IT CROWD, THE (UK TV SERIES) - DVD review

I've never heard of "The IT Crowd," and I had two chances to do so. In 2006 the sitcom debuted on Channel 4 in England, created and directed by Graham Linehan ("Father Ted," "Black Books"). A year later, with a tweaked cast and new writers, the show began airing on NBC. But I can tell you this, after watching Season Two of the original series: without even seeing the American version, I'm convinced that the British one is superior. How can I say such an unfair and outrageous thing? Two words: Chris O'Dowd.

The Irish actor is missing from the American version, and he's such a comic presence that it would be like doing "Curb Your Enthusiasm" without Larry David. Sure, this is an ensemble comedy, with O'Dowd playing one third of an IT department housed in the basement of Reynholm Industries. But while Richard Ayoade is entertaining as the ultra-nerdy, bespectacled Moss, and Katherine Parkinson is charming as Jen, the know-nothing who's been assigned to be the supervisor of the basement-dwellers, it's O'Dowd who turns every scene into a scream. His facial expressions, his body language, his comic timing and delivery, and his character's penchant for going into a higher voice register when nervous really drives the show. There are other minor characters, like a Goth (Noel Fielding) who may or may not actually do any work, and various suits from the surface world, but O'Dowd is the one who consistently makes you laugh.

The first episode is typical of the other five (yes, there are just six per "season"). In it, as with shows like "Seinfeld" or "Curb Your Enthusiasm," a single incident leads to unexpected and unexpectedly complicated situations. When a snappy dresser from the sixth floor drops into the basement to ask Jen if she'd like to go to the theater with him, Roy (O'Dowd) and Moss don't get that he's asking her on a date and hint that they'd like to go along. They thought he was gay, and that turns out to be a running gag. And so the three of them meet Philip at the theater. What's playing? A musical titled "Gay." And Philip knows all the theater people. Yet he's also checking out the caboose on a woman who passes. Jen doesn't know what to think, but the guys are cracking wise the whole time. Inside the show it gets pretty raucous, but the plot really takes a turn and O'Dowd gets his moments to shine when Roy and Moss have to use the men's room. Inside is an attendant, and they both hate men's room attendants. Both fake urinating (because they can't do it with a grumpy attendant watching) and that simple "truth" leads to a "Seinfeldian" or "Curb Your Enthusiasm" chain of events. Because they couldn't use the men's room and they have to pee, Roy decides he's going to use the handicapped bathroom. But when it's time to flush, he pulls a chain and nothing happens. Pulls it again and again, but nothing happens. Then he follows the chain to the ceiling and sees "Emergency." In a matter of minutes the theater staff are breaking down the door, and Roy fakes being handicapped. He lies down on the floor and claims he fell off the toilet. "I'm disabled" he keeps saying. "Where?" the manager wants to know. "My legs." Well, where's your wheelchair, they want to know. "A man stole it." The chain of events in a situation comedy are only as funny as the actor whose reactions we're watching, and O'Dowd is hilarious. Before long, he's in a wheelchair and joining a group of men in wheelchairs who came from Manchester to see the show, all to protect himself. And he's giving a description of the wheelchair thief to a policeman.

Moss, meanwhile, doesn't fare any better. Caught using the staff restroom, he's ordered to stop slacking and get to work. So by the time that Jen and her "date" go backstage to meet the cast afterwards, imagine her surprise to see Roy in a wheelchair getting a special hug from cast member Laura Knightley, and her drink served to her by Moss. It's this type of innocent mishap that turns into a chain reaction of comedy that we see in every episode, whether it's a funeral that's disrupted, a non-smoking rule that's skirted, a dinner party that goes south, or a fear of underwear that leads to a bawdy new invention.

Something else that's worth mentioning about this sitcom is that unexpected things turn up to connect some of the episodes. A man who jumps out of a top-story board room window in the first episode this season plummets past surprised people in a lower window in the second episode. That's the kind of stuff that the old Warner Brothers animation department used to do in Bugs Bunny cartoons, and it works well in a sitcom like this that feeds off of irreverence and depends upon surprise.

Here's a rundown on the episodes, which are contained on a single, single-sided disc and housed in a keep-case with slipcase:

1) "The Work Outing." A trip to the theater results in chaos and a man questioning his sexuality.

2) "Return of the Golden Child." With the big boss jumping out the window, the staff join other mourners at the funeral with comic results. And Denholm's son, Douglas (Matt Berry) turns up to complicate everyone's lives.

3) "Moss and the German." Moss takes a German cookery course and Jen falls into the bad habit of smoking again, which makes her realize how pathetic a crowd smokers are these days.

4) "The Dinner Party." Jen is forced to invite Moss, Roy, and Richmond the Goth to dinner when three male escorts cancel.

5) "Smoke and Mirrors." Jen has a disastrous board meeting, and all because of a bra that lets her down. That prompts Moss to confront his fear of ladies underwear and invent something that will get him out of the basement of Reynholm Industries.

6) Men without Women." When Douglas promotes Jen to be his assistant, that leaves Moss and Roy free again to be the goof-offs they were before she became their supervisor.

All of the episodes are laugh-out-loud funny, and since British TV gets away with more, you'll hear a lot more language than you would on American commercial television-things like "willies," "titties," "bastard," and . . . well, you know.

Video:
The production values are pretty standard for "The IT Crowd." The color palette runs slightly drab for the basement scenes, but there's only the slightest bit of grain and there's no blurring on the edges of vibrant colors like red or orange. "The IT Crowd" is presented in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen.

Audio:
The soundtrack is a Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo that's mostly dialogue and audience laughter, neither of which sounds particularly rich. It's a fairly flat audio, for the most part, but a functional one.

Extras:
Linehan offers a nonstop, intelligent and honest commentary for each of the episodes, telling how he really hasn't watched this "series" enough with other people to know if he was successful in what he attempted. It's probably one of the more thoughtful commentaries I've listened to, and would-be writers will learn a lot. It's interesting to hear, for example, that when Linehan finds himself hurting for ideas, his default is surrealism. Other than a few outtakes, the only other bonus feature is "Recording 'The IT Crowd,'" which is a day in the life of filming the show. Audience members are interviewed, we crew at their monitors, cast in make-up, and everything that goes on behind the scenes in a typical day in which an episode is filmed.

Bottom Line:
There may only be six episodes, for a total of 144 minutes, but "The IT Crowd" Season Two is worth buying and watching--especially if you know (or ARE) one of those basement dwellers! The show is hilarious, and Linehan and O'Dowd are comic geniuses.