Foil, Arms & Hog – Craic-Ling

Three guys. A straight man (Sean Finegan aka Foil), a tall, gangly guy (Conor McKenna aka Arms) and a quirky-looking one that likes the limelight (Sean Flanagan aka Hog). It’s an age-old formula that has worked right back to The Three Stooges. Throw in a guitar and some loose props and you have Irish YouTube sensations, Foil, Arms & Hog.

Translating their sketch style onto the stage is not necessary a slam-dunk, but in their opening show of the Sydney Comedy Festival, they (mostly) nailed it. McKenna and Flanagan started off roaming the audience with a cheeky little guided tour of the hall and a lame but clever curtain joke. This was the preamble for the actual show, which – with confetti guns at the ready – was certainly a unique way to start.

What followed was a range of skits, some short, some longer, including musical ones that were highlighted by actually decent voices, including three-part harmonies, and physical gags that were taken on with full conviction. 

There was some clever but not overboard crowd interactions that often morphed seamlessly into the set material, plus a sketch – let’s call it ‘The Beer Hunter’ – that was well executed, even if it did tread a little close to the edges.

The quick original sketches, which leveraged off their ability for quality physical comedy, were the ones to really hit the mark, and there were times where you’d almost think you were watching the Doug Anthony All Stars of old.

Ultimately, the question asked at the end of the show, “What was this show really about?”, makes a good point. It jumped around quite a lot, without any real sense of theme or order, and one of two sketches seemed to stretch a little long, but the ones that worked outnumbered those that didn’t.

The good-sized crowd lapped up the show, even prompting Finegan to say they were better than Melbourne, which of course brought a huge cheer. It was an entertaining way to start the Sydney Comedy Festival and definitely worth a ‘subscribe’.

Performed as part of Sydney Comedy Festival