Dear potential DVD consumer:

For those who aren’t yet familiar with the Consortium of Genius (aka C.O.G.) or their new DVD, I will now introduce it in the style of an online vendor: "If you liked this DVD, you may also like: Morgus the Magnificent, Mystery Science Theater 3000, Pinky and The Brain (minus Pinky), the Three Stooges, megalomania, mind control and world domination."

Lewis D’Aubin embodies the manic (or maniac) character of Dr. Milo T. Pinkerton, who makes Dr. Evil look like a Tele-tubbie when it comes to diabolical scheming and global ambitions. He’s a fearless leader and a peerless lead singer.

Dr. Pinkerton’s greatest technical innovation is Drumbot, who is not merely a drum machine but also "projects himself" as a lively interactive character in the stage show.

The current C.O.G. lineup includes electric bassist Dr. Z (Jim Fairchild) -- whose polysyllabic name I’m not even going to attempt to spell -- who is funky, fresh, and foreign (presumably born somewhere between India and the Key of Asia Minor). More than just a mad scientist, he teaches a number of correspondence courses (I’m thinking about enrolling in the "Harem-ology" course myself).

Some group of caring souls (in bullet-proof vests, if they know what’s good for them) needs to intervene between Dr. A. Pentatonic (Jeff King) and various bottles of distilled spirits, but this does not diminish that he’s one hell of a guitar player and a reasonably effective yat-gangster in a lab coat. At no time on the DVD does he say "I’d rather have a free bottle in front of me than a pre-frontal lobotomy", but if he had, it would have summed up his character rather well.

Stylistic chamelons, these mad doctors have dissected, assimilated and stitched back together styles and songs from such diverse groups as the B-52’s, Devo, Limp Bizkit and Rush. The common thread in all of this seems to be "over-the-top fun."

There’s genuine laughs in the 30-minute featurette "C.O.G. vs the Phantom," with special effects believable enough that my 7-year-old son was actually creeped out by the titular monster. (Sorry, guys, there are no other titulars on this DVD.)

There are three music videos on the DVD, and while all are enjoyable, "Destroy Old Things" should win some kind of award for magnificent stop-motion animated weirdness.

Fans of the group should enjoy a progression of infomercials from previous C.O.G. incarnations and lineups of the group (only Pinkerton and Drumbot have been with the band from its inception back in the 2nd Millenium).As you might expect from a group of technical geniuseses...es (I’ll run the spell-check on that later), there are lots of little fun surprises on this DVD that you can accidentally stumble across or just jump out at you when you least expect them.

My recommendation? BOW TO THE COG! BUY THE DVD! SERVE YOUR NEW MASTERS!

Or risk the consequences...

Sincerely,

The Q