"The Man who Crafted the Original Office" I think you're forgetting about Stephen Merchant who, if you look at his and Ricky's solo work is arguably the more talented writer/director.
@@Dankyjabo Ah right, I never read descriptions tbh but I'm glad you acknowledged it. I found your video funny by the way and liked the observations you made. I look forward to checking out your other content.
The scene where he pours ashes on the pub floor gets me. Of course the landlord is going to ask what the fuck youre doing 😂 but it's framed like the landlord is in the wrong.
He's got such an ego. you can see it in the writing. The other characters' dialogue exists purely to make them look stupid and set up a zinger from Tony.
Whenever I watch new Gervais material, I always think about the bit in the bonus material of extras where merchant talks about working against his laziness. Afterlife feels like his ultimate lazy form. Every idea, character, scene, location feels like a first draft. Like he just couldn't be bothered to write anything more than once.
I'm convinced it was a one draft script. I follow Ricky on social media, and he's like "started writing afterlife today", and a few weeks later it's him with a glass of wine "finished writing afterlife today". Then boom, it's out.
@@ChefZak It definitely was, I'm just surprised Netflix were OK with that. But then on the flipside, it's become one of its most watched comedies ever so... fucking barmy.
I hate how boringly perfect his relationship with his wife is portrayed as being. Like it’s such flat characterisation for Tony to have just had this perfect relationship and life before his wife died. Especially when their entire relationship seemed to consist of Tony pranking his wife and her having this weirdly high level of patience and appreciation for it. I don’t buy their relationship as being real for a moment
I didn't see it as the relationship being portrayed as perfect, but as tony sort of looking back on his relationship with rose tinted glasses as a result of his wife dying. when you loose someone close to you, do you reminisce on the low points? or the points you cherish? also what i liked was that many memories tony dwells on were relatively mundane at the time, but because she's no longer around tony views them in such a special light and yearns for that mundane life he had with her, that he feels didn't fully appreciate at the time, which i guess is the tragedy Gervais is trying to convey. TLDR; what i got from the flashbacks of his wife wasn't an accurate representation of their relationship, but the rose tinted view tony has looking back created by the pain he has loosing her.
I didn't see it as that at all. It's a pretty realistic relationship in my eyes - also, it's just the things he filmed. We didn't see the fights or bad moments in the marriage because he didn't film that.
Ricky has always written what he knows. Unfortunately, what he knows these days are badly written comedy shows that have ham-fisted life messages with absolutely no subtlety, depth or complexity. Stephen Merchent is missing from his post-Life's Too Short shows, and even then the limits of his writing were showing. I love Gervais, The Office will always be a masterpiece of cringe and heart, but damn is he capable of trash.
'In real life he seems like a really fun and affable guy.' IMO it's quite the opposite. Most of his shows are quite funny and some are great. Outside of his tv shows he's just another cringy out of touch rich guy.
Gervais is one of those people that thinks it’s still cool and rebellious to be an atheist. There’s a scene in the show where this woman is asking him “how he doesn’t believe in god” and he just parrots a load of Christopher Hitchins quotes and acts like he made them up himself. So boring. I say this as an atheist myself.
And unlike a lot of militant atheists he didn't even have a religious upbringing. So his obsession with making fun of religion is just a way for him to present himself as intellectually superior.
@@NosyFellaHe did have a religious upbringing. He mentions sunday school in his older specials. He has still got the childrens version of the story of Noah's arc, which was a big part of an older special. He's told the story how his older brother "made" him an atheist quite young like a billion times. His parents tried to raise him with religion. It's a well known fact.
As of right now even Ricky Gervais's stand up is awful now, he's done so much I love in the past like his early stand up and the office but he's become so out of touch and generic it's judt sad.....He's a former shell of himself and it would be great if he turned it around but with all the money he has and a pre attached audience I very much doubt it
The worst thing by far is that this show is heavily praised by everyone who just discovered Ricky Gervais after his Golden globe speeches apparently... Oh, this guy is so brave and so edgy. Fuck me.
The entire problem with Ricky's work after he stopped working with Stephen Merchant can be summed up with one sentence: he stopped working with Stephen Merchant. I don't hate Ricky, Im actually a huge fan of the XFM radio shows and all the stuff he did with Steve/Karl but........it has become more and more obvious as time goes on that most of the good stuff came from Steve. Steve can still make good stuff without Ricky. The other way around......ehh.....not happening so much.
It's so painfully obvious from the first episode that the whole premise of the show is basically just Rickys fantasy of something bad happening so he has the excuse to be an awful person because boohoo dead wife
I think this says something about Larry David. How you said every scene is just someone does something stupid and the main character fights them about it. That is basically the description of every episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm, but that show is great. Because Larry is always KIND OF right, but also kind of wrong and a socially inept asshole, so the show is always pretty much laughing at Larry. The other characters aren't just always saying how funny and smart and wise and kind he is, they're calling him out. This show is just kind of pathetic. We're just always TOLD what a great guy he is, and every single scene is evidence to the contrary.
And what's weird is he didn't even bother to attempt to write in anything about him used to being a good person. The whole "being a prick coz I'm depressed" stuff would be a lot more impactful if it turns out he used to be the opposite, and the audience were aware of that somehow. But there's none of that. For all we know, he was a cunt when his wife was alive, and now he's just an even bigger cunt now she's dead.
The shows/films i've seen that he's done since the office have all gone down the same path of being fairly humorous in parts with a bit of promise to begin with, then descending into mawkish, cringeworthy dross. I don't know if he thinks his messages are really profound, or if he genuinely has no idea where to go after a certain point and just resorts to tedious platitudes to end on.
I would argue film like Derek and Afterlife and special correspondence are trite and boring from the get-go. I unfortunately just don't think Gervais is a particularly skilled filmmaker, especially when it comes to writing and direction, which are sorta the most important parts
4:42 Your idea reminds me of a scene from The Birdcage (1996): Armand (Robin Williams) is teaching Albert (Nathan Lane) how to be tough. Armand demonstrates toughness by calling a guy, who's sitting down, an asshole. Then the guy stands up and we see that he's much bigger than Armand. Hard cut to Armand with an ice-pack on his head. If Ricky Gervais wrote that scene with him playing Armand, he'd have the big guy run away from him.
i listen to the old xfm radio shows and i find his patronising, bullying and belittling treatment of karl really appalling. he’s not without talent but just really unlikeable. i wont watch or listen to anything that puts a penny in his pocket.
Faint praise. 18 episodes, nearly 9 hours, needs much more than that. Portraying grief is not rocket science btw. Once you've got the base covered, what else do you have to say?
Absolutely right. Sometimes I feel like the only person who can see Gervais' material for what it is - shit. His office/extras/podcast glory days are long over and he hasn't really been funny since. After life is without doubt one of THE most overrated shows of all time. It's so obviously terrible yet so highly rated and loved by so many. It's absolutely bizarre.
I had a really interesting experience with this show because I watched the first two seasons when I was in my early teens and at the time I thought it was thought provoking and well made. I was pretty into it and really enjoyed binging it. Then when the third season came out a year or two later I couldn't believe how much I hated it. I wondered if it had a drop of quality in the third season or something but nope. I had just matured to a point where I could see the show was shit despite being a fraction of Gervais' age. It was really weird. I haven't had that kind of experience with any other show.
I never liked him he has this arrogance about him Peoples praise the office but lets face it the good version of the office was when someone else was writting. This show is like a nut case being a c nt to other bad peoples. Normally the key i. That and make the victimes less likable than the main guy but the truth is he is just an ass to regular peoples
That is the point of the show though. He is depressed, does not care if he lives or dies, is not a nice person and just says what he thinks because consequences do not matter if you are willing to die any day. Then he slowly gets pulled out of severe depression by those around him. So begins to be a little nicer to people, even those that annoy him. Your and the video makers complaints are similar to me saying "Thanos is not a good guy! he just goes around happy to kill half the universe"... like, yeah, well done you saw the same thing I did! lol! That is what we watched happen. The comedy comes from ricky calling out people on BS most people are too scared to mention but would if we didn't care anymore. The charity worker, the kid bully, the girl and guy in the cafe etc etc.
Just came across this video and I couldn’t agree more. I think he absolutely wanted to make this series to appeal to the U.S audiences. I too was a huge Ricky Gervais fan but I believe that getting to a certain level of fame and money does allow him to be who he always was or a reflection of how he’s changed now he has that freedom of wealth and influence. He always wanted to be that performer and when music didn’t work he wrote comedy. The difference is that you can see the evolution of his characters, Brent was a buffoon but had a deep disappointment in his life making him go crazy at the opportunity that a camera arrive at his branch in the Office. Andy in Extras was similar but was more aware than Brent but ultimately had an ego that didn’t match his talent. Derek we were meant to love because of his undisclosed disadvantages and his innocence. The character in After life acts more like a diva. Through the mask of his dead partner he behaves without consequence and is amazing and above everyone. These characters seem like a story of Ricky himself…If you disagree with me you’re a cunt ! Interesting now that he’s always at the center of publicity because of his stand ups. To the point he’s directly addressing criticism made towards him. To me he’s become like that chav lottery winner that everything that he wanted but money just enhanced the person he already was.
You make a point about the Liam Neeson scene as proof that Gervais still has it in him. But you are forgetting something… that was when Stephen Merchant was co-writer / co-director. Merchant was actually the brains of the bunch. Anything Gervais does solo has been godawful.
@@clairea3277 that's the million dollar question, but I think it's because afterlife is less intelligent. It has a simple message and non-stop sentimentality.
The buying the drugs for the depressed guy was a subtle nod to one of Gervais less well known views that he has. He once put a tweet saying that "it should be up to the individual if they want to end their own lives and that there should be no argument with that". Something along those lines. So basically he's saying assisted suicide is fine. You might agree or disagree with the concept but that's what it seems to me.
Great vid, I do agree with you to some extent but I actually thought the first two series were Ok and the idea of it being a bit repetitive was ok because people greiving or struggling with depression can struggle to grow and move on so repeat similar patterns. My issue was by the end of series 2 it felt like he had moved on somewhat and grown so I was expecting series 3 to be a bit different but it was just the same shit again like the first 2 series had never happened which really annoyed me. One thing I 100% agree with however is how he sets up every confrontation his character has so that he can just demolish them with absolute ease. It became very irritating.
Cheers for the comment dude. I definitely agree that the third season was the worst of the three, and the first season was probably the best. That being said, the best season of Afterlife to me is like the healthiest item at McDonald's. I've heard this point of repetition being indicative of Tony's mental state before, but I think there are far more entertaining ways to display a broken character, and for me to care there needs to be a least something redeeming or likeable about said character, but I just can't empathise with Tony at all when he kills a homeless man. The whole show is a complete and utter mess
Yeah mate, it’s Steven Merchant who’s the real genius. Watch some of Steve’s solo shows/work. It’s as good as any early Ricky and that’s because early Ricky is Ricky and Steve.
Certainly it is one of the most boring, worthless, drivel-embedded whatever I have come across. I finished the three seasons for the sake of discipline. Horrible stuff.
I love the Office, the podcasts and Extras so much that I likened him to the Bowie of sitcoms. I just now think he's in his Tin Machine nadir and he's dragging it out far too long. Ugh, the post-Extras period has been exhausting in comparison to his early success. Hell, I even enjoyed him on the 11 O'clock Show.
Afterlife is a terrible show. I just don't get the popularity. It's slow, boring, immature and poorly written with unrealistic, pointless characters and scenes that go nowhere. I can't believe it got a second series, never mind a third.
Couldn't agree more, mate. If you sat through all of the XFM sessions and the podcasts with Steve and Karl, you'll discover very quickly - as I did - that 95% of the material from his stand-up shows and After Life (the scenarios, insults, arguments) are all from Steve and Karl. In fact, the premise of Alter Life came from something that was said on an XFM episode. The reason there are so many random scenes that contribute absolutely nothing to the plot is because - I genuinely believe - he listened to the shows again and pecked out quotes from Steve and Karl and thought, that's funny, I'll have that. But with more "cunts".
The first thing I will say is that this video was made precisely and only to gain popularity by attaching itself to other people's success. Those who do not understand the comic approach and narrative of Ricky Gervais should not comment on his works at all, but simply avoid them. After Life is a true gem of both comedy and drama. It plays with human emotions on a genuine level without imitating stereotypes. The dose of cynicism, sarcasm and dark humor is properly balanced with the emotions that everyone would feel in moments of pain due to the loss of a loved one. Ricky Gervais takes us on a journey between true sadness and comedy, which he finds even in the most difficult moments of facing himself. No series has managed to achieve what Ricky organically achieves with this emotional journey, which provided us with so many funny moments, and at the same time managed to empathize with his character, especially at the end, which so easily confronts us with the everyday fear of transience and loss. This series deserved nothing but positive reviews, especially due to the length of the seasons. Ricky stops with the series when he thinks that the characters are sufficiently developed, three-dimensional and makes us sympathize with each of them. He didn't force a single series just because of the duration, viewership and profit. It stops there when the message has peaked. Anyone who doesn't understand Ricki's humor can't even relate to him, so this review totally misses the point of both the comedy and the true human drama of this series.
actually... i needed this series bro. i didnt find it funny tbh. i dont think it was supposed to be funny in the first place. it was kinda... rickys point of view at some things. like a poem or smth. there was a little bit of his humour, of his thoughts and thats it. i dont think he aimed at making a comedy, a super deep lesson or even a good movie. he just expressed himself and thats it, take it or leave it. thats my opinion about this show
Here's what happens when you believe your own hype. Lazy copy and paste BS masquerading as art. Gervais IS the emporers new clothes. NEVER forget the reason the office is a classic is because Stephen Merchant was at the helm.
The really striking thing is that Karl Pilkington of all people managed to create a television dramedy that was much more engaging than Gervais' efforts. Sick of It isn't perfect, but the central concept of the main character interacting with his own internal voice is funnier and a lot more novel than most of Afterlife. Moreover yes the show will certainly will have scenes based around Karl being put off by annoying people; it also very often makes his own idiosyncrasies the butt of the joke, and the program genuinely explores how much of his flawed life is the result of own choices. Even the romantic subtext he has with a younger woman in the second series rarely ever feels over idealized or saccharine in its execution. Not every character in Pilkington's show is necessarily complex mind you, but there's at least a sense that they have lives beyond the show, Afterlife's cast feel like they exist either for him to lecture against, insult, or hear about his late spouse. Its one thing for the story to revolve around him, its quite another for the story's universe seeming to as well. That simplistic characterization makes the its already manipulative attempts at pathos feel even less genuine because nothing at all feels relatable. Finally the lack of anything resembling subtlety in Gervais' current work compounds the aforementioned issues. The constant footage of Lisa eventually has little emotional effect because its use just beats the viewer over the head in its one dimensional depiction of grief. Sick of It doesn't force itself into efforts at tearjerker moments nearly as often, and even then the occasional illustration of Karl's actual loneliness is done with much more restraint via the cinematography (which itself blows away any of the visual work in Afterlife). Essentially in terms of legitimately thoughtful character oriented television shows the one who co-wrote the Office and Extras has been outdone by a man who once did Monkey News. And that's sadder than any fictional dead wife.
This is one my favourite comments I've received, thanks so much for such a we'll put together and thought out comment. I happen to agree completely. Gervais was always the weakest comic in every group he was in
Why did you bother to watch all 3 seasons? You don't like him. That's ok....but it's weird that you even started the series, and even weirder that you finished it.
do you not understand how criticism works? you have to watch something in order to make fair criticisms about it. it would be weird to watch it all if he didnt like it but didnt plan to make this video, but he did
@@wernhambloggpodcast1692 The Outlaws is brilliant! If you're looking for a dark comedy done right, that's the show to watch. I think Stephen Merchant progressed after his separation from Ricky, whilst Ricky devolved after the separation :)
Wow, I just watched this and assumed you were a major channel. Nice work! And yes, AfterLife is pants - as you very well summed up. The general consensus that it’s a work of genius is baffling.
Did you watch each afterlife series, even though you didn't like the 1st one? Also not everyone needs to like every show made. Different strokes for different folks.
"Also not everyone needs to like every show made. Different strokes for different folks." Wow. With insights as deep as that, you could write a show like After Life.
I just find it disappointing that Ricky has reduced himself to the standard of Afterlife. Afterlife is the show for people who hated Ricky’s other work.
Gervais has the only form of reverse body dysmorphia I've ever witnessed. He unendingly goes on and on about fat people, while he himself would definitely be over the BMI for his height. I think he "got fit" for about 2 seconds when he was talking about doing that celebrity boxing match 20 years ago, and even then... he was still fat.
"The Man who Crafted the Original Office" I think you're forgetting about Stephen Merchant who, if you look at his and Ricky's solo work is arguably the more talented writer/director.
I totally agree, for what it's worth I do correct myself in the description, but I understand not many people read it
@@Dankyjabo Ah right, I never read descriptions tbh but I'm glad you acknowledged it. I found your video funny by the way and liked the observations you made. I look forward to checking out your other content.
Arguably? it's 100% true
@@ozricaurora6943 Gervais is definitely the better performer.
And that’s why nobody knows who he is😂😂😂😂
Best thing about Ricky Gervais is giving us Karl Pilkington
True dat, Gervais' greatest achievement is getting Karl Pilkington famous IMO
The scene where he pours ashes on the pub floor gets me. Of course the landlord is going to ask what the fuck youre doing 😂 but it's framed like the landlord is in the wrong.
Ricky's comedy is only funny when Merchant is co-writer. That's all you need to know about him.
Stephen Merchant’s show Outlaws, was by contrast, genuinely excellent.
He's got such an ego. you can see it in the writing. The other characters' dialogue exists purely to make them look stupid and set up a zinger from Tony.
Whenever I watch new Gervais material, I always think about the bit in the bonus material of extras where merchant talks about working against his laziness. Afterlife feels like his ultimate lazy form.
Every idea, character, scene, location feels like a first draft. Like he just couldn't be bothered to write anything more than once.
YEEEEEEPPPPP
sounds about right
I'm convinced it was a one draft script. I follow Ricky on social media, and he's like "started writing afterlife today", and a few weeks later it's him with a glass of wine "finished writing afterlife today". Then boom, it's out.
Exactly, I feel like as long as the characters got through the scene without corpsing, Ricky would've said "job done, next scene"
@@ChefZak It definitely was, I'm just surprised Netflix were OK with that. But then on the flipside, it's become one of its most watched comedies ever so... fucking barmy.
Im glad you addressed the bit where Gervais essentially killed a drug addict. I fucking despised that bit in the show.
Do you not get it?
I hate how boringly perfect his relationship with his wife is portrayed as being.
Like it’s such flat characterisation for Tony to have just had this perfect relationship and life before his wife died. Especially when their entire relationship seemed to consist of Tony pranking his wife and her having this weirdly high level of patience and appreciation for it.
I don’t buy their relationship as being real for a moment
That right there is fucking good observation that I wish I included in the video. Completely agree bro, cheers for the comment
I didn't see it as the relationship being portrayed as perfect, but as tony sort of looking back on his relationship with rose tinted glasses as a result of his wife dying. when you loose someone close to you, do you reminisce on the low points? or the points you cherish?
also what i liked was that many memories tony dwells on were relatively mundane at the time, but because she's no longer around tony views them in such a special light and yearns for that mundane life he had with her, that he feels didn't fully appreciate at the time, which i guess is the tragedy Gervais is trying to convey.
TLDR; what i got from the flashbacks of his wife wasn't an accurate representation of their relationship, but the rose tinted view tony has looking back created by the pain he has loosing her.
It could be that when you lose someone like that, your memories are filled with all of the joy that you're missing
I didn't see it as that at all. It's a pretty realistic relationship in my eyes - also, it's just the things he filmed. We didn't see the fights or bad moments in the marriage because he didn't film that.
Ricky has always written what he knows. Unfortunately, what he knows these days are badly written comedy shows that have ham-fisted life messages with absolutely no subtlety, depth or complexity. Stephen Merchent is missing from his post-Life's Too Short shows, and even then the limits of his writing were showing. I love Gervais, The Office will always be a masterpiece of cringe and heart, but damn is he capable of trash.
'In real life he seems like a really fun and affable guy.'
IMO it's quite the opposite. Most of his shows are quite funny and some are great.
Outside of his tv shows he's just another cringy out of touch rich guy.
Gervais is one of those people that thinks it’s still cool and rebellious to be an atheist.
There’s a scene in the show where this woman is asking him “how he doesn’t believe in god” and he just parrots a load of Christopher Hitchins quotes and acts like he made them up himself.
So boring. I say this as an atheist myself.
And unlike a lot of militant atheists he didn't even have a religious upbringing. So his obsession with making fun of religion is just a way for him to present himself as intellectually superior.
Yeah... he crowbars it in too. Soon as God is mentioned it's a roll your eyes type moment.
@@NosyFellaHe did have a religious upbringing. He mentions sunday school in his older specials. He has still got the childrens version of the story of Noah's arc, which was a big part of an older special. He's told the story how his older brother "made" him an atheist quite young like a billion times. His parents tried to raise him with religion. It's a well known fact.
@@NosyFellapretty much all state schools in the UK have some religious affiliation.
ricky thinks hes the shit when he's not even the fart. KARL was the shit.
As of right now even Ricky Gervais's stand up is awful now, he's done so much I love in the past like his early stand up and the office but he's become so out of touch and generic it's judt sad.....He's a former shell of himself and it would be great if he turned it around but with all the money he has and a pre attached audience I very much doubt it
The worst thing by far is that this show is heavily praised by everyone who just discovered Ricky Gervais after his Golden globe speeches apparently... Oh, this guy is so brave and so edgy. Fuck me.
It really feels like the emperor’s new clothes, it’s so embarrassing
The entire problem with Ricky's work after he stopped working with Stephen Merchant can be summed up with one sentence: he stopped working with Stephen Merchant.
I don't hate Ricky, Im actually a huge fan of the XFM radio shows and all the stuff he did with Steve/Karl but........it has become more and more obvious as time goes on that most of the good stuff came from Steve. Steve can still make good stuff without Ricky. The other way around......ehh.....not happening so much.
YEEEESSSSSSS
At some point Ricky got very comfortable settling with mediocrity to please Facebook boomers and basic Live, Laugh, Lovers.
It's so painfully obvious from the first episode that the whole premise of the show is basically just Rickys fantasy of something bad happening so he has the excuse to be an awful person because boohoo dead wife
I plan on releasing a super in depth breakdown of Ricky's downfall sometime this year. I just need to get some other stuff outta the way first
@@Dankyjabo that sounds great. it definitely seems like he really fell off after he stopped working with steven merchant
Karl won a Silver at the Sony's by himself and released Idiot Abroad - the greatest travel doc of all time. Steve did Office and Extras......hmmmmmmm
I think this says something about Larry David. How you said every scene is just someone does something stupid and the main character fights them about it. That is basically the description of every episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm, but that show is great. Because Larry is always KIND OF right, but also kind of wrong and a socially inept asshole, so the show is always pretty much laughing at Larry. The other characters aren't just always saying how funny and smart and wise and kind he is, they're calling him out. This show is just kind of pathetic. We're just always TOLD what a great guy he is, and every single scene is evidence to the contrary.
And what's weird is he didn't even bother to attempt to write in anything about him used to being a good person. The whole "being a prick coz I'm depressed" stuff would be a lot more impactful if it turns out he used to be the opposite, and the audience were aware of that somehow. But there's none of that. For all we know, he was a cunt when his wife was alive, and now he's just an even bigger cunt now she's dead.
The shows/films i've seen that he's done since the office have all gone down the same path of being fairly humorous in parts with a bit of promise to begin with, then descending into mawkish, cringeworthy dross. I don't know if he thinks his messages are really profound, or if he genuinely has no idea where to go after a certain point and just resorts to tedious platitudes to end on.
I would argue film like Derek and Afterlife and special correspondence are trite and boring from the get-go.
I unfortunately just don't think Gervais is a particularly skilled filmmaker, especially when it comes to writing and direction, which are sorta the most important parts
4:42 Your idea reminds me of a scene from The Birdcage (1996): Armand (Robin Williams) is teaching Albert (Nathan Lane) how to be tough. Armand demonstrates toughness by calling a guy, who's sitting down, an asshole. Then the guy stands up and we see that he's much bigger than Armand. Hard cut to Armand with an ice-pack on his head.
If Ricky Gervais wrote that scene with him playing Armand, he'd have the big guy run away from him.
i listen to the old xfm radio shows and i find his patronising, bullying and belittling treatment of karl really appalling.
he’s not without talent but just really unlikeable.
i wont watch or listen to anything that puts a penny in his pocket.
I actually really liked the show. It portrayed how you feel when losing someone pretty well.
Faint praise. 18 episodes, nearly 9 hours, needs much more than that. Portraying grief is not rocket science btw. Once you've got the base covered, what else do you have to say?
@@MartinHiggins1972 Didn't know I was supposed to write an essay on a RUclips video about the show 😅
@@MrsLPAmy Not you, silly. Talking about After Life/Gervais.
@@MartinHiggins1972 What? That's what I meant as well.
Did you like anything else about it?
Afterlife is one of these best shows I’ve watched.
Absolutely right. Sometimes I feel like the only person who can see Gervais' material for what it is - shit. His office/extras/podcast glory days are long over and he hasn't really been funny since.
After life is without doubt one of THE most overrated shows of all time. It's so obviously terrible yet so highly rated and loved by so many. It's absolutely bizarre.
It’s total garbage.
I had a really interesting experience with this show because I watched the first two seasons when I was in my early teens and at the time I thought it was thought provoking and well made. I was pretty into it and really enjoyed binging it.
Then when the third season came out a year or two later I couldn't believe how much I hated it. I wondered if it had a drop of quality in the third season or something but nope. I had just matured to a point where I could see the show was shit despite being a fraction of Gervais' age. It was really weird. I haven't had that kind of experience with any other show.
Exactly the same thing here bro
I only recently discovered the psychiatrist is the guy who played Dennis Pennis
Funny, nice! It´s Strutter! But After Life was really stupid.
I never liked him he has this arrogance about him
Peoples praise the office but lets face it the good version of the office was when someone else was writting.
This show is like a nut case being a
c nt to other bad peoples.
Normally the key i. That and make the victimes less likable than the main guy but the truth is he is just an ass to regular peoples
That is the point of the show though. He is depressed, does not care if he lives or dies, is not a nice person and just says what he thinks because consequences do not matter if you are willing to die any day. Then he slowly gets pulled out of severe depression by those around him. So begins to be a little nicer to people, even those that annoy him. Your and the video makers complaints are similar to me saying "Thanos is not a good guy! he just goes around happy to kill half the universe"... like, yeah, well done you saw the same thing I did! lol! That is what we watched happen. The comedy comes from ricky calling out people on BS most people are too scared to mention but would if we didn't care anymore. The charity worker, the kid bully, the girl and guy in the cafe etc etc.
Just came across this video and I couldn’t agree more. I think he absolutely wanted to make this series to appeal to the U.S audiences. I too was a huge Ricky Gervais fan but I believe that getting to a certain level of fame and money does allow him to be who he always was or a reflection of how he’s changed now he has that freedom of wealth and influence. He always wanted to be that performer and when music didn’t work he wrote comedy. The difference is that you can see the evolution of his characters, Brent was a buffoon but had a deep disappointment in his life making him go crazy at the opportunity that a camera arrive at his branch in the Office. Andy in Extras was similar but was more aware than Brent but ultimately had an ego that didn’t match his talent. Derek we were meant to love because of his undisclosed disadvantages and his innocence. The character in After life acts more like a diva. Through the mask of his dead partner he behaves without consequence and is amazing and above everyone. These characters seem like a story of Ricky himself…If you disagree with me you’re a cunt ! Interesting now that he’s always at the center of publicity because of his stand ups. To the point he’s directly addressing criticism made towards him. To me he’s become like that chav lottery winner that everything that he wanted but money just enhanced the person he already was.
I think you would like the show if you watched it for it's message, rather than commenting on it's inaccuracies.
what is its message?
@@MegaMoviesManThat life is worth living?
To think. There are people that say "Afterlife is Genius"
So. You could have kept it to..
I dont like Ricky Gervais.
That wouldn't be the most entertaining video though would it?
You make a point about the Liam Neeson scene as proof that Gervais still has it in him. But you are forgetting something… that was when Stephen Merchant was co-writer / co-director. Merchant was actually the brains of the bunch. Anything Gervais does solo has been godawful.
if that's the case why is afterlife more successful than the office?
@@clairea3277 that's the million dollar question, but I think it's because afterlife is less intelligent. It has a simple message and non-stop sentimentality.
The buying the drugs for the depressed guy was a subtle nod to one of Gervais less well known views that he has. He once put a tweet saying that "it should be up to the individual if they want to end their own lives and that there should be no argument with that". Something along those lines. So basically he's saying assisted suicide is fine.
You might agree or disagree with the concept but that's what it seems to me.
I HATE TONY.
I was astounded by afterlife’s positive reviews. I couldn’t get through the first series. Ricky needs to team back up with Steven.
This video is spot on. I just recently watched the series and am baffled by it's extremely positive reviews. Felt like I was going crazy for a bit.
Great vid, I do agree with you to some extent but I actually thought the first two series were Ok and the idea of it being a bit repetitive was ok because people greiving or struggling with depression can struggle to grow and move on so repeat similar patterns. My issue was by the end of series 2 it felt like he had moved on somewhat and grown so I was expecting series 3 to be a bit different but it was just the same shit again like the first 2 series had never happened which really annoyed me.
One thing I 100% agree with however is how he sets up every confrontation his character has so that he can just demolish them with absolute ease. It became very irritating.
Cheers for the comment dude. I definitely agree that the third season was the worst of the three, and the first season was probably the best.
That being said, the best season of Afterlife to me is like the healthiest item at McDonald's. I've heard this point of repetition being indicative of Tony's mental state before, but I think there are far more entertaining ways to display a broken character, and for me to care there needs to be a least something redeeming or likeable about said character, but I just can't empathise with Tony at all when he kills a homeless man. The whole show is a complete and utter mess
Exactly!
Day Tripper is such a good riff.
Nice catch!
The weird graphics aren't needed, mate
I like 'em
Stephen merchant carried Ricky, the office and extras, every show he wrote after that was god awful
Yeah mate, it’s Steven Merchant who’s the real genius. Watch some of Steve’s solo shows/work. It’s as good as any early Ricky and that’s because early Ricky is Ricky and Steve.
Certainly it is one of the most boring, worthless, drivel-embedded whatever I have come across. I finished the three seasons for the sake of discipline. Horrible stuff.
Brilliant you mention (albeit in text format) about Lifes Too Short, i think that it's wonderful and doesn't get the credit it deserves
The worst thing about Ricky Gervais is that he thinks he’s deep and profound
The best thing about ricky gervais is how he easily triggers snowflakes (trans activists). 😊
afterlife and derek were awful. he obviously needs stephen merchant to rein all the soppy obviousness in
I love the Office, the podcasts and Extras so much that I likened him to the Bowie of sitcoms. I just now think he's in his Tin Machine nadir and he's dragging it out far too long.
Ugh, the post-Extras period has been exhausting in comparison to his early success. Hell, I even enjoyed him on the 11 O'clock Show.
Afterlife is a terrible show. I just don't get the popularity. It's slow, boring, immature and poorly written with unrealistic, pointless characters and scenes that go nowhere. I can't believe it got a second series, never mind a third.
Couldn't agree more, mate. If you sat through all of the XFM sessions and the podcasts with Steve and Karl, you'll discover very quickly - as I did - that 95% of the material from his stand-up shows and After Life (the scenarios, insults, arguments) are all from Steve and Karl. In fact, the premise of Alter Life came from something that was said on an XFM episode. The reason there are so many random scenes that contribute absolutely nothing to the plot is because - I genuinely believe - he listened to the shows again and pecked out quotes from Steve and Karl and thought, that's funny, I'll have that. But with more "cunts".
Yup, that's actually a very interesting thought that I totally agree with
Cheers for the comment mate
As a bit of a misanthrope, Ricky seems like the worst sort of misanthrope. The kind who lets it impact how they treat others, or justify it.
... you just don't get it
The first thing I will say is that this video was made precisely and only to gain popularity by attaching itself to other people's success. Those who do not understand the comic approach and narrative of Ricky Gervais should not comment on his works at all, but simply avoid them. After Life is a true gem of both comedy and drama. It plays with human emotions on a genuine level without imitating stereotypes. The dose of cynicism, sarcasm and dark humor is properly balanced with the emotions that everyone would feel in moments of pain due to the loss of a loved one. Ricky Gervais takes us on a journey between true sadness and comedy, which he finds even in the most difficult moments of facing himself. No series has managed to achieve what Ricky organically achieves with this emotional journey, which provided us with so many funny moments, and at the same time managed to empathize with his character, especially at the end, which so easily confronts us with the everyday fear of transience and loss. This series deserved nothing but positive reviews, especially due to the length of the seasons. Ricky stops with the series when he thinks that the characters are sufficiently developed, three-dimensional and makes us sympathize with each of them. He didn't force a single series just because of the duration, viewership and profit. It stops there when the message has peaked. Anyone who doesn't understand Ricki's humor can't even relate to him, so this review totally misses the point of both the comedy and the true human drama of this series.
You say the review totally missed the point but yet you didn't even engage in any of the guy's arguments!
I don't agree with you. I just watched all of After Life and I think it is wonderful. I am grateful he made it.
He abused his Radiohead licenses in Derek too.
Thank you for this review. Your words were on point about how i feel for the show and Tony
actually... i needed this series bro. i didnt find it funny tbh. i dont think it was supposed to be funny in the first place. it was kinda... rickys point of view at some things. like a poem or smth. there was a little bit of his humour, of his thoughts and thats it. i dont think he aimed at making a comedy, a super deep lesson or even a good movie. he just expressed himself and thats it, take it or leave it. thats my opinion about this show
My very thought. Cheers!
Thank fuck you made this video cause I thought I was going mad. (though I did love Phil Kaye)
Ricky Gervais is just the British version of Vizziepop
this somehow makes so much sense
I agree 100%. So so bad.
After Life made me think but it certainly didn't make me laugh unfortunately. The After Life outtakes are funnier than the show itself! Just saying
Here's what happens when you believe your own hype. Lazy copy and paste BS masquerading as art. Gervais IS the emporers new clothes. NEVER forget the reason the office is a classic is because Stephen Merchant was at the helm.
The really striking thing is that Karl Pilkington of all people managed to create a television dramedy that was much more engaging than Gervais' efforts.
Sick of It isn't perfect, but the central concept of the main character interacting with his own internal voice is funnier and a lot more novel than most of Afterlife. Moreover yes the show will certainly will have scenes based around Karl being put off by annoying people; it also very often makes his own idiosyncrasies the butt of the joke, and the program genuinely explores how much of his flawed life is the result of own choices. Even the romantic subtext he has with a younger woman in the second series rarely ever feels over idealized or saccharine in its execution.
Not every character in Pilkington's show is necessarily complex mind you, but there's at least a sense that they have lives beyond the show, Afterlife's cast feel like they exist either for him to lecture against, insult, or hear about his late spouse. Its one thing for the story to revolve around him, its quite another for the story's universe seeming to as well. That simplistic characterization makes the its already manipulative attempts at pathos feel even less genuine because nothing at all feels relatable.
Finally the lack of anything resembling subtlety in Gervais' current work compounds the aforementioned issues. The constant footage of Lisa eventually has little emotional effect because its use just beats the viewer over the head in its one dimensional depiction of grief. Sick of It doesn't force itself into efforts at tearjerker moments nearly as often, and even then the occasional illustration of Karl's actual loneliness is done with much more restraint via the cinematography (which itself blows away any of the visual work in Afterlife).
Essentially in terms of legitimately thoughtful character oriented television shows the one who co-wrote the Office and Extras has been outdone by a man who once did Monkey News. And that's sadder than any fictional dead wife.
This is one my favourite comments I've received, thanks so much for such a we'll put together and thought out comment. I happen to agree completely. Gervais was always the weakest comic in every group he was in
Why did you bother to watch all 3 seasons? You don't like him. That's ok....but it's weird that you even started the series, and even weirder that you finished it.
Well I wanted to make this video, and it would've been pretty difficult to do so if I hadn't seen the show
But you don’t care for him…that’s what makes it weird.
do you not understand how criticism works? you have to watch something in order to make fair criticisms about it. it would be weird to watch it all if he didnt like it but didnt plan to make this video, but he did
@@dylankirk7994 it's not "fair" criticism if you're already biased. Just saying.
I liked Derek which was panned by critics but think After Life is as you said boring and formulaic.
A year later, and the amount of views and comments on this video speaks for itself, a 100% fail on this channels part😂😂😂
Good representation of the 😂-crowd.
I agree
Cheers T-dawg
This series was a masterpiece. The writing etc was just on point. I loved it
I would argue there is something wrong with liking him considering how he will constantly demin the trans community
I always forget, is Ricky religious?
summarized my thoughts exactly
Good summary
What did you think of The Outlaws?
@@wernhambloggpodcast1692 The Outlaws is brilliant!
If you're looking for a dark comedy done right, that's the show to watch. I think Stephen Merchant progressed after his separation from Ricky, whilst Ricky devolved after the separation :)
I think the show is very enjoyable and entertaining and well written unlike this video
after life is great my man.
how the hell do so many people hate this show? this was by far the best show I have ever seen
It's good but nothing tops Extras for me
@@Subricarobecause Stephen merchant co wrote and directed it .
@@based-ys9um he co-wrote and directed The Office as well. Extras trumps even that.
I didn't like it for all the reasons in this video. If you liked it that's great, not all of us thought it was funny or even entertaining.
The homeless guy dying... Mad it never got addressed!
After life is amazing.
Wow, I just watched this and assumed you were a major channel. Nice work!
And yes, AfterLife is pants - as you very well summed up. The general consensus that it’s a work of genius is baffling.
Cheers Luke, big love
General consensus? Thhere is clearly no general consensus dude... 😂😂😂😂
Absolute hidden gem
This video, not After Life
"a britt-sshh"
Did you watch each afterlife series, even though you didn't like the 1st one? Also not everyone needs to like every show made. Different strokes for different folks.
"Also not everyone needs to like every show made. Different strokes for different folks."
Wow. With insights as deep as that, you could write a show like After Life.
Derek is one of the worst things ever made.
Aged.Like.Milk
Hate Radio Head but it did seem appropriate for once.
Terrible review. I thought it was brilliant.
Ok cool I'll take this video down then cheers for the comment
If you thought it was a terrible review you should elaborate on why you thought it was terrible and how this guy got it so wrong in his review.
Who are you ?
What have you achieved ?
😂😂 Pathetic
Worse than Derek
Gervais fans are so sensitive 😂 losing their minds in the comments
So, why are you still a fan? You don’t have to be. Because you’re right about him, you know.
I liked it to the core to be honest. It's your own opinion
60% dislike ratio on this video. I agree with the 60% and i have added another 👎
Getting up and leaving ❤❤❤
Only in dreams
Girl we got a good thing
Gwgagt
I just find it disappointing that Ricky has reduced himself to the standard of Afterlife.
Afterlife is the show for people who hated Ricky’s other work.
Funny how you watched it all. Hmmmmm
Loooongest train accident 😂😂
Yeah well how could I make a video on it if I hadn't watched it?
Gervais has the only form of reverse body dysmorphia I've ever witnessed. He unendingly goes on and on about fat people, while he himself would definitely be over the BMI for his height. I think he "got fit" for about 2 seconds when he was talking about doing that celebrity boxing match 20 years ago, and even then... he was still fat.
Seriously? It's funny if it's supposed to be a parody of video essays
Really? This is one of my few older videos I actually quite like
You literally just hate Ricky and that’s it.
Nice work mate
Cheers pal