When everyone says it's good... but you think it's crap!

Auntie Slag · Post by **Auntie Slag** » Thu Aug 04, 2011 6:38 pm

God what a steaming pile of cack ‘Black Books’ is. I got the box set for Christmas. For years prior I was convinced it would straightjacket Dylan Moran into cosy unfunny middle-England sitcom territory. So in the…. months leading up to Christmas I read a dozen reviews proudly refuting my belief, proclaiming it one of the funniest things ever.

It’s not. It’s soooo not.

Everyone but Dylan Moran is beyond garbage in it; the endless mugging, the telegraphed gags, the pathetic plots. How the hell do you make Bill Bailey unfunny? Even Moran is barely treading water at points. It’s at its worst when the plot scuppers Moran’s character, boiling away his concentrated, drunken Irish malice like a kettle.

Also, the audience seem to have been imported from Friends, howling with laughter at even the most paltry of gags.

So how the **** is this considered a classic? How the *******, *******, ****ery ****ness does this manage to make ‘Spaced’ seem like a work of genius? Early episodes of ‘My Family’ are better than this! This is a special blend of tepid crap and I am appalled.

Ok, I did laugh a few times at the first series, but that was simply a poor combination of the preposterousness of it all and Moran’s bastardness. But after that… nothing.

For contrast, here’s a list of TV programmes I consider funny. Black Books should fall so easily into this list, instead it misses by a billion miles:

- Peep Show
- The Book Group
- Pulling
- American Dad
- Gavin & Stacey (only seen the first series though)
- The Office (US & UK versions)
- Phoenix Nights
- The Young Ones
- Alexei Sayle
- Flight of the Conchords

And I love Dylan Moran and think Bill Bailey is fun and incredibly talented.

Is there anything you have seen or own that is just utter rubbish despite all the accolades heaped upon it?

Post by **inflatable dalek** » Thu Aug 04, 2011 7:47 pm

Peter Kay is almost too obvious a choice really. Nothing wrong with tradition observational comedy (though he's not really my thing Michael MacIntyre is at least good at it) but it all seems to be "Hey, remember [Thing X From the Past], what was all that about eh? Eh? Did I mention I'm northern?". That's not even a joke, it's just an aid for people with dementia.

Auntie Slag · Post by **Auntie Slag** » Thu Aug 04, 2011 8:01 pm

The Harry Potter films. Aside from the kids being crap actors andwhatnot... in the Prisoner of Azkabhan these Dementor things guard every doorway in the school. They're not averse to killing kids or warping the hell out of them and the parents are fine with this?

Then in the Quidditch match harry flies up 30,000 feet, freezes and falls to his death, only to be saved at the last second by Dumbledore.

Do the parents just sign a waiver that excuses anything this sodding school does in the event that their kid gets raped by an enchanted toilet roll or pierced on a spire during a particularly spirited game of rugger?

And the school fees are for what? They learn one spell all sodding year, every year. Does that really require 8 months teaching? No mention of exams either.

The place is on a par with Hollyoaks, or Waterloo Road.

Paul053 · Post by **Paul053** » Thu Aug 04, 2011 8:03 pm

Auntie Slag wrote:The Harry Potter films.

This. But I mean the books.

Post by **inflatable dalek** » Thu Aug 04, 2011 8:05 pm

Only saw the first one, and am still disappointed we didn't go to see The Others instead.

In transformers terms, I'm still slightly smug that (at least until professional grump Cliffjumper got round to reading it) I was pretty much the only person who found the last few issues of Devastation to be utter poop. I feel so vindicated these days.

Cliffjumper · Post by **Cliffjumper** » Thu Aug 04, 2011 8:32 pm

I was slagging IDW from the start (and DW when most people were defending Pat Lee too). I win at spotting shit comics a mile off.

Those shit new Batman films. They're shit. The old ones were shit too. Comic character, appears in comics. Doesn't need to be in films just so cockmunchers can praise an Australian drug addict pulling stupid faces.

Radiohead. They're ****s and they're rubbish, it's a double-whammy.

Auntie Slag · Post by **Auntie Slag** » Thu Aug 04, 2011 8:40 pm

Yay, I hate the new Batman franchise too. Batman Begins bores me to tears. I refuse to watch the second one.

How much to bet 'A Knights Tale' is miles better than these two?

Notabot · Post by **Notabot** » Fri Aug 05, 2011 3:39 am

The UK "Office" series. It has its moments, but most of the episodes I've seen aren't particularly funny, just people being mean to each other. I honestly find the US version (at least the early seasons) much better.

And I don't like Quentin Tarantino anymore either. I liked Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction at the time, but even those I'm not to keen on anymore. And most of his later stuff seems to be "Over the top violence and swearing, that's still funny, right?" (Sadly, the Cohen brothers have strayed in this direction as well, but there might be hope them yet.)

Post by **Sades** » Fri Aug 05, 2011 5:59 am

Notabot wrote:I don't like Quentin Tarantino anymore either. I liked Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction at the time, but even those I'm not to keen on anymore. And most of his later stuff seems to be "Over the top violence and swearing, that's still funny, right?"

Agree with this, for the most part... I still enjoy Kill Bill etc, but I think the guy's got a lot of hype I don't think he really deserves.

Post by **inflatable dalek** » Fri Aug 05, 2011 6:13 am

I hated Kill Bill, there was probably a decent 90 minute slaughterfest in there but it's in desperate need of drastic editing down into one film as was originally planed. It's pretty much put me off watching any of his other stuff.

Jetfire · Post by **Jetfire** » Fri Aug 05, 2011 10:55 am

Russel Brand.
Funny enough Dylan Moran is massively overrated to me. I don't think he's crap but he's not that great.
The Rolling Stones.
Seinfeld

Notabot · Post by **Notabot** » Fri Aug 05, 2011 12:07 pm

The Who. They've got a couple decent songs, but I don't think they're at all worthy of the hype and popularity. Most of their songs don't flow well and are just pseudo-experimental stuff slapped together in a very clunky way.

DrSpengler · Post by **DrSpengler** » Sat Aug 06, 2011 6:35 pm

Music is a hard one to answer, because a lot of people like a lot of stuff that I hate, but much of it is in a genre I don't care for in the first place (saying something like "Garth Brooks" or "Selena Gomez" would be kinda pointless).

But in the genres I do care for, like metal and rock, I never really cared for the Sex Pistols and knowing what a tool John Lydon (I won't call him by his stupid stage name) is makes sitting through any of their songs even more difficult.

A lot of people tend to like the Sex Pistols more for the image they represents than the actual quality of their music, but when you consider they were assembled and given an identity in the same way boy bands are, that sort of rings hollow.

Granted, I don't mind studio-rock or studio-metal or heavily processed crap. I listen to plenty of crap. I think I even own a Poison album somewhere. But I still think the Sex Pistols suck.

And to echo Inflatable Dalek, I feel that way toward just about 3/4 of Quentin Tarantino's filmography.

Sunstreaker2 · Post by **Sunstreaker2** » Sat Aug 06, 2011 8:53 pm

Arcade Fire.

Most overrated modern rock band ever.

the_escaflowne_2k · Post by **the_escaflowne_2k** » Mon Aug 08, 2011 4:44 pm

Catcher in the Rye, dull characters, dull story and still cannot the appeal. As far as American 20th century classics go i will take my Hemmingways & my Fitzgeralds long before my Salinger.

Shrapnel Clone · Post by **Shrapnel Clone** » Tue Aug 09, 2011 2:52 pm

Will probably have to hide, but here we go:

10) Harry Potter books
9) Dr. Who
8) Soccer
7) 30 Seconds to Mars
6) The Matrix movies
5) Michael Jackson
4) Ben & Jerry's ice cream
3) Muse
2) Talent Shows
1) Lord of the Rings (books, movies, you name it).

ΩΩΩ · Post by **ΩΩΩ** » Tue Aug 09, 2011 5:10 pm

Generalisations about tv shows, bands, genres, directorial output. Don't like one episode/track/band/film. Whatever. Don't blanket judge. You come across as a prententious knee-jerk snob.

So, yeah. Generalisations. Other people think they're great, I think they're lazy and shit.

Post by **inflatable dalek** » Tue Aug 09, 2011 7:31 pm

&#937 wrote:Generalisations about tv shows, bands, genres, directorial output. Don't like one episode/track/band/film. Whatever. Don't blanket judge. You come across as a prententious knee-jerk snob.

So, yeah. Generalisations. Other people think they're great, I think they're lazy and shit.

Yep, everyone who generalises is scum.

slartibartfast · Post by **slartibartfast** » Sun Sep 04, 2011 12:42 am

Heh. Well I was about to mention 'the IT crowd', happens to be written by one of the writers of black books.

Umm... is 'heroes' still considered 'good'? Not only it was a gut-wrenching shapeless splodge of last nights' curry that should have been a much more enjoyable experience, but on top of that misfits has now taken a huge dump all over it.

Neuronutter · Post by **Neuronutter** » Tue Sep 20, 2011 8:04 pm

Well, i don't think it's crap but I've never seen what the fuss is about Blade Runner. Yes, it's a very good movie but it constantly tops the best sci-fi movies lists and I've never quite understood why.

What am I missing? Anyone fill me in? I've watched it a few times to try and figure if out but I feel like I'm missing the point.