The Wrong Door

While most other reviewers slate this show for its 'over-use' of CGI, they're simultaneously ignoring the fact that this is the USP of the programme. It's like complaining there's too much murder in Poirot.

Indeed, special effects replace a long tradition of making intricate or wonderfully shoddy props prevalent in all British sketch shows up to this point and this can be a bit frightening for anyone born after 1984. It would be incredibly easy for this show to lazily leave us marvelling at the pretty visuals but instead backs itself up with excellent writing, with each episode taking a loose theme ranging from darkly humorous to darkly mad, and excellent performances from an extremely varied comic cast (largely devoid of regulars, helping the surrealism along.)

Let there be no misunderstandings, this is a programme aimed at a younger audience with an unnerving sense of humour (thus the scheduling) meaning criticism can largely be put down to this being "a generational thing." In the end, you can probably filter the audience as being anyone who's ever laughed at an internet video not involving a cat. I laughed.

I can't give it ten because very little comedy is that good. But this had me rolling about with laughter in my hotel bed on a recent visit to London. I had seen trailers of it on the two BBC channels that we get here in Belgium, and was sorry that it was on BBC 3, which we don't get.

Now, by sheer accident - I was zapping to see what was showing on various channels - I've seen it.

All the negative comments that I've read on here "The Wrong Door" may well be true - it is like something produced by kids with their first CGI software - but that's the whole point! It's VERY funny. If it's not, then *I* am! Durrr...

Off to the BBC Shop to see if I can find the DVDs...

Okay, the BBC have produced some bad stuff in the past, and stuff which I've found amusing in the past (like Two Pints) seems to have gained a constantly decaying script, getting seemingly more abstract and surreal.

Well, this show begins surreal, with a giant walking robot. What's that, you say? A killing machine? An army weapon? Maybe an alien from outer space? Goodness, no! It's looking for it's keys.

(PAUSE) The pause was for you to laugh. WHAT?!? You didn't? But this is comedy genius! A 500ft robot looking for his keys? A woman dating a carnivorous dinosaur? An annoying creature? What else could you want? Oh, wait! A decent script might be nice! I don't remember smiling (not even laughing or chuckling, but SMILING) once. The program has a ghoulish train-wreck appeal, where once you start watching it, you can't seem to stop! I expect the show to flop, but wouldn't be surprised if a second series of this drivel will make it to the channel.

To anyone who hasn't seen this program, I implore you NOT to watch it! I kept asking myself why I was watching it, and answered "Because it simply HAS to get better!" It didn't. It really didn't.

I just watched this, & I cannot believe I made it to the end.

I think this is possibly the worst example of 'comedy' yet put out by the BBC. Some of the sketches: The little annoying thing, the dinosaur boyfriend et al. What is it all about, there are absolutely no redeeming features to this show whatsoever. I give most things a second chance, but on this occasion I will not, as I feel that nothing is gonna change for the positive in this one. If the this is what the BBC is going to be spewing at us from now on under the guise of comedy, then I propose that we all boycott this increasingly distant organisation by refusing to pay our licence, who's with me...? Well, that's my rant over. I recommend that this show be avoided by everybody. I wouldn't wish an episode of this on my worst enemy.

first of all i want to say that i am a huge fan of British comedy, starting from the classics like monty python, fawlty towers, french & saunders, ranging over light comedy like coupling, darker territory like black books and black adder, weirder stuff like spaced and the mighty boosh and even enjoying stuff that is as drastic as league of gentlemen and little Britain. with that said and not mentioning every single one of the gazillions of DVD boxes i have at home, i must say that i am actually quite surprised if not shocked, that something like that can come from the land that basically invented most genres of comedy we know of today and started worldwide "franchises" like the office or IT crowd.

this is a series that completely and utterly relies on the use of CGI and overuses the element of "running gags". sadly enough the CGI is at best mediocre and the "running gags" actually backfire as they won't get funnier with every time they get repeated. they start off annoyingly and get to a point where you can barely take it without kicking in the TV screen.

one example: a giant robot is searching for his keys. that's it, no further gag, just a robot looking for his keys. repeated over and over again. not funny? damn right.

the writing has some pikes where it barely hits mediocresy, but for the most part just stays rock bottom. throughout the whole few episodes i wasn't able to laugh or at least enjoy what i was seeing. some of the sketches even had some sadistic elements to them.

i don't have a problem with toilet humor, but at least it gotta be in context. just mentioning certain words over and over again doesn't make them funnier.

it makes me laugh reading some comments around here telling people to "switch of their brains and enjoy" when it comes to this series. it is not about being too high maintenance, it is about laughing about every sh*tty gag in the book. i have nothing against light entertainment. i found movies like van wilder 1&2, naturally blonde ..etc etc very entertaining as i am able to switch off and let go, but this series is just agonzing and by far the worst British TV series i have seen in my life.