That new-time religion in London

If you only watch the Hulu promo for "Rev.," you might think it's just another "Vicar of Dibley" or "Father Ted" -- a catchphrase-heavy sitcom about zany English vicars and their zany congregations. 

It's actually a lot better than that. Having just watched the third (and probably final) season on Hulu, I consider it another of those miniature BBC masterpieces, like "The Office" or "Fawlty Towers." I say "miniature" because the best BBC sitcoms almost always have the good taste to wrap it up after a couple of seasons. And each season usually consists of only 6 or 7 episodes.

Imagine if American sitcoms did that. Imagine The Fonz with a character arc, Jed Clampett saying to hell with Beverly Hills after 13 shows. Maybe the writing would have been better.

"Rev." has some great writing: funny and poignant, often at the same time. Tom Hollander does play an English vicar (the Rev. Adam Smallbone), but his crumbling church in East London is far from the bucolic surroundings a tourist might envision. His pews are mostly empty and his few parishioners are not exactly paragons of virtue. His own efforts at piety tend to clash with the reality of a corroded inner city. 

It's easy for a show like this to mock religion, but "Rev." never does. Maybe just the opposite. Toward the end there's a wonderful episode that seems to give religious faith its due. Not preachy and not entirely predictable. I won't spoil it, but look for Ralph Fiennes, and later, Liam Neeson.  It's a great coda to a memorable show. Dave Bob says check it out. And let me know what you think.