When I heard that Stan was making an American version of its hit original series No Activity I was… hesitant.
Our Aussie sense of humour doesn’t always translate well for the American audience (*cough* Kath and Kim *cough*).
They don’t always understand our penchant for taking the p**s out of ourselves and finding humour in the littlest things.
And they don’t always get Australia’s casual, toned-downed approach to comedy.
But then something bloody amazing happened.
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The US has taken one of our homegrown comedies, put their lil’ American twist on it, and the result is actually thigh-slappingly funny.
No Activity stateside just works. The series, which was created in conjunction with Will Ferrell’s production company Funny or Die, stays very true to its Australian roots but serves up American-style laugh-out-loud comedy.
It follows the peripheral players in a major sting operation, mostly focusing on two police officers played by our very own Patrick Brammall and Saturday Night Live’s Tim Meadows.
The cops interact with each other and their dispatch officers, played by comedians Amy Sedaris and Sunita Mani. They also have some very funny interactions with an overzealous security guard.
Meanwhile, hidden away in a shipping container three small-time crooks, played by Jesse Plemons, Jason Mantzoukas and Will Ferrell, are also shooting the breeze while they wait for orders from their employers, a pretty damn scary Mexican drug cartel.
Nothing really happens in No Activity and that's why it's so bloody funny. It finds the humour in boredom and the frustration of having to spend large amounts of time with people you don't actually like.
It's kind of like Christmas Day, but without the booze and the big lunch.
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No Activity drills down into what it really means to be human - all those little idiosyncrasies we all have that drive the people around us absolutely crazy - and presents it in such a way that we can't help but laugh at ourselves.
It's the fact that we can see ourselves in the characters - both the police officers and the criminals - that makes No Activity such a likable series.
Of course, the American version is a little bit more dramatic, the characters a little more exaggerated, the jokes a little bolder, but that's to be expected - Will Ferrell is in it after all.
But it definitely stays true to its Aussie roots and it'll make you have a good ole' chuckle.
The first episode of the US version of No Activity drops on Stan tonight.
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