread out over three discs in slimline cases, NewsRadio: The Complete Fourth Season
is presented in 1.33:1 full screen, with a Dolby digital 5.1 surround
sound English mix and optional English subtitles. Extra features are
relatively sparse, but include an amusing little experimental short
film in which Simms inserts himself into the show’s credits and
recreates various seasonal plotlines in miniature, playing each of the
characters. There are also a clutch of audio commentaries with Simms,
Lewis and writer-producer Joe Furey, which are interesting chiefly in
that they’re also sat in on by a collection of below-the-liners not
typically represented in behind-the-scenes chats: post-production
coordinator Todd “Spider” Chambers, second assistant director Michael
Risner and script supervisor Robert Spina. Finally, there’s a whopping
20-minute gag reel, which includes spittoon rimshot miscues, Foley
accidentally leaving his glasses on and errant Diet Cokes slipping into
frame, as well as a litany of (bleeped) profanities when lines are
flubbed. Watching these genial gaffes, one yearns for Hartman even
more. B+ (Show) B (Disc)