Quote: Oldrocker @ January 8 2011, 12:21 AM GMTYou could try telling her it's 'America's Next Top Fawlty Towers Episode' on Living TV. . .
Oh, she's not that bad!
Fawlty Towers Page 5
Well as you know, the pilot (often first) episode is more about breaking people in to the characters/situation than being off-the-wall crazy, so it's the obvious place to start. Compare The Young Ones' Demolition to Summer Holiday and you'll see what I mean - the first 'un seemed like a comedy H-bomb when it was first broadcast, but after the last one seems positively tame!
I listened to a few of the DVD commentaries the other day. Cleese is a great companion to watch Fawlty Towers with. He looks back with a real fondness for the series, much of the casting by John Howard Davies made use of Cleese's friends and all seemed familiar to him. He is remarkably critical about his work but always makes such astute and clever points about comedy and the mechanics of writing. Any budding writers on here could do a lot worse than be guided by Mr Cleese.
Yet it seems he refused to do a third series as he thought they would struggle to write another as good as the first two!
How can such a genius have such little faith in his abilities?!
Quote: lofthouse @ April 17 2011, 11:02 AM BSTYet it seems he refused to do a third series as he thought they would struggle to write another as good as the first two!
He should have done it, I reckon even a sub-standard series of Fawlty Towers would still be better than many other sitcoms.
Ah the eternal dilemma. Fawlty Towers is pretty much the perfect British sitcom and yet there exist only TWELVE episodes. Do you take a spin in the TARDIS, pump Cleese and Booth full of black coffee, speed, techno music and chocolate and enjoy another eight lacklustre series or do you accept your fate and go back in time to kill everyone involved in Two Pints of Lager instead?
12 episodes?
12, yes.
Quote: Agnes Guano @ April 17 2011, 6:17 PM BSTgo back in time to kill everyone involved in Two Pints of Lager instead?
And please don't. They're rather nice.
Quote: Agnes Guano @ April 17 2011, 6:17 PM BSTor do you accept your fate and go back in time to kill everyone involved in Spaced instead?
Yep.
Quote: Steve Sunshine @ April 17 2011, 6:21 PM BST12 episodes?
It's funny what happens after a few beers on a sunny Sunday afternoon. I've amended my original post. Right let's see if I can still operate the time machine after an afternoon on the Honeydew.
Like Agnes I've been re-watching Fawlty lately, with and without commentaries, and Cleese's words are indeed well worth listening to.
Quote: lofthouse @ April 17 2011, 11:02 AM BSTYet it seems he refused to do a third series as he thought they would struggle to write another as good as the first two!
How can such a genius have such little faith in his abilities?!
Hmm, I doubt very much if it was a direct refusal, as he was extremely busy just after the 2nd series, he had other committments already, I believe, and lots more came flooding in after it had aired. Where was he going to find the time to devote to it? Six weeks per episode it took them! And could they possibly have bettered that 2nd series? And what he actually has said many times about the process of writing FT, was it exhausted him, and I'm sure it wasn't easy working with a woman who had just divorced him! A break was naturally needed after creating that masterpiece. And then, well, your other committments, your new life without that partner take precedence, surely.
I think the best honour they could have been bestowed with for their fantastic effort was that this 2nd series became regarded as the best sitcom series/season ever made, either side of the Atlantic, and still is, in many people's eyes. And yes, it is best to leave such a glorious thing as it is if you cannot be sure of bettering it, or even moreso if you fear you just can't come close to matching its excellence.
When there is a pinnacle, there has to be a dip. In my mind, it would have been almost impossible to better that 2nd series. I know that for many fans, they are happy enough to get slightly poorer quality episodes as long as they get more, but sometimes, the creators of the work are not! I still applaud the man for standing by his 'decision', as I'm sure he's often thought, 'what if'. But personally, I don't think I'll ever get tired of rewatching the two series of Fawlty Towers we have.
Quote: aquasplash3 @ April 17 2011, 4:41 PM BSTHe should have done it, I reckon even a sub-standard series of Fawlty Towers would still be better than many other sitcoms.
I agree that it would have been, there's little doubt about that. BUT, 'Fawlty Towers' would have had its unbeatable reputation tarnished, and today we would talk about it as 'one of the best' and not, as many of us still confidently do, 'the best'.
Quote: aquasplash3 @ April 17 2011, 4:41 PM BSTHe should have done it, I reckon even a sub-standard series of Fawlty Towers would still be better than many other sitcoms.
Yes but there's normally a drop in the third series - often the first is settling into format, the second is hitting a peak, the third is running out of steam. Think 'A Bit Of Fry and Laurie'... Or (and I know it's a different medium but) the third 'Hitch-Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy' book. That's probably why my other favourite sitcom 'The young Ones' didn't make one either!
It would've been great but def a case of a hard act to follow. Ultimately I think they did well to stop when they were ahead.
Quote: Steve Sunshine @ April 17 2011, 6:21 PM BST12 episodes?
I take it you don't live in a cave, Steve...
So we're all agreed that they shouldn't make a 3rd series of Fawlty Towers then? Thank God that's been resolved.
Now, should they bring back Hancock's Half Hour? Or The Goon Show? The Navy Lark perhaps...?