Vice Principals, Tuesdays on Sky Atlantic, 9.35pm
THIS enjoyably dark and daft comedy stars Danny 'Eastbound and Down' McBride and Walton 'The Shield' Goggins as a pair of warring high school vice principals who join forces to eliminate the blow-in who's stolen the headmaster job they were both vying for.
Featuring a nice cameo appearance from Bill Murray as the former principal whose office the VPs Neal Gamby (McBride) and Lee Russell (Goggins) are both desperate to occupy, Vice Principals gets a lot of laughs from both its leads.
McBride's dunderheaded Gamby cuts a highly unlikeable dash and yet somehow manages to be weirdly sympathetic (emphasis on 'pathetic'), while Goggins camps up a storm as his more intelligent nemesis Russell, an ingratiating schemer.
When journeywoman principal Dr Belinda Brown (the excellent Kimberly Hebert Gregory) steals the top spot at North Jackson High from under their noses, the pair form an uncomfortable 'the enemy of my enemy is my friend' alliance to try and oust her.
Hilarity does ensue, but the laughs in Vice Principals can be slightly uncomfortable at times as the VPs' lust for power leads them to do very bad things indeed.
Rounded out by a great supporting cast including Busy Phillips as Gamby's ex-wife, the show finds its feet (and tone) from the second episode onwards, so be sure to double dip when you give it a try.
:: Catch up now on Sky.com
