Kancl

Those who are not familiar with the phenomenon of Gervais' most successful project should first watch the original. It is extraordinary thanks to the dedication and charisma of its creator and it discovered the phenomenon of the aesthetics of awkwardness for television. On the other hand, in my opinion, the Czech version does not deserve the ritual execution demonstrated by the reviewers just a few minutes after the first episode was aired. The complaints about the absence of English dry humor or the inability to come close to it are somewhat out of place. The British version of The Office is everything but traditional dry humor. It is an original that turns the classic sitcom upside down and attacks its most fundamental principles. By the way, the Czech version is not as good as the original, because it is not as cynical, cruel, and ruthless as Gervais' humor, which pulls no punches and is filled with vulgarisms. Kopta steers it into a more jovial position, which breaks the spikes of conflict. Overall, however, I have a better impression of the Czech version so far than of the American one, even though the production approaches are completely incomparable. The Americans quickly slipped into the form of a classic sitcom and Ricky's The Office was unrecognizable to me. Here, the gags work and I don't have any significant issues with Kopta despite the aforementioned problems. Criticizing the copying of a famous original in the case of a franchise doesn't make any sense. This is an intention fully supported by the rights owner, Ricky Gervais. I have some trouble with the casting of certain supporting roles. Sára Venclovská is not a good enough actress, and she doesn't fit the type as a substitute for Lucy Davis. The Czech version of The Office is not a literal copy of the famous predecessor, although logically it must adhere to the basic scheme and style. However, it differs in the portrayal of individual characters, dialogues, and atmosphere. So far, I would give it 3 stars, but I will reserve my overall review for the end. Postscript after the airing of the 6th episode: actually, it wasn't bad at all and my certain hesitations have dissipated over time. The fourth star is somewhat opportunistic in response to the extremely negative judgments of the series from some critics, but I can confirm that the positive impressions prevail and, within the context of Czech TV series production, it is a decent above-average show. Kopta approached the character differently than Gervais, and his self-centered, selfish, cheeky, and sexist guy is, in a twisted way, actually likable. I can imagine another six-episode series and I would actually be quite grateful for it. Overall impression: 70%. (05.12.2014)