TiVo Community Forums Archives - [New] Season 4 of Coupling

TiVoCommunity.com
(c)opyright 1995-2005 All rights reserved
indexcheckTC
This area is a static history of posts in the TiVo Community Forum Archive.
This archive history was made for the simple indexing of search sites like Google.

Pages:1

[New] Season 4 of Coupling
(Click here to view the original thread with full colors/images)

Posted by: WanMan

Last night the wife and I sat down and watch the new season of Coupling. Surprisingly, and maybe unfortunately, the 'Jeff' character was missing, and some 'date' character mysteriously acted like him, but in poor form. I looked the show up in IMDB and it shows Richard Coyle no longer on the show (and no replacement, too).

That's a bad move as this character was one of the funniest of the show and contributed a lot during the second and third season.

Posted by: uncdrew

D'oh.

He was my favorite too. Bummer.

Posted by: mishagray

Jeff was the funniest character on the show.

I did watch the first episode and it still looks like the show is well written and funny, but Jeff will be missed. I'm a little worried that they had to start the season off with a "gimic" plot, but it actually seemed well done.

I think that of all the characters, I could empathize with Jeff the most. He's not the rich and gorgeous guy. He doesn't land the uber-sexy chick. Even when he does seem to land a woman, he is completely useless and ineffectual. Nor did he ever seem very good looking...

Basically I think that Jeff is the raw distilled representation of what men are actually like (except maybe even a bit more extreme). He externalized what man ACTUALLY think. Instead of what they are supposed to think.

I'll give Oliver a chance, but it already looks like they are trying to find someone to fill Jeff's role on the show and that could be a big mistake. They would have been better off just adding a 6th guy who was funny in his own way. Making Oliver too close to Jeff could be a big mistake.

Unforunately all the signs are that Coupling may have "Jumped" the shark. They have made the awful mistake of pairing up 4 of the 6 characters, which is dangerous (isn't that how Friends ended?). It's far more funny when the characters are NOT in a "permenent" relationship, then when they are.

Also I think the Brady Bunch had jumped the Shark when they added Oliver.

I will give them a chance. I think even in a "weaker" form, this could still be one of the funniest shows on TV.

Posted by: mbklein

I noticed this right away when Richard Coyle's name didn't appear in the opening credits, and Richard Mylan's was there instead. It also seems they're pairing him off with Jane right away (and from the looks of the previews for other episodes, it may turn into a relationship), so that means we've got 3 couples and no singles.

Jeff will be missed. In fact, I'm changing my sig in his memory. :)

Michael

Posted by: Meinrad

quote:
Originally posted by mishagray
I think even in a "weaker" form, this could still be one of the funniest shows on TV.

I feel the same way. Although Jeff will be missed, last night's show was still funnier than 99% of the shows I watched this past TV season.

Posted by: Demandred

What would you prefer they do? Stop making Coupling because one of the actors wanted to leave? I'd much prefer the show in its present form to no Coupling at all.

Posted by: WanMan

Demandred, it wasn't like Jeff only pulled his weight on the show. On the contrary, he contributed a lot more than his fair share. Thus, his departure will remove more than his 1/6 cast share.

Also, it wasn't so much that Jeff was gone, but that this new character was actually developed to act like Jeff. Expecting the viewing audience not to notice this is insulting. Introduce another character is fine, but don't have him mimic the Jeff charecter.

To put it another way, what they did with this new character is like what everyone in the industry did with the letter 'i' after Apple used it in their iMac. It just went over badly.

Posted by: edc

quote:
Originally posted by WanMan
Also, it wasn't so much that Jeff was gone, but that this new character was actually developed to act like Jeff. Expecting the viewing audience not to notice this is insulting. Introduce another character is fine, but don't have him mimic the Jeff charecter.

I thought he was developed to act like "Comic Book Guy" from the Simpsons ;)

Should Series 5 happen, I will be sorely disappointed if there is not some "Doctor Who" in-joke.

Posted by: WanMan

Comic Book Guy has 'some' wit. This new character is just boring.

Posted by: scott408

So far I wateched ep 1-4 and the oliver charater is getting too much like jeff in the way he acts but with more physical comedy. It's still pretty funny but I really hope everyone doesn't get pair up.

Posted by: ckelly5

FWIW, I kinda like Oliver, but seriously, he's been on the show a total of maybe 10 minutes and you guys are already panning him! give him at least a couple more eps before you completely hate him!

I did think that this ep was funnier than a lot of comedies have been here on the left side of the pond though. Lets hope they keep it up!

Posted by: kitsap

Geez, what a bunch of whiners! :cool:

I thought it was a great episode, and I look forward to many more.

Posted by: cwoody222

I've watched the first four of this season so far. It's definately classic Coupling. No complaints here. Funny stuff. I'll miss Jeff but I'll move on.

Posted by: WanMan

I didn't say I did not enjoy the episode, kitsap. I said I was disappointed the Jeff character is gone--and its one, if not the, funniest characters on the show. Without Jeff interpretations on life, and women, where will we go? Next, we'll start believing our wives.

Posted by: TonyD79

The actor got a bigger gig and moved on.

So did the show.

I liked the first ep of Season 4 tremendously. Good Coupling with the multiple angles on the same scene. Very tight and funny. Bears watching more than once.

Posted by: WanMan

You mean the mini-series he's doing (or done) for 2004? Looking at the original cast most of them have been busy during 2003, but ...

Posted by: Jon J

Maybe Jeff will phone in regularly from his holiday on Lesbos. ;)

Posted by: WanMan

This may be off track, but a year or two this little island came up in a discussion (I brought it up) and the women at the dinner party thought I made the island up. I guess they should have taken a Humanities class in college to learn about female philosophers of the time.