Is "Coupling" misogynist?

I had heard good things about it and decided to watch it last week.

The episode I had the misfortune to pick was about this one guy who had recorded 'sessions' with women he'd been with.

This was discovered when one of his lady friends stopped by because they never talked when they were out as a group with their other friends. His comment, "well other guys are there, why would I?"

This event is discussed in the opening scene by the three guy friends in this group. One of the guy friends is currently dating one of the women in this other guy's video collection. At some point someone asks if he keeps videos of every woman he's ever been with. He says well no there's a weight limit, because he has standards.

Okay, enough about that conversation.


On to the part where the ladies in this group of friends is discussing it.

The three women are discussing this event, and the current girlfriend of the one guy is of course anxious about a tape of her being in that closet.

One of the other women is lamenting that she missed her chance to be in the closet.

The other woman is talking about losing some weight and hurrying up so she can get in there before ... I don't know, before she's too old I guess. The details are fuzzy now.


I know there was more in there that made me... well... shocked, frankly.

I couldn't watch the whole show.

Ugh ugh ugh.

I haven't seen either, but the UK one *as usual* was supposed to be pretty good :shrug:


edit: and I'm getting about really damn sick of Americans bastardizing our shit!

And we don't bastardize it, we fucking ruin it! Adam fucking Corolla doing Top Gear? :wtf:

Didn't know we murkanized it.

IMO it's quite shit... even by murkin tv standards.

And that is saying something.

I've only seen the BBC version and I thought it was very clever and funny. American adaptations of British sitcoms are almost always horrid and unfunny in my experience. The only BBC series that was adapted for American TV that is any good is The Office but it still isn't as good as the original Ricky Gervais series.

apparently

it's a hatred free for all!

the only group it is impossible to discriminate against, no matter who you are or what you do or how much you hate them, is straight white males over 45.

well endowed. Apparantly he has a tripod.

Steve, the current boyfriend of Susan, who was one of Patrick's exes is much less shallow and often expounds hilariously on things

Jeff, the goofball is just funny. I love Jeff

Susan has her shit together
her best friend Sally, who 'missed her chance to be videoed' is somewhat shallow but not as shallow as Patrick. Rain puddles are deeper than Patrick

Jane, the one who talks about losing weight to get in the video is just plain crazy which if you watched the series in order from the first episode you would totally get. Jane may possibly be the most self centered creature ever created for TV

They are hysterical and like all good ensemble comedy groups play off one another's flaws and foibles, deftly portrayed by excellent actors. It is a total sendup of relationships, and how men and women view themselves and one another.

who would lament not being in some jerk's video collection.

Maybe it's just me.

to normal in the group.

Jeff is just hysterical, though.

That would make sense...

Susan and Steve... those are the two who are dating then.

What happened to Jeff in the latest series? He disappeared and was replaced by a guy who works in a comic book store. He's just as pathetic in love as Jeff.

Did you see the one where Jeff was dating one of the executives at work and waited for her in her office naked?

To answer another question: Coupling is on BBC America and sometimes shows up on BBC America On Demand.

BTW, the actor who plays Steve is Commodore Norrington in the Pirates of the Caribbean movies.

He LOVES Maggie Thatcher - that makes it even funnier!

:D

Like Friends, Seinfeld or even Sex and the City, Coupling is a comedy that uses the neuroses of its characters as a jumping-off point, not that there's anything wrong with that. Besides, with perfect people, there would be no comedy! Even the confident and assertive Susan has her insecurities, makes the occasional bad decision, or simply loses her patience and says something nasty to Steve or Jane.

Anyway, I enjoy the British version of the show but couldn't stand the American version. Somehow the racy or outrageous stuff worked on the BBC but just sounded crass in an American setting.

But I love the show, even the season where they had to drop the Jeff character, added Oliver, and -- SPOILER ALERT -- brought the Patrick-Sally and Steve-Susan relationships to interesting turning points. I loved Sally's imaginary happy place, complete with a glass of wine and audio of "Un bel di vedremo" from Madama Butterfly. Given the stress in the last couple of episodes, she really needed her happy place.

I don't get any premium channels so I miss a lot of stuff people seem to like.

Apparently it's pretty popular... it's probably just my "issues" that got my back up about it. :blush:

played by Richard Coyle was amazing- I don't understand US remakes of shows that are only good because of the characters. The office without Rick Gervais? Why bother?

I always thought Patrick had a naive quality or not self aware enough to really be hurtful, just a sack of hammers.

:shrug:

http://www.mafster.co.uk/space/files/audio/lomsoopadoopa.mp3


neurotic but aren't we all

More grown up than 'Friends'.
Just my 2 cents.

edited for spelling

(that's a joke)

It's not like the men in the series are portrayed in a particularly good light either.

I really don't get the whole wanting to be in that guy's video collection thing. I would think most grown women would find that pretty ... distasteful.

:shrug:

Damn you to hell, woman! That's one of the *only* comedies I enjoy to the nth degree , and now I'll be compelled to watch for misogyny or sexism. If I perceive any and have to give it up, well... just watch your back.


Seriously though-- even though I'm a guy, (I think) I'm kinda tuned into sexism in popular culture and I really haven't noticed any in Coupling. What I do see is a savvy satire of the shallowness of both sexes when it comes to dating. That *may* have been what you witnessed, and since satire is sometimes difficult to recognize without context, and since you've never seen the show before, it may have come across as nothing more to you than 'Friends' (but funny)... :shrug:

Now I'm gonna be thinking about it this weekend, and I *hate* to think on the weekends :)

I admit I've been having some... errr 'trouble' lately... so that probably didn't help, and combined with the missing context... yeah... :blush: