opposing views about this show...UK vs NA?

I loved this show and thought it was hilarious. It was only after recently watching the special and researching online if it was the end of the series that I came across a ton of negative reviews, largely from Brits a couple years ago when it first aired in the UK. I am Canadian and downloaded it back when it first came out, so I am not an American watching it on HBO recently or anything.

I am sure there are mixed reviews in both the UK and Canada and the US, but I do find that Brits had higher expectations and also held up The Office and Extras a little too high. All of the negative reviews focus on comparing every last detail to those 2 previous shows. Sure, we have all seen them, but I just don't get the concept of going into a show by endlessly comparing it to other shows. After reading reviews I felt like saying "just watch the darn thing on its own as if it was a new show by new writers".

I also find that most Brits saw The Office as the greatest show ever and thought Extras was good but not as good. Then they see Life's Too Short as a further downhill slide. They chastise it for missing elements they loved in the first 2 shows, but complain endlessly that it just plagiarized on the first 2 shows. I think this just goes to show the subjectivity in art and film. I think they got rid of the crap bits and kept the funny bits, which is exactly what they should have done.

I personally thought that The Office was decently funny, but included a bunch of drama and pointless storyline that just took away from the comedy. Extras was much better than the office because they trimmed some of the fat, and the dramatic story bits were done better. Gervais' character was much more funny in Extras. He really hit his stride with the whole loser character that you kind of root for. Life's Too Short basically just took this one step further because the character is that much more pathetic and somehow that much more likable at the same time. Although many Brits criticized the show for being aimless, I actually like the fact that they just stopped trying to include lame background drama and stuck with what they do so well.

And it isn't as if there is no storyline. In fact the worst episode was the special because it tried to bring in more of a storyline that wasn't just about the comedy and it sucked. The whole part of the show with the 3 old actors playing themselves wasn't funny and had nothing to do with the show. Interestingly many Brits that disliked most of the series thought this special was funny and thought the storyline I just mentioned was the best part of the show. Basically everything the British critics and viewers disliked, I liked, and vice-versa (and interestingly for many of the same reasons). I like that they cut out the rubbish emotional story-lines and I like that they repeated what was funny about their previous shows.

I don't really get when people criticize a show for being funny in the same way that something else was funny. Funny is funny, and if it works, it works. Would you rather watch an original piece of rubbish or a show that builds on good comedy that works? And I think the show was still original, just in different ways. So many people just can't get past the comparisons. Why can't you just watch the show for what it is? The only reason people liked The Office so much was because it was the first one, which I think is stupid. You should like a show because of what it is in its own right, not how it compares to something else.

I think people have an inflated view of The Office, which wasn't THAT funny, and a deflated view of Life's Too Short, purely because of the order the shows came out. And The Office wasn't even that original; the Canadian show Trailer Park Boys did the mockumentary style and egotistical character that doesn't realize how lame they are around the same time (actually slightly before) The Office did. Don't get me wrong, I did like The Office and appreciated that the UK actually produced a good comedy for once, but the detractors of LTS act as if The Office was so much better due to originality, which simply isn't true. It is also not the first comedy that revolved around modern office life.

I think Warwick was easily as funny in his role in LTS as Gervais was in the previous series. Sure, LTS wasn't perfect, but it was damn funny, and I appreciate that they brought out the comedy of an actor not known for comedy (and not well known at all outside of Willow). I also like that they starred a dwarf. I think this was clever, innovative, and a cool political move. Gervais and Merchant have a good eye for unknown comedy actors and finding comedy in unusual places and they hit the nail on the head with Warwick's character, similar to how they saw comedy in an office setting, in the life of background actors, or Karl Pilkington.

The critics obviously don't think so, but I think LTS was smart. I think that many critics couldn't get past the physical comedy bits and some of the similarities to previous works. What they saw as lazy writing, I saw as doing what they do well and improving on it. I also think that the show just works better for North Americans. We don't frown on this sort of thing like Brits do. With the exception of Doctor Who, Brits always think that you have to reinvent the wheel for every project, and quite frankly that is why they don't produce much when it comes to good tv, particularly comedy. When a show is funny in North America it runs for 6 seasons easily, even 10+ seasons. Funny UK shows only run for one or 2 seasons out of some sort of fear of ruining the show or repeating good bits. I would still be laughing if they continued The Office or Extras for 10 seasons, and I still enjoy the comedy in LTS, regardless of whether it is somewhat rehashed in a new format. Notice how The Office (US) is still running and still getting many viewers? Who cares that it is getting old. I hate to say it, but the show is still funny. Maybe not AS funny anymore, but still funny.

I could go on and on, but what do you think? I'm interested to hear whether I am right that North Americans liked LTS better than Brits. I am also interested to hear what those who somehow missed The Office and Extras thought of LTS.