Spaced

"Spaced" is like watching the cartoon of the life of the average SFX reader or Ain't-it-Cool UK talkbacker. It's the closest thing to fanboy (and fangirl) heaven there is. By that, I don't mean it's a perfect word for word film version of Lord of the Rings nor even a big BBC production of Asimov's Foundation trilogy. No, this is where really good fanboys (and fangirls) go when they die.

Set around the lives of Tim Bisley and Daisy Steiner sharing a ground floor flat somewhere in North London it shows in a disturbingly honest way the lives of the average late 20-something, recently moved to London, wannabe creative, painfully middle-class, skint people in much the same way that David Attenborough might bring to life the daily trials of a family of pandas. Their many rituals and habits are studied in detail as they go about carving their way in the cruel world around them. We see them go clubbing, going to sign on, in the pub, and rescuing dogs from animal testing laboratories. The one thing that leads me to think that this is only a sitcom and not real life is that their flat is always suspiciously clean.

As Tim is a struggling graphic artist trying to break into the world of comic illustration, it's appropriate that the characters are all cartoons themselves. They almost spew stylised behaviour, phrases and clothes. Some even have their own signature moves such as Brian's standardised description of his 'work' when he is asked what he paints. The editing follows this lead with many cut-aways into people's thoughts much in the manner of a thought bubble. The sheer quantity of cultural references is staggering. However, having lived a life similar to this, I know the number of cultural references in real life is at about the same level.

If you're currently aged between 27 and 34, this is the only sitcom you'll ever need to see again. Well, Black Books is pretty good too. Anyway, there are few things that make me laugh as much of this. If you know the words to the Ewok song, watch this.

I've just spent five hours watching the most terrific British sitcom, "Spaced." Now my inner voice speaks with an English accent and I'm left wondering if maybe I grew up on the wrong side of the Atlantic. I am an American viewer, and I'm sad that it has taken so long for this show to reach the States.

In "Spaced" there are references comic books, Tekken, and Evil Dead II. It is also worth noting that Tim, one of the main characters in "Spaced," lost his job over "The Phantom Menace."

I thoroughly enjoyed my hours of uninterrupted British indulgence. I recommend "Spaced" because it's so darn funny. Tim, played by Simon Pegg, is the assistant manager of a comic book shop. His boss's name is Bilbo Bagshot (I'm serious) and said boss has slugged people out on at least two occasions because the one getting slugged said that "Hawke the Slayer" was crap. Also, Peter Serafinowicz (aka the Voice of Darth Maul) turns up as the slick-suit who stole Tim's girlfriend away. They have a great showdown on a paintball course.

Also wonderful is Daisy (Jessica Stevenson), the other main character. She's a writer, but comes up with all sorts of creative ways to avoid actual writing. The in-jokes are brilliant, the directing is fresh, the acting is endearing without being sappy. The next time this show airs on Trio or BBC America, grab some popcorn and hoard the remote because you'll want to watch all of it.

Okay, so I happen to be a partying, comic book reading, horror movie watching, video game playing, thirty something-year-old gal from the US, who is also a major Star Wars geek. And according to some that is the only audience that this show would appeal to. Well, I disagree. It really spoke to me, for obvious reasons, and I think that the characters of Tim and Daisy are much of an amalgam of the people in my generation who want to succeed but are either afraid to take the risk, feel like they can't get a break, or are just to damned lazy to do so! But there is also something about the relationship of the characters that I think could appeal to anyone. And the peripheral characters are deliciously strange. I think that it's well written and acted. I think that it's funny, and weird and bizarre and just really, really fun to watch! If you liked Shaun of the Dead then you will definitely like this series. I only had one problem with it. They didn't make enough episodes!!!

"Spaced" has never been broadcast (to my knowledge) on French TV, so I bought the complete 2 seasons series on Amazon after seeing Shaun of the Dead, which I consider to be one of the best comedies ever. Well, even without any subtitles (I get around in English), "Spaced" appears to me as the exact epitome of what British TV can do at its best : a perfect brew of comedy, rhythm, political incorrectness, extraordinary acting, stylish writing, socially-oriented matters... I really was mesmerized at the creativity both screenwriters and director displayed all along the 14 episodes, always renewing what could be taken as pure show-off style on the first one. This is why I love British comedy, TV & cinema. Wit. Man do they have it. Simon Pegg if you ever read this : you ARE the Force !

The whole two series was as close to perfect as I can imagine. Funny, beautifully shot, well-produced, the only downside was that there wasn't more of it. Perhaps the reason that it wasn't as successful as it should have been was that it didn't get a large enough audience. It was aired in a time when "The Royle Family" undeservedly won all the awards and praise, whereas Spaced was considered to be aimed at immature adolescents, film parodies and comic book references only worthy of an audience that doesn't know quality when they see it. And this is a tragedy, because, if television series' can be considered art form by any stretch of the imagination, then this is a masterpiece, something to be admired by others, a definite benchmark for all other programmes.