I remember submitting a review here when I saw maybe two or three episodes, and I thought it was pretty enjoyable at first. However, as time went on, I have changed my overall opinion of it.
The premise of "This Time" is essentially a parody of many magazine based programmes from the likes of "The One Show" and "Good Morning Britain", and radio host Alan Partridge (Steve Coogan) takes on the role as a presenter alongside Jennie Gresham (Susannah Fielding). It would sound like a great premise if you ask me, but once you watch at least one or two episodes it comes off as being mostly mediocre.
In each episode, we get a glimpse on a typical episode of this supposed TV show, and we even take a look at behind the scenes footage, which I thought was a good touch. However, I wasn't too keen on how the writers pulled it off. The atmosphere throughout each episode felt mostly awkward at times, and despite one episode revealing the audience members for "This Time", it gave a rather empty and quiet feel of the show. Furthermore, I feel that Alan had learnt his mistakes from presenting "Knowing Me Knowing You", meaning he doesn't act that horrible to the guests featured on the show.
Aside from the scenes taking place on the set, we are given a few pre-recorded segments where Alan covers a topic, including hygiene or product placement for instance. They reminded me of "Alan Partridge's Scissored Isle", although they were a bit of a mixed bag if I were to be honest. I did chuckle at a few scenes such as the poorly done special effects and the cringe inducing parts, but I did feel that some of the jokes were pretty much done to death already.
Despite the negativity, I did like some of the ideas the producers came up with, and there were a few scenes that were genuinely clever. One of my favourite bits of the show was where Alan attempts to talk to a reporter, and the technical issues caused some delay between the responses. I also liked the parts involving the touchscreen display, in which Simon Denton (Tim Key) would often to struggle to get it to work.
I've noticed that there is an abundance of five star reviews submitted by "professional" TV critics, and if I were to be honest I don't think "This Time" would deserve that rating; I'd probably give it a more reasonable three stars if I were them.
If you're looking for something to watch if there's nothing on, you might want to give "This Time" a try, and if you're not a fan of it, I'd definitely recommend some of the other Alan Partridge programmes rather than "This Time".
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