Gilligan’s Island – The Complete Second Season
Gilligan’s Island
The Complete Second Season – 1965 (Warner Home Video-2005)
Back in the mid-Sixties, both Gilligan’s Island and The Beatles were the rage, infiltrating the public consciousness. Five decades onward, both remain singularly distinctive and arresting public icons whose golden legacy continues to endure and richly thrive.
Gilligan’s Island-The Complete Second Season (Warner Home Video) reveals the wacky affiliation between The Fab Four and everyone’s favorite lost castaways. As with any new minted phenomenon sweeping the globe, pop culture is reflected, reconfigured and recontextualized in all forms of media. Included on this nifty 3-DVD set is “Don’t Bug The Mosquitoes,” a cleverly written episode which centers upon The Mosquitoes, a Beatles-like group, replete with electric guitars, shaggy mop tops and cheeky scouse humor.
The band – Bingo, Bango, Bongo and Irving have escaped the clutches of their oppressive global fandom and landed on… where else?… Gilligan’s Island. Farce and fun ensue in this highly enjoyable comedic romp as The Mosquitoes are routinely bugged, berated and bamboozled by the castaways, eventually splitting the island, leaving the Gilligan et al with only a record album.
Filmed at the height of Beatlemania in 1965, the show features a real life recording act (The Weavers) in the role of the Mosquitoes. This Beatles spoof includes the ‘band’ performing an authentic British Invasion sounding track (“Don’t Bug Me”) plus an extra aural and visual treat. A song named “You Need Us” is ably performed by The Honeybees – Maryann, Ginger and Mrs. Howell who wears an oversized Beatles wig. With its catchy chorus including such choice lyrics as:
“You need us / You need us / Like a Bee needs it’s Buzz” The track comes off well, sounding like a lost Sixties pop nugget that could have been sung by one of the many popular girl groups of the day like The Shangri-las, The Shirelles, and The Ronettes.
Fans of the Beatles and pop culture enthusiasts will enjoy this particular show which pokes fun at the Four Lads From Liverpool and the other 31 comedic classics contained on this must-have collection of television history. Highly recommended.
Ken Sharp
Copyright ©2005 PopEntertainment.com. All rights reserved. Posted: January 13, 2005.
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