Liam should also put a recording studio together and write some songs. posted by uraniumwilly at 3:29 PM on November 11, 2011
*sigh*
Too bad the series isn't as amusing as the excerpts. posted by markkraft at 3:35 PM on November 11, 2011
Apparently Warwick Davis is subsisting on the blood of the innocent, because he hasn't aged in the 23 years since Willow. posted by bpm140 at 3:37 PM on November 11, 2011 [5 favorites]
Too bad the series isn't as amusing as the excerpts.
There has been one episode (which was pretty hilarious - worth it, in fact, just to watch Warwick Davis slide/fall/dismount his 4x4) so far... posted by metaxa at 3:38 PM on November 11, 2011 [3 favorites]
The whole show seems to consist of Warrick Davis trying to do a David Brent impression. posted by gyc at 3:41 PM on November 11, 2011 [1 favorite]
Apparently Warwick Davis is subsisting on the blood of the innocent, because he hasn't aged in the 23 years since Willow.
You can buy a lot of plastic surgery with all that Leprechaun money. posted by Bunny Ultramod at 3:42 PM on November 11, 2011
Remember that time the Leprechaun went to the hood and hung out with Ice T? posted by bpm140 at 3:46 PM on November 11, 2011
Did anyone else find that hilarious? 'Cause I did. posted by dubitable at 7:31 PM on November 11, 2011 [8 favorites]
Yes. This should be the benchmark for hilarious. posted by odinsdream at 8:08 PM on November 11, 2011
Yeah, that was great. posted by Mister_A at 9:19 PM on November 11, 2011
Did anyone else find that hilarious? 'Cause I did.
Me too. I think it's an example of how to build up to a great punch line, while being funny all the way there. posted by Mikey-San at 11:18 PM on November 11, 2011
I'm sorry, but the underlying smart-alec smugness on the part of Gervais and Merchant that made this dismally un-funny for me. posted by marvin at 11:40 PM on November 11, 2011
oops: I'm sorry, but *it was* the underlying smart-alec smugness etc.. posted by marvin at 11:42 PM on November 11, 2011
Yeah, and actually, the more I think about it the more impressed I am with Liam Neeson. His entire goal in the sketch is to illustrate how completely unfunny he is and how awkward the situation is because he truly believes on some level that he is, in fact, a funny person, and these guys have to humor him because he's a big star.
But of course in fact he is amazingly funny throughout the entire sketch. So his character (Liam Neeson) thinks he's funny, but actually Liam Neeson is not funny, but actually, Liam Neeson is hilarious. What a joy to see a great actor juggling all these layers and have it come off so naturally. Of course the other guys are no slouches either—I love Ricky Gervais being the doctor and the greengrocer's irate customer—they allow him to carry the scene, but, damn...
On preview...marvin I guess we'll have to agree to disagree, haha. Humor is pretty damn subjective when it comes down to it. posted by dubitable at 11:43 PM on November 11, 2011 [1 favorite]
Apparently Warwick Davis is subsisting on the blood of the innocent, because he hasn't aged in the 23 years since Willow.
That's because he is just 41 now. He was only 17 when filming Willow. posted by Authorized User at 2:37 AM on November 12, 2011
I watched this twice and burst out laughing at the end both times.
markkraft: Too bad the series isn't as amusing as the excerpts.
How have you managed to see more than the one broadcast episode? Does it go downhill after the first one or something? Is there a link somewhere? posted by nowonmai at 6:48 AM on November 12, 2011
Love Liam Neeson and love this. You'd never know from the finished product how hard it was for them all to get through it without laughing hysterically. posted by OolooKitty at 12:11 PM on November 12, 2011
Just finished the first episode; looking forward to the series. Can't say I've ever really had much of an impression of Warwick Davis beyond Jedi and Willow (and um.. Leprechaun), but he seems to have a knack for Gervais' awkward-comedy style.
It's actually pretty neat in general to see dudes like Warwick and Peter Dinklage getting meaningful roles other than the typecasts usually associated with little people. Here's hoping this is a growing trend. posted by pyrex at 1:48 PM on November 12, 2011
This was perfect. Thank you. posted by JLovebomb at 2:18 PM on November 12, 2011
I'm sorry, but the underlying smart-alec smugness on the part of Gervais and Merchant that made this dismally un-funny for me.
Normally I'm not a fan of Gervais's smart-alec smugness in general, but here he's mostly just reacting to the terrifying awkwardness of Neeson's presence, so he didn't detract too much for me here.
So any guesses as to whose name got bleeped out? "Brad Pitt"? posted by TheSecretDecoderRing at 9:27 PM on November 12, 2011
Thought the whole episode was hilarious, though the Liam Neeson part was the best. I'm looking forward to the rest of the series. posted by salmacis at 11:22 AM on November 13, 2011
Just watched this last night and looking forward to the next one. My biggest complaint is exactly as gyc said above, Davis is trying too hard to be Ricky Gervais as David Brent (an awkward, self-conscious, egotistical, posturing idiot). It might be funny if David Brent never existed (David Brent as a dwarf would have been magic) but he's already in our minds whenever we see Ricky's face and Davis' character seems like a stale spin on an iconic persona. I want to hope that he gets better but his personality was so firmly established in this first episode I don't think it will.
But I want to keep watching because Liam Neeson totally saved the day and I think the highlight of the series will be the guest stars, similar to Extras. I saw a preview for the next episode - Johnny Depp. I really don't think I need to say more than that. posted by like_neon at 3:07 AM on November 14, 2011
posted by uraniumwilly at 3:29 PM on November 11, 2011