MovieChat Forums > Extras (2005) Discussion > Are you kidding me...

Are you kidding me...


I like this show and thought it was funny but the characters behavior was just too consistently unbelievable. Andy, Maggie and the agent do the dumbest things that no one would ever do. I just found it irritating that they were just so brain dead. Like when Maggie tells the gay guy hes too gay, or the whole episode about the down syndrome kid at the restaurant. Throughout the show there were too many times when they shouldn't have talked and did, or times when something needed to be said and they don't talk. There were too many times that i was just thinking how ridiculous it was and rolled my eyes at entire scenes. I just think if youre gonna make a semi-serious comedy, make the characters realistic.

Maybe this is just an Americans take on these situations. Call us aggressive or crass but stuff like this would never happen here. Maybe English people are really this passive? Thats what im wondering.

reply

dude have you seen Seinfeld? granted it was quite funny, but the absurdity in some scenes(a lot, actually) makes me want to choke jerry and larry david, sometimes.

reply

Man, you'd probably have a terrible time watching The Avengers or Inception or something like that.

Of course it's unbelievable sometimes. That's how entertainment works. Suspend your disbelief for a bit. Relax. If we were always concerned about what was "real" we'd all just watch Antiques Roadshow or nature specials.

reply

Ah yes America....the hotbed of such subtle and intellectually sophisticated comedy.

reply

The Maggie character was way over the top with her stupidity and lack of self awareness, especially in the second series where she ruined some of it. In the first season she was a lot more subtle and endearing.

reply

But its the same with every high class comedy isn't it.

seinfeld
curb
peep show
arrested development
the office UK
trailer park boys.
always sunny

every one follows a formula of putting people in situations which most of us would never get in to. However all the shows are hilarious. And get close to reality but heighten it.

reply

I really did enjoy this show, I love the comedy style Ricky Gervais brings to any project. I do, however, see the point about how sometimes the characters utter stupidity in every single situation did at times become annoying. Maybe I just wanted to see Andy catch a break for once, and just when you think it may happen in swoops his agent or Maggie...but that is just my 2 cents :). All in all great show, absolutely loved it, and I am excited to give Derek a watch next.

reply

I don't mind the stupidity of the characters. I only mind the clichéic nature of the jokes. Too many "can't get laid" and "gay" type jokes, like the second season episode 5.

But the agent is the funniest thing ever - he made me explode in laughter a couple of times, like out-of-the-blue, completely unexpected.

When he talked about "mongoloids", is when I realized that there's more to this show than I originally thought. A brilliant guy.

I think he's one of the writers of 'The Office', and makes a small almost-cameo appearance in that show as well, but he's only funny in this one. He talks really fast, but he also talks really straight, which is refreshing. I wish everyone talked like that, without gimmicks, without programmed behaviour, without "politeness" or other lie-based surface crap.

Just direct, honest and straight talk, using the real names of things, not caring if someone gets 'offended' or 'hurt', just saying what he wants to say, innocently and openly.

He's an awful agent (why would ANYONE employ him? I don't think that would never happen in the real world, especially after they find out how bad he is. The reputation would be ruined, after the word spreads around).

But he's sometimes really funny, and that's why I don't mind that he's so 'stupid' or maybe more like 'socially ignorant' or something. He doesn't seem like he's just completely stupid, like the hag (why would he hang around her, when all she does is screw up everything for him?) - but doggone it, that agent in his 'social ignorance' is just the funniest thing, sometimes.

Just listen to him talk about them mongoloids.. ever since, I have adapted that word and try to apply it as much as possible. We have to fight political correctness, that's trying to suffocate and censor everyone, although every human being has total freedom of speech (even when they have consented to not being able to use that right).

Too bad that most discussion forums and other similar places do not respect this fundamental right. Every friggin' thing is full of moderators and censorship, and it's getting worse all the time. Soon you can't even write normal english anymore, because you have to be sooo careful as to which words are on the 'forbidden' list, dámn it!

And we all know that's just búllshít!

reply

Hey there!
Funny you should mention this, cos my particular 'hate' was Maggie! She was just soooo bloody thick at times that I wanted to smack her round the head!
The moment when they're in the dressing room and Andy has to sign the picture but can't remember the make-up girl's name springs to mind.

Andy - "You know I didn't know her name! The marker pen was an excuse to get out of the room and ask someone!"

Maggie - [with dumb grin on her face] "That's clever!"

Me - "AAARRRRRRRGGGGHH!!! You DUMB BITCH!!!" 

Just saw the BAFTA episode, she seems obsessed with Andy's virginity (loss of), and subsequently opens her dumb gob to his ex-girlfriend and yet only realizes her words are inappropriate when she sees she's offended her... Yet again, YOU DUMB BITCH rings through my head! 
I don't understand how Andy would keep her as a friend, or anybody else for that matter! In fact, she probably hasn't got any...

Anyway, loved the show, but just couldn't help feeling angry every time Maggie (especially her) and Darren did *beep* stooopid stuff!!! She just had no brains whatsoever! Anyways, that's quite enough of the exclamation marks now(!) 

reply

I cant agree more. I was ready to write a comment after seing the s02e04 episode which was the dumbest and most expectable episode so far and then I saw your post

reply