Spaced (Definitive Collector's Edition) (DVD)

...buy the collectors edition of Spaced and hey presto a few days later I'm sitting in my chair, crisps in hand ready to have a good old laugh.
The plot of the series is quite simple, two twenty something year old Londoners who pretend to be a couple in order to live in a flat. Sounds normal doesn't it? Well it would be if it wasn't full of cult film and TV references, a host of friends who don't quite fit into the boundary of normality and ...
...Well the main characters of Spaced come in the form of Tim and Daisy, the two flat hunting buddies. Tim is a cartoonist with a Playstation obsession, Daisy is a writer who is never on her typewriter. Together they make the basis for Spaced, however they are helped by different characters who also add a sense of surrealism to the series. Mike who is gun obsessed and wants to be in the TA is hilarious as Tim's best friend and has some seriously funny ... more

After seeing and loving both Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz I was looking for something else that might take my fancy with the same actors in. So much to my delight I found this little gem of a series with Simon Pegg, Nick Frost and the Director of the films, Edgar Wright. Shown on Channel Four in 1999 it seems quite an old series but I might have been too young to truly get the humour in it so I'm glad I found it now. So off I trot to buy the collectors edition of Spaced and hey presto a few days later I'm sitting in my chair, crisps in hand ready to have a good old laugh.
The plot of the series is quite simple, two twenty something year old Londoners who pretend to be a couple in order to live in a flat. Sounds normal doesn't it? Well it would be if it wasn't full of cult film and TV references, a host of friends who don't quite fit into the boundary of normality and a dog named Colin. Sound strange? Well it should do.

To start off with I have to say that this is probably the funniest and most surreal programmes I have ever watched. Coming from the creators of the already mentioned films I did expect some oddness from the series but what I got was even more delightful. The actual episodes comprise of different events which always seem to have some relevance to different TV shows and films. The characters are hilarious and really do draw you into the series so that you care about what happens to them.

Characters
Well the main characters of Spaced come in the form of Tim and Daisy, the two flat hunting buddies. Tim is a cartoonist with a Playstation obsession, Daisy is a writer who is never on her typewriter. Together they make the basis for Spaced, however they are helped by different characters who also add a sense of surrealism to the series. Mike who is gun obsessed and wants to be in the TA is hilarious as Tim's best friend and has some seriously funny one-liners in series two. Marsha is Tim and Daisy's landlady who thinks the weekly shop is a trip down to Threshers! Always has a smoke in one hand and a bottle of wine in the other she always has the need to talk about Amber her rebellious teenage daughter. She also has a thing for Brian, the lodger downstairs. Brian is a painter who is quite often not in the same reality as the other characters. Twist is Daisy's best friend in the fashion industry, she always puts everyone down and loves partying. Last but not least in Colin the dog who is slightly more intelligent than his owners.
All of the characters together form Spaced and make it the hilarious series that it is. They blend in together and have some rather hilarious conversations about complete and utter rubbish.

Script and Story

Well as I have already mentioned the story is quite simple, Tim and Daisy are two lazy Londoners who are trying in vain to find somewhere to live. After forming a friendship the two find a cheap place to live. Only problem is it is for professional couples only. So they learn a little about each other and head off to Meteor street where the house resides and so begins the oddity that is Spaced.
The script is absolutely hilarious, jam packed full of quotes and different spoofs of cult TV and film references; it is a geek's dream, however even if you don't get the parodies this show is still funny and good to watch. This can be backed up by the fact that even my mom liked this show, strange eh?

The script can be very clever sometimes and even if something isn't made completely obvious to the viewer, someone with a keen eye and weird sense of humour will get some jokes many people would not get especially about some references. There are many such as The Terminator, The King and I, Star Trek, Reservoir Dogs and about a million from Star Wars. So if you are a science fiction geek like me you will often be in hysterics watching it.
The characters are written brilliantly and even though this is a rather short series (12 episodes in two series!) the character development that occurs is very dramatic. They all have slight eccentricities that make you love them, my favourite character being Daisy as the ditsy writer who always has an excuse not to work always makes me laugh.

Each episode was actually written by the two stars of the show Simon Pegg and Jessica Stevenson so the series has got quite a personal feel to it which makes it even better. For me the first couple of episodes do not do the series justice, so even if you don't like the first ones, stick with it, it gets better!

Direction

Directed by Edgar Wright, previously mentioned, this series is made extremely well. Using the right lighting, direction and sound the series continues on its path to surrealism. Every episode is filmed as it should do, with the serious parts filmed normally and the more surreal parts filmed with zooms and spins and dodgy music that makes you laugh. Can't really say anything else about the direction other than it was done to perfection.

The acting

Well having the two writers of the show as the main actors means that the acting was done wonderfully. Pegg and Stevenson knew exactly who the characters were and how they should act accordingly. It is extremely apparent just how much they must have loved filming the series which shows in the utter dedication they put in to getting everything right. They also have a lovely chemistry together which also really makes you want the two to get together in the end. Joined by the other actors Nick Frost, Julia Deakin, Mark Heap and Katy Carmichael the series really does boast some terrific acting. All of the actors have chemistry between them and it is nice to see some actors who can be sad, happy and psychotic the next minute.

General opinions

Well as I've already mentioned the episodes are all fantastic, I don't dislike any of them. My favourite has to be episode 5 in series 2 when Tim and Daisy go for a night out. Brilliantly funny and very well written I recommend everyone to see this. Colin the dog is quite an underrated character in this series, he brings everyone together and even being just a dog he can invoke quite a few laughs. Nick Frost I have to say is just brilliant. More prominent in the second series due to his popularity he really does shine. This being his first acting job doesn't show, he is funny and really does make me laugh with some of his lines and how he says them.
The ending of Spaced I have to say is one of the best endings I have ever seen on a series before. I'm not going to give too much away but it ends on a nice note, not exactly how you would expect but it does give a much more happy and fulfilling ending.

Special Features
Well this being a review for the collectors edition I just had to put in something about extras. There are outtakes which are always hilarious to watch and really show just how much the whole cast and crew get along. Commentary for the series which is quite interesting to hear about how they came up with different aspects of the programme, what got cut and what might have been done differently. This is examined even more in the deleted scenes, some are quite funny but I'm glad they left most of them out, but they are still good to watch. The Homage-O-Meter is probably the best extra feature. If you click on this and then watch the episodes, every time a scene or a quote comes on that is a reference to a TV show or film, a note comes up telling you exactly where it is from. I liked this feature as most of the references you either miss or don't get so it's nice to see everything. Overall I like the special features but the best one has to be the documentary "Skip to the End". This shows Simon Pegg, Jessica Stevenson and Edgar Wright go back in around 2005 to the locations of where Spaced was filmed and talking about it. You also hear off many of the characters that have appeared in the series from the main characters to the briefly shown such as Sophie or the brilliant Tyres. I also recommend if you watch the documentary to watch until the very end to get a little surprise that really does end the series off nicely.

Overall

I love this series and have watched the episodes quite a few times each as they still make me laugh no matter how many times I see them. The script is excellent and witty; the characters have depth and truly make you laugh. The only negative aspect of the series is that it is so short, only 12 episodes, however it is still great and ends perfectly. The special features are very good and give you something fun and interesting to watch after the series has finished. The acting is wonderful, the episodes are funny and for any geek this really is quite a gem of a series.

General Information
Collectors edition comprises of the entire first and second series of Spaced, special features for both series and a third disc of unseen material.
Certificate: 15 for scenes of drug taking
Runtime: Disc One 170 mins approx, Disc Two 173 mins approx
Price: £15 off amazon.co.uk (Bargain!)
Each episode runs for approximately 20 minutes.

P.S. How could I forget that there are also a couple of cameos from Ricky Gervais and David Walliams, I don't want to spoil them but they are quite funny.
It's been awhile since I've written reviews so please inform me if there is anything I have left out. Thanks. 

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