Comedy Central DVD and Paramount have released The Best of Crank Yankers: Uncensored, a 58-skit compilation of the Comedy Central hit show that, through the use of puppets, celebrates the "art" of the prank phone call. Fans of the show may enjoy this compilation, but newcomers' reactions will depend on whether or not they accept the basic premise of the series - which may be problematic.

Created by Adam Carolla and Jimmy Kimmel, and premiering on Comedy Central in 2002, Crank Yankers' premise was simple enough: get comedians to pull prank phone calls on unsuspecting marks, and then re-create the calls on TV via the use of rude little puppet shows. Calls were made in Nevada, the only state where only one party in a phone call has to be aware of a recording device (this was done to avoid lawsuits), with releases still sought from the marks once the bit was ready to air.

Prank phone calls, at least when I was a kid, were a rite of passage. Relatively innocent, and certainly puerile (a big laugh getter when we were in grade school was asking the local butcher if he had pig's feet), prank phone calls, at least practiced by the majority of stupid kids, would hardly be considered "art" (although The Jerky Boys and whoever did those R. Lee Ermey Full Metal Jacket calls, come close). And with Star 69 and Caller I.D., can you even do prank phone calls anymore? Maybe it's a lost "art" after all.

So I can sympathize with Crank Yankers' problem in trying to take an essentially audio experience and making it work for TV. How do you take something so dependent on your imagination, and make it work visually? I'm not sure you can, but I do know the puppets of Crank Yankers don't really sell the premise, either - especially when the puppet work is so bland in and of itself. It's rare in Crank Yankers when the level of puppetry offers anything close to the humor of the recorded call. Most of the bits just feature these Jim Henson-like muppets mouthing the words of the recorded call, with nary a humorous addition of their own (the crazed monkey bit is probably the funniest puppetry shown here). You can easily listen to Crank Yankers without actually watching it, because the puppets add absolutely nothing to the mix. Often times, the various signs and jokes that are found on the background walls of the primitive little sets, are funnier than the puppet work (at "The Porn Barn," where sex callers work, there's an inspirational poster stating, "For $5 a minute, nothing is too disgusting.").

And truth be told, not many of the prank phone calls are all that funny, either - certainly they're not on a level with the best of The Jerky Boys or the aforementioned Full Metal Jacket calls (or the Joe Pesci Goodfellas calls, for that matter). The best calls featured on The Best of Crank Yankers: Uncensored are probably the "Special Ed" calls by comedian Jim Florentine. Playing the part of a man with "special needs," Florentine frequently reaches a level of almost surreal irritation and annoyance - which becomes quite funny - when he has "Special Ed" repeat a particular phrase over and over again, until you think you're going to put your head through a wall. The "I've got mail, yaaaaaaah!" bit is justifiably famous (he says the phrase over forty times within the short call time), but the "Movie ticket" bit is just as funny. "Special Ed" keeps asking how much money it would cost if he bought four or six or ten or more tickets, to which he always replies, "Yaaaaah, I can bring two of my friends!" Why the guy on the line stays there is anybody's guess, but it's a hilarious bit.

But big boffo laughs like Florentine's bits are few and far between, though, on The Best of Crank Yankers: Uncensored, unless you still think it's funny to hear people swear. Too often, that seems to be the "go to" moment for these calls, when the comedian finds out the bit isn't really taking off (Wanda Sykes is the biggest purveyor of this cheap shot). And the notion that you'd actually sit down and watch over three hours of this stuff, 58 skits in a row, really taxes the premise to the breaking point (I had to split it up over a few days, because it became so tedious and unfunny after a while). Prank phone calls, while amusing (as long as they're not intentionally cruel - like those incredibly insensitive calls by smarmy radio host Glenn Beck, where he makes fun of convenience store clerks), are probably best left to the eight-year-olds, giggling over their lame jokes and their "daring" at getting one over on some stranger.

Here are the 58 skits included on The Best of Crank Yankers: Uncensored:

The DVD:

The Video:
The full frame, 1.33: video image for The Best of Crank Yankers: Uncensored is okay; this isn't the best looking show, with hot, cheap lighting and a garish color design. But for what it is, the transfer is free of most artifacting (although I did notice some combing during the busier scenes).

The Audio:
The Dolby Digital English 2.0 stereo sound mix is more than adequate for the poorly recorded phone calls. English close-captioning is available.

The Extras:
There are no extras for The Best of Crank Yankers: Uncensored.

Final Thoughts:
Puppets mouthing real crank phone calls may seem promising, but not as executed on The Best of Crank Yankers: Uncensored. The puppetry adds nothing to the crank calls - and truth be told, the calls aren't all that great to begin with, either. You may laugh at a few of the bits (Jim Florentine's "Special Ed" calls are the obvious highlights here), but many of the skits substitute lame vulgarity for true improvisational wit. Fans may buy it, but if the premise intrigues you, I suggest a rental first for The Best of Crank Yankers: Uncensored.