The Mighty Boosh as Gothic

Noel Fielding and Julian Barratt's dark, sinister and surreal comedy, first began in 1998 from a stage in central London, can be related to the key themes of the Gothic genre today.

The Yeti scene is just an example of some of the creatures, ghouls created in the series. When reflected on some previous Gothic beasts such as Frankenstein's Monster and Dracula, there are some similarities, but ultimately they conjure up fear within the audience.

When the Gothic genre was entering publication, authors wrote on subjects that were considered socially awkward and to an extent inappropriate and grotesque. Back then, religion was a hot topic to begin to question, but The Mighty Boosh talks freely of rape, sorcery and occasional drug use (the Crack Fox).

It's rare that the time the Boosh is set is in the daytime. Nighttime, cold winter mornings are more frequent in the series, this making the entrance of the 'Moon' character more accessible, but also giving the series that creepy atmosphere.

In this clip, Vince and Howard practice some Black Magic from Naboo's forbidden safe of spells to impress some gothic girls. Vince changes his name to Obsidian Blackbird McKnight (which Howard remembers as Obsidian Blackbird Raven McBovril. After the spell is cast, they conjure up an old lady, a Nanna, which causes the world to be under Nanageddon.

A huge topic within the Gothic narrative is madness. The Boosh clearly shows signs of madness in the modern audience, with it's humour, language and most poignantly, in it's character. Mad characters include The Crack Fox, Spider Dijon, Old Gregg, Codiac Jack and most notably, The Hitcher. All of these characters display signs of madness, like Frankenstein or Edgar Allen Poe, but the Hitcher is on another level.