What Have You Been Watching on TV?

[Jeff]

Anyone going to watch Derek on Channel 4 sometime tonight? Let me know what you think if you're watching!

I heard a review that said it's crap.

 

[Macky]

I heard a review that said it's crap.

The pilot for it last year was very good, in an awkward, cringeworthy sort of way. I'm sure it was on youtube, but I can't seem to find it now. Probably been taken down by Channel 4

 

[Macky]

Anyone going to watch Derek on Channel 4 sometime tonight? Let me know what you think if you're watching!

I really enjoyed it. Great observational pathos, not trying to be 'funny' at all. Gervais completely owned the character and Karl Pilkington was Karl Pilkington

 

[SwedeFox]

I really enjoyed it. Great observational pathos, not trying to be 'funny' at all. Gervais completely owned the character and Karl Pilkington was Karl Pilkington

Thanks Macky, sounds good. I thought Life's Too Short ran dry on jokes quite quickly, so I wouldn't mind something more 'grounded' at all.

 

[Macky]

Thanks Macky, sounds good. I thought Life's Too Short ran dry on jokes quite quickly, so I wouldn't mind something more 'grounded' at all.

I can't wait to read the reviews. I predict it will be panned as not being funny enough for the dumb masses and that Gervais is just being offensive to the disableds

 

[FryattFox]

I can't wait to read the reviews. I predict it will be panned as not being funny enough for the dumb masses and that Gervais is just being offensive to the disableds

I thought it was terrible.

Partly because I didn't feel as though I was watching two characters, or even actors, but I more felt as though I was watching Gervais and Pilkington lark about in some A-level drama sketch. The whole show felt very self-indulgent, and I couldn't relate or enjoy it on any level.

The Office and Extras are two of my favourite TV shows, but LTS and Derek have been hugely disappointing.

 

[Macky]

I thought it was terrible.

Partly because I didn't feel as though I was watching two characters, or even actors, but I more felt as though I was watching Gervais and Pilkington lark about in some A-level drama sketch. The whole show felt very self-indulgent, and I couldn't relate or enjoy it on any level.

The Office and Extras are two of my favourite TV shows, but LTS and Derek have been hugely disappointing.

Well, to be fair, everything that Gervais has ever done has been 'self-indulgent' in as much as he isn't trying to impress anybody except himself.
Personally, I could relate to all of the characters, without them being too superficial.

Maybe it depends on your expectations before hand? It's very different to anything he's done before, but I wasn't expecting belly laughs having seen the pilot sketches last year

 

[Matt_B]

Well, to be fair, everything that Gervais has ever done has been 'self-indulgent' in as much as he isn't trying to impress anybody except himself.
Personally, I could relate to all of the characters, without them being too superficial.

Maybe it depends on your expectations before hand? It's very different to anything he's done before, but I wasn't expecting belly laughs having seen the pilot sketches last year

It was alright, I thought, and well scripted, but it left me feeling a bit 'meh' at the end. Maybe if it wasn't just one episode and I could get into the characters it would grow on me, but finishing where it does didn't satisfy me.

 

[SwedeFox]

I can't wait to read the reviews. I predict it will be panned as not being funny enough for the dumb masses and that Gervais is just being offensive to the disableds

The Telegraph liked it, The Guardian didn't.

Me, I thought it was sweet. Disagree with FF about Gervais - I thought Derek and Hannah's relationship was genuinely moving - but agree about Pilkington. I don't see the point of having him in there, would have preferred an unknown actor. Not a big Pilko fan anyway. I'm sure they had a laugh on set, though.

 

[glyn]

There's not been enough love for Homeland on here - brilliant series.

And Dexter is back.

 

[Macky]

Disagree with FF about Gervais... but agree about Pilkington. I don't see the point of having him in there, would have preferred an unknown actor.

The part was obviously written for him though, so an unknown actor replacing him would've been pointless.
I think Karl is ****ing brilliant. I've had the entire back catalogue of Ricky and Steve Merchant's XFM shows (where they met Karl, he was the show producer) playing on my MP3 player for the last couple of weeks with all of the music edited out, leaving just the chat between the three of them. It's ****ing hilarious, easily as good as the podcasts that resulted from the show.

 

[Mawsley]

 

[SwedeFox]

The part was obviously written for him though, so an unknown actor replacing him would've been pointless.

Yes, which was what I didn't like about it. The one thing I find funny about Karl is that he's genuinely different; he's not putting on a persona. When he's scripted that's obviously not the case anymore, as he's acting performing lines that are not written by him, so I thought his part was fairly pointless.

I think Karl is ****ing brilliant. I've had the entire back catalogue of Ricky and Steve Merchant's XFM shows (where they met Karl, he was the show producer) playing on my MP3 player for the last couple of weeks with all of the music edited out, leaving just the chat between the three of them. It's ****ing hilarious, easily as good as the podcasts that resulted from the show.

Yeah, I've listened to all of them too. I think the parts with Karl are funny, but only because of Merchant and Gervais. When Karl is doing Rockbusters, it's not the clues I enjoy - it's the way Ricky rips him to pieces.

I didn't particularly like An Idiot Abroad, for example.

 

[Blue Maniac]

View attachment 9350

:icon_lol::icon_lol::icon_lol:

 

[SwedeFox]

The Daily Show, I love Jon Stewart.

Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, I love Aaron Sorkin. Not as good as West Wing, but quality TV is hard to come by these days (it probably always has been), so cancelling this show halfway through the series seems like madness.

 

[Jeff]

Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, I love Aaron Sorkin. Not as good as West Wing, but quality TV is hard to come by these days (it probably always has been), so cancelling this show halfway through the series seems like madness.

If you like that, try 30 Rock. A similar theme (behind the scenes of a SNL type programme), but more of a comedy. I downloaded the first episode when it first started and I didn't bother with any more at the time, but a couple of months ago I bought the first four series box set, and it gets better and better as it goes on. I think it's the best American comedy for a long time.

Sorkin makes a brief appearance...

 

[SwedeFox]

Looks interesting Jeff, thanks. I thought Studio 60 as a comedy show looked rubbish (you only get to see certain segments) which I found annoying because I think some of Sorkin's writing is really witty and funny, but this looks like a real comedy series so will have a look.

 

[H T B]

Before watching the Tigers lose to Quins, ESPN had some play off games from the 90's.
2 City games were shown: -
v Swindon (City's 3rd goal still gives me tingles).
v Derby (how Williams missed the clearance header on the line, still makes me laugh )

 

[Motown Fox]

Star Trek: Phase II (formerly known as Star Trek: New Voyages) is a fan-created science fiction series set in the Star Trek universe. The series was created by James Cawley and Jack Marshall in April 2003.[1] The series, released exclusively via the Internet, is designed as a continuation of the original Star Trek beginning in the fourth year of the starship Enterprise's "five-year mission." The first episode of the series was released in January 2004, with new episodes being released at a rate of about one per year, though producers have expressed their desire to accelerate production.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Trek:_Phase_II_(fan_series)

Latest episode released "The Child" that I have been watching for the last half hour is here.

 

[Macky]

Latest episode released "The Child" that I have been watching for the last half hour is here.

How did you manage to watch it on the telly? I thought it was an internet only series?