MovieChat Forums > The Book Group (2002) Discussion > Just awful?

Just awful?

posted 14 years ago by rpgmalesh
6 replies | jump to latest

I'm sorry, but, I just found this on the Youtube "Shows" section under comedy,.. and,.. not a single part of it was funny...

The character's are so bad, it's not a humour you can just straight up enjoy, and a lot of the time it left me feeling bored and uncomfortable..

What kind of punchlines are "Oh great, more boiled water" ? That's not in any way funny,.. it didn't have a lead up, it's just an american character who is apparently clueless.

It was just bad, from the opening where she's being all awkward with her first guest just because he's in a wheelchair, what was the point? patronising him with "Don't waste your energy" about talking... it's not funny, it's not amusing, it was awful.

To be honest, the first episode was terrible and I'm definately going to give it a miss,.. I'm pretty open with what I watch, but never have I seen something so bad I had to find somewhere to express my distaste, it was just *boring*.

[–] popvoid 14 years ago

Thanks for sharing. It just goes to show: different strokes for different folks. I found the series very funny. It didn't make me laugh out loud, but I did find the social awkwardness of nearly everyone in it pretty amusing; probably because I've been there and could relate. I would like to hear which shows you consider especially funny.

[–] heiglman 14 years ago

your description pretty much sums up my love for the show too.

When originally aired it was shown immediately after Friends and while it did not have the catch phrases and constant one-liners that Friends had it was still great to watch.

Even now I can still recall watching the first episode and thinking that it was not much of a comedy but determined to continue following the show just to fond out more about the characters who were all so fascinating and multi layered. The more i found out about them the funnier it became. The introduction of Lachlan

[–] rpgmalesh 12 years ago

Shows I enjoy; How I Met Your Mother, The Big Bang Theory, Friends. Things I find exceptionally funny; The IT Crowd, An Idiot Abroad, Curb Your Enthusiasm.

Worlds latest reply.

[–] Film_buff 13 years ago

I have to agree. I couldn't make it through the first episode. I couldn't tell if they were going for national stereotypes or just awkwardness for its own sake, but the characters were very one dimensional, and inexplicably so. Unlike with Peep Show, where you get to sympathize with your socially awkward protagonists, this show gives you no insight into Clare's feelings or thoughts, and you have nothing to identify with in really ANY of the characters. Sadly, there's no real story either. This type of setup should really be about the characters. With no really identifiable characters and no real story, you're left with a bunch of misfits getting together in a rude American woman's apartment behaving inexplicably. It comes off neither like interesting drama nor like uncomfortable comedy.

[–] extremelyloud 12 years ago

*Spoiler Warning*
I think this perfectly sums up this show. I admit that I watched every episode (it improves greatly over the horrendous first episode) because I was hooked by the concept and I love anything that's ensemble-driven, but the concept is really all "The Book Group" has to offer.

Clare and Jean didn't strike me as American stereotypes as much as people with some kind of personality disorder. Their behavior wasn't exaggerated or even quirky, it was appalling, abusive, and uncomfortable to watch. As a viewer it became very difficult to suspend disbelief and imagine that people would not only continue to attend her book group, but treat her as a close friend.

Almost all of the characters come off as erratic rather than comedic, with the exception of Kenny who is portrayed as a disabled saint. And the killing off of Barney followed by the immediate relationship of Lachlan and Clare was beyond off-putting. I also would have liked to see more of Rab and Dirka. Rab's character arc is that he gets laid and starts dressing better, and Dirka just serves the role of Fist's friend throughout the series.

On a positive note, I really liked most of the actors/characters (with the exception of Jean and the Longmuirs, all of whom could have been cut out or limited)and the concept, and I wish I could see how the series would have turned out with better writing and more time to evolve the characters.

[–] BrickNash 8 years ago

To start with, don't say you are sorry when you clearly are not.

To continue, you may want to start putting words like "In my opinion..." in front of bold statements like "Not a single part of it was funny!" or "Just awful!"

It has a 7.3 rating on here and is much loved by a lot of people and they can't all be wrong can they?

The series is a black comedy and all the shows you seem to like are prime time laugh-a-lot shows which are meant to induce a certain type of laughter. The humour in the book group is so subtle it's genius and it doesn't need that more blatant American style to get laughs.

Your opinion is of course valid but don't storm on a message board proclaiming absolutes when really what is happening is that you just don't get it.