Ricky Gervais' 'After Life' on Netflix is truly awful

[Lottapianos]

I'm halfway through series 3 - you can't say I haven't done my research ☺️ I'm hypnotised by the awfulness. I think it's the most overrated load of claptrap since Gavin and Stacey. There's the odd very funny line and some great performances but dear god 🤦🏻

Main problems with it:

• obviously just a vehicle for Ricky Gervais' misanthropic worldview
• trite and sentimental
• doesn't go anywhere, same scenes repeated endlessly (sitting on couch getting pissed, lying in bed watching old clips on laptop)
• non stop misogyny - endless c-words and some truly vile lines from one character about how badly women stink and graphic sexual stuff
• he and his wife (seen in flashback) are bloody annoying, always honking with laughter at his tedious antics. Nothing like any couple I have ever come across ever
• lots of pointless characters seemingly there just to create a short role for Gervais' mates

I could go on! And yes of course I could just switch the damn thing off, but indulge me. Anyone else just not get it?

Why waste your time watching something you clearly don't like?

Can't believe you managed to get that far. I stopped after a few episodes of series one. Very depressing

I've started watching The Office again!

I've not seen it myself however friends who have say it is a great watch.
Guess it's just down to personal choice.

I agree, I’ve seen people going on about how moving they find it and I just think it’s cringey and he’s a pretty hideous character. Plus that local newspaper would have closed down decades ago.

I thought the first season was okay but not interested in the follow ups. I was a huge Gervais fan until I saw a work in progress gig a few years back and it was truly awful. Don't see him in the same light now.

So unrealistic too him living in that house !

I loved all three series. It was brilliant. And Ricky is also a hero to me regarding his work he does with saving dogs from the vile Chinese meat industry! I doth my cap to him ❤️

First series was OK, lost interest in series two as it seemed to just be a re-hash of exactly the same thing over again - virtually scene by scene.

I thought the first series was good.

I didn’t get more than halfway through series 2 and I have no interest in series 3. Gervais has always had a strange view of the world and his comedy is very marmite.

I watched it with my DD (adult) and loved it, then watched it again with DH and cried at all the same bits. I thought it was very good.

I agree, it's a vehicle for some very misogynistic material

@LovelyYellowLabrador

So unrealistic too him living in that house !

You find out that his wife earned a lot more than him and her life insurance paid off the mortgage. Which definitely happens IRL. So no, not 'so unrealistic'.

If you don't like it then don't watch it, OP.

I watched the first series and agree with all your points. Plus totally unrecognisable/unrealistic twee English setting, a small market town which somehow supports a 1950s style local newspaper? And a friendly local prostitute, an angelic old lady who dispenses wisdom in a graveyard and one dimensional "perfect wife". Get to fuck Ricky.

Yes, pretty annoying how he’d look like he was turning a corner and then next season, back to being miserable as if none of the uplifting bits we’d previously seen mattered.

Agree, except I stopped after a couple of episodes. It was unrelentingly dreary.

I liked it. I like TV and films that make me slightly uncomfortable and make me think.
Each to their own 🤷‍♀️

I loved it. I found it both funny and touching.

Loved it and a big fan of Ricky Gervais.

'It became a vehicle for Gervais to use the word cunt a lot.'

Yes, that seems to be the main point of it!

And yes to the one dimensional angelic female characters who are just there to laugh at Ricky's jokes 🙄

I thought it was shite. Gavin and Stacey is amazing though so Yabu for that.

I was a bit mystified by some of the hype about this show. It's relatively watchable but just sort of washes over you with nothing really happening. I suppose you'd say the same about The Office but that seemed much better observed, presumably because he's worked in an office at some point.

Urgh, it's increasingly dreadful. The start of the first series was okay but, fuck me, what a lot of naval gazing, sentimentalist whinging.

I absolutely agree. I thought I was in the minority as most people seem to think it's the best thing since sliced bread.

Agree it's a vessel for Gervais's misanthropic views. The scenes between him and his wife are really tedious and not at all believable - her continuous laughing at his shit pranks seems really fake. It seems to rely a lot on shock value rather than clever humour. And yes incredibly repetitive, the same old conversations on the bench or in the office with his boss. I really thought I was missing something.

That said, I think The Office and Derek are brilliant. So much wittier and cleverly written.

I really enjoyed the first series it was funny and moving

It’s in my to watch list