 Australian comedy used to sink or swim based on whether it was funny. That PR strategy isn't a popular one with broadcasters these days. Instead it's a constant stream of press releases, A-list events and interviews for our comedy stars, even if there's nothing much for them to actually promote...
There's certainly a lot of Hamish & Andy out there. But considering their radio show is currently credited with all but putting Triple M and Nova out of business, I'm guessing Fox thinks they're getting just the right amount of exposure. Trouble is, rather than using their success to try and do something worthwhile with their show (remember how Martin/Molloy used their status to basically squeeze out most of the crap music they were supposed to be playing, so that a two hour show ended up containing over an hour of actual worthwhile radio comedy?) they're using it to get publicity for the stunts they're doing to get more publicity. "Caravan of Courage" was so great the first time it got all that coverage in Who Weekly and on Rove - let's do it again! In case people didn't get enough of a radio show driving across the country talking to locals. Again, remember when Martin/Molloy would just ring up a small town pub and ask to talk to the locals? As far as radio is concerned it sounded pretty much the same, only with Martin/Molloy you'd then get a funny sketch instead of more local chat, listener chat, local chat, and a reminder that tomorrow they'd be chatting to a new bunch of slightly different locals. Chris Lilley, on the other hand, doesn't even have to get out of bed to grab headlines. With each passing day his legacy grows, from semi-decent character comedian to Living God who alone amongst every single comedy figure who ever lived dares to hold up a mirror to multicultural society. Only we're the ones left feeling really good about being a dumb slut. From some of the articles written about how he's contemplating considering thinking about perhaps making another show, it's hard not to think that his fans would stab you if you told them Jonah wasn't the greatest character ever created. Let's not forget: he produced NOTHING in 2008. He put out an extended DVD of Summer Heights High, attended a few gala openings, dropped a few hints about maybe doing yet another show featuring Ja'ime, and that was it. Page after page of breathless prose about the genius work he no doubt was already thinking up, when a few minutes of actual thought as to his body of work so far should have generated a far more interesting story: is Lilley washed up? Summer Heights High only featured one original character in the form of Jonah, and in the case of Mr G he's been banging that drum since Big Bite a good half decade ago. In a country with a working entertainment press, every day Lilley didn't announce a new show should have been a day when the press asked out loud questions like "Is Lilley Burnt Out?" Gina Reily & Jane Turner deserve all the success they've had. All the money they got out of Seven as well. But as they've clearly had plenty of both success and money, their over-exposure takes a slightly different form from Lilley's. It's almost as if the media that provides all this over-exposure only has two settings: startling comedy genius or burnt out comedy hack. There's almost no real praise for Kath & Kim floating around these days: all their exposure now has a faint sneer to it, a hint that the author thinks they should have stopped two series ago. Maybe if they'd spoken up two series ago we'd pay attention. Maybe if the media said "Don't do another series" we'd respect their views. Instead, it's just another form of praise, only now they're getting the thumbs up for cashing in rather than making us laugh. Unlike Lilley, this time the media's got it right.
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