For the former Daily Show “correspondent” and talented star, Steve Carell (who’s acting abilities, incidentally, shine the most when he takes on more subdued roles, as in the case when he played a gay, Proust scholar in Little Miss Sunshine), the opportunity to star in the American Office, assuming the same role that Gervais had perfected even before the show’s inception on BBC, must have been, I can only presume, a bit daunting.

Indeed, those are big shoes to fill, as my previous piece, which introduces the mastermind(s) behind the Office indicates. (Despite my focus on Gervais, he shouldn’t be given all the credit, as Stephen Merchant was also the co-creator of the Office and their hit series on HBO, Extras).

THE VERDICT: FIRST IMPRESSIONS AREN’T ALWAYS CORRECT

I’ll be the first to admit, when I watched the first few episodes of the American Office, my leeriness was confirmed. Jim (played by the now famous John Krasiniski, a native - like the writer/actor of the show B.J. Novak - of Newton, MA) just parroted Tim (Martin Freeman), and as a mere mimicker of the British actor, I wasn’t impressed. It was worse for Carell, however, as he was taking on Gervais’s role. All eyes were on him. While Gervais received gushing praise (one critic, as I mentioned previously, lauded, “the show is perfect.”), American TV critics, not surprisingly, reviewed Carell’s initial performance with either tepid (ahem) approval or outright despair, the latter bemoaning the fact that he was channeling Gervais and in a decidedly not-so-subtle manner. Read More »

Over the course of the summer, I’ll be writing about several TV shows, and my blogs will include discussions about the Office(s). Having been a huge fan of the original Office as well as an enthusiastic watcher of the “Carrell version,” I have decided to run two separate entries, retracing the British version, while recapping the American one.

The similarities are clear - both shows are hinged upon making their viewer simultaneously cringe and laugh. This comedic form is not for the faint of heart, and that applies to the creators and their viewers. Incidentally, this type of laugh-out-loud-cringe-inducing tenor is remarkably similar to the HBO hit series, Curb your Enthusiasm, by none other than the Seinfeld master, Larry David (set in L.A., David plays himself, and the show is a much dirtier version of the sorts of shenanigans and meaningless of everyday life moments that was so artfully and humorously portrayed in Seinfeld).

Such parodic artistry takes a special, if not mentally twisted, type of creator. Ricky Gervais and David are equal contenders when it comes to shocking their viewers’ sensibilities. Steve Carrell has also proven that he’s is in that same elite comedic ring. But long before Carrell was able to shine as the idiotic Michael Scott in Scranton, PA’s office, there was Gervais’s David Brent in Slough, England. Read More »

Thankfully, for the humorous and humorless alike, there’s a new show – the Flight of the Conchords, which is funny, smart, and entertaining. And hopefully it will serve as a remedy to all of you sourpusses out there. Of course, for those of you who do have a sense of humor and appreciate, as well as understand, your fellow slap-happy, slyly funny comrades, this show is just one extra treat that can be added to your endless and ever-growing collection of humorous things.

What’s the show about?

Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement, a quirky musical duo, have brought their parodic folk band from New Zealand to the U.S. The two musicians have turned their previous stage show into a television series, which is available on DVD and also airs on HBO. Set in NYC, the show follows the two folk artists, Bret and Jemaine, as they struggle to succeed in the music industry.

Given the subject matter, NYC is the perfect location, a city that brutally demystifies the dreams and aspirations of most artists (much like L.A. crushes teems of hopeful, fresh, young actors). After hiring an incompetent manager (Rhys Darby), whose “real job” is with the New Zealand Consulate, Bret and Jemaine fumble to get “gigs,” buy food, and so on.

Although it’s a parodic take about two struggling musicians, FOC’s satire functions more broadly. Borrowing from wide-ranging and thematic concepts from their original songs, the duo cleverly undermines commonly held assumptions and inverts concerns related to broad ranging social problems, all the while seamlessly incorporating peculiar, goofy, one-of-a-kind topics. Read More »