Derek 1.2 Review

By Oscar Harding / February 6, 2013

rating: 4

Last week, I was impressed by Derek, if slightly underwhelmed. And though tonights episode was a dramatic improvement on what had already been established, it wasnt quite perfect. The positives first- it was a hell of a lot funnier. Whilst last weeks episode had Karl Pilkingtons Dougie at its beating heart, this week he is sort of sidelined as the comic mouthpiece- this was Karl being Karl, not Karl being Dougie. Thats fine, but so long as Dougie is not stuck in being the funny, moody git and gets moments like his defiant speech in last weeks episode, then we have another classic and well-rounded character to the Gervais pantheon. Whereas last week there was the odd chuckle, this was genuinely full of laughs and quotable lines- not catchphrases- and if the show maintains that amount of humour with its other elements, it will be nicely balanced and stronger for it. The best thing about the whole episode, though, was once again Hannahs arc. I hope to God we see more of Vicki, because she struck a chord with me, and became the heart of this weeks episode-Surely its a problem if we fall in love with these new characters, but our love for the title character doesnt grow? Hannah is once again the maternal figure, and when Vicki starts to see the residents worth, and the poor thing. I know girls like Vicki, so it was very touching and a little sad for me to watch. Gervais has formed another wonderful character in his world and proved to be a masterful observer. Of course Gervais had to take a little poke at Celebrity Culture, Twitter and The Kardashians, but he worryingly has a point- this is how some people Vickis age, my age, are thinking. Towards the end we see a very subtle growth in Hannahs relationship with Tom, and I feel that that is going to become the heart of the show. Because at the moment Derek is not really giving us anything, and great as he is, I doubt were going to see Dougie headline a strong emotional arc as the show develops. And now the negatives- the three things that niggled me last week were: 1) The piano music- enough already! If you had the insistent score in The Offices powerful and understated moments, it wouldve been nowhere near as good- the show is great as it is, you dont need to hammer home the pathos if it all with the constant music. 2) & 3) The distinct lack of development in Derek and Kev. Though Kev had some very funny moments this week, like soiling himself and seeking out nudity in the local library, Im not feeling sympathetic to him, and thus far hes not likeable enough to get away with his words and actions. If Gareth in The Office looked and sounded like Kev, hed be nowhere near as lovable- Kev could do with shedding the dirty, creepy drunk image. As you come to love Derek, although a little less so than Dougie and Hannah, I feel nothing towards Kev. Hes not very nice, and he just lacks dimension. I hope to God this is just a trick, and very soon he will be given something to do that totally messes with our impressions so far. And though I like Derek, and havent completely fallen in love with him yet. Perhaps this is Gervais intention, that he sort of melds into the background and is in no way a showy performance, but though hes nice and obviously cares, I really havent seen an example of a genuinely childlike act, or a bond with a resident that made the pilot so powerful. The really killer for me was at the end- we focus on the residents settling down after Dereks party, and flash back to old film stock of their memories of being young- it is in no way saccharine, but genuinely uplifting, oddly powerful, and a masterstroke by Gervais. But damn him, Im falling in love with the residents-especially Arthur- and were not seeing enough of them. The whole situation of the situation comedy is set in an old folks home, and though any moment with Godlimans Hannah is a delight, were not seeing enough of the actual residents- or at least, its noticeable because Pilkington seems to support two as-yet underdeveloped characters. Well done, Mr. Gervais, youve proved that the sitcom really has legs, and I love most of the characters in the world youve created. Let me see more! I want more of the old people, more of Tom, some real development in Derek, a bit of humanity in Kev... At the moment, it seems to be quite routine- Derek, Dougie and Kev go outside of the home, crack a few jokes and leave the seriously emotional lifting to Hannah. I hope this changes quickly- perhaps well see a little less of Hannah and focus on Derek and Kev, or give total focus to Dougie, who is proving more than capable of carrying the show as well as Hannah. If next week continues in this trend and once again combats my little niggles, then Ill have nothing to complain about in a series that so far has been warm, quite funny and more than a little thought-provoking. And despite my criticism, its the most genuine and honest show Ive seen on TV in quite a while, and theres just not enough programming like it on our screens, so its a show that is to be celebrated, flaws and all.