Best Comedy TV

[Sterlingdog]

Arrested Development was great, of course it just got cancelled.  I don't know if its going to be shown through syndication though, it might not have been on long enough. 

[journey]

My Name is Earl
Family Guy
Everybody Hates Chris
Two and a Half Men (watched it for the first time last night)

[Timothy]

Spaced
My Name is Earl
The office (both versions )
The Simpsons
Family guy
The Daily Show
3rd Rock From The Sun
Seinfeld
married with children
Everybody Loves Raymond
South Park

[Goldie]

Seinfeld
Simpsons
Beavis and Butthead
M*A*S*H
Night Court
MY NAME IS EARL (I totally believe in the Karma!)
And the BEST comedy ever~ Monty Python's Flying Circus

[Drew]

Currently, it would be VH1's Web Junk 20.

[Kujo]

And the BEST comedy ever~ Monty Python's Flying Circus [/color]

Close. I'll say that is 1b

1a is Fawlty Towers. The absolutely best sitcom ever as far as I'm concerned

I'll have to support My Name Is Earl and The Office also.

[Hammy]

1a is Fawlty Towers. The absolutely best sitcom ever as far as I'm concerned

I'd agree with you on that one.

There weren't many episodes but everyone was a classic and it's one of the very few that cannot be accused of going on for too long.

Instead it left people wanting more and that's the way it should be....

[Jim]

Aye, but not too many British shows can. I mean, a lot of really popular British comedy have less shows in their entire run than the American shows do in one season.

Bottom (18 episodes), The Young Ones (12) (which both have the best endings to a last episode ever!), Alan Partridge (18), The Office (14), The Day Today (6), Brass Eye (5/6), Father Ted (though not British...About 21, I think...). The list goes on.

Even the seemingly long running Red Dwarf (a classic, I can't believe I missed it out!) only did has only done so far...about 52 episodes. Not much more than a two season run over in the States.

Those numbers are off the top of my head, appologies for any innacuracies....

[Hammy]

Aye, but not too many British shows can. I mean, a lot of really popular British comedy have less shows in their entire run than the American shows do in one season.

Is that simply because the americans have more ideas?

I mean we have series that average 6-8 episodes, where as the americans seem to have round about 24.

One example would be, the first series of Frasier (An awesome series...) has the same number of episodes of Red Dwarf Series 1-4 (Another awesome series....)

[Jim]

I'd say it has more to be with the influence over our comedy, actually.

People like Rik Mayal and Ben Elton, Steve Coogan, Ricky Gervais. None of them ended the shows because they were running out of ideas. They just didn't want it to get stale, they wanted to do something different.

In America it's more corporate, I mean didn't Friends have like 10 writers..........

It's less personal; the focus isn't on the writer, it seems to be more on the company.

The emphasis seems to be more on the marketing potential (the amount of money that the cast of Friends were paid towards the end was ridiculous) than the material; while the material can still be really good (as you said, Fraiser, Seinfeld both had long runs with fantastic episodes), the need, or the necesity, for British writers to continue a series doesn't seem so pressured.

CS Lewis said that it's better to stop while people asking for more, than to continue until they're bored. To me that seems to be a very British philosophy. America's seems to be bleed it dry.....

Don't get me wrong, I don't see anything wrong with long running seasons. I think that it's just a difference in attitude and culture.

[Hammy]

The emphasis seems to be more on the marketing potential (the amount of money that the cast of Friends were paid towards the end was ridiculous) than the material; while the material can still be really good (as you said, Fraiser, Seinfeld both had long runs with fantastic episodes), the need, or the necesity, for British writers to continue a series doesn't seem so pressured.

Yep, it's like the long in the making Red Dwarf film.

Filming hasn't even started yet since they haven't been able to get funding.

They tried to get it from America, but they only offered if the cast was completely changed, they wanted big name stars.  And obviously they told 'em where to go because it would of sucked but rather than look at the quality of the existing show and the fanbase they just decided that the only way this would sell well is if they had extremely well known actors.

I think on the DVD for one of the series they mentioned the suggestion given to them by the americans of getting Hugh Grant to play Lister

[Jim]

Haha, yeah, I think it's on the season 4 DVD. 

The whole Red Dwarf movie thing sucks, it would rule!

I read this essay on everything that they have tried to do to get the movie made since the beggining. The crew have really been fucked over.

If I get rich in the next year,

I'll fund the damn movie!

Or, if I become a movie director, I'll direct it for free. Well, not free.............Fucking union. (It does apply to directors, doesn't it......)

Though, by that time, the core cast will probably be pushing 60........

[Hammy]

Haha, yeah, I think it's on the season 4 DVD.?

The whole Red Dwarf movie thing sucks, it would rule!

I read this essay on everything that they have tried to do to get the movie made since the beggining. The crew have really been fucked over.

If I get rich in the next year,

I'll fund the damn movie!

Or, if I become a movie director, I'll direct it for free. Well, not free.............Fucking union. (It does apply to directors, doesn't it......)

Though, by that time, the core cast will probably be pushing 60........

I will expect a cameo if you do get involved with the project....

....unlikely but worth a request just in case, ol' wrestling buddie ol' pal

It would be a hell of a lot easier if they'd of just done another series.

[Jim]

Yeah, sure, you could be spare head number 2. 

I'd love another season. I was one of the people that thought season 8 was fantastic! A whole hell of a lot better than seasons 5-7 (which I was still a fan of).

[Hammy]

Yeah, sure, you could be spare head number 2.?

I'd love another season. I was one of the people that thought season 8 was fantastic! A whole hell of a lot better than seasons 5-7 (which I was still a fan of).

It was better than 7 and possibly 6, those 2 weren't as enjoyable for me.  5 though was my fave, i thought that was perfection!

[Jim]

You may be right, actually. I'd probably put 5 and 8 as about the same.

The Inquisitor, Demons and Angles and Back to Reality (I just grabbed the DVD to check...) are three of my favourite episodes in the entire run!

[Hammy]

You may be right, actually. I'd probably put 5 and 8 as about the same.

The Inquisitor, Demons and Angles and Back to Reality (I just grabbed the DVD to check...) are three of my favourite episodes in the entire run!

They were all good.  Holoship was a great opening episode....

- "Rimmer, you said that about King of Kings, the story of Jesus! "
- "Well it's true! A simple carpenter's son who learns how to do magic tricks like that, and doesn't go into show business! Do any of us believe that, even for a second? "
- "He was supposed to be the son of god! "
- "And when he was carrying that cross up the hill. Any normal realistic bloke would have mule kicked the guy on the left, clobbered the one on the right, been over that green hill and far away before you could say 'ponctious pilot'. "

[Jim]

 

A fantastic set piece is the Demons and Angels dance...play...thing whatever it is. 

[Mr. Dick Purple]

Married... with children   That was pure gold, there wasn't a single bad episode. My all time favourite TV show.

Agreed on that I didnt remember it but it's one good classic 

[Grouse]

how can all you english people forget "allo allo!"