they're not cool, they're not geeks, they're inbetween (The Inbetweeners)

Member Name: jamiebeck

Product:	The Inbetweeners
Date:	24/05/09 (27 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: cringeworthy comedy - think skins and fawlty towers combined

Disadvantages: can be crude in places so not recommended if you dont approve.

My Girlfriend got me into this show a few months ago and I am forever grateful to her for that! At first I thought this was simply riding on the success of 'Skins', another successful british comedy about teens going through 6th form and college, and maybe it is, but it is certainly not a rip-off and worthy of its own recognition and identity.

This is a story of Will McKenzie (played by Simon Bird) and his sex starved teenage friends Simon, Jay and Neil. Season 1 starts off with them in sixth form and season 2 takes them through to their A Levels. Will is one of those 'briefcase w*nkers' (quoted from the tv show, I'll have you know!) a boy from a privileged upbringing and private schools. His mum falls upon some bad luck splitting from the dad which means Will now has to go to a public school, oh the shame and inconvenience..

Will takes this all on the chest despite some comments and reservations and tries his best to fit in. But as we all remember from school, those who try, almost always fail. This show covers all those embarrassing moments from school and growing up in general, kissing a girl, friends fancying your mum, parent's birthday presents and your first car. All moments in which the viewer can 100% relate to and empathise with the character.

At times it's a bit like Kevin and Perry, the teenage moods and harsh treatment of parents, mixed in with only fools and horses humour where things look great for the characters halfway through the episode but go disasterously wrong by the end.

British comedy is going from strength to strength but i can't see this appeasing american fans, some of my friends in the US struggle to appreciate the crude and blunt form of humour.

Each episode the boys go on a mission be it a Swanage geography trip, Thorpe Park, London clubbing (!) or the like. Always ending in tears or beatings.

Watch this is if you like young controversial humour, like when you know you shouldn't laugh but you do. Particularly in the case of Jay and the crude comments he makes. At first his character annoyed me, the things he got away with...but as his story progresses and we accepted his phrases and attitude he turned out, for me, to be the best character on the show.

The show boasts a good soundtrack with many brit rock and indie bands such as Razorlight, Young Knifes and Lady Gaga. This is an awkwardly cringeworthy yet smart comedy that should never fail to make you laugh reminiscently of your youth, no matter how far back you have to think.

Summary: 4 teens on their daily mission to be accepted and get a girl