My God, what a massively underwhelming episode that was. I mean even the actors didn't seem to fit in anymore, missed a lot of comical exaggerated mannerisms of Moss and Reynholm. Thank God it ended now, otherwise might have affected my love for the show.
Sort your shit out Linehan, clearly having a rough patch. I mean not just scriptwise, the execution could have been SO much better.
Has Graham Linehan written an hour-long sitcom special before? Because this just seemed like a slowed down, torturously dragged out regular episode. I can't really remember what the plot was, it was so unfocused and meandering. Some funny moments but the constant self-reference was grating. On the whole I know it has its fans, but I don't think it was ever a show that really warranted such a send-off.
This was so boring. No wonder it's finished.
I rather enjoyed the episode, it's a shame there won't be anymore but maybe it is for the best as all good things must come to an end. Goodbye Jen, Moss, Roy and Douglas!
Will this special get a DVD release?
It will.
I couldn't help feel that Jen's feedback to Moss at the beginning was a nod to internet critics. That whole exchange sounded a lot like Linehan speaking than the characters.
Yes he co-wrote the Christmas Special of Father Ted with Arthur Mathews, which was an hour long if you include advert breaks.
It was nice to see the Altair 8800 serial number 3 featured in the props again. It was on the rack behind Moss's desk and there's a clear shot of it when Jen is sitting next to Moss near the beginning of the episode.
Not a lot of people recognise the significance of that box with its rows of switches, but without that particular box there would be no home computers, no internet and so we wouldn't be talking now on this forum.
The first prototype Altair 8800 was dismantled but that particular one, serial number 3, was a prototype of the very first home hobby computers, designed and sold in kit form back in about 1975. So it's the oldest home computer in existence. The keen electronic enthusiasts bought the kits and built them, I lusted after one. As time went by they were made more elaborate, floppy disk drives were added by some owners and by about 1979 the operating system CP/M had been produced, which is indirectly the ancestor of DOS and Windows.
I'm not sure how the UK acquired this important historic computer from the USA where it was born, but it is kind of sad that it is so little known and undervalued that the museum that now owns it has to rent it out as a TV prop to be able to have enough money to run a museum of historic computers. That's as if The Louvre had to rent out the Mona Lisa to cover its costs.
Go and see the actual Altair box at the Centre for Computing History, which has at last this year gained enough sponsorship to open as a proper museum in Cambridge.
http://www.computinghistory.org.uk/
The web page of this particular computer is:
http://www.computinghistory.org.uk/det/179/MITS-Altair-8800/
Meanwhile ... Back to the TV show... I need to watch it again before I voice an opinion.
Quote: Maurice Moss @ September 28 2013, 9:25 AM BSTSort your shit out Linehan, clearly having a rough patch. I mean not just scriptwise, the execution could have been SO much better.
I think he's been watching Big Bang Theory
'Game Board' was very 'Fun with Flags'
And Roy's misunderstanding stuff was very very Sheldon Cooper like...
That was an underwhelming send off after such a looooong wait. I loved The IT Crowd, but that felt partially like a mix up of a bunch of their best jokes all mashed up into one episode.
Don't get me wrong, I'm glad they finally aired this, but it was a bit of a letdown.
Either way, I loved The IT Crowd.
And I thought this would be a massive thread of people heaping praise upon the episode. Maybe I was just really high, but I thought it was great. From opening with Moss quizzing Roy's new girlfriend on the Marvel universe to the end credit video I was thoroughly amused.
If I were going to be critical, it'd be in Roy realizing the things that happen to them aren't normal. It seemed like it was setting something up and didn't quite go anywhere. That and more Matt King, less Noel Fielding.
Well I have the opposite opinion of this show. I felt like in more recent series it had got a bit slow and dull compared with previous ones, but I thought the special was good. And I like self-reference. I understand why it grates on people, but if a show has been running a while I do love a call back.
I enjoyed the episode. Not the best but still a good end. Particularly enjoyed Roy's face after using the spray at the funeral. Nice digs at some of the aspects of 'popular' culture that I abhore. I liked the callbacks and sentimental bits at the end too.
Quote: MCharsley @ September 28 2013, 10:22 AM BSTthe constant self-reference was grating.
Quite; particularly when it came close to acknowledging that they were characters in a show.
Quote: Tursiops @ September 28 2013, 11:24 PM BSTQuite; particularly when it came close to acknowledging that they were characters in a show.
I liked the callbacks to old jokes, like the one about the internet, but for me the line about the things that happen to them been strange almost ruined it. The only thing worse would have been if they some how made reference to the actors' real lives. Seen this done in a stage production recently and it just felt like the story had been paused.
Liked the show overall but think it would have been better over two episodes.
