A theme that runs through ‘The IT Crowd’ is the extraordinary yarns that the characters spin and the lengths they go to in order to maintain their little white lies. Usually, these porkies end up blowing into huge convoluted messes with unexpected consequences.
This week’s episode is no different. Jen’s blagging has now branched out from her knowledge of I.T. to her extensive linguistic skills. Over-worked and under-appreciated, Jen convinces Douglas and her senior colleagues that she can speak Italian. Her apparent skill makes her vital to Reynholm Industries' efforts to build a relationship with Silvio Bernatelli, the most successful business man of the year. As per usual Jen lands herself in trouble but sadly her fibbing has all too predictable results which are just not as funny as they could be.
While Jen is busy blagging for her life Roy has developed an obsession with the death of his girlfriend’s parents. It’s not as grim or as dark as it sounds. His new girlfriend, Julia, explains that her family were killed in a fire at Sea Parks, a water park like Sea World. However, after recounting the tragic tale of her parents’ demise she refuses to talk about it ever again, sparking Roy’s morbid curiosity.
Roy’s quest to discover “the truth” about Julia’s parents is hilarious, particularly when he re-creates a model of Sea Parks from mash potato and gravy. Also, Roy’s excuse for a late night internet session is explained away by masturbation in order to hide the real reason he is sitting in front of his laptop in his underwear. Even though his explanation is more than credible it couldn’t be further from the truth.
One final touch of genius worth mentioning is the iPhone worship. Douglas congratulates a female colleague not on the birth of her baby but the fact that she has an iPhone. The satire shows the unnecessary sycophancy and awe that surrounds Apple’s smart phone, something which has been happening in meeting rooms across the country.
‘Italian For Beginners’ is a memorable episode more for theme parks made out of mash potato than anything else. Although Moss takes more of a back seat in this episode it is still a cracker with Roy’s storyline trumping Jen’s Italian misadventure.
It is nice to see Roy has finally found a girlfriend after his crippling heartbreak at the start of the series. Now I am waiting for the episode where Moss gets a long-term girlfriend and I still have high hopes for a Roy-Jen relationship.
Quotes that will live in infamy:
“I so think of her as Julia the orphan.” – Moss
“Maybe they’re not really dead. Maybe she doesn’t know what the word ‘orphan’ means. Maybe she just thinks it means ‘house proud’.” – Moss
“First you make me want to go to the toilet, now you make me want to be a better person.” – Douglas
“All these lies Jen, this is exactly what happened with the Iraq war.” – Moss (in comparison to Jen’s fib about speaking Italian)
“It’s not that much of a lie because I have always wanted to speak Italian and I can sound like I’m speaking Italian, so it’s more or less the same thing.” – Jen
“If she said her parents had drowned I would be the happiest man in the world.” - Roy
“But it’s an iPhone Jen. I may be able to get an iPhone without giving any money to Apple.” – Moss
