CityLife

Ricky Gervais: Science

Ricky Gervais

Ricky Gervais: Science
Apollo
November 11, 2009

THERE really is no way of proving it, but I’ve a sneaking suspicion that the girl manning the busy merchandise stand might have been told to wear her ‘I heart Ricky Gervais’ T-shirt by a higher authority.

Certainly, Gervais’ self-assured reputation would support such a theory, and his current stage show – Science – won’t refute it either. Because in a time of global economic breakdown, only a confident, tongue-in-cheek comic like Gervais could crack a joke like, ‘I know there’s a recession on. Someone told me. I hadn’t noticed’ and provoke a laugh.

'Creator of The Office, Extras and Flanimals, record breaking comedian, winner of three Golden Globes and seven BAFTAs,’ comes the build up before Gervais zooms on stage on a Segway, complete with joker’s grin and cocksure wave.

All achievements to be proud of, but his gushing intro is also the moment Gervais sets himself, and his show, up for a fall. Three fantastic stand-up tours subtly dissecting human development and our social inadequacies have rightfully made Gervais a megastar, but the flipside is they’ve raised expectations. Gags about grades of homosexuality, obsessed fans and ill-judged party jokes simple won’t do.

Even when he gets it right, he labours too hard or lets it degenerate too far. His skit on Britain’s Got Talent judge Amanda Holden – ‘the most talented person in Britain’, he debates – seems the most obvious example of a joke gone bad, starting out as hilarious fair game but descending into shock and eugh.

Still sharp

None of these gags, of course, ring with his show’s title. And that’s a pity, because a coherent thread is what has made his shows interesting.

Sure, the theme – be it animals, politics or fame – has only ever been a guide to which the subject matter perilously clings, but it has kept Gervais’ tales in an engaging order and his diatribe disciplined. Without that, he becomes a dinner party host with a few engaging stories for the guests.

Aside from a Wikipedia definition, Science barely goes near its subject matter. To giggle his way through an encore admission that he ‘sort of lied’ about the theme seems inadequate apology for the set’s chaotic script or the elaborate stage set – a kind of Frankenstein’s laboratory.

On the rare occasion the show veers into scientific territory, though, Gervais proves he’s still sharp.

But his virulent tales of autograph hunters and fatties reach for too easy laughs, mostly adopting the Jimmy Carr approach to gasp-inducing punchlines (his story of almost mowing down an old lady while he was drink driving being the worst of these).

And as they hammer the point home about how famous Gervais is, they become too hard to relate to; Gervais is a big star – after 75 minutes of being bashed around the head with it, we get it. Science might make you chuckle, but there’s something sadly lacking in its comic formula.