I want to take a second to tilt my drink to Calvert DeForest, a.k.a. Larry “Bud” Melman, of “Late Night with David Letterman” who passed away on March 19. He was a staple of my teenage nights. Here's to ya, pal; thanks for the laughs.

Now, on with the royal sexy time, as it were. “The Tudors” debuted last weekend on Showtime. The show is exactly what all the previews touted: sex, lies, intrigue, sandwiches and men in tights with swords. Brutal.

The historical drama set in early 16th-century England covers the sordid life of King Henry VIII in all his debauched glory.

Henry VIII exemplified the selfish nature of royalty and monarch governance. He was the historical equivalent of huge credit card debt. And I love that a show can at the same time teach history, social studies, sexual psychology and government.

Though I have always thought monarchies are a pretty stupid form of government, they're no more stupid than representative democracy, socialist single-party states, theocracies and whatever China has morphed into.

Myself, I've always been a krytocracy type of guy. Then again, I once had some me time with an underground, unedited episode of “Greg the Bunny” because I heard Sarah Silverman's boobs popped out. Turns out it was only Eugene Levy dropping an f-bomb.

Anyway, point is, masturbation is no basis for the formation of a government.

Henry liked to screw. A lot. So much so that he created an entire denomination of Christianity because of it. Now that is love.

And the series is not shy in showing us just how much he loved. Naturally so, the focal point of this first season will be Henry and Anne Boleyn and how the king made their love law. Despite this, Sam Neill is stealing the show as Cardinal Wolsey, with all the string-pulling and background maneuvering.

Visually, the show is amazing. The costumes, sets and locations bring you into the world of Henry VIII and keep you there despite a choppy flow of story.

The show's biggest flaw is that there is no common-man point of view. “The Tudors” is so filled with kings, lords, dukes, cardinals and other royalty that it's difficult to identify with and hard to emotionally invest in any of the characters.

Maybe the strength of its Machiavellian scripting and sex-filled episodes can hold this show up and make it a hit. But from what I have seen so far, it will be tough. Now, if Sarah Silverman were to play a bar wench or court jester, then yes, hit show.