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I really wanted to love this programme. I adored The Office, raved about Extras, and I was all set to gush with praise over comedy-dream-team Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant’s latest project, Life’s Too Short. But, as with just about every third part of a trilogy (except Toy Story and Lord of the Rings, of course), there’s something not quite right about it and, while certainly no disgrace to the originals, it doesn’t live up to the standard of what’s gone before.
Now, it may seem a bit premature to be immediately writing it off after just one episode but, if you think back to The Office and Extras, they comfortably established themselves within about 10 minutes; instantly funny, beautifully constructed, they were master-classes in comedy writing. And while LTS does have some very funny moments, and could eat most of the BBC’s latest comedies for breakfast, it doesn’t feel as assured or as settled as it should be.
It’s a real shame, because the premise (mockumentary following struggling dwarf actor Warwick Davis, hoping for Hollywood to come knocking on his door again) sounds like a perfect, simple idea that you could imagine G&M making absolute comedy gold out of. But there are certainly no signs of that happening just yet. Where Extras seemed to be a natural progression from The Office, telling an all-too-realistic, alternative version of Gervais’ rise to fame, LTS struggles to find its own identity. It is, in essence, a blend of the shows that it should be complimenting, not copying.
Of course, the return to the mockumentary style was always going to be a tricky thing to pull off, with The Office remaining the benchmark for the genre (I think there have been enough of them to warrant the use of ‘genre’…). And, as was feared, it doesn’t quite nail it (ooh, I’ve come over all Louis Walsh) in the way that its predecessor did. The trouble is that it doesn’t do anything new with the concept because, it is, in truth, a limited one that was explored to the limit in The Office. Even G&M’s still effective cringeworthy comedy style can’t quite overcome the hindrances imposed by the format.
The comparisons with Extras are, unfortunately, even more unavoidable, as it comes complete with celebrity cameos (though, I will admit, the Liam Neeson scene was terrific), and a hopeless accountant-version of hopeless agent Darren Lamb… it’s even got Barry from EastEnders in it.
Even more frustratingly, Davis’ character is just a combination of David Brent and Andy Millman. OK, so Davis puts in a good performance, and he clearly has a ball, but he’s employing the same mannerisms and behaviour that Gervais perfected ten years ago.
All of these similarities just make LTS disappointing and, at times, uncomfortable viewing; there were often moments when I found myself cringing because of the laziness of the writing, rather than the comedy itself. So while it may be a funny, entertaining programme, it falls short of what we were expecting.
Life's Too Short continues on Thursday at 9pm on BBC2.
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