One thing I really like about Last Weekend is that it took advantage of using the drama episode genre they have been writing for the past few series and used it as a twist for it to not actually be that. Was such a good twist. I definitely expected it to be a LGBTQ esque drama episode like you said, especially since they hadn't had any drama episodes this series
Something I loved about Love is a Stranger was that I actually did predict the plot twist from pretty much the opening moments when they were talking about the murderer. I love the way they drew it out to the point where I was actually doubting my prediction, where I was trying to pick up on which of the online people had something off about them, whether there even was a murderer at all. The twist felt shocking not because it was unpredictable, but because we actually got attached to her as a character, because we felt like we got to know her. Also, I did really love The Last Weekend, when I was watching it I was expecting it to be one of those emotionally raw drama-type episodes in the same vein as Bernie Clifton’s Dressing Room or Wise Owl. Pemberton and Shearsmith’s acting in it was absolutely phenomenal too, especially Pemberton at the end. It could’ve come across as a generic “he was evil all along!!!” type plot twists, but the acting is what really sells it for me. Can’t believe it’s only 6 episodes left. I do wonder what they’ll do next after IN9 finishes, whether they’ll part ways for a while and focus on their own projects or if they’ll create an entirely new TV series together. If it’s a 3 hour documentary on ceiling tiles, then I’ll definitely be watching
I would seriously watch a 3 hour documentary about ceiling tiles with Steve and Reece too. And your analysis of the Last Weekend is excellent (I sort of feel the same way) (btw they have confirmed they are writing series 9!- phew!)
My partner is not really tuned into Inside No.9 so it filled me with Devilish glee to get her to watch 3 by 3 with me (she really likes Lee Mack so not a tough sell) :) Her reaction to the whole quiz show was really interesting. She commented and questioned but had no idea it wasn't real until the end. In some ways I enjoyed her innocent reaction to it more than the actual episode.
I found myself playing along with the game like I do with real quiz shows even though I knew it was fake. I actually thought it would make a good quiz format, if the questions were a bit harder! 🤣
I did the same thing with my mother (also likes lee mack) and she also didn't realise it was acted until the head explosion. (for context my mum is extremely squeamish and doesn't watch anything with blood) My mum was saying how much she hated Margret in the episode the whole time, so when she died, my mum laughed her head off.
Honestly i went into 3x3 on iplayer not even remembering the bus episode, infact i only now remember the trailer with the bus stuff in it and the fact the bus stuff was promoted because you mentioned it. and i honestly went into it knowing it was inside no.9 and it still worked because i was wowed by how realistically it got the dated. akward and uncomfortable vibe a lot of gamesshows have
I'm so happy and sad at the same time that they're stopping with Series 9. Gonna miss those boys, but it's a warranted break. As for Series 8, it was mostly ups than downs for me overall. Bones of St. Nicholas and The Last Weekend are faves (though that ending made me wish for more of a Bernie Clifton drama than Riddle of the Sphinx revenge plot). I did really like everything else as well. About the only one I was initially little "meh" on was Love is a Stranger, but I'm sure now that the whole "guessed the twist early" thing is out of the way, I'll appreciate it more on rewatch.
Much like your partner, I guessed Love is a Strangers twist straight away, my thinking was it would be too obvious to assume that her date was the killer and the format of the dating site made it clear who she chose would be the last person she spoke too. Not to mention, while not intentional, the opening scene with the radio exposition was almost a perfect remake of a scene from a horror short film I saw a few years back, with the same twist. I kind of wished they'd gone the anti climax route, where the killer is an incidental detail, something like the "sometimes fires go out" sketch from Mitchell and Webb.
@@marknewbold2583 having these little things that are insignificant to everyone around you that eat away your time and patience, seeing that represented felt good
I actually binged the episodes I hadn’t watched when I saw you’d released your series review. I came here as soon as I’d finished. It was a fantastic series as ever & I never saw any of the twists coming! And I don’t think you’re boring, I love your videos but I’m a boring bastard myself.
I was hoping the twist in Love is a Stranger would be that they were both serial killers, and we would get something blackly comical at the end where they try to do each other in. Still a good episode just because of the character writing, just very obvious.
Thank you as always for your wonderful reviews of this show. You say what needed to be said- this is is still an amazing show . Completely agree about that mirror shot in the Friday 13th episode and well done on pronouncing!
@@Stubagful The Agatha Christie novel Cards on the Table has that exact same premise. A rich man invites a group of murderers and a group of detectives to a party and he deliberatly drops hints about knowing something involving a muder. He gets killed and every single suspect is a murderer. In my humble opinion, it's one of the finest murder mysteries ever devised
I still have not watched Inside Number 9 and I need to get in on that action before the 9th (and presumably final if these showrunners really want the bit to work) series since from each of your reviews I've seen it seems as if this is my kinda shit.
THANK you for saying everything I have been arguing with my friends about the last weekend. As a queer person in a relationship with a partner who Is suffering extreme health problems it really touched me and lulled me in, only to leave me feeling upset and sick...not in the typical number 9 fun hammer horror way..just depressed
Excellent round-up! Although I really disagree about the acting in 3 by 3, I still think it was really natural and had a realistic flow to it, particularly the Bigwins. (Obviously the Oakwoods were a bit stiffer, that's part of the point.) Also, Lee Mack was amazing. It's so easy to make that sort of role appear forced or unnatural and he didn't at all. The perfect choice as host.
For anyone craving a version of The Last Weekend that plays out like the first act promises, i was struck by the similarities it shared with the brilliantly heartwrenching film Supernova, with Stanley Tucci and Colin Firth.
Still in the early seasons of the show (and very much enjoying it). I do wish that Psychoville had kept going on for 8 seasons. As I always thought that deserved more than 14 episodes.
Lol okay if I'd qualified that with the word consistent I woulda got away with that since Dr who basically turns into a different show every five years or so (and also sometimes can be quite shit)
You were talking about long running series that stayed good and I'm surprised you didn't mention south park, granted it didn't start good. It got good around series 4 and went strong until series 16, even after that it didn't plummet in quality, its just been inconsistent. South park is a weird edge case
I thought I had seen every video on this channel but apparently Inside #9 ones were hidden from me? Like I genuinely thought it was a bit when you said your "annual review" like...how can I have never seen those?
I thought it was the best series in a few years. I wasn't as wowed by series 7 as you where, so series 8's entire second half blew me away. The first half felt standard fair to me, good, but not standout in a show that consistantly blows me away with its quality. But the last half was alltime classic after all time classic for me in terms fo the shows quality, and i really hope the last series can inspire the same level of joy in watching it that Paraskevidekatriaphobia, Love is a stranger 3x3 and The last weekend instilled in me. This was a show I decided to watch on a whym, after searching through iplayer and seeing 2 writers i recognised doing an anthology show. only to later see that a bunch of people i respected the opinions of fell in love with it as much as i had, around when series 6 was coming out. so im so glad this show is getting love and attention as it nears its last series. and tbh i still really want Sheersmith and Pemberton to write for dr who after seeing them sucessfully pull off low budget half hour scripts time and time again, i think if the show qwas still at 45 minutes and 12-13 episodes, they'd be perfect picks for a bottle episode or a doctor light. But even sans that i think they'd be able to write an amazing story sometime in the near future.
I’d definitely love to see what Pemberton and Shearsmith would do with Doctor Who. Maybe they’d be the ones to bring back it’s reputation for making the audience hide behind the sofa. Whatever they choose to work on together next, I’m sure it’s going to br great
I agree that they've kept the quality up, but it is easier in an anthology series. Gold standard sitcoms like Only Fools and Peep Show struggled after 6 or 7 series because they had to keep doing different things with the characters that made it more over the top, made the characters increasingly larger than life, and warped the initial point of the show by introducing babies (the kiss of death after a few years of a sitcom) and marrying characters off.
As we were watching the Game Show episode, my parents kept predicting that it was going to be some kind of Squid Game where the failing contestants were secretly being executed offscreen.
I thought that too. There were a few red herrings, the team of workmates, the dad being a control freak, the mum being a control freak but I sort of guessed the ending with the Matilda question.
I liked this overview of series 8 most of the episodes I did thorough episode by episode reviews of myself and I felt The Last Weekend was a good one yes it tricks you into thinking you're watching with a tradgic edge but then it gives you something else Like a white bear instead of San Junipero type story but I loved the show overall great Video Stubagful as always Also Great A Clockwork Orange with the Humble narrator line 😊👍
I’ve got so much to say here but I’ll just say this for now: Claire Rushbrook was absolutely superb in ‘Love Is A Stranger.’ Such a wonderful actress in anything she does.
Paraskevidekatriaphobia was my clear favourite this year - absolutely sublime from start to finish and probably the single funniest episode of the show. The rest of it was, y'know, fine. I liked The Last Weekend a fair bit and 3 by 3 was an extremely effective troll if nothing else, but I thought that the other three were pretty bland and forgettable unfortunately.
I was much the same to be honest, though I'd call "3 by 3" my personal favourite instead, purely for its experimental nature. I hate to say it, and I realise this may be a result of me coming off the high of series 7 (which was one of the show's best runs), but I think series 8 may actually be my least favourite series
Just watched the unusual episode of the series a few days ago, and I was about to get up to do something and possibly not return to RU-vid for the rest of the day. The notification really popped up right on time in two ways. *phew * e Oh the horror of almost having missed an upload of yours by mere seconds! Also ... um ... "Kevin". Just in case you've forgot. I know you haven't. But still.
The Last Weekend felt anticlimactic in that like you're ready for the rest of this story to happen, you've come to terms with what that means and then FUCK STEVE IS HERE ON MY SOFA POURING BEES IN MY EYES OW FUCK OH GOD OH JESUS ABSOLUTE HOLY FUCKING CHRIST
i think the bones of st nicholas was my least favourite because unless i missed something, this used some awful writing tropes to get you to the twist, it built up so much intrigue, and then suddenly the annoying couple explain the twist in their backstory that she's only disclosing to him now for some reason, and then the exact same happens to the professor and that's it, it feels like some chibnall who levels of contrived resolution but im probably missing something because i havent seen anyone else viewing it like this
I found the twist in love is a stranger so obvious because if the main character wasn't the murderer, there just wouldn't be a twist. It's an episode which is definitely harmed by the fact that you are expecting a twist from the show.
Not related to this video, but Stu, in your DW heaven sent review you said you were really impressed, but wanted to wait for some time to pass before you jumped on the wagon that it was one of the best maybe even outright the best DW episode. Now that a very long time has passed, what's your opinion, are you still impressed by it?
Okay, instead of 3 By 3, would it not have been more effective to do an episode of say, The Chase with actual contestants and maybe a couple actors throw in there to tell the story, that probably would've thrown people off more since Bradley Walsh is able to improvise so well even with regular people I think it would've been a much better rug pull moment. Lee is just as funny as Bradders but not as charming and definitely not host material, contestant yes but not host
for some reason the last weekend felt kind of homophobic to me, even though i know reece and steve aren't. i can't quite describe it but the character reece played felt like the sort of caricature/straw man the likes of which a boomer uncle might invent to explain why gay people are all predators. i feel like they were going for a bait and switch 'lgbt romance drama turns horror at the last moment' but it left kind of a weird taste in my mouth. idk im all for toxic gay people i love it when we're bad but this one didn't really land for me. maybe because the idea of wasting your life loving someone who hates you doesn't seem like hypothetical horror scenario for me, that's just another tuesday
I don't fully agree, the last two series haven't been so strong, Are there any GREAT episodes in this series?? By the way I LOVED last night of the proms, or whatever it was actually called.
I agree about The Last Weekend, it's almost a really good story, but the ending just leaves a sour taste in my mouth. It's the "I've done things I'm not proud of line" that drives it home for me, as if it's framing the homosexuality itself as a problem, I wonder if a version where they are both gay and mick was a guy would have landed better. It's a weird one because I can see all of the details effectively adding up to what they wanted to make but still come away wishing they'd just made a sweet gay story.
Even though I and others wanted a sweet gay story I get what Stuart says that it is probably in part a critique of the 'Bury your gays' trope (I watched the film Supernova this weekend which is basically The last weekend but without the Dark left turn at end - excellent film by the way) . Perhaps the episode is about the fact seemingly heterosexual men can desire and want intimacy with gay men but internalise this to the point this turns into harmful homophobia. And having a gay man killing another gay man in such a horrific manner is more homophobic than the end we got
@@soulfoodie1I don't see how Joe being gay would be more homophobic than the ending we got. To rephrase what I meant, I think the ending we got rubs me the wrong way for a few reasons. As written I think that it risks framing Joe pretending to be gay and having gay sex as part of the horror, again it's the 'I've done things I'm not proud of' line. It's ambigious, because you could read that puerly as 'having sex with you was disguisting to me because you are an awful person' but in the context where part of the twist is that Joe is in a relationship with a woman it comes off weird to me. Now there is a bi reading, but it's bi in the sense that we haven't explicitly been told that Joe is straight instead of actively confirming it. A bi or gay Joe could still be a monster who does horrofic revenge without the implication that 'pretending to be gay' is part of what he's had to 'endure'. It's also important to acknowledge that this comes in the context that the lead creatives on the project are straight.
I have to be honest I felt a little disappointed with this season. Coming off the high of season 7 being my favourite they've ever done I was really hoping that at least one of the episodes would grab me in the way a random act of kindess, Mr king, or wise owl did. Unfortunately though none of them did quite as much as any of those. I found them all very enjoyable and well executed, but there was nothing above and beyond about any of them for me. I was expecting 3x3 to do it for me but it didnt quite go from great to masterpiece. The format was wonderfully innovative, but the actual story underneath was - dare I say it - a little bare bones. It put me off when I saw the girls nose bleed as I just thought oh shes basically 11 from stranger things then. Though I do understand how nion impossible it must be to have anything approaching a coherent story told in short gameshow banter and so I feel they probably did the best they could with the format. Im with you on the last one, I dont know how to feel about that ending. I do wish it was just a straight drama as none of the episodes in this season were emotional pieces. My favourite ended up being the friday the 13th one, and I similarly felt that mirror scene was really powerful. But at the same time while it was really great I wouldn't call it a masterpiece or one of the show's greatest hits. It occurs to me that when you have a show this consistently amazing, your audience expects a mona lisa every season, and so if they dont find it with a least one episode they inevitably feel a little disappointed.
