IT Crowd Season 2, Episode 2 -- keyboard-destroying nerd sitcom

The second episode of season two of The IT Crowd just aired on the UK's Channel 4: "Return of the Golden Child," and it's keyboard-destroyingly funny. The IT Crowd is the nerd sitcom from Graham Linehan, who created the funniest TV show ever, Father Ted. In "The Golden Child," Denholm's death and Roy's obsession with his own mortality provide fodder for a series of very good inappropriate funeral jokes, mobile phone humor, and so on. It's vintage IT Crowd. Channel 4 has some kind of ridiculous, DRM-based streaming service in the UK, but I can't get it in China (I'm here for a meeting), so I just downloaded the torrent and laughed myself sick. Suprnova Torrent Link (Thanks, Dave and everyone else who suggested this!)

(Disclosure: I was an unpaid consultant to the first season of The IT Crowd)

I write books. My latest is a YA science fiction novel called Homeland (it's the sequel to Little Brother). More books: Rapture of the Nerds (a novel, with Charlie Stross); With a Little Help (short stories); and The Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow (novella and nonfic). I speak all over the place and I tweet and tumble, too.

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Anonymous

this show keeps getting better and better!!! Watched the first season in one sitting…need this season’s episode 3…NOW!
slawkenbergius

Ah, Garth Marenghi… Of course it also starred Richard Ayoade, a main character in both shows.
Anonymous

excellent episode – Douglas looks like a nice addition…any word on Roy’s t-shirt from the last few minutes of the show (what is it/where can I get it?)
Anonymous

an amazing episode – also youtubed. unsure how i feel about planned US version to air on nbc early next year…
Anonymous

I was wondering about that. To my ears, it sounds like a live audience given ques to make them sound like a laugh track.

I liked S2E1 but I think S2E1 might be their best show. By the end of S2E2, I thought, “Oh, so that’s what the IT Crowd is going to be like when it’s American TV.” I didn’t mind the plot but I’m not crazy about Garth Marenghi and, oddly, the whole thing seems to work a little better when it’s less, um, theatrical and more focused on stuff that those characters might do, rather than what might get done to them.

Ayoade’s Moss is a classic. I keeping seeing “young Peter Sellers” in Moss. I hated the Artic Monkey’s video and I’m not crazy about Darkside, mostly because it’s, well, TV and how TV can you watch?
Silva

A lot better than the first episode, with all the nerdy jokes I’ve missed. Also, Denholm’s son might prove to be a terrific character.
Eris Siva

I laughed even more at this episode than the last one.

“Call the f***ing ambulance! I’m not joking!” I lolled.

Also, Richmond is still my favorite character. “Oh, no, no, no…You’re not coming to the funeral, Richmond.” “What funeral?” ^_^
Anonymous

Full episode on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rn6qc3zc0hQ&NR=1
Gilbert Wham

Re Matt Berry: He’s also fantastic (as is everyone) in The Mighty Boosh. Don’t know if that’s made it to the Revolted Colonies?
Rodney

This is now my most-anticipated d/l. The only British TV I like better is The Young Ones.
Anonymous

Matt Berry is a man-god. Not only was he fantastic in Darkplace, he was wonderful in his own series, Snuff Box.

Here’s a sample in which Matt Berry gives a very creepy guitar lesson:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZDjWLwqAPY
Anonymous

S2 ep 1 was a terrible example of the fantastic IT crowd. Here’s hoping S2 is only uphill from here!

Thanks to BB for keeping the IT Crowd on the collective radar :)
Anonymous

I found several episodes from season 1 to be absolutely hilarious (especially eps. 2 and 6). From the first 2 episodes of season 2, it seems that the offices are much less messy, and the humor is less nerdy. So far anyway, season 2 looks more like a standard sitcom with IT guys, than a true IT sitcom. It’s still pretty funny, but it’s nowhere near as wise as it was in the first season.

The phone jokes *were* funny, though.
jima

Also good to see the addition of Matt Berry to the cast, whom we fondly remember as Dr. Sanchez in Garth Marenghi’s “Darkplace”, aka the single best reason to have a multi-region DVD player.
Anonymous

I find that my interests and tastes are pretty solidly aligned to the rest of the material that the various BoingBoing editors post, but I will absolutely second the “When the Whistle Blows” comparison for this show. It was the first thing I thought of upon seeing the geek-with-a-tie-and-big-hair-for-laughs + canned laugh track.
Anonymous

Me, I was pleased with episode 2. I did laugh at ep 1, but it wasn’t nearly geeky enough for my tastes.

Oh my god, I’m turning into Moss.
Anonymous

Graham Linehan should also be credited with creating the 2nd funniest Brit-com “Black Books” between that, Father Ted and now The IT Crowd the mans clearly a genius.
Anonymous

#16 and #19 you should watch season 1 episode 1. That episode endeared you to the characters and the premise of the show.

That being said, I think the first two episodes of the new season were good. I don’t think they have hit the peaks of the first season yet though. I am hoping that Denholm is not gone for good. He was a brilliant character.
Webbie

Thanks for the headsup on that Garth Marenghi there Jima. Never knew of it until now.
Anonymous

I’m *so* with #16. I watched the first two episodes based on BoingBoing’s recommendation, and I thought they were horrible. So, #16, you are not alone!
Anonymous

I’m baffled, how can Graham linehan write this pap and why is chris morris involved? It’s by no means the worst thing on telly but it’s still pretty terrible. I won’t be watching again and I’m sure everyone involved will be terribly upset by my absence

oh, sorry I was forgetting myself, I mean OMG DIS SUXXORS LOL!

anonymous comments FTW
Cory Doctorow

For the record – there’s no canned laughter in the show, it’s shot before a live audience.
Gabriel

This one was better than the first episode of season 2. Can’t wait for #3!
Anonymous

Not as funny as the season premiere, but still fantastic as usual. I’ve been watching it since the show first debuted (and I can’t say Father Ted was ever as good, sadly).

Now, on to the meat of the matter…what the hell are you doing spoiling Denholm’s death!? For Christ’s sake, I have friends who are just catching up on S1 who read this blog as well thanks to me, and they’re going to see this and have that spoiled. Couldn’t you just say it was a great episode and leave it at that?
hideyourarms

I know I’m going pretty far back in the discussion, but if you’d like to know which tees Roy wears in this episode, the first is ‘I see dumb people’ by Think Geek (http://www.thinkgeek.com/tshirts/frustrations/6b6e/) and the blue one at the end is Futurism by Insanely Great Tees (http://insanelygreattees.com/shirt/futurism).
Anonymous

Reminded me of the meta-sitcom “When the Whistle Blows” in Ricky Gervais second Extras series.

Now I know exactly what he was making fun of.
Anonymous

#24 I watched S1E1 first…and I could barely get through it. I had the same reaction as #18, I half expected the boss to start asking the geeks if they were having a laugh. Just terrible.
Anonymous

You know, I tried posting earlier to say that you should remove the spoiler about Denholm dying from this article. Because there are a lot of people just coming to the show, and a lot of them adore the character of Denholm. I just had my friend who I gave Season 1 to watch recently email me to ask desperately if your blurb was true. We were both pissed off that you blew such a story development.

But apparently you check the comments before they go up, and for some reason my saying that you shouldn’t spoil such a big thing is unacceptable. Are you for real?
Anonymous

I have to say that this series seems to have lost so much of what made the original so enjoyable for me – its nerdyness. I used to like the special feeling I got knowing that I was one of a small percentage of people who understood the jokes and I dont get that with series 2.

What sums it up is that when I used to watch the orignal series with my wife most of the jokes went over her head, but now most of the geeky humour seems to have gone. What has replaced it is more mainstream sitcom one-foot-in-the-grave-meets-frank-spencer moments which more people will probably enjoy.
Anonymous

I’m with #23. If I hadn’t already seen the episode, I’d be very sore about the spoiler.
Camille

I enjoyed very much this episode, Roy’s tee is from ThinkGeek, am I right? At the end of the episode I think I recognized a Threadless tee but I’m not sure.
Anonymous

> It’s vintage IT Crowd.

… that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.
Anonymous

I think I pulled a couple of muscles when I watched ep. 1 of season 2.. this episode was also quite funny but somehow didn’t manage to tickle me in the same way (that guy being pulled out of the queue by the police officer for example).
Berry seems to be a great addition to the cast, I didn’t know what that last bit was about with the weird pose, but it still had me laughing.

FATHEERRRR!!!
Anonymous

thanks for making the links to these so easy. i hate looking for that stuff.
Anonymous

A total crock of canned laughter……

And I thought American comedy sucked…..
Anonymous

its rubbish!
Anonymous

I downloaded this show on Boing Boing’s suggestion. As an IT dude, I was incredibly disappointed. The show is like “Are You Being Served” with computers. If you’ve ever seen “Extras,” this show is equivalent to “When the Whistle Blows” for laughs. But it appears that I am in the minority in this opinion.