The Office s07e18 review

Remember Chris from the UK Office? He was awful but I believed him as a character. Brent telling him to 'fuck off' was one of the greatest moments of TV ever. Todd Packer is just annoying. I know he's supposed to be, but he's too over the top to be believed.

But, sadly, most of this episode was about Packer coming back to the sales force after many years on the road. The whole office (bar Michael) hated having him back. They tried to tell Michael how awful he was but he was having none of it until right at the end where Packer insulted Holly. Michael has shown increased self awareness in the past few episodes. In 'Threat Level Midnight' he accepted mockery of his film with good grace (eventually) and here we're shown Michael rejecting Packer - a man he's looked up to since season one. This is all because he's leaving at the end of this season and they need to give him a happy ending. I think its working well. Dwight and Jim teamed up (always fun to watch) to get rid of Packer which worked, we think, so looks like Packers gone.

The real humour for this episode came with Pam getting a new computer for reception. Erin was happy at first but soon saw that the rest of the staff were jealous. She gave the computer to Andy, who had to give in back to Erin. Andy was upset so he and Pam conducted a scheme where Andy would break his computer, she would order a new one but they'd make it look old. It was a simple plot but it worked well, Pam giving some great lines. 'I'm full on corrupt!' 

This wasn't a great episode, there were a few laughs but I'm finding it hard to have the willpower to talk about the episode at any length - never a good sign. Packer came and went, Jim and Dwight had some moments but that's about it.

SIX THUMBS UP

watch the Office, yeah? The Office: Season One, The Office: Season Six all that

Skins s05e05 review

What an awful two weeks to stop updating! TVs been good in the last fortnight. Most noticeable being The Office (US) showing us Michaels 'Threat Level Midnight'. But, that was a full week ago, so I guess I'll tell all y'all about Skins.

Skins is a funny show. So many people hate it, I can totally see why, and the people who are really, really into it are annoying fucktards. However, I still watch it every week and I still think its worth following. Just don't take it too seriously. Before we start the review of this episode I just wanna say how much I like the little touch of the sky in Skins. Every time we see the sky its blue with clouds like this:

too nice

Which anyone in England will know is not our year-long sky. I heard once that over half of our days are overcast. In Skins where hangovers don't exist, drugs are cheap and available and life is never boring the sky is always a beautiful blue with while fluffy clouds - its a nice touch and is a subtle reminder that what we're watching is not our world. Things work ever so slightly differently, and this knowledge lets you accept some things that don't quite make sense.

This episode was the best of the season so far. We followed Nick, a sporty type who (like Mini) does not quite fit in with the group. Saying that though, one of the strengths of this new generation and the thing that differentiates this group from previous generations is that none of them seem to fit in. The friendship group is full of one off's, people who you wouldn't put together. Every character feels alienated. Its an interesting and its stopped this season feeling repetitive. 

Nick is the brother of Matty, the best character in the show by far. Matty is the mysterious stranger Frankie saw in the very first episode, and he was fully introduced last week. Matty is the black sheep of the family, he's lived on the street, at some point in the past trashed the house, he loves drink and drugs and struggles to obey day-to-day rules. He has some crazy eyes:

not a sane man

Nick, on the surface, seems the opposite of Matt. He's hard working, captain of the rugby team (do rugby teams have captains?) and set to be successful. He obeys the iron fist of his dad, who is some nut-case life-coach who tells his customers too 'MAN UP' all the time. He actually has a brilliant website I advise you to all check out.

As the episode goes on we see more and more that Nick is just putting on a mask. He hates his rugby friends, he hates his dad, he's not that into his girlfriend Mini, he just wants to be more like his older brother - who by all accounts as a colossal fuck-up. Matt, however, has the girl Nick really wants, makes friends quickly, has a dry, self deprecating humour and even plays rugby better than Nick.

You feel bad for the guy, he's playing by all the rules but losing the game - a feeling I think most can relate too. Nick seriously loses it by the end of the episode, trashing his dads house, telling Liv that she's the only girl who understands him, quitting the team and punching a friend in the face. There's a glimmer of hope here though where Nick finally stands up to his Dad and maybe learns to let go a little. I'd like to see more of this story, but we know next week we'll just be onto the next one.

SEVEN THUMBS UP

catch up with Skins with Skins, Vol. 1, Skins, Vol. 2, Skins, Vol. 3 and Skins, Vol. 4

Skins s05e02 review

I'm a cynical man. I hate easily. I spend a lot of my TV watching time raging out at idiots on adverts. I've been known to shout at the TV (I hate the guys in Jackass for example, and shout about how they're assholes who got too rich). I don't think I've never been so angry as I was last night watching the new episode of Skins.

the worst man alive

This episode followed Rich - the most dislikeable person I have ever seen. He's a 'metal head', who only has one friend (one too many). The episode revolved around his fear asking out a girl and some people trying to help him. That's all they were doing and he was an unbelievable dick to all of them. I can't get out how awful he was.

Every single time he spoke to anyone it was about how much he hated them for not being more like him. Grace, a girl he didn't even know, went out of her way to help him talk to a fellow metal head, a girl they called 'the angel of death', and he told Grace that she was 'everything he despised about the world' . She stuck with him and tried to understand his world more by coming to a record shop, listening to metal and he just told her she wouldn't get it and she was an idiot. Then she listened to some of his music and actually liked it, and he told her she still didn't get it and she was an idiot. Then she tried to talk to him about her passion - ballet - and he said it was for idiots and gays and she was an idiot for even daring to like anything but the exact same thing he liked. His mate told him not to be such a dick all the time and he said 'hey, I'm metal, I don't compromise'. OH REALLY, YOU'RE METAL ARE YOU? I DIDN'T KNOW.

Somehow, and I really don't understand this at all, the ballet girl began to like him and wanted him to ask her out. After he turned him down, his mate dared to insult metal and in a rage he went to spend £500 on what we found out earlier in the episode from a character called Chemical Mike was the 'heaviest album ever made'. Guess what it did? It made him go deaf. I wish it killed him. BTW, while buying his album he called the owner of the shop a 'sell-out' for reading Heat.

So rather than go to his metal show he's been banging on about all episode he goes to see this girl in a ballet. Oh, and its so beautiful it makes him cry. At this point my head almost exploded. She comes to the metal show with him anyway after her show 'cause she's willing to experience his world. Then his hearing comes back the next day for no real reason and he chickens out asking her for a date. At this point I was shouting at the TV 'I hope you get hit by a bus like Tony you fucking idiot'.

The sad thing is I know people like him really do exist in real life. People who like some crap music and think their point of view is the only point of view and refuse to change that even a little. I just wish I didn't have to sit and watch a person like that for a solid hour. The only redeeming part of his episode is Grace - the girl trying to help Rich the metal head. She hangs out with Mini (who we met last episode - think Mean Girls) who treats her badly and Grace just goes along with it - but she seems untouched by it somehow, like she's getting something from the relationship we don't know about yet. She has a passion for ballet but instantly understands the appeal of metal. She can inhabit these different worlds and still be herself. Grace is brilliant.


This episode was not bad it itself, I just hate that Rich guy so much it was almost unwatchable. I'll give it FOUR THUMBS UP.


Catch up with classic Skins with Skins, Vol. 1, Skins, Vol. 2, Skins, Vol. 3 and Skins, Vol. 4

Californication s04e04 review

It seems that this season on Californication is going 'one okay, one great', episode-wise. This was a great episode, and by far the funniest of the season so far. We open where we left off last week - Hanks hotel room where he's been writing none stop ever since we left him. He's finished the script and Charlie thinks its brilliant.  Hank is drinking whiskey straight from the bottle and wandering around like the bad-ass he is and Charlie has to convince him to go see 'Zig' whos financing the movie. Hank reluctantly goes (eventually). I expected Rob Lowe to be at the meeting, but alas! he was not. Where has that goatee'd legend got to this season?

Anyway Zig was a brilliant character for the short time he was with us. As soon as Charlie opened his mouth he shouted 'silence agent!' in an overly dramatic way, which is always fun to do. His apartment was ridiculous, full of gold chairs and he had twin-sisters for wives. The life of a billionaire, eh? Hank reads some of the script which arouses Zig for the first time in years. He goes off for a while and we see the rest of the gang get stoned. Zig owns this monkey who steals Charlie's beer, high fives Hank and is generally a little legend. Charlie goes off with one of the twins and the monkey throws shit and him and bites Charlie's arm. Charlie throws and kills the money. All this leads to one of the best lines from the show: 'Hank, that monkey was a deviant and a cockblocker.' Fantastic.

They go up to find Zig and apologise for the monkey, only to find Zig dead, hanging from his belt loop. 'autoerotic asphyxiation'... god damn. Hank just deals with it, despite being stoned and calls his lawyer (who I actually kind of forgot about). Hank knocks out a cop before she gets there (woops).

This was a great episode, its good to take a step back from the darkness and have a laugh every once in a while. Hank and Charlie have some amazing adventures together, I only wish I could live more like them. The dialogue was sharp and funny it was brilliant acted from start to finish and I was laughing all the way through.

We also spent some time with Marcy and Karen this episode as they let Becca and her new band practice in the house. There's a new 'cool-dad' love interest for Karen and the big news is Marcy is preggo! Who's is it? It can only be Charlie's, I think, that guy looks too much like a baby not to be a daddy. Also they have to get back together soon, I love them as a couple.

To sum up, this was an episode that did not advance the plot a great deal, but a fantastic comedic episode that reminds us why we love the show to begin with. NINE THUMBS UP.

Check out Hank and Charlie's past adventures with Californication - The First Season, Californication : The Complete Second Season and Californication: The Third Season