Le spectacle de Ricky Gervais

This show is brilliant. It is funny. The fact that one of the reviewers on here downed this show and then, in all seriousness, recommended that you go watch "two and a half men" for good comedy should tell you all that you need to know about that reviewer's tastes. It's not about whether you find Ricky Gervais funny. It's all about Karl. I would say, if you have above average intelligence you will find this funny. If you have below average intelligence, then by all means go watch some of that comedy genius, Charlie Sheen.

Watch this show. You will love it. And if you don't, well, there is something wrong with you.

There's something so irresistible about Karl Pilkington. I discovered him through the books first. Then I enjoyed watching An Idiot Abroad. I'm not a fan of Ricky Gervais usually, but that doesn't matter here. Karl takes all the teasing in his stride and can give as good as he gets. He's not a victim, although it may come across that way to some viewers. Ricky & Steve both love him and if Karl wasn't happy, he wouldn't keep on working with them. The animation is brilliant. The title sequence alone pulls you in. I don't believe there's that much acting involved. Karl is a unique person and his outlook is refreshing. His Diary is always a highlight. One of the funniest series ever, whether or not you heard the original podcasts.

STAR RATING: ***** Saturday Night **** Friday Night *** Friday Morning ** Sunday Night * Monday Morning

Having conquered the worlds of TV and film (if not quite pop music!) Ricky Gervais proved he also had something to add to the world of pod cast entertainment, with his regular pod casts featuring long time writing partner Stephen Merchant and, most notably, his former production assistant Karl Pilkington, that all his truly die hard fans would probably have seeked out straight away. Gervais obviously applied his magic touch once again, and proved being funny really seems to be his true calling in life, as they were so successful this off-beat TV spin off show has been created by American giants HBO and not done too badly itself.

The first thing everyone would probably note is the self indulgence in the title, with the most well known member of the trio seemingly held as the main driving force behind the show, when this is an accolade that goes to Pilkington, with his unusual musings on life and how he'd make the world a better place. Despite his opinionatedness, he comes across as a softly spoken, gentle person, while Gervais (made to look uncannily like Fred Flintstone!) shouts his mouth off at the incredulousness of what Pilkington says, or at least how he's phrased it. Merchant is left as the proverbial piggy in the middle, gently trying to mediate between the oddball and the matador. No matter how crazy Pilkington can sound, there is some twisted logic to his words, perhaps a little of the George Bush syndrome of having the odd clever thought, just not being able to communicate it well. Some might well say the animation can never hold up to listening on the pod cast and letting your own imagination run wild, which holds true, but the animation probably shows it closer to how Pilkington himself envisaged his odd thoughts, and so delivers the fuller comedic effect.

For those who aren't, or have no intention of, merging with the cyber age, Gervais and HBO have come together and delivered a highly watchable, always volatile and eye opening expose of the world Gervais works in after his trek to super stardom. ****

When you watch this show, it is hard to not be in stitches at what Karl says. Ricky's laugh also adds some comedic value to some of what Karl has said.

This show includes much dialogue from the earlier podcasts of Gervais, Merchant and Pilkington, but has been given a kind of Hanna Barbera- esque animated backdrop. We are treated to scenes during the conversations to give us an idea of how this would/did happen in real life. It also includes newer dialogue, i.e. An Idiot Abroad is even mentioned in some episodes.

Despite the fact that the Show is called "The Ricky Gervais Show", the real star is Karl Pilkington. I assume it was called this because Ricky was more famous than Karl when the podcasts started (if Karl was famous at all at this point). Fans of Ricky's laugh will not be disappointed to hear it in most, if not all, episodes, usually after Karl has given his point of view on something.

I would highly recommend that you watch this, along with "An Idiot Abroad", which also stars Karl Pilkington, but with less screen time for Gervais and Merchant.

Rating: Please see top of the review.

I absolutely love this show, and any other one that has to do with Karl Pilkington such as: "An idiot abroad". I can't get enough of this guy. I must have watched all three seasons about 50 times by now and its still just as funny as when I first watched it. I thank my old roommate everyday for letting me use HBO GO on my xbox 360. I had first saw An idiot abroad on TV, and Karl Pilkington would crack me up so much, but when I found the Ricky Gervais show I was blown away. They could easily do 20 seasons of this show. In fact, Ricky Gervais, I am begging you to bring out more episodes of this show. Listening to podcasts isn't enough. The animation completes the whole thing. 10 out of 10 from me.