Catastrophe - General Discussion

[joelene]

People who care so little for THEIR dog dying should be forbidden to own a dog in the first place. Stupid show. Woke up bad memories for no reason.

Um, okay? Sharon's fictional dog had nothing to do with my dog. Separate events. Anyway, sorry it made you hate the show. Let's just leave it at that.

[lucindabelle]

Yes, they do drink a bit. And that used to be standard here too. When mom was pregnant with me nobody went teetotal, you had the odd glass of wine or cordial. I find in general in UK shows people drink more.l. I once started giggling at en episode of a cop show starring Brenda blethyn because in literally every scenes smeone had a wine glass or a bottle, police chief(female) got blind drunk at retirement party... Stuff that just would be all coded subtext here, see how many people think Alicia on the good wife I is an alcoholic because we often see her pouring herself a glass of wine.

ETA: how is she an alcoholic in denial? Did I miss that implication

As noted it's way more socially acceptable to drink much more in the UK.

Edited March 10, 2016 by lucindabelle

[atomationage]

I love this show, the two main characters, and all their friends and relatives.  I didn't care for Pulling, so I didn't expect to like this at first.  Rob Delaney makes the show, IMO, with his line deliveries.   It's always hard for me to remember the name of this show, and I was passing it by in the list because I don't connect the name with the show.  

[violetr]

I find killing off dogs so funny...not.

 

 

This really, really threw me. I couldn't get over how mean-spirited and cold it was, and I have a very high tolerance for cynical humor. It kinda ruined the rest of the season for me, and I LOVED Season 1. I still watched all of Season 2 and laughed at a lot of it, but I kinda felt like the thing with the dog was so cruel that it made me trust the writers less. I'm wondering if perhaps this kind of thing plays better for a UK audience? We Americans are so obsessed with our dogs. For us it's like being cavalier about the death of a child. 

 

I also feel like Sharon was unnecessarily mean and selfish this season. I kept wondering why Rob's character would put up with her. 

[Missy Vixen]

I thought the dog dying was ridiculous. And we have a (pampered, spoiled, always under supervision) dog.

 

Catastrophe is now the only show on television that makes me laugh out loud multiple times per episode.

[lulee]

Just finished binge/cringe-watching Series 2. I keep reminding myself that this show is called, "Catastrophe" and not "Things Go Fairly Well." Still a really well done show, but with the darker tone from so many subplots, I felt like lines like their spiteful imagined email addresses for each other were more smile-inducing than laugh-inducing. Series 2 ended with quite the cliffhanger, but I'm not sure where Series 3 could go ... maybe another time jump so that circumstances would have to have changed, but something more than circumstances would have to change for Rob and Sharon's relationship. It can't be so much about trust issues and poor communication again (ETA: I mean that I, for one, would find it hard to watch another season with variations on Rob and Sharon so deep in dysfunction). The catastrophes could be outside the lead couple not between them.

Edited April 18, 2016 by lulee

[Guest]

I missed any reference to Sharon being an alcoholic, too.  And my mother (in the 60s) stopped for drinks on the way to the hospital, to have me.  Induced, obviously.  

 

What a nice show.  It's hard to find funny comedy.  Most of it is so juvenile.  

 

I want Sharon's clothes and hair, and a husband with Rob's humor. 

[Missy Vixen]

Six episodes? Only six? Jeff Bezos is off my Christmas card list...

I'm wondering where they can go after episode 6. Hopefully we don't have to wait another year for Season 3!

[msani19]

I agree about having only 6 episodes. Although I like the British model of fewer episodes, but 6! Come on! Maybe 8 or 10.

[Jac]

On 29 October 2015 at 11:10 AM, eyebleach said:

oh - it was so delightful and so wrong!  I love them!

 

I liked the jump as well - and give me more Carrie Fisher being awful!

Carrie Fisher being awful is the best thing about Catastrophe and that is saying something because the whole show is wonderful.

On 28 October 2015 at 0:31 AM, ApathyMonger said:

I liked the running joke about no-one being able to say Muireann's name. Even as an Irish person, I sometimes struggle with my cousins' names.

I have a hearing loss and it is only just now as I see the baby's name written on paper that I know what her name is. 

I just rewatched season 2 and I loved it. I think Rob and Sharon have done such a wonderful job of creating characters who are frequently awful, particularly Sharon but Rob can be too, but relatable if not likeable. They aren't cartoonishly awful like say the characters on say Arrested Development (which I also love) but they are awful to each other in very real ways and they hurt each other in very real ways and it is fascinating to watch, especially in the context of a comedy. 

The show often made me feel tense when I was watching it, it walked a very fine line between being very funny and being too real for me.

I'm very much looking forward to season 3, should one be commissioned.

[pasdetrois]

I discovered this series thanks to another PTV poster, and I binge-watched both seasons over a week. Really like it.

Rob is such a sweet, even-tempered guy, so when he goes off in frustrated anger and hurls vicious insults at Sharon, it's surprising and hilarious. It's like an anger dam bursting.

I also enjoy Mark Bonnar as Chris. He's got the demeanor of a CIA operative and I've expected him to do something really terrible. Murder his wife, or something. Instead we have him confessing his innermost secrets to Rob.

I'm distracted by Sharon's resemblance to Emma Thompson and Sarah Chalke. Her moody self-absorption is a bit annoying to watch, but the actress pulls it off.

I'm a dog worshipper and cringed at the cavalier way they handled the dog's death and disposal, but it didn't put me off the show. I'm not sure why they thought it was funny though. In Something About Mary, the writers took the dog jokes so far that it was unreal and therefore OK to laugh at. But here it was just weird, like they couldn't decide if it should be black humor or just sad. Maybe some people thought it was hilarious.

[atomationage]

5 hours ago, pasdetrois said:

I also enjoy Mark Bonnar as Chris. He's got the demeanor of a CIA operative and I've expected him to do something really terrible.

That's funny because he played a doctor euthanizing his patients in an episode of Grantchester.   

Edited May 24, 2016 by atomationage

[himela]

I find that Sharron does not deserve Rob. He is a really calm and good person and she is a bitch who has no boundaries. I don't know what he sees in her or whether he feels trapped cause she got pregnant on the first "date". How do men take such women seriously? And he left his whole life in the US for her and she doesn't appreciate anything. This poor guy went from first date couple to married couple for two decades in three years. Shame. He deserves better.

[Thog]

One thing I love about this show is that they never use the trope of silly misunderstandings/lack of communication. At first I thought Sharon might have kicked Rob out because she thought something actually happened with the French woman, or that Rob really did harass her. But later it was clear that Sharon understood exactly what had happened, and she was angry at how he had handled it. The show trusts its audience enough to present flawed characters who can honestly disagree without one of them misunderstanding the other's motives/actions. I find them both to be very likable but understandably flawed at times. It's true that Sharon doesn't seem to fully appreciate how Rob upended his entire life for her, but she also laughs off a lot of immaturity on his part. There have been so many scenes that I thought would end up in a huge fight because he said something really tone-deaf, but instead she just burst into laughter and sat on his lap. It's a shame these two never really had a chance to know each other as grownups before they were thrown into parenthood, because I think they could have worked out a lot of the kinks had they just known each other better from the start. But then we wouldn't have a show.

As an animal lover, I just closed my eyes and pretended all the dog stuff wasn't happening in the first episode. It seemed like a terrible misstep by otherwise smart and respectful writers. But maybe that's just the hard edge of British humor.

[Thog]

I know this show is about Rob and Sharon, but for me Chris steals the show with his bitterly dry humor. One of his early lines about not being able to forgive his wife after the baby rode into this world on a wave of her [poop] had me in absolute stitches, and the exasperated/resigned looks he gives his wife are just so scathing.

[Corgi-ears]

It's back (in the UK, at least)! The beats were a bit familiar and in line with much of Season 2 (Rob and Sharon fight, someone is endangered, leading to an uneasy truce. All their children and pets are going to be dead by the end of the series run, at this rate). But it was still fun to have the acerbic lines back. "Oh God, I probably touched my children with fresh penis on my hands." 

[kieyra]

Liked it but didn't love it; need to be reminded why these two are even together since they can't seem to stand each other.

But I'm just coming off a binge-rewatch of You're The Worst, where the two unlikeable leads still make total sense together, even when they're driving each other crazy.

Edited March 1, 2017 by kieyra

[AllyB]

You can tell that parts of this show were written by an alcoholic. My ex-husband is an alcoholic and when I look back on his drinking during our marriage with detachment it's interesting to see the evolution of his attempt to hide his booze stink. From not even trying at first, to then going the obvious mint route, which covers up nothing and just smells like minty booze. To going to strong flavours like cheese and onion crisps which does cover up the booze smell really well and would totally cover up something like gin. Though by that point if he came home smelling of something really strongly it was obviously an attempt to hide his drinking. Rob's immediate move to covering himself in cheese and onion crisps before going home probably just seems odd/quirky/not that notable to most viewers but I found it to be the most powerful and portentous part of the episode. Rob's previous problems with alcohol were obviously longterm and involved him learning how to cover-up and deceive following a lot of trial and error, which means he hurt at least one person very, very badly.

The significance in the rest of the episode paled in comparison to me of Rob's drinking. He's firmly back on the booze and is hiding it pretty skilfully. Sharon has no experience of this side of him, so she doesn't realise that him stinking of cheese and onion signifies a potential descent into hell for their whole family. It sits very, very uncomfortably for me because Rob started drinking last season but when it comes out that he is drinking again, he may well try to blame Sharon for kissing the musician. And she is very likely to blame herself too. I'm expecting that (speculation based on real life events) Rob will soon learn of his mother's death and that will also be used as an excuse for his return to drinking. Even though the actual cause is that in season 2 he made a series of decisions that set him back on that path. It's making me dread the series, tbh. It could be insightful, compelling television but alcoholism is rarely portrayed realistically on television. And even though Delany has the same history of drinking as his character, he hasn't (that I know of) experience of being an alcoholic while in a serious relationship or as a parent, so may not know just how mentally and emotionally abusive the alcoholic becomes while trying to maintain their addiction and family on their own terms.

Edited March 1, 2017 by AllyB

[kieyra]

@AllyB, thanks for pointing that out. I saw him rubbing the food on himself and was just mystified. I was paying more attention to the infidelity plot. I knew Rob was off the wagon but had failed to attach the correct amount of significance to it.

[kieyra]

I hope that can be the end of the money troubles being the main drama driver. I miss the character conflicts.

[cailinoBAC]

I cried at the end of last night's episode. 

[kieyra]

Aw, lots of Carrie Fisher this week. </3

She's so much better in this than in the Star Wars reboot. The scene with her and Rob when she tells him his dad broke her jaw is intense.

Edited April 4, 2017 by kieyra

[Corgi-ears]

Can't imagine Ep 6 treated you better, cailinoBAC. Because, man, was it a kick in the tits.

[joelene]

Spending the last few minutes of a season finale in a car and on a busy street, on a show like this, is more tense than a really good horror movie. I had, like, three minor heart attacks in three minutes. 

[cailinoBAC]

8 hours ago, Corgi-ears said:

Can't imagine Ep 6 treated you better, cailinoBAC. Because, man, was it a kick in the tits.

I know, I know! 

[Readalot]

Anyone know why this season is just six episodes? Loved Carrie in this season, sad for what's to come regarding the alcoholic plot. 

[cailinoBAC]

They've all been 6 episodes. It's the standard length of a sitcom season in the UK. 

[Readalot]

8 minutes ago, cailinoBAC said:

They've all been 6 episodes. It's the standard length of a sitcom season in the UK. 

Ha I didn't even notice with the other seasons. Thanks! 

[scrb]

It's been so long between seasons that I can't recall what exactly happened in previous seasons.

It seems the alcoholism comes out just so they have some obstacle to overcome before they can have as much normalcy as Sharon's manic personality will allow them.

I remember the sexual harassment situation and that Rob hated his soul-sucking job.  On top of that, Sharon tried to stray and Rob has to deal with her talking about having someone else's penis in her hands.

So just a few days back at the job, having some tacos and beers and he comes crashing down off the wagon?

And now a cliffhanger for another year, only it's a serious situation they're in.

The minor characters are great but in 6 episodes, they really don't have time to flesh out their stories.  Maybe not introduce so many then?  Maybe pare down the cast to Fawlty Towers proportions?

But I'll be right there when they roll out a new season.

Horgan's other project Divorce isn't getting good reviews but the characters there spit out venom fairly often as well, with similar comic effects.  Good to have both going, staggering Horgan's brilliance.

[Irlandesa]

19 hours ago, scrb said:

So just a few days back at the job, having some tacos and beers and he comes crashing down off the wagon?

No.  Rob has been off the wagon all season.  He fell off of it in the season finale of Season 2 after spending time with his friend Dave, who was on a drug bender.  Rob went to a hotel and raided the mini-bar.  He then went back to Dave's, found him ODd, helped him and then they both threw up.

He just hasn't had any majorly obvious benders except for after the work party when Sharon was in Ireland. I think it made him realize he needed help but when he showed up in Ireland, he put off telling her once he learned her father died.  Other times, he works hard to hide it by covering himself up with foul smelling chips.  (Read AllyB's comment above from March about how realistic this is.)

[marny]

We also saw him show up for a job interview drunk. It was an ongoing issue all season (which was many months in show time). 

[Red Fields]

Wow, this season was bleak! Seeing Carrie Fisher made me sad.

[crgirl412]

This is SOOOOO funny!!!  The humor is so much like my Irish-American family's!!!  I just stumbled upon Season 1 Episodes 1-4 on Lifetime in the US!!!  I have to find out how to watch the rest of Season 1, all of Season 2 and then Season 3 without buying Amazon prime.   

[ketose]

I'm only now taking advantage of my Amazon Prime since I got a Roku player. I'm going to hold off watching Season 3 until next week, but it's pretty easy to binge.

On 5/24/2016 at 3:16 PM, himela said:

I find that Sharron does not deserve Rob. He is a really calm and good person and she is a bitch who has no boundaries. I don't know what he sees in her or whether he feels trapped cause she got pregnant on the first "date". How do men take such women seriously? And he left his whole life in the US for her and she doesn't appreciate anything. This poor guy went from first date couple to married couple for two decades in three years. Shame. He deserves better.

I think Rob is looking to uproot his life. He went to London to open a new office for his company and found Sharon instead. I also think he's nicer on a temporary basis because she's pregnant / dealing with a newborn. He's also a little passive-aggressive. But Sharon is definitely a mess. That whole thing about her giving up 'everything' for Rob when she gave up almost nothing was pretty delusional.

Catastrophe is pretty uncomfortable to watch at the best of times because there are few to no sacred cows (or dogs). I've had a pet get out and get hit by a car. That's real life.

[ketose]

I've never really seen alcoholism up close. One thing I realized is that from the beginning, Rob used to tell this story of how he didn't drink because he soiled himself during a wedding. That story was either an exaggeration or a lie. He was trying to look like a guy who got too drunk one time instead of an alcoholic who hit rock bottom.

I wonder if they'll be much of a time jump to the next season.

[WendyCR72]

Damn. Rob Delaney's son has died of cancer at only 2 and a half.  :-(  Condolences to him as well as his wife and other children.

[Duke2801]

Ugh I just read that. How utterly devastating. 

[Samsnee]

I can’t imagine the grief one feels losing a child that young. 

[chocolatine]

Devastating. Friends of mine have lost their 7-year-old son to brain cancer a few years ago. It's the worst thing imaginable, not just the loss, but also watching a child suffer for months and not being able to make it better.

[dreadfulLeigh]

I know this is old as hell, but I just found this show (thanks Amazon Prime). It’s so good. Love love love. But wtf was with that argument bs at the end? The whole show had such good flow and then it was like some horrendous record scratching, car crash screeching huh.

Also, Chris is my favorite.  

[oldCJ]

Glad the show is back. I enjoyed this episode for the most part but felt like it was lacking something.

[Jade Foxx]

On 1/10/2019 at 12:03 PM, oldCJ said:

Glad the show is back. I enjoyed this episode for the most part but felt like it was lacking something.

Sharon was going nuts on Rob for Every.Single.Thing.  I know she's furious, but the constant berating isn't....healthy.

Where was Imogen?

[Corgi-ears]

"What is that? Pineapple juice?! Why don't you drink an adult juice?!"

Hee. I'm surprised the last line of the ep, as Rob and Sharon jog off, wasn't, "What is that smell?"

[ruby24]

Is it true this is the last season?

[atomic]

Yes, it's the final season, and its release date is March 15th.

[scrb]

It's only like the third or fourth season but seems like they've been making the show for years.

I'm sure both have moved on or want to move on to other projects by now.

[Corgi-ears]

Series finale spoiler:

Spoiler

I mean, "and they all (possibly) died happily ever after" is a pretty brilliant and appropriate ending for this show. I will miss it.

[wendyg]

Spoiler

Leaving the kids to die in the car or wake up orphans? I don't think so.

[Valny]

On ‎2‎/‎12‎/‎2019 at 5:28 PM, scrb said:

It's only like the third or fourth season but seems like they've been making the show for years.

I'm sure both have moved on or want to move on to other projects by now.

Too bad they are ending it with season four,,because I know I'd want to see more, but I respect them wanting to go out on top(hello Breaking Bad).
According to Sharon Horgan- "Sometimes I feel like it’s a good idea to quit while you’re ahead, I mean, we might not be ahead by the end of this season," she said. "It might go horribly wrong! The stories came to us really easily and we enjoyed writing it, I suppose we didn’t want to push that. We didn’t want to force stories."

I just watched the first ep this morning(going to take my time because I know it's so easy to binge this) and I found it just as funny and well written as the previous seasons...didn't skip a beat. I read the finale is "breaking the internet."  I don't know how true that is but I am expecting something emotional.

[teddysmom]

2 hours ago, Valny said:

I just watched the first ep this morning(going to take my time because I know it's so easy to binge this) and I found it just as funny and well written as the previous seasons...didn't skip a beat. I read the finale is "breaking the internet."  I don't know how true that is but I am expecting something emotional.

Spoiler

I couldn't believe the woman at AA really was scamming Rob.