[TV] After life

[Wilko]

Office, Extras and Derek all genius IMO

His stand up is decent and even liked that ridiculous ghost town film he was in.

Idiot abroad amazing also.

I still think the podcasts are up there with the very best things he has done.

 

[Dick Swiveller]

Sorry, but you know he plays this character on purpose? Irritates me when people say they cannot watch The Office cause Brent is really irritating, errrrr, yeaaaahhh, that is the point.

Always amazes me the amount of people who equate character to comedian. Having never met the man, I have no idea if he is a dick or not but his comedic persona has always been smug and arrogant. I did hear his Desert Island Discs and he actually came across completely differently. Maybe it was an act but if it was, he should use that acting style more often as it is more convincing than his usual straight acting.

Same as Jack Dee is miserable whilst in character but presumably not so in real life. Miranda Hart presumably doesn't fall over with her skirt falling off every time she leaves the house. It is likely that they are playing caricatures of themselves so may have these traits in smaller measures.

Jimmy Carr is the perfect example for me. I have listened to a couple of candid interviews with him - the best being the Comedian's comedian podcast. He explains his process, rationale and persona whilst coming across in a more self effacing way. (And yes, I know tax blah blah)

 

[Albumen]

He peaked at Extras. Derek was just wrong.

 

[Wilko]

He peaked at Extras. Derek was just wrong.

I thought Derek was great! If you mean wrong in terms of the character he played, Derek was the good guy!

 

[Napper]

The main issue people seem to have with Derek is it isn't laugh out loud every minute.

It's so much deeper than that. Thought it was absolute genius to be honest

 

[Wrong-Direction]

Maybe it's me, but I just don't get the Ricky Gervaise humour thing, don't find any of it funny, so tend to avoid it.
Reminds me of Shakespeare plays, nobody likes or gets them, but everybody seems to 'love' them when questioned..
I suppose if your are told enough times that something is good then you tend to fall into step.

The establishment does a great job at that!
As for Ricky, the office, extras, his first few stand ups were cracking, slowly getting fed up of him though but will give after life a go..

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[Wilko]

The main issue people seem to have with Derek is it isn't laugh out loud every minute.

It's so much deeper than that. Thought it was absolute genius to be honest

Same. Many reviewers said that it did not know whether to be a comedy or a drama. Why can't it be both? I thought it was superb, actually gets better on second or third viewing too.

 

[Wrong-Direction]

I still think the podcasts are up there with the very best things he has done.

Agree

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[Falmer Flutter ©]

Afterlife was also a TV drama series shown in 2006, starring Lesley Sharp and Andrew Lincoln. Well worth watching if you get a chance - spooky, poignant and sad.

God, I remember that. Set in Bristol wasn't it? Incredible dark drama.

 

[Triggaaar]

Sorry, but you know he plays this character on purpose? Irritates me when people say they cannot watch The Office cause Brent is really irritating, errrrr, yeaaaahhh, that is the point.

I can't watch The Office because I don't like cringe comedy (I have watched chunks of several episodes, and maybe the odd one all the way through). I know it's funny, I know Gervaise is funny. I just can't bear to watch it sometimes.

Same with Alan Partridge (although I have watched a lot of that over the years, I'd still regularly have to switch off part way through an episode) and Borat.

 

[Albumen]

I thought Derek was great! If you mean wrong in terms of the character he played, Derek was the good guy!

I don't care if he was the good guy, and I watched a fair few of them. He was playing someone (badly) with a learning disability, it was excruciating and bewildering. I dig out difficult subjects in sitcoms like Flowers but this was bad bad judgement.

 

[Westdene Seagull]

Maybe it's me, but I just don't get the Ricky Gervaise humour thing, don't find any of it funny, so tend to avoid it.
Reminds me of Shakespeare plays, nobody likes or gets them, but everybody seems to 'love' them when questioned..
I suppose if your are told enough times that something is good then you tend to fall into step.

It's not just you ...... I've never got RG either .... particularly the office. Small nugget of triva about the office though .... Mrs W went to school with Martin Freeman and still chats with him occasionaly on Facebook.

 

[darkwolf666]

Sorry, but you know he plays this character on purpose? Irritates me when people say they cannot watch The Office cause Brent is really irritating, errrrr, yeaaaahhh, that is the point.

Understand Brent is deliberately annoying, so does Gervais play that character all the time or is that HIS personality.

 

[The Clamp]

Thought it was rather funny judging by first episode. Some chucklesome bits.

 

[Lyndhurst 14]

Maybe it's me, but I just don't get the Ricky Gervaise humour thing, don't find any of it funny, so tend to avoid it.
Reminds me of Shakespeare plays, nobody likes or gets them, but everybody seems to 'love' them when questioned..
I suppose if your are told enough times that something is good then you tend to fall into step.

Not a great fan of Gervaise but like some of his stuff, also liked it when he annoyed a lot of Americans a few years ago when he hosted the Golden Globes.

A lot of people, from all walks of life, 'get' Shakespeare - and 400 years on he's as relevant as he was then

 

[The Clamp]

Found the heroin scene in Episode 2 rather disturbing. I hope this doesn’t go too far down that road.

 

[Mellotron]

Curious about this, but not confident going into it. I think his TV stuff has been a rule of diminishing returns since the split from Stephen Merchant.

His stuff with Merchant always seemed to have more believable dialogue, and the more emotional parts were always more subtle and nuanced.

 

[Mellotron]

I would say you are bang WRONG there. I both like them and get them. You know what they say about The office, if you do not 'get it' then you are probably one of the characters.

I've definitely known a couple of Gareths who said they can't stand The Office.

 

[Mellotron]

He peaked at Extras. Derek was just wrong.

I thought Derek was great! If you mean wrong in terms of the character he played, Derek was the good guy!

The main issue people seem to have with Derek is it isn't laugh out loud every minute.

It's so much deeper than that. Thought it was absolute genius to be honest

Same. Many reviewers said that it did not know whether to be a comedy or a drama. Why can't it be both? I thought it was superb, actually gets better on second or third viewing too.

Comedically it was superb. Kev is one of my favourite people ever and they use Karl well in S1, shame he's replaced by that absolute humour vacuum in S2.

But some of the more serious dramatic parts of Derek had unbelievably clumsy, patronising writing. Suddenly someone has smeared vaseline on the lens and the sad piano is playing to tell you to feel sad - that's X Factor levels of cloying. It's also bizarrely reminiscent of the sort of Comic Relief bits that RG would take the piss out of.

A couple of the "sad" bits hit the mark but some of them really don't. Don't get me wrong, I really wanted it to be good, and the humour is great, but I think it sorely missed Stephen Merchant's input to be seen as close to The Office or Extras.

 

[DavidRyder]

Started to watch it, but have had to stop due to the fact my neighbours have some sort of pet reptile and its food seems to have escaped, and have been chasing 3 weird looking critters around my flat. Programe looks ok as a gentle watch

And the award for 'Most Original Excuse' goes to....!