Postmodernism in the Mighty Boosh

Postmodernism; a word with no set definition. However it is a word which many have challenged to try and form its meaning and purpose in our society.

We do know, that postmodernism is seen as a rejection of the modernist movement. Modernism seemed to fade as the postmodern movement challenged and changed modern beliefs and styles. This could be seen within various forms of media, such as art, culture, t.v. , music and many more.Theorists, artists, musicians, creators, all challenged postmodernism with their own interpretations, and things we had always seen as 'truth' began to be seen in a new light.

TV has always been a major part of everyone's lives. It is said that we live in a 3 minute world where we have become so used to absorbing information from these squares screens. Adverts, programs and music videos have nearly all either embraced or neglected postmodernism.

The Mighty Boosh is a perfect example of how TV has become postmodern. 20 episodes were aired on BBC three with the first being aired on the 18 May 2004 , and was written by Noel Fielding and Julian Barratt. Although ever episode includes postmodernism, one in particular that drew my attention was the episode of Milky Joe.

Even before the episode begins, it is clear to see that postmodernism is featured within the series. A mixture of random squiggles, cartoon characters and eerie music which has no set genre all come together to create an artistic beginning, which in itself is postmodern due to making the audience wonder what the series is going to be about, and what characters may appear. This would influence an active audience before the start of the program as it leaves questions unanswered about what is potentially going to happen.

The episode of Milky Joe is about the main characters, Vince and Howard, becoming stranded on an island, and create the character Milky Joe using coconuts and sticks to keep them company. The coconut is seen to be given human like qualities which would resemble anthropomorphism. A very highly used concept within postmodernism to confuse audiences and once again, make them ask questions as a response.  Nearer the end of the series, the coconuts actually come alive, which would then further push the boundaries of hyper realism as it is not actually possible for this to ever happen in reality.

This episode clearly uses intertextual references from the film 'Castaway' in which a man is deserted on an island and uses a football named Wilson as a companion. The fact that an object is used as a character in both The Mighty Boosh and this film, may also tell us that the mighty boosh might be trying to parody the film, especially by giving it a postmodern twist by actually making the coconut characters come to life, which we do not see in Castaway.

Bricolage is a theory which was formed by Claud Levi Straus which is said to be a technique where works of art are constructed from various materials available. In Milky Joe, this can be seen by the various mixture of genres, and concepts. This episode could be considered to be more like a short film than part of a series due to its narrative structure being based on the Castaway film. However it clearly embraces aspects of a musical and even a romantic comedy if you could class the coconuts as an actual character in which Vince and Howard become attracted to them.

Overall it is clear to see that The Might Boosh has embraced and taken on board postmodernism from every angle. It pushed the limits of postmodernism on TV  by creating something viewers had never come across before, and to this day I still believe that it is impossible for another TV series to be as postmodern as the mighty boosh was. I consider the series almost to be like a piece of artwork in which it cannot be re-created or interpreted. It leaves audiences with mixed emotions from confusion to happiness and it is obvious that the episode of Milky Joe contains many aspects considered to be postmodern.