The Chaser: still gettin’ away with it…
Getting away with political murder for just on two decades, The Chaser are as funny on paper as they are video – as the newest Chaser Annual attests.
Packed with satirical critique on the dickheads who run this country, this collector’s issue is for anyone who is tired of the hype constantly drip-fed to the masses via traditional media. Indeed, The Chaser may be guilty of extrapolating ten-fold on quotes by our political leaders and figure-heads, but even then there is more Truth (with a capital T) in the Chaser version of events then in the actual pollies’ presentation.
Every page is packed with insanity (and sometimes inanity) that borders on the sublime.
Featuring the world’s biggest Potato Head, Peter Dutton, on the cover (complete with yellow-stained teeth) and boasting a flipside, The Shovel, with Scott Morrison and Donald Trump (thumbs aloft like Tweedledee and Tweedledum) every page in between is packed with insanity (and sometimes inanity) that borders on the sublime.
There’s an editorial on the conviction of George Pell (a case which was “sloppy and one-sided, of a judge and jury arrogantly acting as if they are judge and jury”) followed by ‘John Howard’s Guide to Writing a Character Reference for a Convicted Sex Offender’; ‘Labor’s Guide to Losing an Election’, alarming survey findings including the ‘fact’ that “only 80% of Australians are Wellness Bloggers”; an ‘Ask Izzy’ (aka: Israel Folau) column; and a whole lot more nonesuch that reads far better than the average political prose.
Whilst the Annual and Shovel are littered with sweeping generalisations, the headlines and each news piece is as brilliantly penned as the next, such as “Bob Hawke Begins Arduous Task Of Deregulating Heaven’s Economy” and “Nation Unsure How To Measure Self Worth Now That Instagram Not Showing Likes” – with each grab skewering any ‘serious’ encyclopedic text about Australian politics and current affairs.
Sure enough, when it comes to causing a ruckus, the Chaser lads know how to make some real noise – and us deconstructionists can’t get enough of the chaos they’re causing.
Antonino Tati & Lisa Andrews
‘The Chaser Annual 2019’ is available in newsagents and quality bookstores, RRP $19.95.
CREAM MAGAZINE 
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