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FOT Community => General Discussion => Topic started by: Trembling Eagle on August 17, 2008, 03:24:10 AM

Title: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: Trembling Eagle on August 17, 2008, 03:24:10 AM
sweet Odins beard this show is awesome.
Damn the English know how to do comedy
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: samir on August 19, 2008, 11:38:44 AM
yes, yes it is.
and yes, yes we do.
stars richard "moss" ayoade!
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: Bryan on August 19, 2008, 12:24:06 PM
I've just watched the first episode of Snuff Box (with some - or maybe just one? - of the same folks as Darkplace) and it seems pretty hilarious. But also toxic. I think I will enjoy it most in small doses, like 1/2 hour per month.
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: Spoony on August 19, 2008, 12:36:40 PM
That guy knows his way around every kind of television show I loved as a kid.
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: Jason on August 19, 2008, 01:11:51 PM
Go watch Porridge and Dad's Army.
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: Trembling Eagle on August 19, 2008, 03:41:23 PM
Go watch Porridge and Dad's Army.

I'm watching the Mighty Boosh now
these guys should sue Flight of the Conchords
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: samir on August 19, 2008, 04:57:32 PM
oh, how i love any excuse to post this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7rvOZpO6Glk
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: Martin on August 19, 2008, 07:01:20 PM
The best.

EDIT: I meant Samir's clip, not Garth Marenghi's Darkplace, which I found funny but annoyingly uneven.
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: daveB from Oakland on August 19, 2008, 07:15:26 PM
oh, how i love any excuse to post this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7rvOZpO6Glk


Why do british entertainers always have to work in something about "Hoovers" and "Spanners"? Do they take some kind of nationalistic pride in having the wrong names for things? Come on, United Kingdom. It's a vacuum cleaner. It's a wrench. Give it a rest. Learn to speak English, ya fookin' English people.
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: ericluxury on August 19, 2008, 10:24:18 PM
I disagree. I found Darkplace boring and not funny at all. Maybe the final four are where it really shines, but in the first two there was no jokes but the spoof aspect. Would be a great 3-5 minute sketch, but I found it hard to get through even two episodes.
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: Trembling Eagle on August 20, 2008, 06:27:06 AM
I disagree. I found Darkplace boring and not funny at all. Maybe the final four are where it really shines, but in the first two there was no jokes but the spoof aspect. Would be a great 3-5 minute sketch, but I found it hard to get through even two episodes.

Man....there are so many awesome one liners

"I'm a big girl now...in a years time I'll be a woman."

"If that's how you treat your friends imagine how you treat your enemies....worse I expect."

"The lord moves in mysterious ways, sometimes he comes in at an angle. Sometimes be burrows underneath like worm."

the guy that plays Dean Lehner is frigging brilliant: the delivery, the cadence.


It may just be a taste thing, for me it's the funniest thing I've seen in a long time.

Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: Sarah on August 20, 2008, 08:36:19 AM
That's the fine Richard Ayoade that Samir mentioned.  I love him.

I liked Dark Place just fine, but I've got to say I vastly prefer Boosh.

(P.S.  T.E., I got hold of a back issue of the mag in which "The First Editions" appears [I bought it online; the Lubec library doesn't extend to such arcana] and will read it soon.)
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: yesno on August 20, 2008, 09:46:46 AM
I usually hate the "so bad it's good" angle, but Darkplace I loved.  It's Boosh that I find annoyingly uneven.
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: Sarah on August 20, 2008, 09:50:33 AM
Oh, I can easily understand someone disliking Boosh.  I just happen to love it, warts and all.
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: todd on August 20, 2008, 09:56:30 AM
Can I confess something here?

I sat down recently to watch the English version of The Office, but it feels like half the jokes are going over my head. I have to rewind a lot to understand what they're talking about. It sucks because I really like the tone and sensibility of the shows.

Does anyone else have trouble watching British comedy?
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: Chris L on August 20, 2008, 10:25:34 AM
Oh, I can easily understand someone disliking Boosh.  I just happen to love it, warts and all.

I usually can enjoy the surrealism of Boosh even when I don't find it particularly funny.  The "Charlie" clip is great. 

British comedy disappointments:  I didn't find Big Train funny at all, except for the music-related jokes.  Black Books is ok but the idea of it is kind of funnier than the actual show. 
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: Spoony on August 20, 2008, 10:30:41 AM
Does anyone else have trouble watching British comedy?

I understand where you're coming from. I grew up with it, so I know how to switch into that gear. There are alot of cultural similarities that Americans are missing out on. Alot of our comedy isn't that relatable to them either.

Watching Red Dwarf as a kid was pretty confusing at first. Their version of "dammit" was to say "Gordon Bennett," and without google, I had no idea what that could possible be. I thought it was a genital or something.
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: yesno on August 20, 2008, 10:31:45 AM
I sat down recently to watch the English version of The Office, but it feels like half the jokes are going over my head. I have to rewind a lot to understand what they're talking about.

Half of the Kid's references go over my head.  

As for British Office, it's very verbal humor to me.  It takes a while to get a feel for it.
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: samir on August 20, 2008, 10:34:04 AM
Can I confess something here?

I sat down recently to watch the English version of The Office, but it feels like half the jokes are going over my head. I have to rewind a lot to understand what they're talking about. It sucks because I really like the tone and sensibility of the shows.

Does anyone else have trouble watching British comedy?

I have a similar problem with 'Two and a Half Men' -usually have to ask an American friend "Where are the jokes?" and he says "There aren't any"
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: Martin on August 20, 2008, 10:37:48 AM
I must confess I have a problem with Boosh's songs. Most of the time I appreciate the effort, I just don't like them very much. And I think it would've been a better show without them.  :o
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: ericluxury on August 20, 2008, 10:49:57 AM
Does anyone else have trouble watching British comedy?

Yeah, that could be why I don't like Darkplace. Part of it is straining to understand through the accents. It supresses laughter. I went to the UCB and saw Scheer/McBrayer and Jack McBrayer wasn't miked so well and it really affected the show.

I love Extras, Brass Eye and Monty Python. That and Stewart Lee. The rest of British comedies, though, I find hard to enjoy.
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: Bryan on August 20, 2008, 10:50:51 AM
I watch a lot of British TV, so I think I'm pretty acclimated to it. Also, Canada is more British than the USA (and I lived in the UK for a couple of years).

All that being said, I found The Office to go down pretty easily. It's the Northern accents that are really tough. I got used to them while I was living there. There's a show called Shameless that I got into there, but after being back in Canada for a year or so, I watched it again, and could barely understand it.

I like the silliness of UK comedies. I love Black Books and Boosh for that.
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: yesno on August 20, 2008, 10:55:15 AM
My fiancĂ©e can't really understand any accents that are too far apart from newscaster American.  Southern accents give her a lot of trouble, and she lived for 2 years in the deep south.  Also, the more extreme Northeastern accents give her pause, as well of course as nearly any British accent outside of RP.
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: Martin on August 20, 2008, 11:23:40 AM
Jeez, guys - imagine how it is for me!
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: Sarah on August 20, 2008, 11:30:13 AM
We talked about this very recently, didn't we?  Oh well, no matter; I will merely say again that broad Scottish accents give me the most trouble  (the broad Irish ones in The Wind that Shakes the Barley did as well).  Accents from the North of England usually don't bother me--except in Ken Loach movies, where the language feels more like a different dialect than merely an accented version of the Queen's English.
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: Bryan on August 20, 2008, 11:33:30 AM
We talked about this very recently, didn't we? 

Yep.

Martin, I'm amazed at your command of English. You write as though it's your native language. I guess an appreciation of comedy must be one of the highest levels of foreign language acquisition.
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: Martin on August 20, 2008, 12:08:02 PM
What a nice thing to say, thanks!
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: Satchmo Mask on August 20, 2008, 01:43:01 PM
I like Screenwipe and Nathan Barley a lot.

ALSO - Look Around You, what little I've seen of Boosh, Darkplace and even some Nevermind the Buzzcocks.
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: daveB from Oakland on August 20, 2008, 02:39:42 PM
Martin, I'm amazed at your command of English. You write as though it's your native language. I guess an appreciation of comedy must be one of the highest levels of foreign language acquisition.

That's a really interesting idea ... yeah, I could see how comedy is sort of a direct line to a particular culture's idiosyncrasies, slang words, etc.

Nevertheless, I still say the Brits need to ease up on the Hoovers and Spanners and all their other fake words  ;)
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: Trembling Eagle on August 20, 2008, 03:35:15 PM
That's the fine Richard Ayoade that Samir mentioned.  I love him.

I liked Dark Place just fine, but I've got to say I vastly prefer Boosh.

(P.S.  T.E., I got hold of a back issue of the mag in which "The First Editions" appears [I bought it online; the Lubec library doesn't extend to such arcana] and will read it soon.)

lol

You must give me a review when you finish.
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: Jouster on August 20, 2008, 06:48:59 PM
oh, how i love any excuse to post this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7rvOZpO6Glk


I don't... huh?
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: Bob Balaban on August 20, 2008, 09:07:59 PM
oh, how i love any excuse to post this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7rvOZpO6Glk


I don't... huh?
Seriously.  This shit is for laddypoofs.*   Like, grow up
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: Sarah on August 21, 2008, 06:30:50 AM
Philistines.
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: Regular Joe on August 21, 2008, 06:46:55 AM
I dug Darkplace and tried (in earnest) to get into the Boosh, but couldn't. Now Peep Show... I haven't seen it all, but I've loved every episode I've seen.
Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: Sarah on August 21, 2008, 07:15:38 AM
As I said before, I actually have no trouble accepting that some people don't like Boosh.  "Philistines" was a bit of a private joke (one of the things I hate most in this world is when people like or don't like something and insist that those who don't agree are idiots; I mean, so we don't all have the same tastes--big deal).

Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: break on August 21, 2008, 04:20:18 PM
While I appreciate Darkplace,  the concept is really the biggest laugh.  I only really need to watch one episode at a time to get my fill for awhile. 

In fact, usually I just watch the Ape-a-loid chase.

http://www.adultswim.com/video/?episodeID=8a25c3921691a4b30116927618b10102

Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: buffcoat on February 08, 2010, 09:31:20 PM
I'm watching Peep Show Series 4 (having not watched 3 yet) and just got to the episode (#5) where they take the boat down the canal.  The last four minutes (with the dog) was so horrible that I laughed until I had tears coming out of my eyes.

Good work, Mitchell and Webb and Bain and that other guy.  Hilarious.


PS The last episode of Series 4 is even funnier.  The now hopelessly uncool saying "Oh no they didn't" was made for these two episodes.


Title: Re: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Post by: courtney on February 09, 2010, 02:36:35 AM
British comedy disappointments:  I didn't find Big Train funny at all, except for the music-related jokes.  Black Books is ok but the idea of it is kind of funnier than the actual show. 

Whaaaaaaat? Oh - I guess this is a music-related joke,  but ....

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQZDFv0aTlk[/youtube]


I liked the majority of Big Train but that clip takes the cake for me. I could watch it ten times in a row.

And I love Black Books to pieces.

And Dark Places.


And most British TV shows I've seen ....