Arrested Development Season One I'm not sure since the Simpsons mid-90s prime I've laughed so hard and so much at a television programme which sadly as I write this looks to finishing once and for all- the show revolves around Michael Bluth (Jason Bateman), the “normal” one in a family of crazies, who is forced to stay in Orange County and run the family real estate business after his father, George Bluth Sr (Jeffrey Tambor), is sent to prison for shifty accounting practices. While George Sr. spent the last year in the slammer discovering his newfound Judaism and recording inspirational tapes, Michael spent it picking up the pieces and trying to teach his offbeat family how to live without an endless expense account. All the while, Michael has also been trying to do right by his 14-year-old son, George Michael(Michael Cera), an earnest kid who works diligently at the family’s frozen banana stand. The Bluths are led by manipulative matriarch Lucille Bluth (Jessica Walter), a socialite who is as icy as her martinis. Then there’s the oldest son, Gob (Will Arnett), a womanizer and struggling magician (sorry, “illusionist”) whose biggest trick will be to make a real job appear. The youngest brother is Buster (Tony Hale), a neurotic professional grad student and glorified mama’s boy (he spent 11 months in the womb). The Bluth siblings are rounded out by cause-obsessed sister Lindsay (Portia de Rossi), who is married to the hapless Tobias (David Cross), a doctor-turned-actor who might get more work if he wasn’t a self-proclaimed “never-nude.” Lindsay and Tobias are the ultra-permissive parents of Maeby (Alia Shawkat), a 14-year-old who loves finding unique ways to rebel against their overindulgence.

Like I've already said the show is very, very funny it also one of the most intelligent written sit-coms ever written (it requires the audience to have a memory), excellent moments include Gob entering prison after making a promise to the warden that he'd get out in 24 hours (the end to this is LOL hilarious), Liza Minnelli's funny recurring role as Lucille 2 (romantically linked to Buster of all people), anytime Henry Winkler shows up as the families terrible lawyer, Michael losing in short term memory thanks to Lucille, the possibly stand out marijuana, teach a lesson episode, Tobias' never nude problem, Lucille adopting a 14 year old Korean boy, the "blind" attorney, Maeby's illness fraud, George Sr trying to set up the family's accountant, the take your daughter to work day and the season finale. These are just moments that have come to me, there is so many more.

The cast are very funny- Will Arnett is a future star, De Rossi is even better then she was in Ally McBeal, David Cross and Tony Hale are also brilliant, old pro's like Jessica Walter and Jeffrey Tambor round off an amazing cast.

Recommended to anybody who likes to laugh (we are not talking people who list Friends as their favourite sit-com), this should forever be known as a legendary sit-com in years to come ("why oh why didn't it last for years!"). Awesome.

*****