After The Rental

We're intoducing a new feature here at Ivy Chat. Due to my nanny responsibilities for the Cubs left fielder's children, The Wife and I don't get to the movies much anymore. With those constraints, our movie lives revolve around our DVD player, Netflix queues, and Happy Meals (Spielberg's next flick, "Munich", may be an exception).

So, what's first up in queue? Since the Cubs have gone from Compelling Drama to Ignorable Comedy in only 26 months, a Watchable Comedy seems to be in order:


I originally found "Coupling" on PBS here in Chicago on Sunday evenings. It's a cross between Friends, Sex in the City and Seinfeld. Like Friends, there's three single guys and three single girls on the show who all spend an inordinate amount of time in a bar (no coffee for British TV). Like Sex in the City, the topics range from sex to sex. No work, family, financial or social issues are discussed. And, like Seinfeld, there is a constant attempt to work catch phrases into the thread of the show. These phrases include:

The Sock Gap
The Giggle Loop
The Nudity Buffer
Porn Pudding (aka Jelly sold after a jelly wrestling match)
Shadayim (yes, they worked Hebrew into an episode)

The stars are generally decent actors. Only Jack Davenport seems to have gone on to any outside fame (he had a sizable part in Pirates of the Caribbean).

Richard Coyle plays Jeff as a Kramer-lite. He's the one who comes up with the bulk of the catch phrases and has the world's worst hair.

The rest of the cast is a combination of the other "Friends." Patick is Joey without the rank stupidity. Susan and Sally are each a combo of Rachel and Monica. Jane is a more interesting blend - Phoebe and Samantha from Sex in the City.

As all four seasons of the show are available on DVD for rental, I've been working my way through the show. The first two seasons are excellent. Recommended eps include "The Girl With Two Breasts" and "Inferno." Season three is tailing off a little bit, but is still a solid show.

As an added plus, each season is only 6 to 10 episodes. Unlike domestic TV, the BBC realizes less can be more.

I already find myself disappointed that there are only four seasons to watch.