The Office: US vs. UK
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I :love: the US version of The Office, and have read the praise that the original UK version gets. I got the UK version today (12 eps, 2 seasons I guess?), and after watching the first 6, I just don't get it. There are maybe 3 or 4 laughs in each show; the rest of the time it's David being dumb, not funny. At least when Michael Scott cooks his foot, they build the entire show's humour around it. Not to mention that Tim/Dawn have nowhere near the on-screen chemistry that Jim/Pam do. --Mike-- Visual C++ MVP :cool: LINKS~! Ericahist | NEW!! PimpFish | CP SearchBar v3.0 | C++ Forum FAQ Come quietly or there will be... trouble.
I find both hopelessly dull, though like most shows there are a few funny moments in isolation (which they then use for the commercials.) (For a mockumentary about an office, I found nothing funnier than "The Games", an Australian comedy about the run-up to the 2000 Sydney Olympic games: http://www.abc.net.au/thegames/[^]) Anyone who thinks he has a better idea of what's good for people than people do is a swine. - P.J. O'Rourke
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Hey, with the right amount of laughing gas that could be a compliment. I really enjoy Frasier though. It is not one for huge laugh-out-loud moments but it is clever and avoids a lot of the usual U.S. slapstick which I dislike. Plus it is quite theatrical, lots of "stage craft." regards, Paul Watson Ireland Colib and ilikecameras. K(arl) wrote: oh, and BTW, CHRISTIAN ISN'T A PARADOX, HE IS A TASMANIAN!
Kelsey has his moments, but I am not a real TV series fan. I lived on a boat for approximately 10 years before I moved to SE Asia and when I retrieved my TV from storage (12 inch screen) I realized it didn't even have a remote control. Needless to say no one wanted to buy it. It was even difficult to give away. I guess that is why I do not miss English speaking TV these days. I'm on-line therefore I am. JimmyRopes
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Kelsey has his moments, but I am not a real TV series fan. I lived on a boat for approximately 10 years before I moved to SE Asia and when I retrieved my TV from storage (12 inch screen) I realized it didn't even have a remote control. Needless to say no one wanted to buy it. It was even difficult to give away. I guess that is why I do not miss English speaking TV these days. I'm on-line therefore I am. JimmyRopes
JimmyRopes wrote:
I guess that is why I do not miss English speaking TV these days.
And non-English speaking TV? And come to think of it I have never owned my own TV. My dad would tape our favourite shows and then once a week I'd visit and we'd have dinner together and watch them. Here in Ireland my flatmates have a TV and it is often on when I sit in the lounge but there is very little to watch. The only TV shows I have had of late are 24 and Battlestar Galactica DVDs. Though I do try and catch TopGear on Sundays, now that is comedy. regards, Paul Watson Ireland Colib and ilikecameras. K(arl) wrote: oh, and BTW, CHRISTIAN ISN'T A PARADOX, HE IS A TASMANIAN!
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BBC7, every Monday!
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JimmyRopes wrote:
I guess that is why I do not miss English speaking TV these days.
And non-English speaking TV? And come to think of it I have never owned my own TV. My dad would tape our favourite shows and then once a week I'd visit and we'd have dinner together and watch them. Here in Ireland my flatmates have a TV and it is often on when I sit in the lounge but there is very little to watch. The only TV shows I have had of late are 24 and Battlestar Galactica DVDs. Though I do try and catch TopGear on Sundays, now that is comedy. regards, Paul Watson Ireland Colib and ilikecameras. K(arl) wrote: oh, and BTW, CHRISTIAN ISN'T A PARADOX, HE IS A TASMANIAN!
24 and Battle Star Glactica??? I am so far out of the mainstream that I don't even know what they are. I can surmise that Battlestar is a takeoff on Star Trek but I haven't a clew as to what 24 might be about! I don’t get to see anything but Thai, Kampuchean (Cambodian), Japanese and Chinese TV these days. The cultural divide is larger than you can probably imagine. Let’s just say that the popular Thai, Japanese and Kampuchean game and variety shows remind me of TV in the US in the 1950s and 1960s. The Chinese shows are so culturally different I can’t place them in time, at least not compared to anything I remember. I should probably look for some NOx. It would probably enhance my viewing experience. I'm on-line therefore I am. JimmyRopes
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24 and Battle Star Glactica??? I am so far out of the mainstream that I don't even know what they are. I can surmise that Battlestar is a takeoff on Star Trek but I haven't a clew as to what 24 might be about! I don’t get to see anything but Thai, Kampuchean (Cambodian), Japanese and Chinese TV these days. The cultural divide is larger than you can probably imagine. Let’s just say that the popular Thai, Japanese and Kampuchean game and variety shows remind me of TV in the US in the 1950s and 1960s. The Chinese shows are so culturally different I can’t place them in time, at least not compared to anything I remember. I should probably look for some NOx. It would probably enhance my viewing experience. I'm on-line therefore I am. JimmyRopes
Yeah I was wondering if you found Thai/Kampuchean/Japense/Chinese T.V. favourable. When I think of Japense T.V. I am reminded of some scense from Lost in Translation. Bit mad eh. regards, Paul Watson Ireland Colib and ilikecameras. K(arl) wrote: oh, and BTW, CHRISTIAN ISN'T A PARADOX, HE IS A TASMANIAN!
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Yeah I was wondering if you found Thai/Kampuchean/Japense/Chinese T.V. favourable. When I think of Japense T.V. I am reminded of some scense from Lost in Translation. Bit mad eh. regards, Paul Watson Ireland Colib and ilikecameras. K(arl) wrote: oh, and BTW, CHRISTIAN ISN'T A PARADOX, HE IS A TASMANIAN!
I did actually see Lost in Translation when we had satellite network TV a while back. We discontinued it because there wasn’t enough content to justify the cost. The children liked the cartoon shows and animal planet but the cost was prohibitive. Yes, it is quite different here. TV seems, to me, to be a lot more innocent. I don’t know if innocent is the best way to describe it but I guess it reminds me of more innocent days in the West. At least less complicated. I live up-country so the people here are not that influenced by the West. They still very much believe in the spirit world [ancient animist beliefs] and are resistant to modern culture. We have two spirit houses in our front yard; one for our ancestors and one for any other spirits that happen by and need a place to stay. These traditions pre-date Buddhism [we are currently in the year 2549 BE (Buddhist Era)] but remain alive today in the daily lives of the folks here. Yes, things do get lost in translation. We are just looking at things from two completely different perspectives. I'm on-line therefore I am. JimmyRopes
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I did actually see Lost in Translation when we had satellite network TV a while back. We discontinued it because there wasn’t enough content to justify the cost. The children liked the cartoon shows and animal planet but the cost was prohibitive. Yes, it is quite different here. TV seems, to me, to be a lot more innocent. I don’t know if innocent is the best way to describe it but I guess it reminds me of more innocent days in the West. At least less complicated. I live up-country so the people here are not that influenced by the West. They still very much believe in the spirit world [ancient animist beliefs] and are resistant to modern culture. We have two spirit houses in our front yard; one for our ancestors and one for any other spirits that happen by and need a place to stay. These traditions pre-date Buddhism [we are currently in the year 2549 BE (Buddhist Era)] but remain alive today in the daily lives of the folks here. Yes, things do get lost in translation. We are just looking at things from two completely different perspectives. I'm on-line therefore I am. JimmyRopes
Thank you for the insight, Jimmy. I am not wholly confident in the West's ways, we need to sway back to a middle line, away from this extreme path we are on. regards, Paul Watson Ireland Colib and ilikecameras. K(arl) wrote: oh, and BTW, CHRISTIAN ISN'T A PARADOX, HE IS A TASMANIAN!
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Thank you for the insight, Jimmy. I am not wholly confident in the West's ways, we need to sway back to a middle line, away from this extreme path we are on. regards, Paul Watson Ireland Colib and ilikecameras. K(arl) wrote: oh, and BTW, CHRISTIAN ISN'T A PARADOX, HE IS A TASMANIAN!
I, also, am not confident that western ways are the total answer, but, unfortunately, in Bangkok western “culture” [with a decidedly Asian twist] is thriving. Much to my dismay I am witnessing the fattening of Asia. In urban areas McD, KFC, Pizza Hut, Starbucks, etc., are ubiquitous. This is not just a Thai phenomenon as I see reports about obesity, especially in children, skyrocketing in places like China which traditionally had a mostly rural population which labored in the fields and ate fresh foods. When I first came to SE Asia [in 1966] I do not remember seeing overweight people and the predominant mode of transportation was the bicycle [push bike]. Now, in contrast, even young children [12 years old] drive motorcycles. Not legally, of course, but that doesn’t stop them on the back roads. When I was 12 years old I rode my bicycle everywhere and expended a lot of energy doing so. On a trip to Hanoi, I couldn’t help but notice that it retained a lot of its French Indochinese atmosphere, typical of larger cities all throughout Viet Nam, but the thing that changed there was the proliferation of motorcycles also. In addition to the motorcycle craze there is a desire, especially by the young, to emulate popular western culture [mostly US but some EU also]; designer clothes [knock offs], songs [pirated CDs], consumer electronics [grey market], fast food, computer games [also pirated], etc. Anything western seems to be desired. It is unfortunate that I see so many people in their teens, 20s and 30s going off to Bangkok to work in sweat shops or the hospitality industry [politically correct description] and then spending their hard earned money on frivolous things. They return to the village sick, injured or spent [emotionally and/or physically]. Their families are still living in a glorified chicken coop, and their younger siblings are not getting higher education but they now have a new TV, cell phone, jewelry, etc. I agree that the middle way is probably the best alternative. That is why I am living in a small village and not some glitzy tourist destination. Hopefully, in the future we will all come around to the middle ground. The pessimist in me says that we can never go back to more innocent times. I sincerely hope that I am wrong. I'm on-line therefore I am. JimmyRopes
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Well, er, at least 7! BBC7 is DAB and Internet only, with sci-fi, comedy and other good things.
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Well, er, at least 7! BBC7 is DAB and Internet only, with sci-fi, comedy and other good things.
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What's an Astra 2? Some kind of car? ;-) I can only get it through the web, digital coverage in Cornwall is very patchy...
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What's an Astra 2? Some kind of car? ;-) I can only get it through the web, digital coverage in Cornwall is very patchy...