The AI thread made me wonder if there’s any Office folk here, or specifically, any who just love Creed? (I’m still laughing about his “swing low sweet chariots” line last week. 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rvil9UoBpvA
Not crazy about Creed. Do love me some Toby, though.
I love the original English version. Perhaps the funniest show since Faulty Towers. I haven’t seen the US version; I’m not sure it’s been shown here. I’m a bit mystified about why it would need to be reworked.
Did you get ‘Extras’ over there, Ricky Gervais’ latest? That’s been running here recently and I quite enjoyed that.
Why do people do that? Why remake good shows for another audience who share the “same” language?
I’ve seen US shows remade for the UK, and UK ones remade for the USA. I’ve never seen it work. It’s condescending and annoying.
The original UK office was great. The two episodes of the US version I saw were cack.
What Bill Cosby did to the original idea of ‘One foot in the Grave’ sums it up I suppose, it was appalling. Give me the original acerbic comedy of Victor Meldrew any time.
I liked the original British version too. Unfortunately, the only way I could watch it was if my daughter remembered to tape it for me. It was not on regular broadcast, only on premium cable/satellite.
Yes, I like “Extras” too.
Why do people do that? Why remake good shows for another audience who share the “same” language?
I’m no expert certainly, but I’d imagine to market it to their audience.
All In the Family comes to mind as another “rip-off”.
Our version is silly and stupid and I think, very funny. One of the few shows I actually watch on tv anymore.
Do love me some Toby, though.
Yes- his long-suffering dead pan delivery is great.
I watched the British original first and loved it. I had trouble getting into the first few episodes of the US version because of my affection for the British version. But, it grew on me rapidly. Of course, the problem with the British version is that it…stopped.
Dale
Doing it with films is even worse, like the recently announced remake of The Long Good Friday which will be set in Miami and directed by the guy who did Resident Evil. I’m still shaking with fury at the thought of it.
Here’s a list of UK tv shows remade into pure excrement:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_British_TV_shows_remade_for_the_American_market
UK The Office was a riot!!! US version, meh, it’s okay.
Most of the stuff that’s regurgitated for the US market is total crap compared to the British versions (that may be just my personal bias, though, because I personally find British humour to be superior to American humor, but YMMV)
I will, however, say that there are some rehashes that either were better or don’t really deserve my angst because of their differences.
The Doctor Who film, for one I must say, doesn’t really belong on that list. No I really didn’t care for it, but FWIR it WAS a joint effor between the Beeb and Univeral, and IIRC, if the series was optioned by either the beeb or Uni, it was intended to be one aired in both countries like the current series is.
Also, in all fairness, shows like Hell’s Kitchen, Trading Spaces, etc, might not have been airable in the US market without making the series identifiable to the US population.
Pop Idol has been redone so many times in so many countries to suit the tastes and needs of those countries that I wouldn’t even waste my time including it in the category of my regurgitated angst.
There’s a few others, but ya get the gist I suppose.
YMMV
Well, not to belabor/belabour the point, but one distinct advantage of the USA version is that it’s actually on television.
Pester your networks to buy British! Write letters, picket the gates!
It’s probably cheaper to buy the UK versions anyway, the only reason they don’t is they don’t believe that you, the viewer, will understand our “quirky” humour and “strange” accents.
And then there was the Hollywood “dumbing-down” of Mr Bean from quirky and novel TV series to National-Lampoon-level slapstick movie.
My other, germane rant is the use of dubbing rather than subtitles. John Wayne doesn’t come across very well as a light tenor.
Because the language of humor is different across the Atlantic.
John Cleese once recreated the infamous Parrot Scetch when he
was hosting Saturday Night Live. The American studio audience
barely chuckled.
Shows can cross the pond, but they have to change. When they
remade Coupling in the US, the first few episodes were the exact
same scripts from the British version, and the American actors
couldn’t pull it off. The timing was off and the delivery was bad.
When they started deviating from the original, it started to look
like it might start to get better, but NBC canceled it before that
could happen. It seems like the Office began to deviate pretty
quickly, using the basic framework, but giving the characters
a new voice. I think that was important for its success. I’m not
fond of the US version of the Office, but I can watch it upon
occasion. I loathe the British version. It didn’t make me laugh,
it merely made me uncomfortable.
I wish it weren’t so, but largely, the networks are right. The
executives live and die by counting people in the millions. If a
very large percentage of 18-24 year old males don’t like
something they won’t air it, because it’s not “cost effective” for
their advertisers. And my fellow American males largely do not
have what it takes to appreciate fine British humor. It sucks, but
that’s what we have to live with. CBS just cancelled a Law and
Order ripoff called “Close to Home” that was doing relatively
well, because the demographic wasn’t “young enough”. (This is
ironic, since before CSI became popular, CBS was thought of as
the network for Senior Citizens.)
Yes indeed!
“That’s what she said.”
I’m not sure you’re getting the point, here. The biggest complaint you’ll get over here about any britcom is that over here, a season is 22-26 episodes long, whereas on your end, a season is 6-8 episodes long. When a series is popular here, it goes on for years, whereas on your end, few shows last beyong a couple of years.
What really ticks me off is trying to get the BBC to release the DVDs of series I really like. I can see that amazon.uk has complete series of stuff, but over here we can only get seasons one or two on amazon.com.
djm
Ahh I see. You want quantity rather than quality. Fair enough.
We prefer quantities of quality, but it rarely is allowed… the really good shows, which require wit and quickness to keep up with and appreciate are nearly always short lived… more because of marketing decisions than because of genuine failure of the public to enjoy it. Our TV is not really for genuine entertainment, but for filling the gaps between commercials.
On a related note, I have been very pleased to see a recent spate of ads that are clever, subtle and actually entertaining. Shan’t last, I’m sure, but I really wish I had more money to vote with. 
If you like ads check this one out, it’s my favourite one currently on our TV:
http://www.visit4info.com/details.cfm?adid=45968