The problem with comedy (and the good thing) is that it is so subjective. However, this means that when you criticise a show that others like it will be seen as cynicism because the other person can't see why you don't like it. When you agree with someone you can relax knowing that you both have excellent taste in comedy.
Brushing off contrary opinion as sour grapes is easy unless it's a show that you personally dislike, then does it suddenly become considered opinion? I enjoy finding out why people like or dislike a show. I think differences just mean that there's another reason to celebrate individuality, rather than a reason to get mad at each other.
My main gripe was derived from the writer's own comment about the origin of the series. Ask yourselves this question:
How can an executive tell from a half sheet of A4 that describes a different scenario to the one that the executive wants (with it's main premise being quote 'a wedding in which nothing much happens') that it's comedy gold? How does he then send the writers a reply that says go write 6 episodes of a different series?
Does the fact that the 1/2 page sheet of vague description come from 2 known names in the ascendancy have something to do with it? Would that same sheet of vague ideas have generated the request to write a series on a different premise if it had come from you or me?
Be honest.
To counter the earlier claim that the executive 'saw genius' in the idea, he clearly didn't. He told them to go away and write something different. So what he saw on the paper wasn't brilliant, or he'd have said 'write that' instead.
If we really believe that a vague idea gets such a response through talent alone, why are we wasting our time writing complete pilots? Just send off the vague idea and win a commission writing an idea that the producer suggests instead.
Whether the show is good or bad is personal opinion but bear in mind that when you have the Beeb and Baby Cow involved it's going to end up slick because of their input. For an example of how creative input along the line can lift a script, look at the Office. As a script alone it died. No one saw potential in it. It took a pilot to make the rejected script come alive. When everyone got involved the end-result was way above the script. There are plenty of examples where the reverse happened but having the Beeb and Baby Cow involved is going to let a script reach max potential.
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