New Taskmaster- anyone watching?

[anonacfr]

I know he's controversial but I do love Frankie Boyle...

Watching Sue and Julian's completely different ways of insulting Alex this week was enjoyable. Unfortunately possibly the most enjoyable bit of it. I know it always takes a while to warm up and settle in but there's something Sam which is a bit off at the moment.

I'm still enjoying it. I liked this week's perhaps a little less than others, but still laughed a lot.

I've just listened to the podcast with Lucy. I'm convinced now that she is curating this personality; it seems very deliberate, trying to be a bit zany, ditzy, whatever but I never get the sense that it's the real her. I've not come across her before though so I could be wrong.
I found it odd that she says she's watched most series of Taskmaster, and yet was so surprised and outraged at Sue moving all the boundaries and bending the rules in the duck task. Surely she's seen people do all kinds of similar things in other series! Maybe that's partly what is making me think she is cultivating this slightly naive persona.

I do get the feeling that they didn't gel in quite the same way as other groups of contestants, but not that they didn't gel at all - just that they took longer about it and have different relationships as they are all more different, not so many that were already friends or comedians from the same shows etc.

They all said that they liked Sue, but a few comments just made me wonder. Sam was saying last week on the podcast how she'd told him she was an institution and he should prepare to be institutionalised - which is funny but also feels a little smug; a couple of comments this week made me think they found her a bit intimidating or full of herself or something. I hope not, as I've always liked her and wanted everyone to say she was amazing, but there just seems to be something in their tone that is making me wonder what's behind the scenes. They all say Julian is wonderful too, but again in a slightly distant way, they don't know quite how to take him; they admire him and get on, but there is a one-way-ness about it. Maybe there are just more power imbalances with this group somehow.

I too thought it was kind of unfair for Alex to be actively hiding the hole in the golf ball task. He often plays tricks like that on them, but not completely hiding part of the task like that; it's usually more about who spots something when both things are visible but one more obvious than the others. I don't really like tasks that are so dependent on a little trick being spotted or not. In fact a lot of the tasks this time seem to have been quite all or nothing.

Agree totally with Bimbleberries view. I watched the NZ version where they had the same sort of golf game with getting the ball in the hole, but the hole was in plain sight, although in a different room.

We usually watch the UK version on slight catch up, so we can fast forward through the ads. My DP comes and watches with my DD and me. On the first one he will ask, is this the new series? Every programme after that he will ask which one it is. DD and I just look at each other and have no idea what difference it makes! Drives us mad 😠

I'm on the fence with Lucy, not sure if I find the ditzy character funny or annoying. I quite like Julian but his 'languid' persona might get wearing. Sue comes across as desperate to be the quirky (smug) one. Still warming to Sam and Susan, although I loved the fish and mice task!

I agree @Bimbleberries about Lucy. Even if you agreed to do a show you'd never seen you'd go and watch some! I don't think I've ever seen the series with Jon Richardson but I'd be interested to see how that was as presumably he's told her things to do and look out for etc

Jon Richardson was very good on Taskmaster and it was an excellent series ( even with Katherine Ryan who I really dislike ) .

I’m enjoying the series, agree that I don’t like the Lucy persona and that the gelling is a bit off but still enjoying it, watched all 3 series of NZ in the past few weeks and did enjoy those more though!

I've missed a couple of episodes, but watching tonight.. Alex is very very brave eating those sausages!!

I thought tonight was a bit less funny than usual, but that was more the type of task than anything wrong with the way the contestants were.

the team task didn't really add much but the post-it note art was great! I'm really impressed at how good most of them were - some amazing ones. I missed the bit at first that said it had to be something famous, so i was just considering the various things I might have tried to draw. They all have better knowledge of art than I do for sure

Mid way through the podcast atm - guest is Julian Clary who's interesting.

My main feeling about today's episode is that I wouldn't fancy being the person who has to edit it for Taskmaster Bleeped. What with Biggles Likes it Rough (or whatever), cunnilingus and the knicker-bothering I was highly entertained but it'll be a sod to make it child friendly.

According to Julian the full unexpurgated versions of Wheel of Cheese and The Kavos Incident were eye opening but trimmed heavily for broadcast.

I’ve just blasted through the first few eps of this series. I laughed a lot at Lucy’s face when Sam cut her hair for that task. They aren’t my favourite group but I’m liking Sam and Lucy although all of them have made me laugh at various points.

I loved Alex's "Time Machine" at the start. I think it was how pleased he was with himself and how both he and Greg were trying not to laugh. Just so simple and silly. I also loved how Alex did research into other Biggles titles.

the post it note art was amazing. I'd also thought of Rothko like Susan and said so to DS1 who was sitting next to me!) and did recognise that Julian was doing Damien Hirst. Sam's was amazing, as was Sue's. I would have given Sam 5 and
Sue 4 though.

I love Julian. He appears so disinterested and laid back yet effortlessly pulls it out of the bag with tasks and comments.

I thought the same about the bleeped version - in fact I've thought that several times across this series (only occasionally during other series). I've never watched the bleeped version, but I assumed that they bleeped the swearing out - but the content is often so much more risque in a way that can't really be bleeped. It's not the words, but the concept/suggestions/ art/ pictures/ and so on that aren't suitable for children. In fact I'd say a lot of the show has never really been child-friendly. I guess they could edit whole scenes out but it would be quite patchy somehow. And if they just bleeped large portions, surely children would just be asking what they said or what it means!

Yes I thought same post-it Scream was actually better than Sue's. But both pretty amazing. They have some good artists in this show.

I thought all the prize task entries were terrible this week.

It's hard to believe Julian is actually one of the leaders on the show despite seemingly putting no effort in. And really really disliking Alex or being so condescending to him. Makes you wonder why he decided to do the show in some ways. I haven't listened to the podcast yet though.

Being mean in a languid kind of way is Julian's shtick - it would be hugely disappointing if he turned up and acted super keen and eager to please like Ivo Graham.

I agree - I'm not convinced he dislikes Alex at all and I think the "condescending" aspect is just Julian being Julian. The whole smooth, effortless "bored" performance is what he does. I watched a clip of him presenting a comedy award (as mentioned on the podcast with Sam I think). He presents it with the same completely lack of excitement as he is showing on Taskmaster. I think he is doing well because he's actually bloody clever.

Apparently Julian rang Jo Brand when deciding whether to do Taskmaster and she told him it would be fun. She was also a legendarily low-effort but entertaining contestant.

I can't believe nobody brought in Calpol for the prize task.

I'd have gone with Farley's rusks for the prize task.

I like all of the contestants but Lucy. I'm bored of her acting like a simpleton, it isn't endearing as she thinks it is.

yes Jo Brand was low effort but funny.

I guess that is Julian's typical persona and maybe that's all it is. Just felt a little personal towards Alex at times!

I think Lucy is getting a bit tiresome too, as she is clearly nowhere near as naive and dim as she tries to pretend to be.

Not sure what I'd have brought in for the prize task, but I'd have expected something much better than their offerings, something actually fun for adults. Maybe a minifigure Alex or Greg or something.

So sick of Lucy now.

Also agree that this Julian's historic persona and has been his whole career. He does that slightly derisive / disinterested thing so well and it's usually accompanied by a smile. To me, it's never come across as nasty. Just always been part of his act.

Funny how it's seen as perhaps being rude towards Alex. The entire show revolves around Greg being borderline abusive to Alex. Obviously everyone knows it's part of the schtick, but with different expectations . A lot of the guests are in character - they often play alter egos as part of their profession. Some are more 'straight' than others I guess. It's quite weird when you think about it, as you often don't know the real contestant as such. Leigh Francis is quite an extreme example of this as he's rarely seen as himself and is almost always in Keith Lemon mode (which i think is weird - thank god he's never been on the show!)

Which brings me to Lucy. As a few of you have already said, her MO is wearing a bit thin. It makes me wonder why the hell a woman in this day and age would deliberately choose to craft / portray an apparently stupid, ditzy character.

Has anyone seen Lucy in anything else and is this how she comes across all the time ?

I've seen her when she does The Richardson's (of which there seem to be many variations) with Jon. Yes, she's the same. Their Christmas show which they did last year was dreadful. She's a bit different on Gogglebox, so is obviously capable of toning the act down.

I’m a long time fan of Julian, and he’s being EXACTLY as I expected him to be. True to his public persona (which may also be his private persona, but I’m not a stalker!) of many years.

Lucy’s act is wearing incredibly thin now. Reminds me a bit of Lou ‘ooh I’m just sooo kooky’ Sanders 🤮.

I do find Sue a bit smug but entertaining. Sam has some funny moments and throws some lovely curveballs, and Susan seems really likeable.

I don't think Sue is actually smug, I think that's just the way she is. She's the same in everything.

I think Julian, Sue and Lucy are all being true to character, that is they're behaving exactly as they do in everything i've seen them in.

Long term fan of Julian, absolutely loved him in the 80s with Fanny the wonder dog, and Sues travel programmes have been fantastic, defo not smug!