Another two-fer! Figure that’s the least I could do since I’ve hardly done any posts lately. Work has been super busy, and I’ve hardly had time to MINE, let alone do posts. I’ve got at least four in mind, if only I get the time! Anyway, let’s get on with the Fun!
British sitcoms, or Britcoms, are a normal part of a geek’s diet. Just saying the words “Monty Python” will often result in a barrage of quotes and discussions of favorite episodes. It’s natural, then, that geek culture made its way into the Britcoms.
Spaced is *finally* now available on DVD here in the US. It stars the brilliant Simon Pegg, and is directed by Edgar Wright, who are known for one of my favorite movies of all time, Shaun of the Dead. You’d also recognize Nick Frost, who plays…what else…the best friend of Simon’s character. I can’t recommend this show enough! It’s got lots of geek and pop-culture references like Star Wars, The Matrix (hey, it was relevant back in 1999!) and Resident Evil, with that unique and hilarious sense of humor Pegg and Wright fans have come to love. And a great techno-dance version of The A-Team theme song that will stick in your head for days.
The latest geek laced show is The IT Crowd. As you can guess, its focus is more on the IT geek, but the show “features a large number of references to geek culture, mostly in set dressing and props. Dialogue (both technical and cultural) is usually authentic and any technobabble used often contains in-jokes for geek viewers”. It’s a whole lot of fun to try and spot them all, like a Flying Spaghetti Monster, EFF stickers, and geek shirts. I enjoyed the show so much, I have the theme song as my ringtone. Plus I just love cracking myself up when I use Roy’s stock answers to an IT problem, “Have you tried turning it off and on again?” and “Are you sure it’s plugged in?”, for troubleshooting PCs where I work. Yes, I am easily amused.
Now, the coolest part is that the the writer of the show, Graham Linehan, just finished the scripts for the 3rd season, and he wants suggestions for the geek stuff that lays around the main set!
How would you like to help in designing the look of series 3? Specifically, you’d be helping us choose the stuff that litters the main set. I’m talking about posters, comics, fanzines, T-shirts… anything you’ve seen in the last few months that you think is pretty cool or captures the spirit of the show or a particular character. By now, most of you know the kind of things I like…weird toys, indie comics, sci-fi, geek references, internet memes, boardgames…normally I’d delight in tracking down the stuff myself, but as I say, it’s just not going to happen this time round.
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Please send your suggestions to ben.capel@talkbackthames.tv
There are already a ton of good suggestions in the comments, so I’m getting excited to see what will come of it. And for those of you who haven’t seen the show, but are interested, it will begin airing in the US on Independent Film Channel, beginning September 29th! I will be watching it again, just to see what I missed the first watching.
Technorati tags: full of fun fridays, britcoms, spaced, the it crowd