Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

Cast: Daniel Radcliffe, Steve Buscemi, Geraldine Viswanathan, Karan Soni, Jon Bass, Ithamar Enriquez, Erin Darke, David Dastmalchian, Annie Mumlo, Lisa Loeb, Quinta Brunson, Jon Daly, Garcelle Beauvais, Tim Heidecker, Paul F. Tompkins, Ego Nwodim, Kyle Mooney, Sascha Compère, Lolly Adefope.

Whoever thought of casting Daniel Radcliffe and Steve Buscemi together in Miracle Workers must be preserved for their intelligent and off the wall mind.

To watch two very different actors, from completely diverse backgrounds and cinematic experiences, perform and play off each other across four series has been one of revelation and fierce enjoyment.  Throw into that mix the three other actors who have been part of the ensemble since day one, the extraordinary Geraldine Viswanathan, Karan Soni and Jon Bass, and you have an unlikely recipe for success, and with a premise that alters from season to season, the chances of being bored with the series are miniscule, they are microscopic.

It is to the imagination of the writers and the cast who run with the possible absurdity and scenarios that the fourth season reflects and parodies many of the dystopian nightmare films that have been present in our vision for the last fifty years, from Mad Max in which End Times takes its ultimate inspiration from, to Escape From New York and Terminator, the beauty of the piece is knowing that the main cast, as well as those in supporting roles, don’t just understand the joke, but revel in it with fierce pride.

A fourth season of the series might have been inconceivable when the programme first aired, the sense of proportion of parody and the offering of religion as a comedic setting perhaps upsetting those who fought a battle against the Monty Python team and their defining film The Life Of Brian, and yet like that moment of caricature, Miracle Workers kept giving and as human history has progressed from being under the yoke of religious dogma, as the great expedition of pioneers settled on land that did not belong to them, so it is inevitable that we must see the humour of our own demise and being aware of the ultimate folly of our species.

A superb series that arguably could see it reach its zenith in this fourth series; End Times is the finale we all deserve. 

Ian D. Hall