My summary when recommending it to others has always been that Mark has no dignity and Jez has no shame.
This is a much longer (and well worth the read) development of basically that.
Peep Show is the most realistic portrayal of evil I have seen (2020)
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Re: Peep Show is the most realistic portrayal of evil I have seen (2020)
#52I place it in the category of “cringe humor,” and by that standard it’s more cringey than Seinfeld and curb - especially because of the first person shots. It is a great show! Well worth a watch.
I always refer to it as cringe humour too but for the reason that it makes me physically cringe seeing how they humiliate themselves in social situations - Like NO MARK PLEASE DONT DO THAT! DONT ACT ON THAT IMPULSE PLEASE! kinda thing.
If you like cringe humor, you might 'enjoy' the web tv show "2Kawaii4Comfort" on YouTube, about late teens/young adults going to an anime convention.
It's very well written, and it's the first time I've physically reacted that much to the awkwardness of fictional characters.
Re: Peep Show is the most realistic portrayal of evil I have seen (2020)
#53“Evil” is not a medical diagnosis but the classical understanding of evil does overlap quite strongly with the so-called “dark triad” of personality disorders of antisocial personality disorder, narcissistic personality disorder and machiavellianism.
It’s quite startling how often characters in sitcoms tend to demonstrate traits of these three disorders and for a long while I wondered why.
Then I realized the answer is very simple: it’s really funny (when it’s not happening to you).
Re: Peep Show is the most realistic portrayal of evil I have seen (2020)
#54Is much added with this talk of evil? Peep Show seems largely the same sort of tragicomic tale of hubris and human frailty that we see in Shakespeare or even all the way back in Ancient Greece.
Re: Peep Show is the most realistic portrayal of evil I have seen (2020)
#55If you haven't heard of Peep Show but you enjoyed Succession you should know that Jessie Armstrong, the creator and showrunner of Succession, was previously one half of the Jessie Armstrong and Sam Bain pair responsible for Peep Show. I find the similarities between the two shows fascinating: in particular the way they both revel in how flawed their central characters are.
He also wrote a very good first series episode of Black Mirror, "The Entire History of You".
Re: Peep Show is the most realistic portrayal of evil I have seen (2020)
#56Would love to have a look at that show based on that description. Alas, as is the way in 2025, no streaming services here have it, looking for it on Amazon was not helpful either (and offered some embarrassing suggestions instead).
Re: Peep Show is the most realistic portrayal of evil I have seen (2020)
#57> nor in the exaggerated cartoony manner of other comedic anti-heroes I'm not sure I understand the focus on realism here. I mean, there's absolutely nothing in any scene of The Thick of It that looks at all realistic to me. But it captures the essence of incompetence, corruption, and opportunism so completely that reading actual news stories inescapably brings to mind scenes from that series.
I found The Thick of It very realistic, having travelled quite a few corporate realms. That show made me re-think my involvement in society.
Re: Peep Show is the most realistic portrayal of evil I have seen (2020)
#58Re: Peep Show is the most realistic portrayal of evil I have seen (2020)
#59This article really makes sense. I think back on my past and all the evil actions I have taken have all been fed by very low self-worth and insecurity. When you think of yourself as below everyone else, trying to bring them down to your level with malicious acts can feel like quite reasonable. You're "punching up" so you can feel a sense of righteous justification. It's only looking back that I realize I wasn't nearl…
Another TV show that played with this concept well is "30 Rocks", with the main protagonist dreading to go to her high school reunion because she was a nerdy girl mocked by the high-school bully, As the episode go on, she realize that she was the bully, everyone was terrified of her and her extremely cruel remarks, including her friend who was afraid of her, turning the whole 'underdog nerd' trope on it's head. On a…
I wish the show were called "30 Rocks" now, and was about gemstones.
Re: Peep Show is the most realistic portrayal of evil I have seen (2020)
#60Earlier quoted context omitted.
Another TV show that played with this concept well is "30 Rocks", with the main protagonist dreading to go to her high school reunion because she was a nerdy girl mocked by the high-school bully, As the episode go on, she realize that she was the bully, everyone was terrified of her and her extremely cruel remarks, including her friend who was afraid of her, turning the whole 'underdog nerd' trope on it's head. On a…
I wish the show were called "30 Rocks" now, and was about gemstones.
Or a romantic comedy where the protagonist gets proposed thirty times with different rings.