The Thick of It

While The Office is a deviation from the usual sitcom productions, The Thick of It goes incomparably further in denying the rules of the sitcom genre, basically forming its opposite - emphasis on the realism of the environment, almost documentary camera work, and the absence of artificial lines and dramatizing situations. Honestly speaking, there isn't much for straightforward laughter in the series, although countless absurd situations can be found within it. It's more of an insight into the workings of various manipulators and other government lackeys in the British rendition. At times, their actions and thinking even make you feel the way you do after consuming highly indigestible food. Overall impression: 60%. (27.09.2008)

An effing and blinding version of Yes, Minister / Yes, Prime Minister with a hint of the Office for the twenty-first century in a satire that is so aptly true and chilling that in fact it isn’t even funny. So this definitely is no classic Britcom, but more, how should I put it, a “politofuckcom". And the effing (not just) leaves Malcolm’s lips with a tempo that a Kalashnikov could be jealous of. Too bad that in this country it came out with disastrous subtitles by Petr Šaroch which were more a version of how he would have done political satire, rather than (even a very free) translation of what is said. (19.01.2014)