Barnes & Noble
The alter ego of British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen, Ali G has been a sensation in England since 1999. The joke is simple but has surprisingly long legs: a clueless, yellow-clad wannabe rapper, Ali G, interviews politicians, CEOs, and other public figures who are unaware it's all a hoax. After running out of people in England who didn't know who he was, Cohen brought Ali G to America -- and HBO -- to hoodwink such notables as Newt Gingrich, Sam Donaldson, Boutros Boutros-Ghali, and Ralph Nader. The humor comes not from making fun of these bigwigs but from their on-camera tolerance of Ali's endless stream of inane questions: After giving definitions for "legal" and "illegal," former U.S. attorney general Dick Thornberg is asked, "What is 'Barely Legal' then?" In Season 1's six episodes, Ali G also tries to pitch a movie to various Hollywood executives and sell a new business idea to Donald Trump, who is the only person that seems to sense that this big hip-hop banana may be full of it. Cohen additionally plays two other characters on the series, both of whom rival Ali G for laughs -- fashion reporter Bruno and Kazakhstan Television correspondent Borat. Wildly effeminate and camp, Bruno interviews a range of fashion and media types, all of whom are more than happy to say anything just to get some time on-camera. It is Borat, however, who is the show's secret weapon. His segments, "Borat's Guide to America," send the English-impaired personality to visit "real America": dating and etiquette experts, acting school, nature colonies, and town council meetings. Asking the most inappropriate questions possible, Borat pushes American hospitality to the limit. Borat also gives Cohen a chance to show off his gifts as a physical comedian. One segment in a gym suggests he could ably fill Peter Sellers' shoes in the Pink Panther series. Often rude, crude -- and surely offensive to the timid -- Da Ali G Show is one of the funniest things on television today. Enjoy it now before all of America is in on the joke, too. Bill Pearis
Barnes & Noble
Some people think English comedian Sacha Baron Cohen is a genius, others think he is a menace. At the very least he is a provocateur, and he's in rare form in the six episodes that comprise Ali G’s second season. Cohen has three alter egos: "hip-hop journalist" Ali G, whose grasp of current events is uneven at best; Borat, an anti-Semitic TV reporter from Kazakhstan; and Bruno, a flamboyantly gay Austrian fashion commentator. In these guises Cohen corners and interrogates real-life figures who, we are led to believe, think he's a real journalist. He peppers them with stupid questions and deliberately misinterprets their answers, all the time prodding them to say something foolish. Season 2 subjects -- or should we say victims? -- include veteran ABC newsman Sam Donaldson, paleo-conservative pundit Pat Buchanan, former L.A. police chief Daryl Gates, novelist Gore Vidal, and former EPA administrator Christine Todd Whitman. There's something indisputably sophomoric about Cohen's schtick, but in addition to getting laughs with his own remarks, he often elicits hysterically (if unintentionally) funny comments from his interviewees. Some will find Da Ali G Show irreverent and exasperating, but those approaching it with an open mind will recognize in Cohen's antics more than a touch of irony -- and some perceptive social commentary as well. Ed Hulse
All Movie Guide
Improvisational comedian Sacha Baron Cohen brings his hit British TV series Da Ali G Show to America's HBO in a full season of irreverent interviews and zany special features, with Cohen assuming the characters of malaprop-spouting "hip-hop" journalist and aspiring rapper Ali G; Borat, a TV reporter from Kazakhstan who naïvely takes everything at face values; and Bruno, a gay "fashionista" from Austria. Season one of HBO's Da Ali G Show begins with the episode "Law, in which Ali G tries out for the Philadelphia Police Department and interviews former U.S. attorney general Dick Thornberg, Borat tackles the topic of dating etiquette and Bruno launches the first of several in-depth looks at New York's "Fashion Week." The next episode, "War, features Ali G's wide-eyed tour of the United Nations and a chat with onetime UN secretary general Boutros Boutros-Gali. Next up is "Politics, featuring the now-infamous Newt Gingrich interview (rumors persist that Gingrich was unaware that Ali G was a put-on) and Borat's clueless discourse on the American gun culture. "Art" finds Ali G chewing the fat with Inside the Actor's Studio's James Lipton and ex-astronaut Buzz Aldrin. The guests on "Science" include C. Everett Koop and Ralph Nader, with the added attraction of a sentimental stopover at a Nevada nuclear testing sight. And in "Belief, Borat braves the wilds of "The New South" and Ali G pitches a series idea to a group of network execs -- while still managing to spend quality time with interviewees James Baker and Marlin Fitzwater. Hal Erickson
All Movie Guide
The first of season two's six episodes is "Respek, in which Ali G interviews ABC News' "boss man" Sam Donaldson and former LAPD chief Daryl Gates. The second episode, "Rekognize, invokes memories of the first season's notorious Newt Gingrich interview as Ali G raps with Pat Buchanan; meanwhile, the clueless Borat hits the campaign trail during an election in the Deep South. Then there's "Peace, wherein Ali G finds time to promote his own novels (including a book version of the Lord of the Rings movies!) while interviewing U.S. Olympic president John Nabor, as Borat receives artistic inspiration from Porter Wagoner. In "Realize, New Jersey governor Christine Todd Whitman figures into Ali G's probe of security precautions. "Jah" begins as Ali G visits Mount Vernon (and bemoans the fact that George Washington isn't home) and has fascinating conversations with author Gore Vidal and sex educator Sally Epstein. The season concludes with "Realness, with Ali G soliciting advice and counsel from Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus author John Grey, economics specialist Charles Schultze, and professional curmudgeon Andy Rooney, while Bruno learns all about collegiate wrestling (all those muscular guys), and Borat goes job-hunting. Hal Erickson
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