Original Broadcast Date: Oct. 5, 1969
Attempted Synopsis: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart turns out to be the somber host of a TV show that reviews famous deaths; a man instructs an Italian-language class--pointlessly, since all of his students are fluent Italians; another TV host tries to get uncomfortably chummy with his guest; still another host hassles his famous guest about his pluralistic nickname; hosts 2 & 3 comfort each other; Picasso does a painting while on a bicycle; the funniest joke ever told becomes a weapon on World War II.
Review: With hindsight, this initial "Flying Circus" entry seems downright benign, a prime example of John Cleese's assertion that at the show's origins, the comedy troupe "just wanted to pick a few flowers." Still, the pickings are pretty good, especially with the first appearances of Python's unctuous and noncomprehending TV talking-heads, and the lengthy bit about the killer joke. But Python would be making far more lethal comedy themselves in the near future.
Priceless Gag: The first of Terry Gilliam's "linking" animations, this one a commercial for Whizzo butter, "absolutely indistinguishable from a dead crab."
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