Here it is, take it:
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/la-et-veep-20120420,0,3510200.story
toot toot veep veep, veep me 911, etc.
― Acute puppy syndrome (admrl), Saturday, 21 April 2012 01:32 (1 year ago) Permalink
Do we think this is going to be good? I'm sort of interested.
― wolf kabob (ENBB), Saturday, 21 April 2012 01:34 (1 year ago) Permalink
I'm pretty excited! I've seen a bunch of good early hype and trailer looks lolz
― Mordy, Saturday, 21 April 2012 01:39 (1 year ago) Permalink
Yeah, same. I'm intrigued by this and by the one with Jeff Daniels they keep showing previews for.
― wolf kabob (ENBB), Saturday, 21 April 2012 01:40 (1 year ago) Permalink
also, i've been craving a sharp, vulgar, + irreverent political sitcom
― Mordy, Saturday, 21 April 2012 01:43 (1 year ago) Permalink
Ianucci. Not sure Americans can swear quite like this though:
― stay in school if you want to kiw (Gukbe), Saturday, 21 April 2012 01:44 (1 year ago) Permalink
It's true , I was worried when I heard there would be Americans involved in this, they always seem to ruin things
― Acute puppy syndrome (admrl), Saturday, 21 April 2012 01:54 (1 year ago) Permalink
"Afternoon, ladies. I heard there were sandwiches and I'm a fucker for cress. No, no, no, please don't get up - I'm not Viagra. Geoffrey, good to see you. John, how are you doing? I just wanted to tell you I really enjoyed your novel ... way of writing a fucking awful story."
― jed_, Saturday, 21 April 2012 02:00 (1 year ago) Permalink
he's written some great american characters like Linton Barwick
― Mordy, Saturday, 21 April 2012 02:01 (1 year ago) Permalink
also thought anna chlumsky (My Girl!) was really good in the movie and she's gonna be in this
― Mordy, Saturday, 21 April 2012 02:03 (1 year ago) Permalink
Haha a fucker for cress. I bet Veep won't have anything close to that. Also THick Of It>>>>In The Loop, right?
― Acute puppy syndrome (admrl), Saturday, 21 April 2012 02:03 (1 year ago) Permalink
Jamie otm
― aboulia banks (Noodle Vague), Saturday, 21 April 2012 02:07 (1 year ago) Permalink
When will it be possible to acquire the first episode?
― I wish to incorporate disco into my small business (chap), Saturday, 21 April 2012 02:16 (1 year ago) Permalink
tmmrw night i think
― Mordy, Saturday, 21 April 2012 02:17 (1 year ago) Permalink
Sunday Night.
― stay in school if you want to kiw (Gukbe), Saturday, 21 April 2012 02:17 (1 year ago) Permalink
right, that's what i meant
― Mordy, Saturday, 21 April 2012 02:19 (1 year ago) Permalink
lol, i thought it was saturday already
Thanks. Monday torrent viewings looking very nice for the next few months then; this, GoT and Mad Men.
― I wish to incorporate disco into my small business (chap), Saturday, 21 April 2012 02:19 (1 year ago) Permalink
there's a pretty bustling thread about another HBO sitcom happening on sundays
― Mordy, Saturday, 21 April 2012 02:20 (1 year ago) Permalink
The recently completed Eastbound? Or am I missing something?
― I wish to incorporate disco into my small business (chap), Saturday, 21 April 2012 02:22 (1 year ago) Permalink
GIRLS
― Acute puppy syndrome (admrl), Saturday, 21 April 2012 02:23 (1 year ago) Permalink
the infection spreads
― Mordy, Saturday, 21 April 2012 02:24 (1 year ago) Permalink
Never heard of it, but damn that's a long thread.
― I wish to incorporate disco into my small business (chap), Saturday, 21 April 2012 02:29 (1 year ago) Permalink
THick Of It>>>>In The Loop, right?
Yes, but I thought the americans had the funniest parts of In The Loop, so I'm optimistic.
― abcfsk, Saturday, 21 April 2012 07:52 (1 year ago) Permalink
i saw the first three episodes of this, it's very good
― max, Saturday, 21 April 2012 13:42 (1 year ago) Permalink
it's not as good as the thick of it, mostly because there's no hilarious sweary malcolm tucker character, but i loled several times
― max, Saturday, 21 April 2012 13:43 (1 year ago) Permalink
I'm looking forward to this, especially if it doesn't prove another example of a gifted satirist who sets his eyes on America but quickly reveals he knows little about this country.
― Josh in Chicago, Saturday, 21 April 2012 14:13 (1 year ago) Permalink
Yeah now that you mention it, I'm glad there was a thread for this before one for The Dictator.
― Andrew Farrell, Saturday, 21 April 2012 14:37 (1 year ago) Permalink
I didn't realize the Thick of it Connection. I just liked the look of a trailer but now I realize that I probably should watch that movie. I'd forgotten about it after the comedy poll.
― wolf kabob (ENBB), Saturday, 21 April 2012 16:33 (1 year ago) Permalink
Not quite In The Loop funny, but it was pretty good. I don't know if it would be possible to have two characters as funny as Malcolm Tucker and the eff-star-star-cunt American from ITL.
― Kiarostami bag (milo z), Monday, 23 April 2012 04:56 (1 year ago) Permalink
Some thudding moments here and there, but this was pretty funny overall.
― stay in school if you want to kiw (Gukbe), Monday, 23 April 2012 04:57 (1 year ago) Permalink
Julia Louis-Dreyfus is great, as are Anna Chlumsky and the slimeball. The press secretary and her body man could wear thin.
― Kiarostami bag (milo z), Monday, 23 April 2012 04:59 (1 year ago) Permalink
this seemed sort of ... off. it's an interesting decision to have the passive-aggressive dweeb kid instead of a malcolm tucker figure but ... i dunno
― thomp, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 02:14 (1 year ago) Permalink
maybe in three or four episodes i will stop automatically comparing it to the thick of it, and then i will also stop automatically trying to make the differences be emblematic of differences in national character
max
i. do they keep up the 'did the president call?' 'no' 'no' and the 'did you know i have my own flag' bitsii. do they get funny and how many repetitions does it take for them to get funny
― thomp, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 02:16 (1 year ago) Permalink
would honestly stick w/ this just for tony hale & matt walsh but i was ok w/ those 'jokes'
― johnny crunch, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 02:20 (1 year ago) Permalink
yeah, i laughed. i'll watch until they cancel it.
― Mordy, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 02:22 (1 year ago) Permalink
no i mean i honestly believe, given time, those 'jokes' will become funny
― thomp, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 02:23 (1 year ago) Permalink
this is fine, it's not remotely as good as the early thick of it but it's doubtful anything else is going to be, certainly within the pro forma confines of the american sitcom
― The term “hipster racism” from Carmen Van Kerckhove at Racialicious (nakhchivan), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 02:29 (1 year ago) Permalink
felt very "ooh, handheld cameras, gratuitous cursing, big fuckin deal" to me, but still pretty funny and a good cast, will watch again
― Poor Turrican (some dude), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 02:31 (1 year ago) Permalink
lol well in 2k12 those things are pretty commonplace no?
― The term “hipster racism” from Carmen Van Kerckhove at Racialicious (nakhchivan), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 02:32 (1 year ago) Permalink
feel like american sitcom is a more expansive genre than british sitcom -- one of the weird things about the thick of it is that it is an absolutely classical version of standard british sitcom setup, only it somehow escapes being awful
xpost ha yeah i don't really notice those things at this point?
― thomp, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 02:34 (1 year ago) Permalink
well yeah that's what i meant, the look/feel of it is kind of played imo
― Poor Turrican (some dude), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 02:36 (1 year ago) Permalink
that's an unplayable aesthetic
― The term “hipster racism” from Carmen Van Kerckhove at Racialicious (nakhchivan), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 02:37 (1 year ago) Permalink
I think it needs time to develop side characters. People like Blinky Ben, etc...
There's also a different dynamic from The Thick of It. Everyone listened to/was scared of Malcolm, and the politicians tended to need to be shepherded around. JLD seems to have all the agency in Veep, where everyone else is just scrambling to fix her mistakes or get her what she wants.
Also the US doesn't have an equivalent of the civil servant, so we don't get a Terri.
― stay in school if you want to kiw (Gukbe), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 03:04 (1 year ago) Permalink
you guys realize this isn't an adaptation, right, it's a different show by the same creator
― Poor Turrican (some dude), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 03:14 (1 year ago) Permalink
original title was "The Veep of It" iirc
― stay in school if you want to kiw (Gukbe), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 03:17 (1 year ago) Permalink
the thick of eep
― Poor Turrican (some dude), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 03:18 (1 year ago) Permalink
In the Veep
― stay in school if you want to kiw (Gukbe), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 03:20 (1 year ago) Permalink
ah, british humour.
― Mordy, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 03:21 (1 year ago) Permalink
some dude is british?
― The term “hipster racism” from Carmen Van Kerckhove at Racialicious (nakhchivan), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 03:22 (1 year ago) Permalink
lol no, i don't think so
― Mordy, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 03:22 (1 year ago) Permalink
oi mates some dude is
these political shows that Iannucci has done, do they have any of the same absurdity of the 'Armando Iannucci Show'? I saw the first episode of 'Veep' and it didn't, though it was funny enough in its own right.
― boxall, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 03:25 (1 year ago) Permalink
no. at least not the surrealism.
― stay in school if you want to kiw (Gukbe), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 03:26 (1 year ago) Permalink
though his next show for HBO, Armando Iannucci's Veep Trumpet, probably will
― stay in school if you want to kiw (Gukbe), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 03:27 (1 year ago) Permalink
the early thick of it is blackly absurd in the best sense, some of his more freeform stuff is a bit winsome
― The term “hipster racism” from Carmen Van Kerckhove at Racialicious (nakhchivan), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 03:29 (1 year ago) Permalink
blimey blood sausage, i've been outed
― Poor Turrican (some dude), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 03:35 (1 year ago) Permalink
too right guv'nor
― stay in school if you want to kiw (Gukbe), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 03:38 (1 year ago) Permalink
Some of the lines felt quite British or straight out of TTOI like 'massive and total shit' and 'Tom Hanks might die'. This is not nec a bad thing but slightly jarring?
― kinder, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 05:32 (1 year ago) Permalink
American innovation on stale British sitcom formula = something nice occasionally happens to the lead character, instead of being dangled in front of them and snatched away.
― Andrew Farrell, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 06:24 (1 year ago) Permalink
Obviously I'm against it.
― Andrew Farrell, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 06:25 (1 year ago) Permalink
^ six series
― thomp, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 09:37 (1 year ago) Permalink
what i mean about classical british sitcom in re: the thick of it would be something like:
- enclosed environment- all conflict is created by strict pecking order amongst characters- each episode follows a rising action plot ending with someone making a tit of themselves
― Poor Turrican (some dude), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 03:14 (6 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
iirc ianucci was 'developing' an american version of 'the thick of it' for ages and then it wasn't being mentioned and then his name was attached to this? i mean ... c'mon. it's the same show. sort of.
― thomp, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 09:51 (1 year ago) Permalink
no, as far as I know there actually was a pilot for the American version of The Thick Of It directed by Christopher Guest
― Number None, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 09:54 (1 year ago) Permalink
In October, 2006, ABC announced that it was developing a U.S. version of “The Thick of It.” Mitchell Hurwitz, whose show “Arrested Development” had just been cancelled, was named executive producer and co-writer. In a recent e-mail, Hurwitz said that he saw similarities between “Arrested Development” and “The Thick of It,” which, in his reading, was about “people whose big outward and ‘important’ lives are run on a very small and impaired set of inner resources.” He went on, “That just really appeals to me comedically. . . . Big people with small hearts. Stupid people with high I.Q.s.”Christopher Guest directed the pilot. Iannucci barely had a role. Peter Bennett-Jones, Iannucci’s agent in the U.K., told me, “It seemed to be in good hands, but they just didn’t listen to Armando.” The pilot, which never aired, starred Oliver Platt as an almost avuncular (and non-swearing) envoy from the office of his party’s Whip, and John Michael Higgins as a peppy congressman who has never heard of “The Daily Show.” Seen today, the pilot seems flat. And there is no hint of melancholy, as there was in the British version, no sense of ideals eroded over time. Iannucci said, “It’s not awful, it’s just dull—which, you know, is a good trick to pull off.” Hurwitz defended the pilot, but admitted that it had “lost the sense of mania of the original.
http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2012/03/26/120326fa_fact_parker?currentPage=all
― Touché Gödel (ledge), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 09:58 (1 year ago) Permalink
oh, sure, if you want to rely on external evidence
― thomp, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 10:01 (1 year ago) Permalink
look i just called old mandy on the old dog and bone and he said for bobby moore that he developed this show as a version of his other show but for the bloody septics and now he's confirmed it let's have no more talk about it, right? right
― thomp, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 10:02 (1 year ago) Permalink
Solid premiere ratings. If people liked it as much as I do it should get a couple of seasons.
― abcfsk, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 15:00 (1 year ago) Permalink
it'll do fine. you practically have to kill a few horses to get less than 2-3 full seasons on HBO these days.
― some dude, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 15:03 (1 year ago) Permalink
i'm excited for 2-3 full seasons of this
― Mordy, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 15:06 (1 year ago) Permalink
How many eps is a typical HBO season?
― TracerHandVEVO (Tracer Hand), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 15:07 (1 year ago) Permalink
SATC generally did 18 - sometimes as few as 12 or 8 (first season + when two of the actresses were pregnant respectively)
― Mordy, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 15:10 (1 year ago) Permalink
deadwood and curb were/are 10-13
― caek, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 15:10 (1 year ago) Permalink
dramas i think tend to be ~12
eastbound + d was 6-8
it seems to be inconsistent, even within a particular show's run
― Mordy, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 15:11 (1 year ago) Permalink
Stoked for this, it'll feel good to watch a US sitcom from the beginning at the same time as America.
― Homosexual Satan Wasp (Matt DC), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 15:14 (1 year ago) Permalink
I doubt there have been 18 episodes of The Thick of It in total!!
― TracerHandVEVO (Tracer Hand), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 15:18 (1 year ago) Permalink
16 iirc?
― The term “hipster racism” from Carmen Van Kerckhove at Racialicious (nakhchivan), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 15:21 (1 year ago) Permalink
enlightened had 10 and it's getting a 2nd season
i enjoyed this tho i kind of hope future episodes are less...stuffed
― y'tulip, y'pea-brained earwig (donna rouge), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 15:23 (1 year ago) Permalink
there are 8 episodes of this season of Veep
btw i might've mentioned this in a previous thread but a lot of the show was shot in Baltimore instead of D.C. and i was this close to getting to spend a day on the set a few months ago, am really bummed that didn't pan out. maybe next season.
― some dude, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 15:32 (1 year ago) Permalink
The first episode is good if a little slow-burny (certainly compared to TTOI, but I should make a conscious effort to not compare the two too much). Excellently acted all round.
― I wish to incorporate disco into my small business (chap), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 15:33 (1 year ago) Permalink
kind of reminded me of early parks & rec in that I didn't know what the stakes were, so there was just a bunch of quality comic actors all playing clueless. It's just the pilot, though.
― da croupier, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 15:37 (1 year ago) Permalink
reminds me more of Lisa Kudrow's HBO show The Comeback than anything else
― some dude, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 15:44 (1 year ago) Permalink
dumb Brit speaking but i've never actually understood exactly what HBO means. is it pay per view? is it cable only? over here we have some satelite/ cable stations where you *have* to pay for the channel month by month (Sky Sports, etc) but some are free with a basic 'freeview' box and so you pay once for that, then never again to watch any given channel. is that how it works over there with HBO? i was never sure also why that means you get more swearing and nudity and suchlike in HBO shows than other non HBO shows. hey i could WIKI this shit but i want the fun version from you guys.
― piscesx, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 18:13 (1 year ago) Permalink
i don't know if it's the fun version, but HBO is cable that you pay an extra monthly fee to get
― Mordy, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 18:15 (1 year ago) Permalink
HBO's pay-cable (you have to pay specifically for it, as opposed to getting it with a basic cable package) status means it can show movies unedited and make tv series with no restrictions as to content as opposed to Broadcast (heavily regulated by the FCC) and basic cable (which is more self-regulated than anything, but is dependent on advertisers and cable companies paying subscriptions), because you don't specifically choose those channels.
― stay in school if you want to kiw (Gukbe), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 18:18 (1 year ago) Permalink
also having no advertisers means it's not dependent on ratings, and as it's paid for monthly it has a lot more money than anyone else.
― stay in school if you want to kiw (Gukbe), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 18:19 (1 year ago) Permalink
aha it all makes sense. thanks. i wish Mad Men was made by HBO.
― piscesx, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 18:48 (1 year ago) Permalink
have not seen this but am suspicious of the choice to make it vague what party anyone belongs to. or is it not vague, upon viewing?
― goole, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 18:56 (1 year ago) Permalink
oh it's vague. I get the motivation but it kind of devolved things to "Looks like those clowns in government did it again. What a bunch of clowns."
― da croupier, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 18:59 (1 year ago) Permalink
JL-D's character is trying to push for "green jobs" in this ep so i'd guess dem but they don't really explicitly state it, no (/notreallyaspoiler)
― y'tulip, y'pea-brained earwig (donna rouge), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 19:00 (1 year ago) Permalink
i imagine they felt it would distract you from what the show is about and i think they're probably right; maybe they'll spill the beans after a couple more shows though?
― TracerHandVEVO (Tracer Hand), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 19:01 (1 year ago) Permalink
"Looks like those clowns in government did it again. What a bunch of clowns."
yeah this meme is thoroughly owned by the right wing in america; i'm wondering if iannucci realizes how his schtick plays into that?
― TracerHandVEVO (Tracer Hand), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 19:03 (1 year ago) Permalink
'in the loop' drew much of its power from blairite hardasses inescapably seeing what it was they'd muscled into, right?
i've never been satisfied by political drama of any kind tho, really. no show like the real thing imo.
― goole, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 19:03 (1 year ago) Permalink
political comedy even less
― goole, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 19:04 (1 year ago) Permalink
if the sense of individual characters and their relative intelligence/engagement increases, i could see the lack of political content being irrelevant, esp since the veep is such an irrelevant position.
― da croupier, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 19:06 (1 year ago) Permalink
it hasn't been for our adult life!
― goole, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 19:07 (1 year ago) Permalink
i think you can get away with a show that implies it is within a fantasy administration, with more jokes and a reason to get invested in the characters' dilemmas.
― da croupier, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 19:08 (1 year ago) Permalink
okay okay, i'll get of my hobbyhorse until i see the show
― goole, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 19:09 (1 year ago) Permalink
It's never mattered less what party anyone belongs to.
― World Congress of Itch (Dr Morbius), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 19:25 (1 year ago) Permalink
not sure what you mean
― TracerHandVEVO (Tracer Hand), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 19:29 (1 year ago) Permalink
essentially comedic characters having to look at war, basically.
― goole, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 19:32 (1 year ago) Permalink
some VPs (Cheney) obv more important than others (Quayle)
― Mordy, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 19:34 (1 year ago) Permalink
First episode streaming free at hbo.com and probably YouTube btw.
― caro's johnson (Eazy), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 22:29 (1 year ago) Permalink
first episode not very funny : (
― caek, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 22:56 (1 year ago) Permalink
i just watched and thought it was pretty good though i wonder how it'll work without any truly frightening characters. interesting that the veep herself is the audience proxy and not some chris addison type staffer
― TracerHandVEVO (Tracer Hand), Tuesday, 24 April 2012 23:40 (1 year ago) Permalink
i didn't think the entire episode of sarah palin, but i have to admit that i occasionally was reminded of palin
― Mordy, Tuesday, 24 April 2012 23:43 (1 year ago) Permalink
i don't think that's a problem or anything the show necessarily has to run from.
― some dude, Wednesday, 25 April 2012 00:27 (1 year ago) Permalink
for sure. i didn't mind it.
― Mordy, Wednesday, 25 April 2012 00:29 (1 year ago) Permalink
was annoyed at the production designers for not matching the wapo typefaces on the fake style section. Pretty glaringly obvious on screen I'd think even if you aren't familiar with the paper.
― raw feel vegan (silby), Wednesday, 25 April 2012 00:37 (1 year ago) Permalink
JLD looks great. This has promise and i'll keep watching but i only laughed once at JLD referring to glasses as "wheelchairs for the eyes". the gary character is bound to get super annoying. i know he's supposed to be but still...
― jed_, Wednesday, 25 April 2012 00:40 (1 year ago) Permalink
"oh look, it's the guy from my left foot"
― caek, Wednesday, 25 April 2012 10:13 (1 year ago) Permalink
this show rules. between this and Girls i was starting to feel like a criminal so i ordered hbo.
― horseshoe, Monday, 30 April 2012 13:31 (1 year ago) Permalink
I enjoyed the first episode of this a lot
― I'M THAT POSTA, AAAAAAAAAH (DJP), Monday, 30 April 2012 13:35 (1 year ago) Permalink
def wanna see this
― surm, Monday, 30 April 2012 14:06 (1 year ago) Permalink
was annoyed at the production designers for not matching the wapo typefaces on the fake style section. Pretty glaringly obvious
Generally, no one in the biz cares about this kind of detail. Even if they actually said "Post."
(maybe there's even some weird un/written rule not to duplicate it)
― World Congress of Itch (Dr Morbius), Monday, 30 April 2012 14:32 (1 year ago) Permalink
renewed
― GoT SPOILER ALERT (Gukbe), Monday, 30 April 2012 19:56 (1 year ago) Permalink
I'm kind of surprised that I like this as much as I do.
― L'ennui, cette maladie de tous les (Michael White), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:09 (1 year ago) Permalink
― thomp, Monday, April 23, 2012 10:16 PM (1 week ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
yesand no, not by the end of the first three episodes at least
― max, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:15 (1 year ago) Permalink
― goole, Tuesday, April 24, 2012 2:56 PM (1 week ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
this annoys the hell out of me
― max, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:17 (1 year ago) Permalink
first 2 eps strike me as a lil boring? at least v conventional sitcom-y plots/pacing/beats idk i might'ev been hoping this'd be more ambitious
― johnny crunch, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:19 (1 year ago) Permalink
i liked the pilot a lot--i think mostly because i love the mike character? but yeah the second one seemed a little aimless. i'm not sure vice-presidents have no real power is enough to hang a show on.
― horseshoe, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:25 (1 year ago) Permalink
oh, i quite enjoyed 'did the president call' in the second episode
i'm interested how they'll work the parties in the third season of 'the thick of it' because it's been quite clear all along which parties they belong to, and if they're doing a coalition govt. with peter mannion as an MP (which i read somewhere or other) they either need to churn their cast massively, or deal mainly with the opposition, or get quite stuck into doing ... actual alternate history
― thomp, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:25 (1 year ago) Permalink
Is US politics more polarised and partisan than in the UK? Maybe AI thought that making the party explicit would stop the show being about politics and start being about the party.
― give me back my 200 dollars (NotEnough), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:26 (1 year ago) Permalink
theres some widely cited intvw where iannucci said he was glad to have delayed the 3rd season of TTOI because the election happened and he was excited about the prospect of a coalition govt
― max, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:26 (1 year ago) Permalink
yeh, kinda rubbing my hands at what he'll do with the coalition, esp. since political communication is a big theme running through the series.
― give me back my 200 dollars (NotEnough), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:28 (1 year ago) Permalink
What do we make of JLD's costuming? Is it too much to quibble over the fact that I can't imagine a VP wearing a lbd in the middle of the day not to mention when it's supposedly that hot?
― L'ennui, cette maladie de tous les (Michael White), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:30 (1 year ago) Permalink
i noticed that. she seems to wear cocktail dresses a lot.
― caek, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:30 (1 year ago) Permalink
they're not really cocktail dresses. more like extremely well-tailored/form-fitting/high-end career-wear.
― horseshoe, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:31 (1 year ago) Permalink
how i feel is mostly julia louis-dreyfus looks so great! but surely that wasn't what you were getting at.
― horseshoe, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:32 (1 year ago) Permalink
she looks incredible, yes!
― caek, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:34 (1 year ago) Permalink
her wardrobe is not the main problem with the show
― caek, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:35 (1 year ago) Permalink
I am not denying that she looks fab, I just think the costuming is a little off somehow.
― L'ennui, cette maladie de tous les (Michael White), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:36 (1 year ago) Permalink
id like to engage in some presidential vice with her, if you catch my drift
― max, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:36 (1 year ago) Permalink
third series was 2008, coalition one will be 4th
― ┗|∵|┓ (sic), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:43 (1 year ago) Permalink
oh whatever
― max, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:47 (1 year ago) Permalink
I just think the costuming is a little off somehow.
― L'ennui, cette maladie de tous les (Michael White), Tuesday, May 1, 2012 10:36 AM (12 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
i know what you mean, but i think it's a character note, like evidence of selina's...vanity is too strong, but self-regard? desire to look good?
― horseshoe, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:49 (1 year ago) Permalink
or it's taking advantage of the fact that julia louis-dreyfus is in the cast
― horseshoe, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:50 (1 year ago) Permalink
Autres temps, autres moeurs
I just think black during the day is a little jarring though somewhat less jarring than the closing sequence.
― L'ennui, cette maladie de tous les (Michael White), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:56 (1 year ago) Permalink
being as how her primary issue is the environment, and she has a love/hate relationship with big oil, presumably the democratic party is in office.
― Mordy, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:57 (1 year ago) Permalink
yeah i know it's officially not about a party and that is annoying, but since all of the political discussions seems more-or-less based in reality, even if everyone's behaving pettily, i just read it as being about democrats.
― horseshoe, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:58 (1 year ago) Permalink
right soooo why not just be like DEMOCRATS
― max, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 15:05 (1 year ago) Permalink
i don't know, but they're going to have to be a little more specific about the politics soon or it's going to get rough. how many eps can they do about incompetently organized photo ops?
― Mordy, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 15:06 (1 year ago) Permalink
This show is in thrall to the coffee lobby
― L'ennui, cette maladie de tous les (Michael White), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 15:08 (1 year ago) Permalink
the thing that seems off is the direction overall. as glaringly obvious as it was, the gastric bug ending still had comic potential that was somehow missed or fudged through bad timing, confused performances, weird camera movements etc.
― jed_, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 15:20 (1 year ago) Permalink
actually the actors don't seem to be entirely sure what they're supposed to be doing, alot of the time, which is a combination of the fault of writing and direction, i guess.
― jed_, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 15:25 (1 year ago) Permalink
It started out funny in the yoghurt place but the pacing of her getting sick and hustled into the limo was too fast to let the joke really settle in.
― L'ennui, cette maladie de tous les (Michael White), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 15:28 (1 year ago) Permalink
i think the cast are still feeling out how this works (though obviously we don't know what order these were shot in ...)
the gastric bug ending still had comic potential that was somehow missed or fudged through bad timing, confused performances, weird camera movements etc
i think this is kind of the point ... the british show's schtick is that shabby fuckups never make for great comic climaxes but are always just shabby fuckups. ianucci's scripts have a slightly off relationship to sitcom cliché; i'm not convinced this works as well as the thick of it does - but, then, the first series of that show (of which there have been two series, numbered one and three) has an awkward and off feel about the early episodes too. to some degree this evaporates in rewatching -- i feel like knowing the moment of pettiness the first series 'builds' to somehow retrospectively justifies the tenor of it.
― thomp, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 15:35 (1 year ago) Permalink
(thick of it has yet to utter the names of any of the political parties -- but has been way more tied to certain specifics of labour govt. 1997-2007 than this is tied to the american political scene, unless i'm missing all the tells)
― thomp, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 15:38 (1 year ago) Permalink
you're right about that being the point and it's a difficult thing to pull off. it's just not working yet. early days.
― jed_, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 15:38 (1 year ago) Permalink
it wasn't until here that I realized what "lbd" was and was trying to convince myself that no matter how much my mind suggested it, it probably didn't stand for "labial buffing device"
― I'M THAT POSTA, AAAAAAAAAH (DJP), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 16:17 (1 year ago) Permalink
I love that your mind suggests such fancies as 'labial buffing device'.
― L'ennui, cette maladie de tous les (Michael White), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 16:19 (1 year ago) Permalink
yeah it's obviously about the democrats! not weird to me at all that they're not referring to the parties, though, cause it's not about that aspect of politics
― TracerHandVEVO (Tracer Hand), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 19:00 (1 year ago) Permalink
which aspect is that exactly
― thomp, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 20:51 (1 year ago) Permalink
the tribalistic speeches for public consumption
― TracerHandVEVO (Tracer Hand), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 22:09 (1 year ago) Permalink
watching this in a double-header with Borgen is kind of head-chafing, FYI
― TracerHandVEVO (Tracer Hand), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 22:11 (1 year ago) Permalink
Labial buffing greatly to be preferred?
― L'ennui, cette maladie de tous les (Michael White), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 22:17 (1 year ago) Permalink
can't i have both?
― TracerHandVEVO (Tracer Hand), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 22:18 (1 year ago) Permalink
Only if you get them in a back massage chair
― L'ennui, cette maladie de tous les (Michael White), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 22:21 (1 year ago) Permalink
― max, Tuesday, May 1, 2012 3:17 PM (8 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
this is exactly the same as the thick of it, party affils rendered via types of deportment, wit, affect &c so u see a woman w/ a jewish name and u don't have to think 'republicans can be jewish, too'
― Ms Tum-Bla-Wi-Tee (nakhchivan), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 22:36 (1 year ago) Permalink
second episode rather better, still think POTUS is even more hateful than VEEP but impressed to the degree to which iannucci and friends have cloaked themselves in another flag
― Ms Tum-Bla-Wi-Tee (nakhchivan), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 22:38 (1 year ago) Permalink
i coulda sworn that ttoi used party affiliations! but i guess not
― max, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 22:45 (1 year ago) Permalink
it did, very much so.
― jed_, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 22:50 (1 year ago) Permalink
I don't think of it as naming them but that's not what I'm watching it for
the first series of that show (of which there have been two series, numbered one and three)
First series was three eps, second series was 3 eps. I promise you this is how they were made internally, and are sold separately to OS broadcasters by the Beeb. (Ianucci was given money for one half-hour pilot and managed to turn in two episodes on the budget - they then said "blimey, if you can do a third on whatever change everyone at the table has in their pockets, we'll show them all," and he said "deal.")
― ┗|∵|┓ (sic), Wednesday, 2 May 2012 00:11 (1 year ago) Permalink
i keep reading this as a cryptic crossword clue, and i don't even do cryptic crosswords
― TracerHandVEVO (Tracer Hand), Wednesday, 2 May 2012 09:56 (1 year ago) Permalink
I'm kind of surprised that I like this as much as I do.― L'ennui, cette maladie de tous les (Michael White)
― "in this super-sexy postracial age" (forksclovetofu), Wednesday, 2 May 2012 15:39 (1 year ago) Permalink
loved jld's reaction when she gets a whiff of the white house
― give me back my 200 dollars (NotEnough), Thursday, 3 May 2012 16:20 (1 year ago) Permalink
i liked ep 2 but it still feels somehow straitjacketed, not sufficiently unhinged; hoping for more appearances by washpo asshole
― TracerHandVEVO (Tracer Hand), Thursday, 3 May 2012 17:58 (1 year ago) Permalink
Best episode by far, on par with the great Thick of It episodes.
― abcfsk, Monday, 7 May 2012 16:21 (1 year ago) Permalink
not really but still great as shown by
http://www.guardian.co.uk/tv-and-radio/tvandradioblog/2012/may/07/veep-episode-three-review-catherine?newsfeed=true
― nakhchivan, Tuesday, 8 May 2012 00:36 (1 year ago) Permalink
definitely much better!
― caek, Tuesday, 8 May 2012 07:17 (1 year ago) Permalink
https://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/08/us/politics/for-a-blunt-biden-an-uneasy-supporting-role.html?hpthis show is informing my understanding of biden in a weird way
― (Name Withheld to Avoid Hassle) (forksclovetofu), Tuesday, 8 May 2012 12:03 (1 year ago) Permalink
i think my problem with veep is that there is no drama. if a problem arises, it gets sorted p quickly by the generic white guy or doesnt really matter? which i guess is the joke but it doesn't give me anything to care about.
― Thoughts? You must have loads. (a hoy hoy), Tuesday, 8 May 2012 16:35 (1 year ago) Permalink
"have you ever read faulkner before?"
― johnny crunch, Tuesday, 8 May 2012 16:39 (1 year ago) Permalink
Well the issues seem to be continuing on.
― Fas Ro Duh (Gukbe), Tuesday, 8 May 2012 18:32 (1 year ago) Permalink
This last one was great.
― TracerHandVEVO (Tracer Hand), Wednesday, 9 May 2012 11:18 (1 year ago) Permalink
― Thoughts? You must have loads. (a hoy hoy), Tuesday, 8 May 2012 16:35 (Yesterday) Permalink
yeah i thought a big sticking point between the thick of it & this might be that TTOI has such a good handle on the drudgery and texture of day to day british politics, & with this they were just going to use the correct issues as a backdrop. but now there are a couple of things competing it works a little better as a backstory.
thought this was better anyway, too, although some of it's still weirdly leaden, or just generically sit-com-ish. i liked someone saying someone had a face like a guy who'd been stabbed in the groin.
― blossom smulch (schlump), Wednesday, 9 May 2012 15:34 (1 year ago) Permalink
I have only just started watching this but I got some lols off the first episode and will def keep watching.
It's like a West Wing about dumb people, lol.
― Peppermint Patty Hearst (VegemiteGrrl), Wednesday, 9 May 2012 16:14 (1 year ago) Permalink
I think most of the government issues/storylines in TTOI were as throwaway as the ones here but Malcolm made them seem like they were of insane importance to execute properly. The gimpy White House guy turning up to go "ummm, the first lady is getting a dog, plz dont get one" just doesn't make you care. Instead I was just sitting there, kinda bored. Ok, so she doesn't get a dog. Or she can get one for her daughter and just not have a press conference about it. Woop.
― Thoughts? You must have loads. (a hoy hoy), Wednesday, 9 May 2012 17:23 (1 year ago) Permalink
I think most of the government issues/storylines in TTOI were as throwaway as the ones here but Malcolm made them seem like they were of insane importance to execute properly
but I think that the kind of throwaway they were was so well-observed - third sector pathfinder initiative, expert-buttressed slapdash policy assemblages, fetishistic plays for an idea of 'coalface' or earthy politics - & i think the veep stuff is more generic: filibuster reform, oil contracts. part of what's amazing and oppressive about the thick of it is the limiting, nihilistic view of policy as something that no-one really understands or is invested in, which is exclusively valuable as ideological bragging ground, & for which there's no correlation between handling and presumably-profound-consequence. it's what makes the office feel like a bubble floating away from everything, which maybe, in veep, the whole white house thing makes less necessary, but which i think veep would be poorer without having an analogue for.
― blossom smulch (schlump), Thursday, 10 May 2012 09:40 (1 year ago) Permalink
otm
― Thoughts? You must have loads. (a hoy hoy), Thursday, 10 May 2012 13:41 (1 year ago) Permalink
it's a show about nothing
― (Name Withheld to Avoid Hassle) (forksclovetofu), Thursday, 10 May 2012 15:09 (1 year ago) Permalink
The closing bit with greetings was excellent. Also, "you're the widow."
― s.clover, Friday, 11 May 2012 05:12 (1 year ago) Permalink
sterling, i would fuck the shit outta julia louis dreyfus i wold treat her like a princessalso thank you for asendin me that daily worker
― dylannn, Friday, 11 May 2012 08:27 (1 year ago) Permalink
forks i think schlump's post and a hoy hoy's make a very good case that this is NOT a show about nothing (despite its subjects being unmoored from the realities that are supposed to inform their work)
― TracerHandVEVO (Tracer Hand), Friday, 11 May 2012 10:10 (1 year ago) Permalink
Chris Morris directed a couple of the later episodes - I'm interested to see if they have any kind of stamp on them. The show has such a distinctive look and flow that I can't imagine there's too much variation on the theme, but I like to see him doing stuff, no matter what it is.
― Walter Galt, Friday, 11 May 2012 10:27 (1 year ago) Permalink
oh yeah that's encouraging, i think. i thought a lot of four lions was kinda perfunctory but his tone is always interesting
― blossom smulch (schlump), Friday, 11 May 2012 10:29 (1 year ago) Permalink
tracer: seinfeld ref
― (Name Withheld to Avoid Hassle) (forksclovetofu), Friday, 11 May 2012 11:53 (1 year ago) Permalink
right i got that
― TracerHandVEVO (Tracer Hand), Friday, 11 May 2012 13:19 (1 year ago) Permalink
was 'the new adventures of old christine' any good
― thomp, Friday, 11 May 2012 14:31 (1 year ago) Permalink
/ what else has julis louise dreyfus been doing for the past decade
"There were two incarnations of Watching Ellie, neither of which met with any success. Both focused on the character of cabaret singer Ellie Riggs (Louis-Dreyfus), with markedly different approaches.The first was directed by Ken Kwapis, known for his innovative work in single-camera sitcoms such as The Larry Sanders Show, Malcolm in the Middle and The Bernie Mac Show. Each 22-minute episode was meant to portray a 22-minute slice of Ellie's life, in real time. In the earliest episodes, a clock was even shown in the corner of the screen. Thirteen episodes were filmed but only ten aired before the series was put on indefinite hiatus (the remaining first-season episodes have never aired). During its use, the clock had the unfortunate effect of reminding the audience that a half-hour situation comedy only contained twenty-two minutes of content."
― thomp, Friday, 11 May 2012 14:32 (1 year ago) Permalink
nobody in this show knows how to use email
― raw feel vegan (silby), Monday, 14 May 2012 05:39 (1 year ago) Permalink
but I guess if the White House used email instead of Jonah the show would be less funny, email isn't funny
― raw feel vegan (silby), Monday, 14 May 2012 05:40 (1 year ago) Permalink
hey theres this extreme metal band playing over at labyrinths tonight just real fucked up noise they dont even have a name you wanna check it out
― johnny crunch, Monday, 21 May 2012 23:55 (11 months ago) Permalink
The show's come together nicely, I think.
― Simon H., Monday, 21 May 2012 23:57 (11 months ago) Permalink
has gotten better & better 4 real
― johnny crunch, Monday, 21 May 2012 23:59 (11 months ago) Permalink
jonah at the show!!!
― horseshoe, Tuesday, 22 May 2012 00:02 (11 months ago) Permalink
"That's like using a croissant as a fucking dildo."
"You've just turned this office into a salad spinner of Fuck!"
― Fas Ro Duh (Gukbe), Tuesday, 22 May 2012 00:06 (11 months ago) Permalink
full of ttoi rehashes at this point
― Serov devochka s persikami (nakhchivan), Tuesday, 22 May 2012 00:12 (11 months ago) Permalink
enjoyed purcell the oil guy, nice to have some invective amid the repartee
gig was an itl rehash, not a ttoi, but who cares bcz it was lol
― ┗|∵|┓ (sic), Tuesday, 22 May 2012 00:47 (11 months ago) Permalink
there were like half a dozen refashioned ttoi lines this week alone, inc one quoted itt
― Serov devochka s persikami (nakhchivan), Tuesday, 22 May 2012 00:50 (11 months ago) Permalink
except for first three-ep series, I've only seen TTOI eps once each so don't feel burnt out on small lines. (they're generally less effective here though, to be sure.)
― ┗|∵|┓ (sic), Tuesday, 22 May 2012 02:30 (11 months ago) Permalink
― johnny crunch, Tuesday, 22 May 2012 00:59 (2 days ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
otm. the croissant line & follow up was amazing.i still think it's a slightly weird assemblage - like the kinda breathy assistant guy. but it's good. i hope the tall guy with the imaginary dog drifts in a sorta glenn-in-the-thick-of-it direction, all pitifully obsolete.
― blossom smulch (schlump), Thursday, 24 May 2012 13:42 (11 months ago) Permalink
i like the extensive explanation jokes like the croissant, the anti-viagra, etc
― jump them into a gang - into the absurd (forksclovetofu), Thursday, 24 May 2012 15:05 (11 months ago) Permalink
get some nuts. i'm sweating all my minerals into my shorts here.
― caek, Friday, 25 May 2012 20:42 (11 months ago) Permalink
hundreds of pictures of herons catching fish
― "Holy crap," I mutter, as he gently taps my area (silby), Monday, 28 May 2012 05:34 (11 months ago) Permalink
^
this show is good but i wish it were not quite so sitcommy. looking at you, anna chlumsky and guy that plays gary
― TracerHandVEVO (Tracer Hand), Monday, 4 June 2012 21:49 (11 months ago) Permalink
Total POTAL meltdown
― kinder, Monday, 4 June 2012 21:50 (11 months ago) Permalink
― TracerHandVEVO (Tracer Hand), Monday, 4 June 2012 22:49 (18 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
yeah. i like anna chlumsky a lot though. i wish selena was sketched out a little more; like she's so good in certain moods - like being mad, or being conniving, that it feels kinda weak to just have her always on the back foot, as like a default mode.
― blossom smulch (schlump), Monday, 4 June 2012 22:09 (11 months ago) Permalink
"guy that plays Gary" is Tony Hale, better known as Buster Bluth. Jonah is my favorite character. His housemates in this ep were amazing. Six guys in white shirts on their phones at once.
― "Holy crap," I mutter, as he gently taps my area (silby), Monday, 4 June 2012 22:30 (11 months ago) Permalink
this is impressive
― too cool graham rix listening to neu (nakhchivan), Tuesday, 12 June 2012 00:15 (11 months ago) Permalink
good finale
― Fas Ro Duh (Gukbe), Tuesday, 12 June 2012 00:15 (11 months ago) Permalink
Where have I seen the congressman's (very funny) aide before?
― Simon H., Tuesday, 12 June 2012 01:33 (11 months ago) Permalink
IT guy on The Office?
― ┗|∵|┓ (sic), Tuesday, 12 June 2012 02:24 (11 months ago) Permalink
last ep was tremendous!! everything i didn't like about earlier episodes suddenly seemed to work
― TracerHandVEVO (Tracer Hand), Saturday, 16 June 2012 14:43 (11 months ago) Permalink
The Twitter exchange between Ianucci and Alasdair Campbell about his OBE brought the lols.
― Desire is withered away from the sons of men! (aldo), Saturday, 16 June 2012 14:53 (11 months ago) Permalink
all the deleted scenes
http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7F30C892CF01C672&feature=plcp
― caek, Saturday, 16 June 2012 23:45 (11 months ago) Permalink
this gets better yeah? that first one was poo
― DG, Monday, 25 June 2012 21:38 (10 months ago) Permalink
it's hard at first because of the natural comparisons w/the thick of it, but after i'd say ep 3 or 4 i was looking forward to the next episodes. and the finale was thumping
― TracerHandVEVO (Tracer Hand), Monday, 25 June 2012 23:45 (10 months ago) Permalink
I liked the first one more than many in the middle, but there are several better ones
― the hat's filthy lesson (sic), Monday, 25 June 2012 23:52 (10 months ago) Permalink
are you likely to enjoy the characters more with the accretion of detail and establishment of running gags, or hate them now and will hate seeing more of them?
― the hat's filthy lesson (sic), Monday, 25 June 2012 23:53 (10 months ago) Permalink
the first one is one of the weaker ones, so stick with it, but don't expect the thick of it
― caek, Tuesday, 26 June 2012 06:40 (10 months ago) Permalink
that's what i was expecting :(
― DG, Tuesday, 26 June 2012 10:13 (10 months ago) Permalink
amazing series, more watchable that TTOI because of JLD. just feels slicker and better-written too. first one or two eps not amazing but by e5 i was in awe
― NI, Tuesday, 26 June 2012 18:38 (10 months ago) Permalink
it's slicker partly because it's not as well written, but it's still very good by the end of the season
― dis civilization and its contents (nakhchivan), Tuesday, 26 June 2012 18:45 (10 months ago) Permalink
i am open to there being cultural differences in how satire translates on each side of the ocean, but that the writing of TTOI is superior seems beyond doubt, to me - veep, which is good!, still pretty regularly incorporated sitcommish zings and ad-homs, a bunch of which fell flat. its successes were more-good-original-swearing, &c. but the thick of it's so multi-layered & plays with conversational & power dynamics so powerfully. it fabricates all of these benign policy nooses that hang the characters, & some of the conclusions - like i am remembering malcolm promising to come up with an appropriate expert to corroborate the new argument of a flip-flop - seem so poignant & OTM wrt how things are now. malcolm's slow turn in the first scene of the first ep still kills me:
― blossom smulch (schlump), Tuesday, 26 June 2012 18:54 (10 months ago) Permalink
gonna have to rewatch ttoi to see how it compares but as a *comedy series* (not a political satire) i felt veep was a few steps beyond ttoi. just had so much swagger and confidence, seems to be a product of a proper writing team rather than one or two minds (not sure if the creation of either worked in this way but it definitely felt like that. plus julia ld far more charismatic and watchable and inherently funny than any of the ttoi blokes
― NI, Wednesday, 27 June 2012 01:49 (10 months ago) Permalink
full disclosure: the pompous unfunny shite chris addison spews on twitter has marred ttoi for me bigtime
Does it improve after the first episode? Because that was a horrible opener. (i'm talking about Veep btw, TToI was gold from the start)
― Blue Collar Retail Assistant (Dwight Yorke), Wednesday, 27 June 2012 08:10 (10 months ago) Permalink
Thought the opener was great, feels like a lot of people who say later episodes improved a lot just found it jarring to adjust to a half hour americanized Iannuci thing but then got to know the characters and liked them. In my opinion it stays good. But sticking with it you may find it grows on you, and there are better episodes later on.
― abcfsk, Wednesday, 27 June 2012 08:18 (10 months ago) Permalink
Watched the first episode last night and enjoyed it, I like Anna Chlumsky's character and the obnoxious Jonah guy, not so sure about JLD. It feels very obviously an Ianucci creation and the potential's definitely there, but it's very obviously missing a Malcolm Tucker character (although maybe it wouldn't work in the US).
― Matt DC, Wednesday, 27 June 2012 08:43 (10 months ago) Permalink
Think the first episode maybe suffered for lack of a proper crisis, those were very minor fires to have to put out.
'those were very minor fires to have to put out.'
That was the problem. Were we supposed to care about the incorrectly-signed card? Jeeze.
Also, yo, just because you add an unexpected 'fuck' to words/phrases doesn't mean its suddenly hilarious.
― Blue Collar Retail Assistant (Dwight Yorke), Wednesday, 27 June 2012 08:47 (10 months ago) Permalink
I wasn't completely sold on it (have only seen ep 1), but comparisons to TTOI were bound to affect my perspective. I think if it had come without the baggage I might have enjoyed it more.
― ailsa, Wednesday, 27 June 2012 09:43 (10 months ago) Permalink
my problem was not ttoi, my problem was quality/frequency of lols
― caek, Wednesday, 27 June 2012 10:30 (10 months ago) Permalink
I wasn't that taken with the first one, but it really hits its stride around ep 4 or 5.
― Desire is withered away from the sons of men! (aldo), Wednesday, 27 June 2012 16:54 (10 months ago) Permalink
Yeh, stick with it, it gets a lot better. I found myself gradually feeling warmer towards it and by the last 2 or 3 episodes I was anticipating the next one.
― give me back my 200 dollars (NotEnough), Thursday, 28 June 2012 07:19 (10 months ago) Permalink
Agreed, I wasn't completely sold to begin with but it keeps getting better, and the last two episodes are pure gold. Ep 7, directed by Chris Morris, is jaw-droppingly good - and dark.
― Crackity Jones, Thursday, 19 July 2012 14:43 (10 months ago) Permalink
this is back now.
― Chuck E was a hero to most (s.clover), Tuesday, 16 April 2013 04:48 (1 month ago) Permalink
first ep was gold, Morris is great for this show
Addison doing the next few? should help bring the nervous vibe
― Devendra Bumhat (sic), Tuesday, 16 April 2013 05:17 (1 month ago) Permalink
yeah, really poisonous first ep
― gr8 tr∞lls i have known (forksclovetofu), Tuesday, 16 April 2013 06:33 (1 month ago) Permalink
dan bakkedahl is so good
i wasn't convinced that mr midnight caller's touted credentials as a cold-blooded operative were actually valid, though? he seemed sort of relaxed and then he got hit in the face with some lipstick and crawled away
― TracerHandVEVO (Tracer Hand), Thursday, 18 April 2013 00:06 (1 month ago) Permalink
that was shit
― Nilmar Honorato da Silva, Thursday, 18 April 2013 01:16 (1 month ago) Permalink
someone actually wrote 'idontgiveafuckistan'
nah it was p good. ppl say dumb shit like that
― johnny crunch, Thursday, 18 April 2013 01:20 (1 month ago) Permalink
This is way more realistic than House of Cards
― HIGH-FIVES TO ALL MY COWORKERS AT THE QBERT SEX SWING (silby), Thursday, 18 April 2013 02:00 (1 month ago) Permalink
:D
― Chewshabadoo, Friday, 19 April 2013 07:17 (1 month ago) Permalink
Probably the best ep yet; surprising depth this go round.
― brb buying poppers w/my employee discount (forksclovetofu), Monday, 29 April 2013 04:22 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
some great lines. the "you timed that metaphor out for that shitty ding" thing. the "tiny hands" gag.
― Chuck E was a hero to most (s.clover), Monday, 29 April 2013 04:45 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
"better than my shitty legs. i hate my legs."
― Chuck E was a hero to most (s.clover), Monday, 29 April 2013 05:06 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
So glad this is getting another season. Hitting its stride.
― Popture, Wednesday, 1 May 2013 22:58 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
it's pretty decent, but i'm even more glad that this introduced me to "the thick of it." what an amazing show
― chilli, Thursday, 2 May 2013 01:16 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
it makes me laugh like once an episode, and those are always lines that feel like they were written for the thick of it ('i would rather set fire to my vulva', 'rubber idiots', etc.). i mean i'll keep watching and it's been held to an unfair standard, but it's not very funny and i've got a horrible feeling they're going to Make A Point about something at the end of this season with these multi-episode plots they keep touching on.
― caek, Thursday, 2 May 2013 08:58 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
Multi-episode plots last season as well.
Feel this is basically as good as most TTOI at this point. And I don't see why people still claim it's copy paste. Especially in season 2, with the old characters settled and unique and new ones not having TTOI counterparts at all. The arsenal is pretty robust at this point, someone like Sue on the side holds up as an episode lead.
― abcfsk, Thursday, 2 May 2013 09:02 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
Thick of It is obv next level, but I'm laughing far harder at this series of Veep than the last. So many nice little moments in E3; the "robust" farce set-up, "procrasturbate", and a touching ending as the responsibilities of office intrude upon the career politician, which didn't happen at all last season (I may have forgotten that tho)
― give me back my 200 dollars (NotEnough), Thursday, 2 May 2013 09:12 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
Yeah it's the combination of multi episode stuff and the attempt at a touching ending this week that makes me nervous
― caek, Thursday, 2 May 2013 09:26 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
Also my complaint is not that it's like/not like ttoi. My complaint is that it's nowhere near as good.
― caek, Thursday, 2 May 2013 09:27 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
do i need to know anything about british politics to get into The Thick Of It
― turds (Hungry4Ass), Thursday, 2 May 2013 09:32 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
No
― TracerHandVEVO (Tracer Hand), Thursday, 2 May 2013 09:51 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
Not really. Political shananigans cross the atlantic quite well. My grasp of US politics is a bit shaky but I've no trouble with Veep. The pop culture references might be more problematic tbh, tho maybe they're not quite as parochial as I remember.
― give me back my 200 dollars (NotEnough), Thursday, 2 May 2013 09:59 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
you'll be fine h4a, check it out
― caek, Thursday, 2 May 2013 10:10 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
i dig veep. its not Hilarious but i get some chuckles out of it and i like the actors and im just into the general vibe
― turds (Hungry4Ass), Thursday, 2 May 2013 10:27 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
liked the first season, but it definitely feels like this season stepped up a bit, really great right now.
i was on the set for a couple hours a few months ago, worked on a psa w/ J L-D, was really cool to see random cast members walking around and see the sets -- it really looks like they're in cramped old government buildings on the show but it's all these huge sets in a giant warehouse in columbia, maryland.
― love bullets featuring skylar grey (some dude), Thursday, 2 May 2013 12:00 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
jld elevates this into something far superior to ttoi imo
― NI, Thursday, 2 May 2013 18:28 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
interesting that chris morris and chris addison directed the first 2 eps but barely seemed different to the rest, in tone, etc. (thankfully as addison has shown himself to be grimly unfunny outside of ttoi)
― NI, Thursday, 2 May 2013 18:29 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
i don't think he's terrible in mock the week. but yeah ianucci's group seem pretty good at sticking to a consistant house style
― chilli, Friday, 3 May 2013 01:28 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
not seen him in that but his twitter account is a hive of smug 6th form bants
― NI, Friday, 3 May 2013 14:09 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
so like his ttoi character?
― abcfsk, Friday, 3 May 2013 14:43 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
― NI, Thursday, May 2, 2013 3:28 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
nuh uh. langham & capaldi operate in such singular territory, i think jld's really good but i don't think she's doing something so novel or engrossing as to beat out ttoi. i think i said stuff upthread about the specifity of that show trumping veep's broad-brush stuff, but yeah this season is so much better, ep 2 in partic.
― daft on the causes of punk (schlump), Friday, 3 May 2013 18:15 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
yeah imagine that guy but one who isn't saying words written for him by the best comedy brains britain has to offer. and without a malcolm to brutalise him for his obnoxiousness. not quite as good huh
― NI, Friday, 3 May 2013 23:55 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
and yeah i get that ttoi is v novel and singular and all that but i simply don't find it as watchable, amusing or as engaging as veep. v rare i'd say that about any uk>us comedy but like i said, largely because jld plays that role so well, and her character is so well-written - maybe more cartoonlike than any of the brits but hey.
btw that's not to diss, ttoi's great but i found myself agreeing with a lot of the stuff in this article: http://richardhcooper.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/how-to-write-thick-of-it.html (esp re final series)
― NI, Saturday, 4 May 2013 00:07 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
I think that article is pretty offtm. Most of all because the dialogue is improvised with the actors, so it's really not describing how to write it... Also, the examples he creates are really not that fun. It mainly made me think that ttoi had to do something right, since it's dialogue is so much better than when other people try it.
― Frederik B, Saturday, 4 May 2013 16:20 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
ttoi is not improvised. it's like the most tightly scripted, printed-script-revering thing on tv. they just improvise the lines that don't matter to give it a looser feel.
― caek, Saturday, 4 May 2013 17:04 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
right
― Nilmar Honorato da Silva, Saturday, 4 May 2013 17:16 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
they even published the scripts from the early episodes
― Nilmar Honorato da Silva, Saturday, 4 May 2013 17:17 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
come on though, the swears became as hackneyed as 'rock on tommy' by the end
― NI, Sunday, 5 May 2013 00:36 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
i swear i will rip your tongue off and shove up your arse so far it comes out of both ears so you can hear me calling you a bellend in stereo you mum-sucking sewer-drinking numpty blah blah blah
― NI, Sunday, 5 May 2013 00:38 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
it sounds like you just didn't really like ttoi?
― caek, Sunday, 5 May 2013 00:43 (2 weeks ago) Permalink
"i just had to sign a 2 year lease on a nissan cube"
― johnny crunch, Monday, 6 May 2013 03:31 (1 week ago) Permalink
"it actually comes out as the number two."
― stefon taylor swiftboat (s.clover), Monday, 13 May 2013 04:18 (6 days ago) Permalink
<3 dave foley
― stefon taylor swiftboat (s.clover), Monday, 13 May 2013 04:26 (6 days ago) Permalink