There is no doubt that the UK and the US provide the world with the bulk of TV and film content. While America has always been really good with the action-packed material (from the Rambo, Steven Seagal and Arnold Schwarzenegger era to the Michael Bay and the Wachowski siblings) the UK, save for the 007 films, seems to shy away from huge explosions and incredible car crashes. In fact, their main triumph has to be in comedy. From classics like Are You Being Served? and ’Allo ‘Allo to Blackadder and The Office, there is no denying that the Brits have a unique sense of humour.
This is not to say that the US does not have its own brand of good comedy, but if I were to choose, it would be the Union Jack waving at the expense of the Stars and Stripes, because, in general, UK sitcoms depend on clever dialogue.
In America, by comparison, there is an over-reliance on what the actors will do with a script. Usually these actors are comedians, so the hope is that their natural ability to make people laugh will boost the shortcomings of the writing. Yet it doesn’t work all the time.
People like Mark Curry (Hangin’ With Mr Cooper) and Tracy Morgan (The Tracy Morgan Show) banked on their stand-up backgrounds, but to little avail. Closer to home, Trevor Noah and his buddy Eugene Khoza also tried out TV on The Trevor Noah Show, but poor scripting meant the experience wasn’t as funny as promised.
That said, there is space for everyone in the sitcom sphere. And just because US TV audiences don’t always appreciate the nuances of British humour, it doesn’t mean they don’t recognise a great concept when they see one. As such, US TV executives are fond of commissioning material from their English counterparts and adapting it for their market. They call it “adapting”, but in many cases they simply dumb it down for their audience.
Let’s hope that isn’t the case with their latest sitcom acquisition, Getting On, which is set in a geriatric ward of a public hospital. Most of the screen time is spent in the hallways of California’s Mt Palms Hospital. The set-up is the same for the UK version where we meet a bunch of hospital employees who navigate their young lives around their elderly patients.
The UK series ran for three seasons before getting the boot. It remains to be seen how well the American adaptation will do.
Other shows that the US has adapted from the UK include The Office, House Of Cards and The Weakest Link. Often the difference between the two versions are so dramatic that fans of the original find themselves unable to adapt to the new show. The Office, for example, was a pioneering bit of comedy that turned comedian Ricky Gervais into a household name during its two season run in the UK.
The US version, on the other hand, which ran for nine seasons, seemed an entirely different beast. Gervais himself explained that this was because Americans and Brits saw the world differently and that, naturally, reflected in their humour.
The trading of ideas, however, isn’t a one-way street. Even the UK scours the US TV landscape for new ideas. It makes sense seeing that American shows have a foothold in almost every market. As such, shows like Law & Order, Jeopardy and even The Golden Girls (retitled Brighton Belles) have been reworked for the British market.
The question of whether it works or not boils down to individual tastes and the strength of the scripting.
• Getting On II airs every Tuesday at 9.30pm on Vuzu (DStv channel 116).