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We here at The Yorker love our TV, which is why it pays off at the end of every season/series (depending which side of the pond you're referring to) to cast an eye back over what you've seen this year and what the future holds for your favourite characters. This week, we address 3 shows that finished up last week.
In a rather slow few years for British sitcoms Outnumbered was a surprise hit, especially given how neatly tucked away the first series was. As with all comedies that are semi-improvised the gags in the episodes have tended to be a bit hit and miss but in the third series there has been a marked improvement in this, mostly due to the reduced appearances of Sue’s (Claire Skinner) extended family. From the genius first episode which was on location in London (recreating the magic of the airport episode in series two) Outnumbered has never been off the boil with each episode giving its fair share of laughs. However, cracks may be beginning to develop with Ben (Daniel Roche), the middle child, becoming insufferable at times. The other children remain fantastic in their respective roles with the youngest child Karen (Ramona Marquez) being a constant joy to watch whether it is threatening nurses with legal action or umpiring a tennis match and becoming an online hit. With a fourth series being very likely one hopes that Outnumbered can remain as fresh and uncontrived as it has been and not stoop to My Family levels of monotony.
It was very much a bittersweet ending: the world of Life on Mars and Ashes to Ashes was revealed to be an afterlife police officers went to if their deaths were unresolved. The ghost that has been haunting Alex all series turned out to be Gene, killed as a young police officer, and not someone murdered by him. His spirit came here and helped other coppers go to heaven (heaven in this world is The Railway Arms, the pub from Life on Mars). Brilliantly acted by all concerned, it nicely wrapped up all the series’ mysteries. It was lovely Chris, Ray and Shaz were given a proper send-off – they too were police officers who had died, and their individual moments of fulfilment resolved issues left by their deaths. The fact that Alex was now dead and had to move on without Gene was sad but felt right. Keeley Hawes and Philip Glenister showed just how good they are, particularly in their final scene together. At the end, Gene repeating one of his very first lines to a newly arrived police officer from the future was a poignant touch, reminding us that this world would continue, even if we’re not there to see it. Bittersweet, but marvellous.
How I Met Your Mother’s fourth season ended on an unexpectedly disappointing note. I was left feeling after the final episode that the show is stagnating. Without a fixed time-period, it seems less like a truly engaging funny TV show and more like a string of (often previously told) gags that verge far too close to sitcommy clichés. One of the reasons I’ve been a fan of HIMYM is that it has potential to be unique amongst all other comedies - it could make its audience feel like the story knows where it’s headed. This episode (“The Leap”) dealt with Ted’s job issues as a struggling architect and Barney and Robin realising their feelings for one another. But there was too little of my favourite characters (Marshall and Lilly) and whilst it was quite funny, it didn’t have me in stitches. I can see some positives; putting Ted on a new career path moves his character forward, and I’ve wanted to see Barney address his feelings for Robin for quite some time. Unfortunately, this felt more like a filler episode than a season finale - I understand that the creators are trying to buy themselves a little time, but I hope they don’t sacrifice what makes HIMYM special in order to do so.
Other seasons ends that occurred last week were Gossip Girl and the series finale of Lost - look out for a full recap on the latter later this week!
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