At the time I am writing this, I am still in Hong Kong, but my the time you are reading this, I should be on my way to do my final shopping in Bangkok (by early afternoon) or I've already returned to Hong Kong (by night). I hope you have not felt bored during my absence, because you shouldn't have, since I have pre-written so many entries.
Question: Have you got your Christmas presents yet? Still haven't bought any? Do not know what to buy? Well, if you ask me, you still have a chance to grab something absolutely amazing and definitely worth collecting!! Unlike the Mr Bean DVD box-set which I have recommended last time, which I considered to be terribly good already, this time you can learn some solid, jolly funny English!!!
Get ready for the Ultimate Edition of ...
"The Black Adder"
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| Image from tvscape.net |
(Available at HMV, selling at around $659, not cheap, but there are many hours of fun. You may want o search around for cheaper ones. I found it from BBC Shop, but I don't know the cost of the taxation and shipping and I don't want to wait for 30 days, so I bought it from HMV).
The widely-accepted, the one-and-only-one TV comedy that can beat Rowan Atkinson in Mr Bean, has to be Rowan Atkinson in the Black Adder series.
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| Image from BBC |
It comes in 4 seasons, from (1485 - 1917):
The Black Adder (Set in 1485 at the end of the British Middle Ages),
Blackadder II (set in England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558–1603)),
Blackadder the Third (set in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, a period known as the Regency), and
Blackadder Goes Forth (set in 1917, on the Western Front in the trenches of World War I)
Together with the 4 main seasons, the DVD box set also comes with:
Blackadder's Christmas Carol (Remastered)
Blackadder: Back and Forth (Remastered)
Blackadder: The Cavalier Years (Remastered)
Blackadder Rides Again
+Audio Commentary
+Interviews
With four seasons and you fly through four periods of time. The Black Adder series is not just another usual TV comedy. It is a series of which even school students have to know in their English history classes[6]. Heavy researches, tonnes of cash on costumes and character designs, uncountable numbers of sharp-tongued and catchy words, and juicy yet "stomach-crampingly" hilarious sarcasm in every line. I must say I have never seen so much good stuff compressed in just 6 DVDs. I definitely haven't had enough of it and will not have enough of it for many years to come!!!! Surely something that everyone will watch and rewatch over and over!!!
Subtitles must be on and it is quite dictionary-intensive (online dictionary is a must) if you want to enjoy it fully but every word is worth learning! Of course, some of you might be tempted to put on the Chinese subtitle, but I believe that you can only enjoy it fully when you are understanding it completely in English, what's more, I don't think they have Chinese subtitles for this DVD set (Mine doesn't have).
Here I let you preview the intros and endings of the Black Adder:
So, what are you waiting for? Grab a copy now!!!
PS: If you really want to preview parts of the drama before spending your money, you could go to Tudou.com and search.
"Learn with what you love, and you learn best." -- Locky
Merry Christmas to you all!
Vocabulary:
jolly -- adj. [old-fashioned] enjoyable, energetic and entertaining
sharp-tongued -- adj. criticizing and speaking in a severe way
catchy -- adj. (especially of a tune or song) pleasing and easy to remember
stomach-crampingly -- adv. [derived word] in a state when there is a sudden painful tightening in the stomach, hereby refers to the stomach pain caused by serious laughing.
sarcasm-- n. the use of remarks which clearly mean the opposite of what they say, and which are made in order to hurt someone's feelings or to criticize something in a humorous way
compress -- vb. to press something into a smaller space
dictionary-intensive -- involving a lot of effort or activity in a short period of time, hereby refers to looking up from the dictionary in a very frequent way.
Picture resources:
http://www.tvscape.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/blackadder_remastered.jpg
Resources:
[6] From the DVD of Blackadder Rides Again
The Black Adder Intro Season 1 @ YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMhZyviousA
Blackadder season 2 intro @ YouTube
http://youtu.be/BjFB1FZdKU8
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=101056&dict=CALD&topic=unkind-cruel-and-unfeeling
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=11947&dict=CALD
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=69834&dict=CALD&topic=disapproving-and-criticizing
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