S01E01 – actually good! (this is a very different character from what I've seen Coogan do before... but equally pathetic; I really like the lack of the laugh track, though Tommy's accent was a bit hard to follow at times; what a sad man, Tommy Saxondale! I am excited to see the next episode! I like the subdued tone, and the fact that his girlfriend is unattractive)
S01E02 – good! (I am excited to watch more of this show; it is a bit hard to tell, at times, whether Coogan is mocking muscle car aficionados or genuinely loves fast vehicles himself (especially with the lingering/caressing camera movements of the opening credits); I miss the old, shabby van!; Four letter word: "Fool?")
S01E03 – good! (I liked that the addition of someone from Tommy's past does not feel sudden or retconny at all, and just a natural extension of his persona and the little tidbits of history/personality he gives out)
S01E04 – okay-good (with Ben from AP guesting, Tommy Saxondale seems to have reverted into Alan's pattern of saying/assuming something foolish, and then having to stumble about in order to back it up in an attempt to not embarrass himself — felt in character for a dad and his daughter's boyfriend, yes, but also felt very AP; Tommy, though will often challenge people more than Alan, and has learned to take the high road, so with the whole bathroom/drugs/irritable bowel scene, Tommy could have admitted that he thought Matt was taking drugs, and then they could have either laughed about it, or Matt could have just been embarrassed — but they fell into the Ben/Alan relationship, where Ben always ends up on the high ground; the bit with Coogan as the junkie was just awkward and weird — if they keep doing this, with Coogan playing multiple parts, then maybe it will feel less strange, but all I can think about is when they used doubles and how much of a hassle that must have been to shoot, with little pay-off; and is Raymond still living with them? He didn't seem to be in any of the household scenes, as it wasn't... convenient?)
S01E05 – good (I liked the emphasis on Raymond's relationship with Tommy/Mags, which had been sorely lacking in the past few eps; also, how old is he supposed to be??; the "Tommy is feeling old thing" seems a bit abrupt, but at least, y'know, not random as he is in his 50s, but why is he suddenly unable to copulate, when he and Mags seemed to previously smash the system on a daily basis?; oh godddd and his little lip-licks are getting gross to a McCabe level)
S01E06 – good (this one was very plot-driven (Tommy solving the mystery of the big company's repeat flea-visits) which was very different from the other episodes, but kind of nice — it gave the viewer a satisfying conclusion to this mystery within the esoteric world of pest control, and it also let Tommy seem smart, for once (with both his deduction skills, and his intelligent allusions); this new "big enemy" of the other pest control place was a bit of a ret-con, though, and I'm sort of still waiting for there to be any semblance of a series-long arc or connection (which there has yet to be, a la AP), such as delving into why Tommy is currently in anger management — the inciting incident?; some good Raymond bits, like when he brushed off the crisp; and I'm pretty sure Rebecca Front did the voice on Radio 4)
S01E07 – hm (a bit overly sentimental, with the reiteration on the importance of the tin of potatoes, and with the manufactured fight between Tommy and Mags (who otherwise seemed to have a pretty solid relationship), and with all the waxing philosophical on giving life meaning by having impacting relationships with other people, and not dying alone — as though trying to give the series a meaningful conclusion, when this sentiment wasn't really prevalent throughout; there didn't seem to be an overriding sort of theme of fear of dying alone, or getting older, or anything; just sort of a pointless series, almost; Coogan can create the characters, but I really do think he needs someone else there to shape the show and give it some sort of overarching meaning beyond: here is this character, and he's like this, and here's the stuff that he does; his characters are inherently sort of sad, or depressing, in Tommy Saxondale's case, but that really isn't enough; oh! But David Cann as a boring dinner guest = yessss)
What did you guys think?
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