I've just seen SPACED for the first time. For those unaware, its a 1999/2000 British comedy starring Simon Pegg of Shaun Dead / Hot Fuzz fame, in fact by all the same creative talent of those two films. It's about two 20something listless losers (guy and girl) who have to pretend to be a couple to live in an apartment, but it frequently uses cut-away fantasy gags like Family Guy with a heavy sci-fi/fantasy/horror movie homage. My first impression of it was disappointing. I thought that the show was a sci-fi sitcom like Red Dwarf about them being on a spaceship or something, so when it turned out just to be about people mucking about town I was pretty pissed. As the first series went on I started to take a liking to it, but in the second series I absolutely fell in love with it. I dunno if S2 was that much better but it felt like it was. I also appreciated how each S2 ep had an action premise to it, like the agents pursuing Daisy or Tim trying to retrieve his drawing sample from the guy's office. By the time the series ended I was wistfully in love with the show, and quite pissed there wasn't anymore, or any kind of ending. It was hilarious... full of homages to my favorite movies... but I also grew to care about the characters a lot. And any show with a disturbingly affectionate best guy-friends relationship is always a plus in my book For those who didn't get the new USA DVD release, at the end of the docu they did a little 30 second epilogue scene, showing Tim and Daisy married and with a baby. Tim wants to call her Luke, in spite of her being a girl. Nice to know they got together, anyway!
Pedantry time - Spaced actually aired on Channel 4, not the BBC. But yeah, it was a great series. I didn't get into it when it first was shown but bought it on DVD soon after Shaun of the Dead. Couldn't believe that I didnt like it first time round - I suppose I must've been expecting more of a conventional sitcom. Which it blessedly wasn't! Didnt know about the epilogue on the US DVD. Interesting! Pegg et al had been saying for years that they wouldn't do another series, but may do a one-off special to show where the characters were now. Guess that probably won't happen. But better news is that neither will the McG US remake!
You know what's funny? Hot Fuzz and Shaun of the Dead are about spending time with your "heterosexual life partner" more than with a member of the opposite sex. Hot Fuzz? Dude's divorced. Shaun of the Dead? Last shot is with the two guys together. Yep.
It's certainly a reccurring theme with the Pegg/Frost comedy partnership! Pegg's character in Hot Fuzz was supposed to have a female love-interest, but her character was eventually discarded and some of her lines given to Frost. And as for Spaced - it's a little piece of fried gold that gets better with each viewing.
Yeah, it's a great little series. Short, but very sweet. Nick Frost stole the show, esp. the episode where he gets allowed back into the TA.
I love the Tyres O'Flaherty charactor, especially the scene were he starts hearing rave music beat in the flat all around him.....and i wont go into his F***ing MOOD SWINGS.... Cracks me up every time. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMsLLMP5knU&feature=related
If he saw it in the states, it's likely he saw it on the BBC prime or whatever that's now called (I'm guessing).
BBC America. Indeed, Spaced is one of my favorite all time comedy series, if not my absolute favorite. I actually saw Shaun of the Dead before Spaced and acquired the show through "those means". The fact that it finally made itself onto Region 1 DVD is wonderful and I picked it up the day it was released.
Actually I thought anything that airs in England is under the BBC I thought the government owned the tv airwaves and controlled everything that was made. I remain only luke warm towards Shaun, and I just rewatched it after seeing Spaced. Hot Fuzz however I absolutely love. Shaun just seems to waste too much time in the first half.
I spent most of last week watching the entire series of Spaced. I loved Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz and had thought about importing the DVDs but I do not have a multi-region DVD player. I really enjoyed the series and think that it will be one of my DVD sets that will be consistently played. I watched the making of but have not got around to the commentaries except for the pilot (well, the one with Kevin Smith). I really liked the team of Wright-Pegg-Frost and look forward to The World's End that will complete the "Blood and Ice Cream" trilogy.
The thing about SOTD is, though, so much of that "wasted" time is important set-up, and the second half of the movie wouldn't be anywhere near as strong without it. Just my opinion, of course, but I think it's pretty necessary. As for Spaced, I've been a fan for quite a while now, and I think it's one of the most brilliant sitcoms out there. It's hilarious, but it's also got a lot of heart. Plus, it's probably one of the most "real" depictions of twenty-somethings out there (despite all the randomness), especially when compared to fare like Friends. My favourite episodes have to be "Battles" (paintballing) and "Gone" ("gun" fight).
I absolutely adore Spaced and am currently getting all my friends into it as well. Fried Gold! Pity it only got two seasons, but what quality! I look forward to the new movie with keen interest.
I'm currently watching the series for the first time myself. I'm almost done with the first season and frankly I'm a little underwhelmed with it so far. There's a few chuckles here and there but I've never once laughed out loud. The third episode, "Art", was particularly lame. I like and can identify with Tim, but Daisy just plain annoys me. But I'll stick with it and see how it goes. (On the technical side the video quality of the DVD is kind of shitty. Everything turns into a blurry mess whenever there's any sort of movement on the screen.)
I think that stint is on the Special Edition DVD as well, so it's not exclusive to the US I've gotta check out anyway.
Yup, the "Skip to the end" documentary with the epilogue is on the Region 2 three-disc release. I've watched it many times.
I was just thinking about buying that, I didn't know whether it was worth getting the American set, but then when I saw the price difference I think I'll stick with the R2 version.
I want the R1 set just for the commentaries - I'm a commentary junkie anyway (especially if Pegg and Wright are on them), so I just GOTS to get the new ones!