Canvassing opinions on TV series

[ShogunRua]

Also, how the shit do Matt and Trey have a tv show I didn't know about? I'll have to get on that asap. Thanks for pointing it out.

While the show was completely apolitical, the fact that it portrayed Bush Jr as a dopey sitcom dad annoyed conservatives, while not portraying him as completely evil and/or retarded (the two are mutually exclusive, of course, but that's the standard liberal propaganda against any conservative) turned off liberals.

A shame, because it was an absolutely brilliant show for the one season it was on. And I have never understood why Parker and Stone's earlier work doesn't receive more praise. "Baseketball" was excellent, and "Orgazmo" is one of the best comedies I have ever seen.

Still have yet to watch "Cannibal! The Musical"...

[ShogunRua]

I like British humor in general; the original version of The Office, Keeping Up Appearances, Black Adder, Monty Python, The Benny Hill Show, 8 out of 10 Cats, etc.

No Fawlty Towers? It can't be that anyone could not like it - so I am guessing you haven't seen it.

Your assumption is correct. I simply haven't seen it. I keep hearing great things about the show, so it's probably time to rectify that.

Also no Yes Minister/Yes Prime Minister? It also serves a cynical primer on politics and Govt. My favourite quote from Yes Minister -

The Official Secrets Act isn't to protect secrets – it's to protect officials

Another one I am unfamiliar with. Thanks for the recommendation, man; I hadn't heard of that one before, but will definitely look into it now.

[martryn]

I've never seen Children's Hospital, but I have heard a lot of buzz about it. I didn't mean to imply that it wasn't any good. I just figured it was yet another stoner fuel Adult Swim show. All my stoner friends sit around and watch Adult Swim, and I don't understand why most of that shit is funny. Aqua Teen, which I am somewhat familiar with, had one or two episodes that were any good, but the rest were so unfunny that I was embarrassed to watch them.

Shogun, are you familiar with Garth Marenghi's Darkplace? That thing fit the bill? What about the Inbetweeners?

I would recommend watching Life's Too Short, a Gervais / Merchant show starring Warwick Davis as himself. The cameos really make the show, though. Liam Neeson's in the first episode. Damn. Hilarious. Only 8 episodes, but solid.

[djross]

Speaking of British television comedy: The Thick of It.

[ShogunRua]

No Fawlty Towers?

As an addendum, I looked on Netflix, and they have all of Fawlty Towers available for streaming. (Unfortunately, "Yes, Prime Minister" is only through the mail!) In fact, I watched the first episode earlier tonight, and had this to write;

"While it relies on the classic comedy dynamic of the put-upon, sympathetic, scoundrel of a husband bossed around by a shrewish wife, it does it particularly well. John Cleese is phenomenal in the title role of Basil Fawlty, playing him with energy, mania, and hilarious mannerisms. The minor characters, particularly Manuel, have outstanding funny spots of their own, and I love that there was a solid plot arc for the entire episode.

So far, I'm impressed and excited to see more."

I've never seen Children's Hospital, but I have heard a lot of buzz about it. I didn't mean to imply that it wasn't any good. I just figured it was yet another stoner fuel Adult Swim show.

It's not, though. I know what you're referring to, but let me assure you, there is nothing even remotely similar between Childrens Hospital (which is an incredibly fast-paced show heavily influenced by Zucker-style comedies, featuring legitimate Hollywood stars like Rob Cordry, Ed Helms, Malin Akerman, etc.) and animated dreck like Aqua Teen Hunger Force.

On a slight tangent, it's amusing that so many people refer to it as "Children's", when one of the recurring gags of the series is that the title is actually "Childrens", named after founder Arthur Childrens.

Shogun, are you familiar with Garth Marenghi's Darkplace? That thing fit the bill? What about the Inbetweeners?

I haven't seen either one. Are you asking if they're similar to Childrens Hospital, or just something that I would enjoy?

Darkplace sounds intriguing from the description. Did you like them yourself?

I would recommend watching Life's Too Short, a Gervais / Merchant show starring Warwick Davis as himself. The cameos really make the show, though. Liam Neeson's in the first episode. Damn. Hilarious. Only 8 episodes, but solid.

Thanks for the recommendation. I'm admittedly way behind on my Gervais/Merchant shows; I have only seen a couple of episodes of "Extras"!

I pretty much expect everything from Gervais to be comedic gold, though. (And sadly, "The Invention of Lying" was a brutal punch to the gut in that regard)

[Ag0stoMesmer]

Brit tv comedy-wise.

Alot of the good stuff has already been mentioned, I'd add;

classic
Porridge - Probably tied with Fawlty Towers for best ever

newer
Absolute Power - Kind of a PR version of The Thick of It
Peep Show - post-Office awkwardness, cringe/gross-out comedy that is Very funny
Gary: Tank Commander - Gentle, Father Ted-like daft with some Office talking heads stuff

acquired taste
Nathan Barley - slightly dated now, hipster satire
The Mighty Boosh - surreal, cartoony, people tend to either love or hate this
The Book Group - not popular but I enjoyed it

[ShogunRua]

No Fawlty Towers? It can't be that anyone could not like it - so I am guessing you haven't seen it.

I have to thank you again for recommending this. Here is something I wrote on Cinemageddon;

I finished watching the first series of Fawlty Towers, specifically the episode The Germans.

Holy fuck, the final part, when Fawlty stumbles out of the hospital back to the hotel, might have been the funniest seven minutes of anything I have ever seen in my life. I really liked the first five episodes, but this took the humor to a whole new level. One of the most brilliant episodes in television history.

[mwgerb]

Within two months, we ought to have an improved idea of where Breaking Bad stands in the history of television shows.

[ShogunRua]

I have to thank you again for recommending this. Here is something I wrote on Cinemageddon;

I finished watching the first series of Fawlty Towers, specifically the episode The Germans.

Holy fuck, the final part, when Fawlty stumbles out of the hospital back to the hotel, might have been the funniest seven minutes of anything I have ever seen in my life. I really liked the first five episodes, but this took the humor to a whole new level. One of the most brilliant episodes in television history.

'You attacked Poland' as a reply to the statement before that is brilliant and totally unexpected - wonderfully set up. I have always felt that the humour in Fawlty Towers is unmatched on Television - it's on a different level by itself.

I started losing it when Basil informs the old German that he doesn't need to send for meat, puts both fingers by his head, and starts making cow noises, while standing outwards on his tip-toes, nostrils flared, eyes popping. From that point, I was laughing continuously until the end of the episode.

[martryn]

I haven't seen either one. Are you asking if they're similar to Childrens Hospital, or just something that I would enjoy?

Darkplace sounds intriguing from the description. Did you like them yourself?

I would highly recommend Darkplace to anyone. It's a fantastic spoof of 80's self-absorbed sci-fi/action fare.

Inbetweeners I'm more hesitant to recommend. I liked it.

Life's Too Short is good, but the guest stars typically steal the episodes. Liam Neeson's bit in the first episode ranks up there with all time funniest things I've seen on TV.