The IT Crowd Page 17

Season 2 synopsis - I really was hyped for the first 2 eppys, but after Denholm was effectively replaced by Douglas I lost a lot of enthusiasm, even if how Denholm departed (and is referenced in his absence thereafter) was hilarious. I know a lot of folk like Moss and the German eppy, but that really didn't do much for me. But the Dinner Party episode literally carried the season on its keister. Sadly, that is also the eppy that shows what a two faced sow Jen Barber is, which really is sad considering she seemed to be "coming into her own" in a good way with the guys and instead turned into a stereotypical mean girl. The Faulty Bra eppy was really a high point for Moss, which showed how smoking he really was, lol. The season finale was a bit of a nice letdown, Jen Barber got all warm and fuzzy realizing her place in life with the fellas at the company, which was a nice way of saying she'd grown a little bit, but still, she was a mean girl in that one too. I miss Denholm, his eccentric nature just worked with the quirkiness - I mean, Roy got a win last season when he finally heard him commend it him on the Icarus Project. That was just everything - I was there for Roy on that one. All in all, going into season 3 a little bit skeptical, especially with the conclusion of season 1 nicely glossed over and an instant distaste for Douglas.

Season 3 Synopsis - Big, big letdown season. Wasn't expecting the pretentious douchebags from hell reoccurring theme present here. I hate the hair changes of Roy and Jen - makes them look like serious narcissitic assholes competing with Douglas for the title. Roy needs to go back to the Shaggy from Scooby Doo look and SHAVE THE BEARD and get his shaggy-esque hair back and Jen Barber needs to dye her hair back. I hate Roy or Moss being more in the "upstairs" and being accepted on the 6th, 7th, and 10th floor. The boyfriend/girlfriend conundrum this season with Roy, Jen, and Douglas was just too much this season; over the top. Just makes them all look desperate, and that is extremely hard to do for a character like Douglass who is already desperate as hell. There also seemed to be a disconnect with the storylines there wasn't in the previous 2 seasons; I liked the Builders in the Park, strong first eppy for season 3, but after that seemed like a snowball down. The football eppy was just boring. Douglas hooking up with April in the backdrop of Jen and the Internet Elders was a chuckle, but not the strength of The Dinner Party. I also TOTALLY miss Richmond. Like, where in the hell did he go? I need more him and LESS Douglas. I did like Moss posing as Jen's husband at her class reunion, but the side story with Roy and Joker was pretty boring. The season finale was a horrible sendup to Calendar Girls that should have been comedy gold but settles for sex mediocrity beneath them. Don't know what happened with them in this season. Seems like the cast momentum just wasn't as strong as in the first and second season. Painful.

Season 4 Synopsis - They all just committed suicide. Storylines were just meh, even though Moss being a spell champion was a nice one. Seemed like a lot of Roy plots were recycled from previous seasons with less than pizzaz spin - like when he ran into his old buddy from college Alistair, and went out of his way to prove he wasn't a window cleaner. Just seemed like that one when he tried to prove he worked in the building after being thrown out shirtless. This season was way too much Jen Barber, and way too much Douglas storylines (the return of his wife, the secret meetings that were aerobic workouts, his religious conversion, ugh). Richmond's cameo at the end was just too little, too late, and MORE BAD HAIR DAYS. I don't know why they let this fall to piss. Maybe Ayonade trying to do the American version during season 2-3 killed the chemistry and momentum (and yeah, that version was HORRENDOUS). Well, I'll always have season 1.

Quote: Definitely Tarby @ 9th January 2018, 9:40 PM

Can anyone name the actress in dictionary corner with Gyles Brandreth in the Countdown episode? She's not listed on the IMDB page and the way she grins at the end of the episode makes me wonder if she is related to Gyles.

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Probably Rachel Riley.

https://www.comedy.co.uk/tv/the_it_crowd/episodes/4/2/

Quote: Aaron @ 10th January 2018, 9:41 PM

Probably Rachel Riley.

https://www.comedy.co.uk/tv/the_it_crowd/episodes/4/2/

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Nope it's not Rachel and there is no mistaking Rachel Riley

You see her in this clip at 1:09. I had a look for previous guests in Dictionary Corner on the real Countdown but no luck so maybe it was someone plucked from the audience.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eaBTKIFPKM4

Ah. Just an extra, I reckon.

I think your last assumption is right. I don't recognise her at all. She seems slightly out of it and not sure how to react and given as you say she is uncredited in IMDb, she probably is plucked from the audience.

Well that's my two-penneth.

I've just watched the Calendar episode and the scene where Roy goes out on the streets and is sizing up elderly women as potential models made me wonder how it was filmed. Were they all actors that will have been cast via their agency or manager or random people on the street that are spotted, given a quick brief on what to do and then it's filmed? If they are random members of the public would they get paid?

Quote: Hercules Grytpype Thynne @ 10th January 2018, 11:10 PM

I think your last assumption is right. I don't recognise her at all. She seems slightly out of it and not sure how to react and given as you say she is uncredited in IMDb, she probably is plucked from the audience.

Well that's my two-penneth.

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I was watching Series four last night and noticed her on the "On Location" extra feature that went behind the scenes in the Countdown episode. She says some friends applied on Twitter to be in the audience and she was delighted when she got an invite. She has a Northern Irish accent but gives no vital info such as address, phone number or marital status

She was lucky to be chosen and I wonder if Graham put thought in to picking someone or she just happened to be next to him at the right moment.

I'm always on the fence with The IT Crowd, it shows why Linehan is one of the best comedic writers out there and also shows in places without Arthur Mathews reigning him in, his weaknesses. Rewatching the series on Netflix, I still think if it stopped after the third series, it probably would have had been siding with it been a great sitcom.

For me Series 1 and 2 are great stuff, Series 1 you had Calamity Jen, Fifty-Fifty, The Red Door, The Haunting of Bill Crouse and Aunt Irma Visits. Series 2 had The Work Outing and The Dinner Party both top 3 best ever episodes of The IT Crowd. You also had Return of the Golden Child and Men Without Women, probably two of Matt Berry's best Douglas turns during his run with the show.

Series 3 has its moments, Friendface, Are We Not Men? and The Speech rival anything form the first two series. But Series 3 was the first time I've noticed that it was losing its steam. Series 4 for me is definitely the weakest, it has Reynholm vs Reynholm and Final Countdown which were good. But I think the show was right to end after the final episode of The Internet is Coming.

Richard Ayoade's Moss always reminded me of a smarter Dougal, and I always liked Ayoade more as Dean Learner, a really underrated comedic character. Katherine Parkinson always felt the odd one out for me in the cast, but after the recent rewatch. I think she's far more enjoyable in the first two series as Jen, although I still feel she was phoning it in after Series 2. Chris O'Dowd's Roy was always the stand out for me, but you could tell with the 4th series he wanted out. Matt Berry and Chris Morris were both excellent in their roles. I felt Noel Fielding's Richmond absence was a loss after the second series.

Overall a bit better then I remember it being, Series 1 and 2 are excellent, Series 3 a small drop in quality and Series 4 meh. It's no Father Ted, and I even prefer Toast of London over it. But The IT Crowd is a very good sitcom.

The only episode that really stands out for me is The Work Outing from Series 2.
I would put that with the best of any sit com.

Watching this on 4Music. It really still makes me laugh. Why isn't there anything new to this quality?

Bloody classic. I'm crying with laughter!

Quote: Chappers @ 4th October 2019, 10:55 PM

Watching this on 4Music. It really still makes me laugh. Why isn't there anything new to this quality?

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Watching it on 4Music too and I can watch them over and over and still laugh out loud. If I put a DVD on just one episode isn't enough and I end up watching the entire series. There isn't a single episode I don't like. I think the secret is how it's recorded in front of a live audience which gives it authenticity and will help the actors get the most out of every scene. They never break the fourth wall, which is important to keep the absurd themes believable and the behind the scenes stuff shows the actors as quite shy people off camera, which makes the audience warm to them. You can tell by the way Graham Linehan talks about it that it's like a drug to him. Creating a comedy that is then performed to an audience who love it so much they are almost worshippers must be very satisfying and it shows what a great guy he is that he mingles with people after filming has finished.

Just watched Tramps Like Us from Series 3 on 4Music.

I was crying with laughter so much that it hurt. Douglas had some electric underpants, Moss got concussed and Roy got thrown out o the building and became a tramp. Absolute classic.

It's a great show, it's just a shame the writer went f**king nuts.