There are a few truly silly American sitcoms, like SCRUBS (“Dr. Acula,” anyone?) and the sadly neglected ANDY RICHTER CONTROLS THE UNIVERSE. But it’s harder for any sitcom, good or crap, to get a foothold nowadays, when cheap reality shows and primetime game shows are queued up four-deep to take their places should they at all stumble out the gate.

Garth Marenghi: I have never exploded. But, I know what it would be like. Don’t ask me how, I just know. I’ve always, just known.
————————————————————————————
Dr. Lucien Sanchez: Have you ever been to Scotland Dag?
Dr. Rick Dagless: Once.
Dr. Lucien Sanchez: What was it like?
Dr. Rick Dagless: I remember it much as one recalls a dream… or a nightmare. I was on a budget flight to Norway, when a storm hit and forced us to ditch in Glasgow Prestwick. I was stranded, and it’s so hilly up there you can’t get any signal on your car phone. It looked bad…it looked like I was going to have to spend the night in Glasgow.
Dr. Lucien Sanchez: Jesus Christ.
Dr. Rick Dagless: The cabin crew suggested we all go out and club it. I had no option, it was that or one of their B&Bs. I figured it’d be safer on the streets. For the first time ever I saw the Scotch in their natural habitat…and it weren’t pretty. I had seen them huddling in stations before being loud, but this time, I was surrounded. Everywhere I went it felt like they were watching me…fish-white flesh puckered by the highland breeze, tight eyes peering out for fresh meat. Screechy, booze-soaked voices hollering out for a taxi to take them halfway up the road to the next all-night watering hole. A shatter of glass. A round of applause. A sixteen year old mother of three vomiting in an open sewer; bairns looking on, chewing on potato cakes. I ain’t never going back. Not never.
[pause]
Dr. Lucien Sanchez: My aunt lives in Scotland, she says it’s quite nice.
Dr. Rick Dagless: Well she’s wrong.

And forgot to say that “Russell T Davies’ Darkplace” is the correct name of “Torchwood”.

But yeah, no loss at all re US/IT Crowd.
Watch the original.

GREEN WING
THE MIGHTY BOOSH
GARTH MERENGHI’S DARKPLACE
THE THICK OF IT
OUTNUMBERED
NATHAN BARLEY
IDEAL
CHARLIE BROOKER’S SCREENWIPE

And then just disappear as if I was never here?

And Kevin? Buty a multiregion DVD, find the non-region code for your existing DVD or get it chipped. No excuses.

All situational comedy is surreal, as you take a normal situation and add an incident that starts the comedy. It can be a Broadway producer visiting a deserted island, or a children’s television host being killed by a rogue elephant, or a former President moving in across the street. HOW surreal depends on the writers and the viewers.

Jonathan – Agreed on COUPLING. While the last season wasn’t as strong as the first three, it’s still one of the most creative and hilarious sit-coms of all time. I still reference the Giggle Loop on occasion.