No Heroics

Yes, it's yet another Brits are rubbish. Let's make a sitcom about losers effort. But No Heroics isn't bad, despite that massive disclaimer. Even if the writer does seem to think at times that simply swearing a lot is just as funny as well written dialogue, the cast are all very good, there are some good lines and good situations and yes, there are more than a few laugh out loud moments.

The main problem with this comedy is that the writers have apparently decided to replace the jokes with an unremitting coarseness - the swearword count is impressively high - and to produce characters that no-one in their right mind could give two hoots about. The only performance that has anything going for it is James Lance as Timebomb, as at least he has a bit of whithering, self-deprecating wit about him, but mainly the actors seem to be on autopilot.

And this is all a great shame because it should be a good idea. The likes of Heroes shows that we love our comic book heroes, and showing them on their days off should be a great starting point for comedy. As it is, No Heroics is just another reason why ITV is known as the graveyard of comedy.

Featuring a London-based group of Superheroes with powers ranging from the ability to control machines to being able to see a minute into the future, this was a fairly wobbly first episode. Still, with plenty of potential for laughs, we'll let some of the clunky introductions pass and see what subsequent episodes bring...

Ever wondered what superheroes get up to when they're off duty? That's the premise of this new comedy series starring, among others, Patrick Baladi (The Office) and James Lance (Moving Wallpaper and Teachers). But forget about Superman or X-Men, these 'capes' are a lazy lot who spend most of their spare time drinking in their local. They have cool powers, though. I love the idea of being able to control machines with your voice, like Electroclash or - even better - being able to summon avenging simians, like Thundermonkey. But what the show really needs is a superhero with the power to make us laugh.

Imagine if superheroes were susceptible to human failings and emotions. So runs the novel premise of this new six-part comedy in which four lazy, mediocre 'heroes' spend their time drinking in their local pub, and worrying about their sex lives rather than actually helping people in trouble. It's a pity that an intriguing idea - coupled with some clever comic book references - is wasted by a puerile script which doesn't live up to the concept.

Call it the Heroes effect. Perfectly normal people, not just comic-book geeks, are getting excited about superheroes, and superheroes are becoming more like normal people. Here Nicholas Burns (off Nathan Barley) and James Lance play slacker supermen who would be perfectly happy wasting their lives in the pub, were it not for the irritatingly flawless Excelsor (The Office's Patrick Baladi) who never stops reminding everyone how Super he is.

Packed with in-jokes for the fans and normal jokes for the rest of us, No Heroics will keep the long autumn nights safe for Truth, Justice, and the Comedy Way.

Sex-obsessed comedy about a group of off-duty superheroes. Given our ultra-competitive society, the superheroes have a chart with the most successful heroes at the top. Excelsior, played by Patrick Baladi, is a pain and loves taking the mickey out of the meek Hotness. Good idea but needs fewer superheroes and more super jokes.

What do superheroes do on their days off? If they're British they go to the pub of course - a shabby boozer called The Fortress with a strict door policy: No Capes. No Powers. No Heroics.

As the first sitcom to be commissioned for ITV2, No Heroics comes out fighting and boasts a gaggle of sitcom veterans as costumed crusaders.

Being Brits they're all ever-so-slightly rubbish, and probably none more so than The Hotness/Alex, played by the appropriately named Nicholas Burns. What this man can do with a ready meal is nobody's business.

Then there is Patrick Baladi as Excelsior/Delvin who can fly, and who rates the most headlines in New Power Express, the Superheroes' magazine.

They are all fame-obsessed and can often be found glued to their own TV channel, The Power Hour, to see if they get any mentions.

Claire Keelan is Electroclash/Sarah, who can speak to machines, She-Force/Jenny (Pulling's Rebekah Staton) is super-strong, except when it comes to men, where she's a push-over.

And James Lance's hero is a gay Spaniard called Timebomb/Don and can see one minute into the future.

The brainchild of comic book fanatic Drew Pearce, the affectionate yet satirical tone is gauged just right to appeal to super-nerds and regular viewers, and is packed with tiny details to reward aficionados. But you need Supersight to spot them. Or a pause button, maybe.

I found a video preview of an upcoming new series debuting in the United Kingdom called No Heroics and my only beef with the show so far is that it's not airing over here!

Who knows when we'll get to see it over here in the U.S. without having to find it via downloads on BitTorrent or other such sites.

I loved the preview and laughed a number of times, which is somewhat unusual for me when it comes to British comedy, because I don't always get their humor. Still, shows like the original Office and Coupling are wonderful and funny, so maybe No Heroics will join their ranks soon. I just hope we get to see it over here somehow.

Episodes one and two might be a slow burn, establishing the No Heroics universe in the same way that the early Friends episodes worked to acclimatise us to the improbably perfect world of six Gotham singletons. By the third instalment though, the hapless heroes are established as a superior sitcom characters that deserve a spot in the pantheon of loveable loser comedy that stretches from Tony Hancock to David Brent.

Packed with in-jokes for the fanboys, and perfectly normal jokes for the rest of us, No Heroics looks like a superior sitcom that will keep the long autumn nights safe for Truth, Justice, and the Comedy Way.