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March 28, 2024, 12:33:33 PM

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Does Superstore get any better?

Started by Dusty Substance, April 01, 2021, 03:22:37 PM

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Icehaven

Series 6 has recently appeared on Netflix (uk) and is alright but understandably very Covid focused, however I was positively delighted when
Spoiler alert
David Foley appeared!
[close]
in a later episode,
Spoiler alert
2 Kids together!
[close]

paruses

I think S6 has a bit of an uptick from 5 (I can't remember 4). Just posted in the Covid forum that I think Covid gave them new material to build around.

Had forgotten that they are quite harsh (relatively) on popular entertainment stuff and figures from time to time. Can't think of other specifics but Dina has just arrived at the morning meeting:
Spoiler alert
Dina: Sorry I'm late. I got lost hate watching a clip of James Corden at the gas pump
Sandra: Oh I love that guy. He has a British accent but you can tell he isn't smarter than you
[All the staff nod in agreement]


Very enjoyable. Hope they do Ricky Gervais next.
[close]


Sebastian Cobb

Is it a false memory due to me getting confused when watching it very stoned or are there a few episodes in series 4 where they green-screened characters together in layers and it ended up unintentionally looking like the music video to Cameo's Candy?

steveh

Ended up watching the whole of Superstore over the last few months. I reckon it starts to find its feet towards the end of season 1 but then it goes into a badly handled industrial action plot which drifts into season 2 - the episodes surrounding the end of season cliffhangers are generally the weakest. From about one third of the way through season 2 to two thirds of the way through season 4 it's a pretty okay mainstream US sitcom with some generally good writing. At that point it starts to run out of ideas, goes into too many pointless job reshuffles to try and wring some additional mileage out of the characters and it suffers from the standard sitcom curse of making characters more extreme over time for easy laughs.

The final, short season 6 loses a lot with America Ferrera leaving and having to make more of the others, plus it doesn't help that Glenn and Dina's annoying voices are more the fore. Having to watch the whole early Covid thing again just a couple of years after going through it also isn't the most fun. There are times throughout the whole run where it seems like someone made a checklist of things they thought worked in The Office which they gradually tick off and that accelerates towards the end.

As paruses mentioned upthread, the social issues stuff is annoying because of the way it always flakes out and gets quickly dismissed. There's that general sitcom thing where the need to do a reset by the end of each plot strand often comes across like there's no point in anyone even trying to do something to better their lives.

notjosh

Quote from: steveh on March 20, 2022, 11:03:04 AMAs paruses mentioned upthread, the social issues stuff is annoying because of the way it always flakes out and gets quickly dismissed. There's that general sitcom thing where the need to do a reset by the end of each plot strand often comes across like there's no point in anyone even trying to do something to better their lives.

Personally I find this is one of the better aspects of the show, that it remains pretty cynical about corporate culture and doesn't go for easy, heart-warming wins.

Ant Farm Keyboard

A favourite moment of mine is very quick and lowkey. It's when Amy tells Jonah during a party, "You should be mingling. Go talk to someone about how second season of Patriot gets better." Then she adds, "It doesn't."

The reference to (American) Patriot may have flown over the head of most people, but I find it absolutely hilarious, as it nails the character of Jonah perfectly. Of course, he would repeatedly try to persuade Amy to give more of a chance to one of the bleakest and most uncompromising seasons of a TV show ever produced in America. The joke wouldn't work with something more celebrated by critics and various online communities, such as Twin Peaks: The Return. But with an obscure show that was mostly seen by other writers (I assume that the person who wrote that joke did), it depicts Jonah's sense of superiority flawlessly.

dead-ced-dead

Quote from: Ant Farm Keyboard on March 22, 2022, 12:03:44 PMA favourite moment of mine is very quick and lowkey. It's when Amy tells Jonah during a party, "You should be mingling. Go talk to someone about how second season of Patriot gets better." Then she adds, "It doesn't."

The reference to (American) Patriot may have flown over the head of most people, but I find it absolutely hilarious, as it nails the character of Jonah perfectly. Of course, he would repeatedly try to persuade Amy to give more of a chance to one of the bleakest and most uncompromising seasons of a TV show ever produced in America. The joke wouldn't work with something more celebrated by critics and various online communities, such as Twin Peaks: The Return. But with an obscure show that was mostly seen by other writers (I assume that the person who wrote that joke did), it depicts Jonah's sense of superiority flawlessly.

To add to this: Jonah and Amy are my favourite will-they-won't-they couple on American TV.

Which is neither to say that Superstore is flawless (it isn't, though I find it funny), nor to say that the will-they-won't-they trope isn't WAY overplayed (it is).

But unlike Pam and Jim, for example, they have strong personalities to work on their own as characters. I find a lot of will-they-won't-theys' have no personality outside of their relationship drama.

Clownbaby

I think what is stopping me from liking this is the cast. Nobody is really tickling me. There's quite a few bits where I can tell I would have laughed if it was a different actor saying the line.

Claude the Racecar Driving Rockstar Super Sleuth

I'm down to the last several episodes now. I doesn't make me laugh all that much (although it has its moments) but it has that cosy hangout feeling that makes for pathetic pleasant viewing.

It's quite interesting that they decided to tackle the pandemic and so soon into it. Have any other other non-topical shows like this done so?

I can't decide to what extent it's admirable or just plain sleazy how much it seems to focus on Lauren Ash's sex appeal.

paruses

Quote from: Claude the Racecar Driving Rockstar Super Sleuth on April 05, 2022, 04:59:31 PMI can't decide to what extent it's admirable or just plain sleazy how much it seems to focus on Lauren Ash's sex appeal.

I very much liked the Halloween costume which I think was right back in S1. They trotted it out possible every single season after and it did start to feel a bit tawdry - and I don't like things that make me consider others.

Mr_Simnock

Quote from: Claude the Racecar Driving Rockstar Super Sleuth on April 05, 2022, 04:59:31 PMI can't decide to what extent it's admirable or just plain sleazy how much it seems to focus on Lauren Ash's sex appeal.

I think its very admirable, they should have had her on screen a lot more