Yet another shameless dumbed-down rip of an English show

[deleted]

On the subject of 'dumbing down' for the US audience, could someone remind me what the title of the first Harry Potter movie was???

Oh, by the way - regarding series 4 of Coupling UK....I miss Jeff. If only Jeff & Julia could be back for season 5 along with Oliver.

[redleader] Switch your deflectors on - double front! [red5]

I'm an American and I agree. I knew it wouldn't work with Payne (Fawlty Towers), I knew it wouldn't work with Ab Fab (Roseanne never got it off the ground, although Saunders and Lumley appeared in a "Roseanne" Halloween episode) and too many people I knew already saw the Brit version of Coupling on PBS. But America has adapted a few Britcoms successfully (although it's been a generation): Three's Company, All in the Family, Sanford and Son, Dear John and Frasier. Well, Frasier isn't a Britcom, but it sure comes pretty bloody close. Just flip the accents (Daphne is American, the others are English, Dad has a Cockney accent), it =totally= works. Brits haven't successfully copied out shows. I heard adaptations of Golden Girls, Friends and That's 70s show didn't do well.

Will someone explain to me how the American version could possibly be "dumbed down" if the exact same script is used? I can understand that it's a silly concept and all that, but it's a total cheap shot to say that the show is dumbed down for American audiences.

The American cast was too self-aware. They ACTED like they were doing a comedy. The UK cast acted -- were instructed to act -- as though they were playing it straight, and the comedy arose from the situations they found themselves in. The British cast allowed themselves to be laughed at; the Americans tried to be in on the joke, and it didn't work. (It took me a VERY long time to figure that out. I feel proud.)

One thing I also liked about the UK version was that they allowed the "best mate" sidekick character to actually be MORE attractive than the female lead. That takes courage and faith in your actors, if you ask me. Kate Isitt has a classic, doll-like, delicate beauty that no one else in the cast (though they were all drop-dead lookers, every last one of them, don't get me wrong) could match, which made her character's constant, ridiculous insecurity hit home all the harder, while Sarah Alexander (who has the scariest walleyed eyes I've ever seen on TV) played her role with a confidence that TURNED her into seeming the most attractive of the bunch, even if her features were far less regular. Her attitude made her appealing and charming and sexy even more than her looks did. It was a clever dichotomy, there, and took skill on the part of the actors and the director. (Aside: I find Kate Isitt prettier, but I find Sarah Alexander is aging better.)

The In the US version they went back to the old standby of making the best friend hot but slightly less hot, so as not to distract from the gorgeous lead. It was a less effective, somewhat boring setup. The actors just delivered their lines and didn't do as much work.

Also the US Jane -- I love to see Asian American (well, half Asian in this case) actors getting work, especially work that is not exclusively contingent upon their Asianness, but she just lacked something. A certain vulnerability, perhaps. UK Jane Gina Bellam always captured that slightly manic, trying-too-hard quality, where Lindsay Price was just Miss Sexy.)

And of course, there is NO ONE like Richard Coyle, who is a comic freaking genius and cannot be replaced. (Although the woman who played him in the series finale cracked me the hell up.) Poor "Oliver" had no chance.

And also I wish to have Jack Davenport's babies.

(I wouldn't kick Ben Miles out for eating crackers, though.)

I can't even *remember* the look of the American cast, except Susan had lovely dark hair. And Sally's American accent came and went kind of erratically. :-)

As for "arrogance" and all that other crap -- c'mon. We exchange shows across the pond all the time, some work and some don't. Anytime someone mentions horrific American comedy, I would like to simply take the time to utter the words "The Young Ones," and have all conversation stop while you all think about your respective sins.

I DON'T understand why can't just re-air original British shows in TV if we like them. No, scratch that, I do know, I don't LIKE it, but I know -- a season of British television is six episodes, where a season of American TV is at least 13 and usually 22-24. It's not cost effective. It's all about money -- everything is not always all about the Yanks just insulting everybody, for God's sake. (Not that it doesn't make me sad. :-) I love BBC comedies. And if they try to remake "Father Ted" I shall hurl myself from a cliff. Some things are just dependent on situation.)

I am still INCREDIBLY offended not only about the "Philosopher's Stone" deal (who's arrogant there) but about all the other changes that were made in order to "appease" American children who wouldn't have known the difference or cared anyway (like the special, PC insertion of black characters. Don't start on me, I'm a minority myself, it just would have been nice if the black characters had served a purpose other than appeasment. Absence is better than tokenism.) And let's not even start on 'The Madness of King George.'

In short -- United Kingdom, I love you. Be nice to me, and let's try to get along. I know it's been difficult in real life, but c'mon, this is entertainment. :-)

I have often said that I would not compare the two versions, as it is not really fair to the US one. Saying "Richard Coyle said this line much better" isn't really fair. But I am going to violate that rule a little to prove a point.

The problem wih the US version is that they were forced to Americanize British characters. Jeff in the British is charmingly awkward and we forgive him...However, have an American actor say the exact same lines...for some reason he becomes creepy and off-putting.

The same thing happens with Patrick. A British actor has a debonair charm that, despite his blatantly sexist comments, you still like him. An American actor comes across as a big Jerk that again, is off-putting.

Those are just the two most obvious situations, but it happens with all of the cahracters...for whatever reason, the characters work as British, but don't as American.

Just as I am sure the characters from Friends may suffer if they crossed the pond. "How' you Doin'?" probably just doesn't translate right.

If you don't think Americans can make good, edgy comedies you should really check out Seinfeld. Coupling is very obviously derived from it. It's like Seinfeld but JUST about sex. Even the tagline for the show is "A show about nothing, but sex." Clearly the show about nothing part is meant as a reference to Seinfeld. Both shows are good, but there would be no Coupling without Seinfeld. Even Ricky Gervais recently said that American television is better than British television and that he is more influenced by Seinfeld and the Simpsons than any British shows. I personally haven't seen many British shows (except the Office which is brilliant and Coupling which is a great show though not equal with Seinfeld) and I agree that a lot of American shows are dumb, but some American shows are great. Check out Arrested Development, Curb your Enthusiasm, Seinfeld, The Office remake(It's not a rip off! It is a remake! Unlike Coupling which is a kind of a rip off of Seinfeld. At least the American Office pays royalties to Gervais and Merchant.), Mr. Show, and the Upright Citizen's Brigade.

It's a bitch to make a good show on its own, let alone trying to convert someones vision to a completely different audience. There's no arrogance, no desperate copying, we simply create a lot of shows every year and no one knows what will work and what wont. Ask anyone in the industry if there is a "formula" for making good movies and shows. No one knows what will work. Every movie and show is a crap shoot. No one knows.

Personally, I agree that trying to copy a show is a bad idea. It simply adds another variable into an already complex equation. I believe if your going to try to mimic something popular from another country you should only be trying to mimic the general feel of the piece. I'll build my house in a foreign style I like, but I'll use materials I like and customize it to suit my lifestyle.

Also, Movies and TV are about making money. Plain and simple. If any actor , director , producer, anyone tells you any different.... They are lying to your face. You create a show/movie in order to make money to fund further projects, all the while letting your art or message flow through the piece. If anyone NOT in the industry tells you different, well you don't ask those people for medical advice do you?

This show is just another sucky show in a long line of sucky shows. The US has sucky shows, Britain has sucky shows, Japan has sucky shows, Australia has sucky shows, but the best part? They all have great shows too.

The implications in the OP are as equally grotesque as the scenarios they describe.