Wednesday, October 31, 2007

The Best TV Show We Will Never See


So every once in a while the BBC produces a TV show that has the depth and creativity to attract American audiences. Of course, American audiences can't usually understand British wit or language, so only the initial premise and character-types are kept and the plot is re-worked to be able to handle the audiences who still watch "Two and a Half Men" and "The King of Queens." The most obvious example of this phenomenon is "The Office." An incredible success by NBC that added a slapstick feeling to an otherwise tongue in cheek BBC script. With the number of Emmy's that "The Office" has garnered, you would think that the major networks would be standing in line to buy the next big BBC score.

In 2006, the BBC produced a show called "The Thick of It." A mock-umentary type show chronicalling the day to day life of the behind the scenes players in British parliament. As far as character development, there is nothing that does it better than this. The series begins with the firing of the Minister of Social Affairs and the reappointment of a placeholder figure while the party figures out what they are going to do. Watching the new minister Hugh Abbott drown in his position is truly a lesson in the uncomfortable comedy that the original BBC "The Office" perfected. The series is epic, poignant, and as deeply hilarious as anything the BBC has produced to date. So naturally, it is a shoe in for American adpation...

Enter Michael Hurwitz. Creator and writer for the critically acclaimed but never watched until the DVD came out "Arrested Development." Not a stranger to Emmy awards himself, he obtains the rights to the little known BBC series, "The Thick of It." Filmed in the same mock-umentary feel as the "Arrested Development," Hurwitz should have instant credibility in the genre and in case anyone has any hesitations, he secures a director with a similar feel for the mock-umentary flair, a little actor/director you might have heard of called Christopher Guest.

So you are a network bigwig and you hear that Hurwitz and Guest are collaborating on a script based on American politics (keep in mind, we are in a prolonged election cycle), would you even have to read the script before you sign up?

Well its been passed up... If you get the time download the British series by bittorrent, its worth it.

6 comments:

Court said...

it doesnt matter tomorrow they will all be out of the job

i say we pitch our own spinoff
and since we aint member of the guild we get the job for cheap

DRN said...

Damn good post, Taylor. I know I should have made an effort to see it. Do you really compare it favorably with Office/Extras?

Chubby little fat man....

TRN said...

It is on the same level... the humor is sbutle and the indepth look at how parliment works, adds credibility to your dinner conversations...

Court said...

that is funny cause parliament doesnt work

Court said...

NBC Developing
THE OFFICE II!!

I am – Hercules!!

How does NBC hope to replace “Scrubs” after it burns off its 15 final half-hours?

A spinoff of the highly rated “The Office,” featuring characters we’ve not yet met, is in the works.

The stars of “Office II” will be introduced on “Office I” this season.

A “name” actor is being sought to star in the series. (Maybe someone should talk to that fat Britisher on HBO's "Extras"; he seems to have improv skills.)

Read all of the exclusive from TV Guide’s Mike Ausiello here.

TRN said...

fat britisher... haha... if only the dude wasnt joking and had no idea who ricky gervais was.