everything's not lost.

almost at the end of the tv series for now, only a few shows left. such as the it crowd.

a show about computer nerds (or geeks) working in the it departement of a company that you don’t quite know what their product is. you’d think there would be plenty of material, but the first two seasons only had 6 episodes each. i still have to consider if this was a good or bad thing. but first things first..

the series follows Roy and Moss as the only two computer guys located in the cellar of a big company. in the pilot, they get a new manager in the form of Jen who has absolutely no clue at all about computer thingies. Jen managed to get her job only because the company boss Denholm has in fact even less knowledge. starting to work with the guys, Jen soon finds out that geeks require very careful handling and are not the easiest guys to socialize with.

and that’s maybe what the show is about: geeks in social context, not geeks and their IT work - there probably wouldn’t be enough audience for such a show. that’s not to say that there aren’t computer related references in the show, but you will get most of the jokes either way i guess. for example the running gag when answering the phone by Roy is: “hello IT?…….. have you tried turning it on and off again? …….. is it plugged in?…………” doesn’t take an expert to laugh about, but still remains funny.

still, for a real nerdy experience i recommend the dvd version, complete with l33t subtitles! hard to watch at times, but *omg* did i *rofl* when Denholm g0t pwn3d! the subtitles of one episode were encrypted for example… i’m sure, if you encrypt them the result would be amusing… but i’m not that much of a nerd.*

now the it crowd has a huge bonus for being a british series because i love the dialect (see jekyll) and also, it was pretty hilarious at times. in fact, there were many great moments and the first six episodes (the first season) were great. also, parts of season 2 were great, but already lacking something. it wasn’t that original any more, some of the 20 minutes felt like they even had to stretch what material they had left and some things just weren’t funny.

the best two episodes i could remember now would be the episode featuring Richmond in season 1 and “cooking class” with a german in season 2. Richmond turns out to be another co-worker of Roy and Moss in the cellar, only that they keep him hid in a seperate room (most probably the server room). Richmond once was a successfull manager at the company but his discovery of the music of Cradle Of Filth turned him into a goth who is depressing everyone else around him. very funny episode, all the Richmond scenes were awesome. maybe the show could have needed a bit more of him. and in my opinion it was a huge mistake to replace the boss of the company after the first season with his “son”, Denholm was by far the better character.

some things may sound a bit negative but maybe i had to high expectations – the it crowd is still a huge recommendation. also it’s short so if you don’t like it you haven’t lost that much time!

according to wikipedia there is/was a localized version planned for the US, but it seems as if that hangs in the balance. but: a localized version for german speaking audiences is already in production, featuring Sky du Mont as the boss. as you may recall from my “the office” article, i’m not a huge fan of localized versions, but i will give the it crowd (US) and the it crowd (DE) a try if they ever come to the screen.

i’ll let you know!

small facts:

• runtime: 22 mins. (approx.)
• seasons: 2 aired, a third not yet confirmed
• the it crowd (uk) on tvrage (episode guide)
• the it crowd (uk) on wikipedia
• the it crowd (us) on wikipedia
• the it crowd (de) on wikipedia

* if you know the solution, you have to tell me! i command you! obey!