Charlie Brooker's new show: You Have Been Watching

He is just Television's Yahtzee, isn't he?

Poncho wrote:He is just Television's Yahtzee, isn't he?

I've not seen tonight's show, but in general I agree with the dissenting voices, there's too much bile, you've got to be likable as you're trashing the enemy. Only just started watching Jon Stewart on the Daily Show and there's stuff there which annoys me too but for the most part JS has a much more effective approach. Even though Brooker's obviously in the right most of the time you feel like you're being a misery-guts by agreeing with him.

Memento Mori wrote:I knew I forgot to watch something.

Me too. For some reason I thought it was on Thursdays

thousand yard stare wrote:I've not seen tonight's show, but in general I agree with the dissenting voices, there's too much bile, you've got to be likable as you're trashing the enemy. Only just started watching Jon Stewart on the Daily Show and there's stuff there which annoys me too but for the most part JS has a much more effective approach. Even though Brooker's obviously in the right most of the time you feel like you're being a misery-guts by agreeing with him.

I think he is likable in his approach. I love that kind of miserable, misanthropic bewilderment at the fact these shows exist that he has, because I share that.

I enjoy Brooker as I like to think of him as me but witty and likable, therefore he's my fantasy male. The Danny Dyer bit of tonight's episode was great.

thousand yard stare wrote:I've not seen tonight's show, but in general I agree with the dissenting voices, there's too much bile, you've got to be likeable as you're trashing the enemy. Only just started watching Jon Stewart on the Daily Show and there's stuff there which annoys me too but for the most part JS has a much more effective approach. Even though Brooker's obviously in the right most of the time you feel like you're being a misery-guts by agreeing with him.

I'd actually go ahead and say that Brooker is likeable. The level of cynicism and bile he presents is clearly over-the-top for comedic effect; when you see him interacting with his guests, he comes across as quite a cheery, slightly bumbling figure. The contrast between the dominating cynic persona he projects and his more introverted self is kind of endearing.

Yep, there are a lot of things in life that make it difficult not to take a despairing view, I just think it's possible to attack something without sounding so sour I guess. Reminds me of the sitcom Black Books, I know there are people who love Bernard Black's uncompromising misanthropy but I find Chandler from Friends more likable, funnier, etc.

Just the Screenwipe-like bits with his voiceover ripping a show apart work best when it cuts back to him sitting on his lonely self in his flat in the dark and the persona can remain consistent. Here it cuts back to him sat much happier in the host's chair, where he'll carry on hating it, then stop and turn to his 3 guests who look taken aback and who mostly always say they like the show for being as batshit mental as it is; that being a positive, not a negative thing. Didn't he say on tonight's episode; 'am I being too harsh?' He's saying that a bit.

David Mitchell next week should be good. When he was on Tv Heaven Telly Hell it was great.

The thing with Charlie Brooker I find is that while his misanthropy is unsurprisingly unrelenting, the way he approaches it is in such a way that there's so much bile being projected that it seems to drop past "Just Plain Nasty" and carries on into a level of absurdity so oddly funny that even he can't help but laugh. For all the bile he does spew, nothing really seems to stick (unless you're Danny Dyer) because aimed in such a way as if it was told by a child; you can't take it seriously.

I watched it on 4OD so I only had to see that sponsor prat twice. Doing the same joke both times. :fp:

Jaxley wrote:I watched it on 4OD so I only had to see that sponsor prat twice. Doing the same joke both times.

On one of those ads, there is a moment where he looks at the camera right at the end with a face that clearly says "please kill me".

Incidentally, I'm hoping to restart Danny Dyer's faltering TV career after his savaging from Brooker et al, with a little help from Twitter. Help support this noble cause!

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Apparently Twitter is in the anti-Dyer camp.

Just started watching this on 4OD. So glad that sponsor guy is gone. I think maybe everyone who has anything to do with any of it realised how nads he is.

I do realise I bring this guy up every time by the way.

David Mitchell was great on this weeks ep. His rant about the angels bit was amazing.

Poncho wrote:He is just Television's Yahtzee, isn't he?

Brooker isn't gooseberry fool, though.

Plus Brooker came before Yahtzee.

Plus there is also room for 2 funny pessimistic and sarcastic people in 2 different forms of media.

Plus Yahtzee is gooseberry fool, predictable and has become a self-parody.

Charlie Brooker's new show: You Have Been Watching

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