Episodes: series two, DVD review

Sophie Haslett reviews series two of Episodes, the soft Hollywood satire starring Stephen Mangan, Tamsin Greig and Matt LeBlanc.

This sitcom about a sitcom, starring Matt LeBlanc, Stephen Mangan and Tamsin Greig, has never quite lived up to its sizzling potential. However, series two does end on a high: the marriage of big cheese Merc comes under fire from all corners as he gears up for the Man Of The Year event. Plus Nigel Planer pops up as LeBlanc's lawyer - a union that promises a rich seam of comedy if he stays for series three.

The dark and shameless whirligig of Episodes spins to an end tonight, complete with fighting, kissing, swearing and Sean (Stephen Mangan) doing "his Wallace and Gromit smile".

Strangely, given its title, Episodes is really about a plot arc that spans the series. In the first, it all built to Beverly's betrayal with Matt LeBlanc; this time round the focus is on brilliantly amoral Merc (half exec, half fuming troll) and his web of infidelities. He's overcome cancer, bereavement and losing the talking dog show. Now his job and marriage are under siege. Look out for a note-perfect cameo from Nigel Planer. Bring him back for series three!

Tonight's finale of this soft satire about the making of a US TV series scurries to tie up loose ends and deliver an emotional punch. As with previous episodes, it's a qualified success that doesn't quite manage to seize its comic chances. There's schmaltz: even Matt LeBlanc's character, hitherto the show's most reliably unsentimental, gives a soppy speech. Having said that, the longueurs of plot are regularly buoyed by great zingers: Episodes' strength is in causing sharp intakes of breath when characters say the unsayable. For example, slimy studio boss Merc believes his sightless wife can actually see the odd shape: "And she calls herself blind?" retorts Merc's lover. "What a b---h!" An amusing climactic scene sees fisticuffs at an awards show, and Nigel Planer delivers a wonderful cameo as LeBlanc's lawyer. At the centre of the maelstrom are Beverly and Sean (played faultlessly by Tamsin Greig and Stephen Mangan) as the Brits trying to make sense of the amoral milieu and deciding whether to reunite. Episodes hasn't hit the heights of other shows-within-a-show such as The Larry Sanders Show and Extras, but its swipes at Tinseltown score often enough to please.

The penultimate episode of this sparkling comedy about two scriptwriters navigating the moron-infested waters of Hollywood. The day doesn't get off to a good start for Matt LeBlanc (playing an exaggerated version of himself) when he wakes up in bed with his stalker Labia (Sophie Rundle). But it's nothing compared to the awkwardness felt between Sean (Stephen Mangan) and Beverly (Tamsin Greig) in the wake of Beverly's date with Rob (James Purefoy).

Episodes series 2 episode 7 review

Matt LeBlanc's weight-gain is the focus in this week's Episodes, which delivers another strong instalment...

The stars who appeared as versions of themselves in Ricky Gervais's Extras and Life Is Short were prepared to collaborate in a certain amount of self-mockery, but nothing on a par with this. Matt LeBlanc's caricature takes another humiliating turn as the (fictional) network start to complain that their (fictional) star is putting on weight.

It's a nice take on the real pressures for TV stars, but it also allows for enjoyably awkward confrontations, not least with the only person who is there to reassure him - his blind girlfriend.

Another meeting where Bev and Sean think their show is going to be axed turns out to be about something else entirely. The problem they are faced with is one of the more realistic Episodes has dealt with, as Matt LeBlanc's decreased screen time on Pucks! has given him the chance to stuff his face and pile on the pounds. In the more soapy part of the show, Bev goes on a date with Morning's brother Rob (James Purefoy), an apparently normal LA resident, something the show has in very short supply.

In a nice reversal of standard Hollywood sexism, tonight's slice of this enjoyable, postmodern sitcom, sees leading-man Matt (Matt LeBlanc) under pressure for piling on the pounds. The network bosses want writers Beverly (Tamsin Greig) and Sean (Stephen Mangan) to have a quiet word ("we need hot Matt, not fat Matt"). Matt takes it predictably poorly. Beverly meanwhile has issues of her own. She's off on her first date in a decade and needs some reassurance. Carol (Kathleen Rose Perkins) steps in. "They're going to give you alcohol. They're going to give you food. In two hours you're done. It's like a flight to Omaha."

It has been said that acting out one side of a telephone conversation is one of the toughest tests for an actor. On that basis, Matt LeBlanc gives something of a masterclass tonight as his character is forced to make a series of humiliating phone calls to his former co-stars on Friends: studio boss Merc wants Matt to rope one of them in for a guest appearance on Pucks! But before all that he has a surprise encounter with his stalker, who turns up in his kitchen unannounced, and topless.