Without Graham’s straight-man authority and Terry Jones’s full physicality, some sketches felt a little hollow. The tribute was lovely, but you couldn’t ignore the absence. Was It Worth It? Absolutely — with one caveat. If you wanted a time machine back to 1973, you were disappointed. If you wanted to see five old friends (and one urn) celebrate a legacy that shaped global comedy, you got more than your money’s worth.
The show proved something important: Python wasn’t just a series of sketches. It was a way of seeing the world — absurd, intellectual, childish, and deeply humane. Even at 70+, Cleese could still deliver a put-down, Palin could still blush on cue, and Idle could still make a dirty joke sound like a hymn. If you only watch one Python reunion show, make it this one. But don’t start here. Watch Holy Grail , Life of Brian , and the original TV series first. Then let Live (Mostly) be the encore — a warm, flawed, hilarious goodbye. Monty Python Live
Gilliam sat on stage, operating his cutout animations in real time — sometimes messing up on purpose. It demystified the magic just enough to make you appreciate the craft even more. What Didn’t Quite Land - Pacing issues: Some sketches (e.g., Crunchy Frog ) felt rushed. Others dragged because they relied on video screens for actors who couldn’t be there. Absolutely — with one caveat
And yes. They did promise “something completely different.” It was mostly the same. And that was just fine. ★★★★☆ (4/5) Best moment: The Dead Parrot remix. Worst moment: When you realize there will never be another one. Would you like a shorter version for social media or a list of the best sketch-by-sketch highlights? The show proved something important: Python wasn’t just
Python’s humor thrives on intimacy — a small BBC studio, a cramped flat. The O2’s vastness swallowed a few quieter moments. You could tell they were playing to the cameras more than the back rows.
The living Pythons — — took the stage. Terry Jones, battling aphasia, had limited speaking roles but still appeared in sketches, reminding everyone why he was the troupe’s secret weapon. What Worked Brilliantly 1. The Dead Parrot Sketch (Reimagined) They could have just replayed it verbatim, but instead, Palin’s shopkeeper delivered a surprisingly poignant monologue about the parrot being “a metaphor for the Python reunion.” Cleese’s customer kept storming out — only to return because, well, people paid to see the classics. It was meta-Python at its best.
If you’d told a Python fan in the 1990s that one day, nearly all the surviving members (sorry, Graham) would reunite for a full-scale arena show, they’d have asked for whatever you were smoking. But in 2014, that’s exactly what happened. Monty Python Live (Mostly) wasn’t just a cash grab — it was a victory lap, a wake, and a party rolled into one. The “mostly” in the title was a nod to Graham Chapman, who passed away in 1989. But true to form, they brought him back anyway — via an urn of “ashes” (actually a photo prop) that John Cleese “accidentally” knocked over in one of the show’s most touching and hilarious moments.
