Arrested Development Free
Posted in Online on July, 28 2006 8:31 AM
Microsoft's MSN website is to make every episode of US sitcom Arrested Development available for free until 2009.
The sitcom, which ran for fifty-three episodes, was not considering successful enough to be recommissioned, but with this deal the episodes can and will be seen by more people.
However, there will be adverts during the programme that can't be skipped.
Arrested Development is about the corrupt, incompetent but strangely successful Bluth family. It is a strange mix of deadpan humour, mockumentary footage and slapstick - initially you have to watch quite closely to remember it is a sitcom.
Rob Bennett, MSN's general manager of entertainment and video services was quoted as saying "The beauty of distributing an entire series online - especially a series like Arrested where the audience is so passionate - is that we can build an immersive world around the show. We want to build something where the fans will feel at home. This is a very large deal for us."
No doubt some fans will wail and moan about how the sitcom has been sold on and ruined forever, but frankly, it looks like a great idea to me.
