How long should a TV show last? Well, EPISODES is back for a fourth series…
The world of television is packed with comedies and dramas that have stuck around way passed their expiry dates. Much like those kumquats that have been languishing in your refrigerator ever since Jamie ‘Pukka’ Oliver told you how versatile an ingredient they were, loads of shows end up shrivelled and stinking.
In the UK, we had MY FAMILY. Unbelievably, it ran for 11 series; it wasn’t the most masterly of programmes to start with but by series 11 it was truly, truly awful. In the US they had ENTOURAGE; the HBO Dramedy inspired by Mark ‘Marky Mark’ Wahlberg’s Hollywood escapades with his hometown buddies. It ran for eight seasons and the general consensus was that it started ebulliently but then descended into the doldrums… and now there’s a film version that will presumably be lambasted by snarky critics when it is released this summer. There’s a fridge-full of others that you could argue soured with age; TWO PINTS OF LAGER AND A PACKET OF CRISPS (UK, nine series), CALIFORNICATION (US, seven seasons), SCRUBS (US, nine seasons)… and I really, really don’t want this to be the fate of EPISODES.
The joke at the centre of EPISODES is that Matt ‘Joey from FRIENDS’ LeBlanc plays Matt ‘Joey from FRIENDS’ LeBlanc… just a warped, grotesque version. The first series began with couple Sean and Beverly winning a BAFTA for their hit Brit sitcom, ‘Lyman’s Boys’. They then popped over the pond to La La Land A.K.A. Hollywood, to remake their series for the crazy, clueless Yanks. The crazy, clueless Yanks at the TV network started to interfere with the premise of the show and pressured the couple into casting the aforementioned grotesque Matt ‘Joey from FRIENDS’ LeBlanc in the lead role. It’s then one disaster after another for Sean and Bev. Mainly due to LeBlanc being an a**hole.
EPISODES was wonderfully funny at the beginning, with sharp dialogue and the benefit of the perfect casting of effervescent comic talents in the lead roles. The brilliant Stephen ‘Dr. Guilaume Secretan from GREEN WING’ Mangan plays Sean and Bev is Tamsin Greig A.K.A Fran from BLACK BOOKS… In a side note, I used to chortle heartily watching (through my wine goggles) Greig in BLACK BOOKS, a programme that certainly didn’t outstay it’s welcome, clocking up just three exemplary series…
So EPISODES returns for its fourth series and the premise and humour is wearing a little thin. The joke at the centre i.e. grotesque Matt ‘Joey from FRIENDS’ LeBlanc, is still played with commitment and gusto by LeBlanc but there’s only so many times we can see him behaving heinously; whether it’s trying to get a lady to flash him her boobs when they are stopped in their respective convertibles at a red light, or when LeBlanc is filming scenes for the television show while steaming drunk on Jack Daniels. There are still funny moments; in the first episode of series four, LeBlanc discovers he has been swindled by his money man and has lost half of his fortune. He is devastated, obviously. Sean and Bev console him, showing genuine concern for his wellbeing, until they discover he still has 31 million dollars in the bank; their concern quickly turns to utter disbelief.
Longevity is difficult in television. Especially for sitcoms that don’t necessarily have the range of characters, the detailed fantasy worlds and the cinematic scope that help programmes like GAME OF THRONES remain so popular. It is difficult to keep the storylines inventive and engrossing, the dialogue witty and insightful… should EPISODES be wrapping things up neatly before it becomes another television carcass stripped of all its goodness? On the evidence of the first two episodes of EPISODES, I would say “yes”; get outta there while there is still some good will.
EPISODES, Series 4, episode 2 now on BBC iPlayer. Episode 3 airs on BBC Two at 10pm on Monday 25th May.
