{"id":6560,"date":"2022-09-18T00:06:56","date_gmt":"2022-09-18T00:06:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/?p=6560"},"modified":"2022-12-31T01:52:52","modified_gmt":"2022-12-31T01:52:52","slug":"media-the-it-crowd","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/?p=6560","title":{"rendered":"MEDiA: The IT Crowd"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Over the last week I\u2019ve binged on The IT Crowd. Having watched the entirety of the show, all four seasons, I\u2019m, well\u2026 ?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I liked the way the series starts. I\u2019m a Chris Morris fan, so his presence was immediately appreciated. The opening scenario sets things up nicely; Reynholm Industries boss Denholm Reynholm (Morris) appoints Jen head of IT. She clearly knows nothing about IT, just as Denholm knows nothing about, well\u2026 anything, his business least of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The IT Crowd<\/em> set.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The core trio of Roy, Moss and Jen, played by Chris O\u2019Dowd, Richard Ayoade and Katherine Parkinson, are great. And the subterranean mise en scene <\/em>, the IT dungeon, is terrific. But, like the whole show, it\u2019s a peculiar collision of fantasy and reality in that absurdist vein Graham Linehan found fame with, via Father Ted<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Roy, Moss and Jen.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Father Ted<\/em> is, or was, properly bonkers. Who\u2019d have thought a show about the insane antics in a remote Godforsaken parochial house could make such great and successful TV comedy? By comparison The IT Crowd<\/em>, like its subject, is a bit more obvious, mundane, humdrum\u2026 all that kind of stuff. But, in a funny old way, that\u2019s a strength of the show; it\u2019s more immediately relatable. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This isn\u2019t going to be a full synopsis of the entire show. Far from it! I\u2019m just registering my enjoyment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I have to say I preferred Chris Morris, as Reynholm Sr, to Matt Berry, as Reynholm Jr. And I was sorry – although I laughed lustily – to see Denholm taking that infamous executive leap. Both Morris and Berry are portraying ludicrous caricature characters. But Berry seems to always be exactly the same, whatever I see him in, from Garth Marenghi\u2019s Dark Place<\/em> to Toast<\/em>. Morris has more range, and is just funnier. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Down in the IT dungeon, Roy is almost the straight guy. Although, having said that, Jen is also almost the straight gal. Although they both goof aplenty, there\u2019s something almost distressingly \u2018normal\u2019 about them. The character that really makes the show work, when it does work (and it doesn\u2019t always), for me at any rate, is Ayaode\u2019s Maurice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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One Mozza I can<\/em> stomach.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

And yet I think Moss is flawed. And I\u2019m not meaning just in the obvious ways in which his character is supposed<\/em> to be flawed. Perhaps the entire show is? It\u2019s often funny, sometimes very funny. But it\u2019s also a bit rote. And Richard Ayaode, as much as I love his whole style, is nearer Matt Berry than Chris Morris, in terms of range. Nonetheless, in Moss The IT Crowd<\/em> has a character I can love, albeit in a muted slightly awkward manner. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I wonder if the Linehan factor has anything to do with the \u2018great but also slightly disappointing\u2019 feeling I\u2019m trying to get at? Whilst I love Father Ted<\/em>, I think he was totally the wrong guy for Count Arthur Strong <\/em>(the radio and stage versions of Strong are so much better!). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Anyway, it\u2019s nice to find relatively recent TV that I can bear to watch (there\u2019s so little of it!). Especially so when it can supply much needed chuckles in what are, in many respects – Covid, Brexit, never-ending Tory misrule, the \u2018cost of living crisis\u2019, etc. – very<\/em> trying times. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Ah, Denholm Reynholm, a true Captain of Industry.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Oh, and thingy from Boosh<\/em> and baking stuff is in a few episodes.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Some time later\u2026 Well, I\u2019m nearing the end of a second run through the entire series, and, whilst I think it started out pretty strong, towards the end it was fizzling. Father Ted is Linehan\u2019s best work, as far as I\u2019m aware\/concerned. The IT Crowd has its moments, but ultimately is too weak and inconsistent. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Diverting contemporary tech-nerd fluff. Mildly amusing. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Over the last week I\u2019ve binged on The IT Crowd. Having watched the entirety of the show, all four seasons, I\u2019m, well\u2026 ? I liked the way the series starts. I\u2019m a Chris Morris fan, so his presence was immediately appreciated. The opening scenario sets things up nicely; Reynholm Industries boss Denholm Reynholm (Morris) appoints … <\/p>\n

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