I saw a few episodes on PBS. I once heard it described as a "British version of 'Friends'," which may be an apt comparison (I never saw 'Friends' nor had any urge to do so). I thought it was cute, but it didn't knock my socks off. Maybe I'm not the target audience, since I never had any friends like those on the show. No way to relate to the material.
It's obviously inspired by "Friends", but I found it much funnier. (And I'm not generally much of an afficionado of British TV comedy. I encountered about five times as much Monty Python as I really needed to in college, and pretty much everything from "Benny Hill" to "The Office" has left me cold.)
In addition, as someone who mostly tends to credit a lot of the value of a TV show to the script, "Coupling" was an object lesson for me in how important delivery and direction are. The script for the NBC pilot was virtually identical to the UK version, aside from localizing a few jokes. (As I understand it, they even brought Stephen Moffat to Hollywood to work on it.) And it was painfully bad. Yet when I went back to the original it was as good as ever. (At least the first three seasons. The fourth sort of limped along, though it had its moments.)
It's particularly recommended for fans of either the new Doctor Who (Steven Moffat has written several of the best episodes including "Blink") and fans of How I Met Your Mother. HIMYM gets a lot of it's DNA from Coupling, I believe - lots of time shifting, showing the same incident from multiple perspective, "rules" and "laws" of male/female interaction, and an unapologetic pub/bar setting.
Huzzah! Although a fifth season would make me a lot more cheerful. (I know it isn't going to happen, but a man can dream.)
Jack Davenport's "pet's for chairs" rant about throw pillows may be one of the funniest performances I've seen on a TV show.
For what it's worth, I don't care for the "British Friends" comparison. That description turned me off to the show for years before I saw it at a friend's place and became an instant fan. I think I went through all four seasons in a couple of weeks afterwards. As far as I'm concerned both shows have six characters with assorted intertwined relationships and the similarity ends there.
I'm a big fan of Brit TV in general -- Catherine Tate, Little Britain and any of the Masterpiece Theatre productions are personal favorites -- but I must say I find "Coupling" utterly unwatchable.
I saw a few episodes on PBS. I once heard it described as a "British version of 'Friends'," which may be an apt comparison (I never saw 'Friends' nor had any urge to do so). I thought it was cute, but it didn't knock my socks off. Maybe I'm not the target audience, since I never had any friends like those on the show. No way to relate to the material.
Yet another variation on the tired joke that ends with "And there I was, with nothing on but my socks."
It's obviously inspired by "Friends", but I found it much funnier. (And I'm not generally much of an afficionado of British TV comedy. I encountered about five times as much Monty Python as I really needed to in college, and pretty much everything from "Benny Hill" to "The Office" has left me cold.)
In addition, as someone who mostly tends to credit a lot of the value of a TV show to the script, "Coupling" was an object lesson for me in how important delivery and direction are. The script for the NBC pilot was virtually identical to the UK version, aside from localizing a few jokes. (As I understand it, they even brought Stephen Moffat to Hollywood to work on it.) And it was painfully bad. Yet when I went back to the original it was as good as ever. (At least the first three seasons. The fourth sort of limped along, though it had its moments.)
It's particularly recommended for fans of either the new Doctor Who (Steven Moffat has written several of the best episodes including "Blink") and fans of How I Met Your Mother. HIMYM gets a lot of it's DNA from Coupling, I believe - lots of time shifting, showing the same incident from multiple perspective, "rules" and "laws" of male/female interaction, and an unapologetic pub/bar setting.
Jeff, however, may very well be the Anti-Barney.
Huzzah! Although a fifth season would make me a lot more cheerful. (I know it isn't going to happen, but a man can dream.)
Jack Davenport's "pet's for chairs" rant about throw pillows may be one of the funniest performances I've seen on a TV show.
For what it's worth, I don't care for the "British Friends" comparison. That description turned me off to the show for years before I saw it at a friend's place and became an instant fan. I think I went through all four seasons in a couple of weeks afterwards. As far as I'm concerned both shows have six characters with assorted intertwined relationships and the similarity ends there.
I'm a big fan of Brit TV in general -- Catherine Tate, Little Britain and any of the Masterpiece Theatre productions are personal favorites -- but I must say I find "Coupling" utterly unwatchable.