Stath Lets Flats [Series 2]

[j_u_d_a_s]

Even in this interview from the observer, he admits that there isn't really much behind the character or a point of view to this show.

Have to laugh that of course they ask him about his appearance in one episode of Fleabag and use that to lead into the interview.

[Bad Ambassador]

Well, I chuckled throughout and found it delightful. Stath is just a little boy in an adult body, so his vision of having a family was utterly childish and absurd (he and Katy Wix staying the same age as their son matures to adulthood). The characters are pencil sketches and not rigourously worked out and realistic portraits, but a lot of it rings true in terms of detail. The father being delighted by the page of his name written in numerous fonts struck me as something entirely plausible, and the notion of Stath and Sophie still sharing a room points to how they've never grown up or away from their father's influence.

Wix throwing up in a drawer and closing it again.
The black estate agent awkwardly hanging around in the background of the video.
The weird sexual dynamic of the video, to no apparent purpose other than to suggest the manager's virility.
The tenant in Stath's video mentioning he's had a 'difficult morning', which is not elaborated on, but which means you know he's in no mood to participate in the video or object to being forced into it.
The repeated 'throwing keys' gag.
Al squashed into the gap under the dressing table.
Stath misspelling his own company's name.

All that's just off the top of my head. I think it's a show packed with throwaway moments and amusing details, and I think it's unfair to say that it isn't realistic when it maintains its own coherence.

And it was nominated for two BAFTAs.

[j_u_d_a_s]

Well, I chuckled throughout and found it delightful. Stath is just a little boy in an adult body, so his vision of having a family was utterly childish and absurd (he and Katy Wix staying the same age as their son matures to adulthood).

I actually really liked that bit on its own but in the context of the whole show it shows up how weak the rest of it is. Crowbarring in some motivation for Stath and it's the first time a cutaway gag has been used in the series. I only wish the series itself had more moments like these instead of being another dull The Office ripoff.

The characters are pencil sketches and not rigourously worked out and realistic portraits, but a lot of it rings true in terms of detail. The father being delighted by the page of his name written in numerous fonts struck me as something entirely plausible, and the notion of Stath and Sophie still sharing a room points to how they've never grown up or away from their father's influence.

Again, nice little moments if viewed outside of the whole show. But we've already spent a whole series with the father being the owner of a letting agency surrounded by computers for a number of years. Like I said, if Stath and Sophie were in a heightened world they could work. Here though, it just seems horrible having these two overgrown children a bit lost in the real world. Not even their dad encourages them.

Wix throwing up in a drawer and closing it again.
The black estate agent awkwardly hanging around in the background of the video.
The weird sexual dynamic of the video, to no apparent purpose other than to suggest the manager's virility.
The tenant in Stath's video mentioning he's had a 'difficult morning', which is not elaborated on, but which means you know he's in no mood to participate in the video or object to being forced into it.
The repeated 'throwing keys' gag.
Al squashed into the gap under the dressing table.
Stath misspelling his own company's name.

I think it's a show packed with throwaway moments and amusing details, and I think it's unfair to say that it isn't realistic when it maintains its own coherence.

But... it really doesn't though. It's made up of moments that on their own are decent but the core of this show is so empty and half thought through that they never become more than what they are. It doesn't have to be realistic, just coherent but it's a bunch of pieces from other shows (don't know if it's an influence at all but Stath and Sophie remind me of Eugene and Tina in Bob's Burgers for their endearing ineptitude, and of course The Office has been mentioned by Demetriou) all stapled together. Stath being a mockery of pushy letting agents doesn't work because he's not clever enough to be conniving, he's too innocent which itself would be a good angle for this show but for whatever reason they didn't try that.

And it was nominated for two BAFTAs.

And it lost to Sally4ever which was dogshit.

[Bad Ambassador]

I don't think either of us is going to concede much ground on this, but it did occur to me that a precedent for Stath being a grown-up little boy in an adult world is Frank Spencer, and the dynamic between him and Sophia reminded me of Eccles and Bluebottle.

I don't think Stath's meant to be a mockery of pushy agents since he's so incompetent. He thinks he's doing the pushy hard sell, but he's really just fallen into the family business.

Older people seem to be amazed by the simplest things on computers, regardless of how long they've used them. My mum uses a laptop almost daily, but needed my help renaming some documents and moving them into a new folder.

[j_u_d_a_s]

I don't think either of us is going to concede much ground on this, but it did occur to me that a precedent for Stath being a grown-up little boy in an adult world is Frank Spencer, and the dynamic between him and Sophia reminded me of Eccles and Bluebottle.

That's fair comment. Frank Spencer though is a result of extreme mollycoddling and that show is very much about people reacting to Frank Spencer who is always trying his best. Stath doesn't even seem to try very much at anything.

I don't think Stath's meant to be a mockery of pushy agents since he's so incompetent. He thinks he's doing the pushy hard sell, but he's really just fallen into the family business.
Older people seem to be amazed by the simplest things on computers, regardless of how long they've used them. My mum uses a laptop almost daily, but needed my help renaming some documents and moving them into a new folder.

A business which he seems keen to inherit but we never know why. Come to think of it, this is the most character his dad has ever shown in the series.

[neveragain]

First episode I've seen and it was very enjoyable. Found the character unexpectedly charming.
Now I see what the hype was ab-oh, everyone hates it, never mind.

[Clatty McCutcheon]

A business which he seems keen to inherit but we never know why. Come to think of it, this is the most character his dad has ever shown in the series.

I took the inference that Stath is aware on some level that he would struggle horribly if left to fend for himself in the outside world, and the business is almost a kind of comfort blanket for him.  Or it's a matter of honour and it's really about gaining his dad's approval. A bit of both maybe.  It's not really clear, now you mention it.

[Mobius]

Really enjoyed the latest episode. Was expecting it to be shite because of you lot!

I like the funny way he talks

[StewartLeehaslethimselfgo]

Best bit is the intro (even though its a Borat rip off)

[C_Larence]

.
In the midst of a housing crisis, rising rents etc. there's a lot to be said about the pushy salesman nature of a letting agent but it's never brought up in this show.

I seem to remember there being a woman in an earlier episode who becomes distraught when she finds out how much the tiny flat Stath is showing her costs, and asks how she's meant to afford it.

[j_u_d_a_s]

I seem to remember there being a woman in an earlier episode who becomes distraught when she finds out how much the tiny flat Stath is showing her costs, and asks how she's meant to afford it.

My mistake then, it's mentioned once, briefly.

[C_Larence]

My mistake then, it's mentioned once, briefly.

Apology accepted

[ajsmith2]

I liked the new episode, as funny as ever imo. I like the two sibling leads and I don't think the show is as mean spirited towards them as others perceive. Could be it's just the strength of their performances overcoming basic material, but I do feel they have a real warmth and relatabilty  despite their daftness and failings. I see it as a fairly daft comedy world and I don't see any of the other characters as representing a normality, they pretty much all have their own major quirks and flaws.

Only thing that I didn't like in the new one was them still sharing a bedroom at that age. Just rewatched the S1 E1 on the back of the new one and Stath mentions the keys to his flat to a client which at the time you would assume was somewhere he lived on his todd or with flatmates, but I guess he could easily have been lying or creatively describing his living circumstances to look more impressive. Still them still sharing a room in their 20s seemed a bit too much. Although now I think about it I guess it could be a comment on how hard it is to rent in London that a young letting agent can't even successfully fly the coop himself.

[Bad Ambassador]

Apparently episode 2 is about Stath moving out and trying to find his own place, with presumably amusing consequences.

[sweeper]

And guess what the secret is?

The eagle's favourite drink is champagne.

[kyema]

Thought episode 2 was so touching I nearly bloody cried.

[Huxleys Babkins]

"No doors, just ropes."

[Mobius]

"No doors, just ropes."

That bloke taking the flat for himself was great

[Lisa Jesusandmarychain]

"No doors, just ropes."

Generally liked this second episode, as opposed to the very flat and unengaging episode from last week. The above line is a grand old example of the pleasingly daft stuff that went on in it. Liked his beating down the letting agent to the price that was given in the first place, and that " normal" one who is perpetually frustrated by Stath and his cohorts ( the feller whose bedroom floor yer man ends up sleeping on at the end ).
Yeah, not a bad little comedy show, I suppose.

[Bad Ambassador]

Elena referring to Al as 'Skeleton' was this week's big laugh for me.

[rasta-spouse]

I found S1 of this quite watchable, it had a consistent mediocrity to it but the absurd characters were enjoyable to observe. Not really into S2 so far...it seems a bit forced and less organic.

Jamie Demetriou was on Brett Goldstein's film pod and seemed like a really sound guy though. His thoughts on how it takes five years to make the first series of a tv show were interesting.

Anyone see Natasha Demetriou and Ellie White's bbc sketch pilot?  It's a bit average.

[GMTV]

I actually quite liked The Estate Agents back in the day. I can remember it being fairly poorly received on here.

I've watched a bit of Stath Let Flats and to me it looks vastly inferior. I guess that's a sign of how far British comedy has fallen in the last 20 years.

[imitationleather]

I actually quite liked The Estate Agents back in the day. I can remember it being fairly poorly received on here.

Been a while since I saw that, but I did like it a lot and have been comparing my memory of it to this. As far as I recall, that fully went for the "silly comedy not rooted in reality"-style. Which this should have done as well, but instead it has loads of characters which are written like it's a straight sitcom and so none of it really works. So the entire thing jars and rather than Stath and his family seeming like surreal characters it just appears that they are a bit simple and so the whole thing comes across as mean-spirited. The sister and Al romantic storyline is lame. Have them get together in episode 1 and make them do stupid funny stuff if that is going to be a thing. The will-they, won't-they crap is boring as fuck.

There are moments I like, but it doesn't work as a sitcom.

[j_u_d_a_s]

This weeks ep opened with a slightly homophobic gag about Stath's dad being in love with another man, because imagine that eh? Two men falling in love, not just that but two OLD men as well! I've seen too many recent sitcoms (and Cardinal Burns) play homosexuality for laughs and it's just beyond fucking tedious now. Doesn't even have the cloak of irony anymore.

Been a while since I saw that, but I did like it a lot and have been comparing my memory of it to this. As far as I recall, that fully went for the "silly comedy not rooted in reality"-style. Which this should have done as well, but instead it has loads of characters which are written like it's a straight sitcom and so none of it really works. So the entire thing jars and rather than Stath and his family seeming like surreal characters it just appears that they are a bit simple and so the whole thing comes across as mean-spirited.

I've said in this thread as well that Stath and Sophie's relationship with their dad is at best vague and at worst mean spirited. Vasos kicking them out to be with his new partner just makes him look like a bit of a selfish cunt tbh. Also, isn't it just a bit fucking weird for Vasos and his new parter to be in Sophie and Stath's room?

I genuinely can't find a point of view to this show. Stath and Sophie are big children in the real world, ok cool. But this show never gives us a reason to root for them. They're both terrible at what they do, and in Stath's case we don't know why he's even doing it. The everyman character Dean just rolls his eyes at them both and tbh he's right to do so. I can't tell if there's any affection felt for Stath on Jamie Demetriou's part really. And I certainly don't think JD is capable of writing jokes, just lines that sound like they should be funny.

The sister and Al romantic storyline is lame. Have them get together in episode 1 and make them do stupid funny stuff if that is going to be a thing. The will-they, won't-they crap is boring as fuck.

Yep, it was undercooked in the first series and now there's no obstacle for them to get together it just feels contrived. Though I'd put money on Al getting back together with his long distance girlfriend who's now taken his mattress for some reason...

Genuinely a bit taken aback that this was in development for 5 years. There's so few shows that are out and out big broad comedies on TV at the moment, we really don't need this to be given another series.

[j_u_d_a_s]

Anyone see Natasha Demetriou and Ellie White's bbc sketch pilot?  It's a bit average.

I saw their live show and it was definitely Not Good. The pilot was fine but you could see the influences, a bit of Reeves and Mortimer and a dash of Portlandia. They're good performers tbf but all of their writing feels like a first draft.

[kyema]

This weeks ep opened with a slightly homophobic gag about Stath's dad being in love with another man, because imagine that eh? Two men falling in love, not just that but two OLD men as well! I've seen too many recent sitcoms (and Cardinal Burns) play homosexuality for laughs and it's just beyond fucking tedious now. Doesn't even have the cloak of irony anymore.

Not here to convince you to like the show, but I (a straight male) interpreted this differently. Upon discovering their dad with another man, they responded with something like "Oh, your gay, innit." and "You're getting kisses on my pillow!". In the next scene we saw them all, arms linked, dancing around the living room. Rather than being a homophobic gag, I thought it represented love and acceptance.
I watched this ep with my partner who is way more alert to homophobia than I and she thought it was heartwarming. If she thought otherwise she would have dropped the show in a second.

[j_u_d_a_s]

Not here to convince you to like the show, but I (a straight male) interpreted this differently. Upon discovering their dad with another man, they responded with something like "Oh, your gay, innit." and "You're getting kisses on my pillow!". In the next scene we saw them all, arms linked, dancing around the living room. Rather than being a homophobic gag, I thought it represented love and acceptance.
I watched this ep with my partner who is way more alert to homophobia than I and she thought it was heartwarming. If she thought otherwise she would have dropped the show in a second.

I was going to mention that this episode does sort of show that there's affection in the Stath household. But it's a bit having your cake and eating it because it's set up as a surprise reveal (which doesn't really work because at no point has this show asked us to invest in Vasos as a character) and that's still played as a joke.
Not sure about the next scene being that heartwarming either, Vasos is still kicking out his kids.

[Utter Shit]

I didn't see it as homophobic at all, as kyema said it didn't seem like anyone was judging them for being gay, everyone was completely at ease with them being a couple but upset about the impact it will have on their lives. That reveal felt a little bit undercooked considering how unexpected it was and it would have been nice to see that plot explored a little bit more, but I thought it was quite sweet that it wasn't presented as something that was difficult for any of the characters to understand or accept.

[WestHill]

This show is brilliant and a lot of the nitpicking in this thread feels like the product of a category mistake. It's daft playful humour from someone who clearly has an instinct for timing and wording. It doesn't make sense to me to overanalyse it, in the same way you wouldn't with say Vic and Bob.

[Bad Ambassador]

"Would you like some water? You should go inside, there's nothing!"
"She's not wrong!"

"I have to be up at four am!
"W-Why?"
"I'M A POSTWOMAN!"