This is a tricky show for me to review. I can see how people might like it. I REALLY disliked it.
One thing is clear - despite the trailers and the casting this is NOT a comedy. Laughs are few and far between, and most of them are based on pretty thin one liners.
It's basically a sentimental show about the writer's first year at university, shortly after the death of his father, and the parallel troubles one of his university friends is going through. All told through Jack Rooke's narration..
But the university scenes feel artificial, with a friendship group that comes together for no apparent reason, and the family are salt-of-the-earth Londoner's that only exist in sitcoms. If this is what Jack's actual experience was, its surprising that it played out like a badly written cliche.
The show bravely includes scenes of promiscuous gay culture. Certainly uncomfortable. But I didn't find it funny. If anything it was mostly exploitative of Jack's naivety.
The best thing about the show by far is Jon Pointing's performance as Danny. Like most of the cast, his character is sketched out really thinly - we barely explore why he is a mature student, or what his background is - but he manages to bring sensitivity to his character, and his scenes with his grandmother are very touching.
Rather like Gameface or This Way Up, it's another example of a comedy writer being given the chance to write something more personal. And like those shows, it ends up a bit light on the laughs. But it lacks the relatable characters that allowed those dramas to develop.
One thing is clear - despite the trailers and the casting this is NOT a comedy. Laughs are few and far between, and most of them are based on pretty thin one liners.
It's basically a sentimental show about the writer's first year at university, shortly after the death of his father, and the parallel troubles one of his university friends is going through. All told through Jack Rooke's narration..
But the university scenes feel artificial, with a friendship group that comes together for no apparent reason, and the family are salt-of-the-earth Londoner's that only exist in sitcoms. If this is what Jack's actual experience was, its surprising that it played out like a badly written cliche.
The show bravely includes scenes of promiscuous gay culture. Certainly uncomfortable. But I didn't find it funny. If anything it was mostly exploitative of Jack's naivety.
The best thing about the show by far is Jon Pointing's performance as Danny. Like most of the cast, his character is sketched out really thinly - we barely explore why he is a mature student, or what his background is - but he manages to bring sensitivity to his character, and his scenes with his grandmother are very touching.
Rather like Gameface or This Way Up, it's another example of a comedy writer being given the chance to write something more personal. And like those shows, it ends up a bit light on the laughs. But it lacks the relatable characters that allowed those dramas to develop.