Studied stupidity: respect to do ali G show.

• Author: Sullum, Jacob
• Position: Culture & Review - Product/Service Evaluation

"Yo," SAYS THE host, awannabe rapper named Ali G who wears a tracksuit accessorized with wraparound sunglasses, a Tommy Hilfiger skullcap, and massive amounts of gold jewelry. "Science. What is it all about? Technology. What is that all about? Is it good or is it wack?" Thus begins a panel discussion featuring two futurologists, an environmentalist, and a creationist.

Ali G, who speaks a puzzling patois of British slang, hip-hopisms, and Caribbean creole, gets things rolling by describing a friend with a Web site who "ain't got no technology." Later it emerges that Ali G thinks a computer would be stumped if asked to multiply really big numbers and that he considers the human fondness for bananas evidence of evolution. When one of the futurologists says in passing, "We're Homo sapiens," All G objects: "Hey, I ain't. I don't do that stuff." Even when the discussion veers into accusations concerning the floater someone left in the toilet backstage, with the creationist adamantly disclaiming responsibility; no one has the temerity to suggest that All G cannot be for real.

This sort of studied stupidity is the essence of Da Ali G Show, the new HBO series created by the British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen. Cohen, who also portrays Borat, a TV host from Kazakhstan, and Bruno, an Austrian fashion reporter, specializes in pushing people's credulousness, politeness, and patience to the limit. Sometimes the results make you squirm, as when the awkward, wildly inappropriate Borat talks about sex and flatulence at a Sons of the American Revolution dinner, punishing his affable hosts for their hospitality. More often, Cohen uses his talents to discomfit people who deserve it, deflating the pretentious and humbling the arrogant.

As Bruno, Cohen gets a fashion designer to contradict himself over and over again without batting an eye, going along with diametrically opposed interpretations of his work. When a spokesman for the Drug Enforcement Administration says marijuana can cost up to $1,000 an ounce, All G tells him he got ripped off and offers to set him up with a less expensive supplier. "What is legal?" Ali G asks former Attorney General Richard Thornburgh. After a brief disquisition on the topic, All G has a follow-up: "What is illegal?" Thornburgh does his best with that but is unprepared for the third query: "What is barely legal?" The surreal exchange ends with Ali G recommending a movie that might elucidate the matter.

The genius of Cohen's...