The foul tempered and wildly eccentric bookshop owner Bernard Black (Dylan Moran) is back for a third season. Black Books concerns the musings, doings and time-frittering techniques of raddled proprietor Bernard Black (Dyl... more »an Moran), his shy, multi-challenged assistant, Manny Bianco (Bill Bailey) and their under achieving friend, Fran Katzenjammer (Tamsin Greig). This dubious trio form a family of sorts to protect each other from the realities of modern London, but nothing can protect them from each other.DVD Features:
"This third series is as good the first two series if not better.
The opening episode is one of the best of all. A competitor bookshop 'Goliath Books' has opened next door and Manny (Bill Bailey) is now working there. He left 'Black Books' after his hand was burnt by Bernard. Simon Pegg plays the Manager of Goliath books and really adds another dimension to the show. Shame he couldn't have done more. This episode is absolutely brilliant and I must have watched 8 or 9 time now.
The episode 'Moo-Ma and Moo-Pa' contains perhaps the most surreal moment of the entire series when Bernard and Fran go a under a dinner table in a restaurant to pick up a piece of cutlery and there is a whole bar under the table! In case you hadn't worked it out Moo-Ma and Moo-Pa are Manny's parents who come down to visit, much to Bernards disgust.
Sadly there is no commentary on the series 3 disc. The commentaries on series 1 & 2 were almost as good as the shows themselves. However the out-takes and deleted scenes are good, and as whole the DVD easily merits 5 stars.
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Not as good as the other 2.
Lucas Nickerson | Portland, OR | 01/18/2009
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Sadly, it is the last season of Black Books available. Sadder still, it was also the worst of the 3. The shop seemed uncharacteristically clean..... The characters too seemed tamed and eager to finish up the show. The writing was a bit too lagged and the comedy just wasn't the same. Worth a watch, but maybe better to watch in reverse succession."
Great ending to the series!
R. Moy | Boston, MA | 12/24/2007
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I love Black Books! My gf got me into this BBC Comedy series. Wonderful episode with Simon Pegg from Shaun of the dead! Probably my favorite one!"
Dylan Moran may, in fact, be God
White Countess | New York City | 11/15/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"The third series of Black Books for me is by far the best of the series, winning legions of fans and winning a BAFTA to boot. Two episodes in particular, no, never mind, I lied: they're all amazing.
In an episode where Bernard and Manny write a Children's Book, I laughed so hard, I nearly ejected my spleen.
In the final episode---which is the best ending of a series I've ever seen--- Bernard comes home from a party he's been dragged to and when told that it was fun replies, "The food was cold. The drinks were few. The people were many. It was everything I expected. And less." The episode continues on to complete hysterical drunken mayhem. I kept having to pause the DVD to laugh so I wouldn't miss anything.
I so enjoyed the third series on Netflix that I've bought all three series on Amazon so I can go back and collect the nuggets of comedic gold I missed the first time around.
During uncertain times, the comedy of Dylan Moran is certainly a balm for the soul."
One of the best British shows!
S. Meador | Odessa, TX | 08/29/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Black Books 3 is as deliciously funny as the first two seasons. Bernard Black, Fran and Manny are back and they're the same anti-social, insane and bumbling trio we adore from the first seasons. Dylan portrays Bernard Black; a wine-guzzling, cigarette smoking, Irishman, and he plays it so well. All of his mannerisms are hilarious and you never know what he's going to do next. He's definitely my favorite character. I only wish their seasons were longer. Each season has 6 episodes that will still keep you laughing even after you've watched them for the third or fourth time. I know some people just don't get British humor, but this show is entertaining for anyone looking for humor, wit, and a some good old fashioned physical comedy. If you've never seen it, I recommend you see it from the beginning. The first episode of the first season is one of my all-time favorites. And in this third season, my favorite episode would have to be Elephants and Hens in which Bernard and Manny have bet Fran that they can write a children's book in one night and they have another bet that Fran will have an awful time with her friends that same night. Black Books is one of my favorite shows and everyone I've played it for has loved it too."