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Extras
SERIES: HBO, Sunday 10:30p (30 minutes)


8.2

based on 24 reviews
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based on 25 votes
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TV:

Extras (Season 2)

Official Show Site

Starring Ricky Gervais, Ashley Jensen, and Stephen Merchant

Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, the creative team behind the acclaimed British series "The Office," both wrote and star in this new comedy (in which Gervais plays Andy Millman, a movie extra seeking a speaking role and Merchant plays his agent) that is a joint production of HBO and the BBC. Look for numerous celebrity cameos from the likes of Ben Stiller and Kate Winslet.

GENRE(S):	Comedy
CREATED BY:	Ricky Gervais Stephen Merchant
FIRST AIR DATE:	September 25, 2005

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

100

Hollywood Reporter Ray Bennett

Incisive, fearless and laugh-out-loud funny, "Extras" will appeal to anyone who liked "The Larry Sanders Show" and "Curb Your Enthusiasm."

100

New York Daily News David Hinckley

If you loved "The Office" you may have grave doubts that any followup comedy could be as good and as quote-the-dialogue funny. "Extras" is that - another triumph, and a perfect Sunday-night companion piece for "Curb Your Enthusiasm."

100

People Weekly Tom Gliatto

A looser show [than The Office], another comedy of frustration, but with a feckless sweetness (which is exactly what My Name Is Earl lacks). [17 Oct 2005, p.39]

100

The New Republic Lee Siegel

The most original and brilliant show on television.

Washington Post Tom Shales

It's got edge galore, but it's the kind that sneaks up on you and proves again that Gervais has the subtlest kind of brilliance, hard to categorize but easy to enjoy.

Los Angeles Times Robert Lloyd

At once more modest and more ambitious than its predecessor; more focused on detail and yet more expansive. It is also excruciatingly funny, with an emphasis on excruciating.

Boston Globe Matthew Gilbert

'Extras" is far less terminally existential than ''The Office," less depressing to watch.

Slate Dana Stevens

Even if Extras never accedes to The Office's heights of comic sublimity, it's still a rare find on American TV: a series that combines the ascendant genre of cringe comedy with Gervais' rich comic gifts, and his trademark humanism.

The New York Times Alessandra Stanley

A worthy and exhilarating new HBO companion to "Curb Your Enthusiasm."

Detroit Free Press Mike Duffy

An instant chucklehead classic.

Slant Magazine Eric Neigher

Not quite The Office II, not quite a wholly different breed, Extras should nevertheless please Gervais aficionados and newcomers alike.

Wall Street Journal Dorothy Rabinowitz

Mr. Gervais has in no way lost his touch.

The Onion A.V. Club

No one can backpedal his way into a ditch quite like Gervais.

LA Weekly Robert Abele

[Merchant and Gervais'] meetings are gemlike exchanges of deadpan incompetence and hair-pulling frustration, worthy of the bygone era of comedy teams.

TV Guide Matt Roush

Extras captures the stifling boredom and raging egotism of life behind the camera.

San Jose Mercury News Charlie McCollum

"Extras'' doesn't quite rise to the same level [as "The Office"], but it is very funny and Gervais plays another memorable character

Seattle Post-Intelligencer Melanie McFarland

Very British, coasting on quiet pauses, subtle digs and ironic discomfort -- a bonus for some, a strong negative for many.

Variety Brian Lowry

Gervais and Merchant excel at capturing scenes of quiet discomfort as well as palpable desperation in the face of near-constant rejection. Those qualities elevate "Extras""Extras" above the surface-deep "Entourage" or often-frustrating "The Comeback."

USA Today Robert Bianco

Though he's playing a smarter, wittier, more self aware character than he did in The Office, Gervais displays the same gift for the social faux pas, and the same inability to extract himself from increasingly improper conversations.

New York Post Linda Stasi

Not that the show will be everyone's English cup of tea, but there are enough "A" list Hollywood stars (making fun of themselves) each week to bring in even the most easily offended, but curious, viewers.

PopMatters Tim Whitelaw

Millman is closer to Gervais than Brent ever was, and Extras teases out compelling tension from his desperate efforts to enter the world of the glitterati.

Chicago Tribune Maureen Ryan

Millman... is kind of an irritating guy, and the conceit of the show wears thin pretty quickly.

Village Voice Joy Press

Gervais is a comic genius specializing in the art of discomfort, but this new character doesn't have the same compelling anti-charisma as The Office's David Brent--in part because Andy is such a peripheral figure in his workplace, but also because he's a more subtle creation, a mixed bag of the admirable and reprehensible.

Chicago Sun-Times Doug Elfman

Tedious.

The average user rating for this tv show is 8.2 (out of 10) based on 25 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

K K. gave it a10:
Brilliance.

Office fan gave it a10:
Still better than anything that Hollywood produces. 10X better than Curb. But, OK, not as amazing as the Office. Even so, it is brilliant and I can not remember laughing out loud so much when I watched the Office.

tim f gave it a9:
Great stuff. Please don't compare it to the office. It seems most people who gave it a 7 or less didnt give much or any of a reason. i can guess why. whatever argument they put up would immediately show their poor taste in tv programs. if u don't like this show go watch crap like lost and dont bring down the average rating for this comic genius

Simon H gave it a9:
Great writing coupled with fine acting delivers a uniquely entertaining show - comedy at its best. I have real pity for people who don’t appreciate it, surely their loss. It TV highlight of the week! Thank you HBO. I’ve been watching series two via torrent (I couldn’t wait) and it’s simply sublime. Well done Ricky & Stephen.

Stephen C gave it a10:
Shouldn't be compared to the office, but still an absolute corcker of a series. The situations which occur in the series won't be seen anywhere else. Comparisons to Curb your... wich in turn is also a magnificent piece of tv (and comedy).

Alex gave it a10:
Genius.

ha ed gave it a0:
poor

Extras SERIES: HBO, Sunday 10:30p (30 minutes)

Extras
SERIES: HBO, Sunday 10:30p (30 minutes)