Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency

We watch TV programs for different reasons. Some are gritty and realistic, some are factual and interesting and some are plain bonkers and entertaining. Dirk Gently fits very snugly in the last category. It is an hour of running around the place doing random things and causing chaos. Eventually the random things are given meaning, and it turns out Dirk was always right (ish). Viewed realistically, it makes no sense, Dirk is armed with little more than charisma, confidence and a bucket load of bullshit. The fact is, we want the bumbling fool to be right because he smiles at the camera and does endearingly random things. Realistically again he must be God, or just the luckiest man in the world. No one else by doing random things gets the right answer. This just makes it even more entertaining when he debunks horoscopes. Here's a man that believes so much in himself that he does whatever tickles his bizarre sense of logic, like Zen navigation (watch it, it's hilarious). It's silly, but ridiculously entertaining.

To laud more praise on it, Dirk (Stephen Mangan) is played  brilliantly. His idiosyncrasies are endearing, his behaviour erratic and charm spot on. I'm not sure whether it's the writer or the actor I should thank for these but either way, it's great. Furthermore, the whole tone of the program is very dapper and tweed.... quite English in fact. He reminds you of the eccentric and carefree teacher with the crappy car, even if you didn't have that teacher, you can still imagine him. All in all (holistically) it is brilliant, 5 out of 5.