TV Guilty Pleasures # 10: 'The Inbetweeners'

If you’ve been following this “TV Guilty Pleasures” column over the past few weeks, you might notice that the term “guilty” is being used very loosely. These are fantastic shows that aren’t so much “guilty” as they are pleasurable. Or maybe the “guilt” comes from the show’s mature content- you know, the stuff that appeals to the primal, non-intellectual side of humans, like watching “Spartacus” for the gore and muscles, or “The Inbetweeners” for its gleefully immature approach to mature content.

Not to be confused with the terrible MTV remake which was cancelled quickly due to low ratings, “The Inbetweeners” originated as a British sitcom and it has three seasons and a movie under its belt. It’s about four students approximately sixteen years of age…so of course it focuses a lot about sex. Do you remember being sixteen? Most everyone is a raging ball of hormones at that age, so here’s a show that will take you back to those awkward days (or, if you’re currently a teen, it’ll just give you some characters to relate to).

“The Inbetweeners” captures the horrible awkwardness of being sixteen so magnificently. It combines every possible bad scenario that can happen in your teen years and throws it all at these poor guys. Watch the characters fumble with what to say and how to act around the opposite sex, get dumped, deal with sexual encounters gone wrong, go on road trips, get publicly humiliated, and try their best to get liquor despite being underage. All things that are only funny in retrospect or when watching someone else go through it!

Despite the characters being mostly interested in sex, there are a few other topics at play. Deep, deep down, “The Inbetweeners” is a story about friendship. These four guys bond over the years throughout all their hardships, like bullying, romantic woes, and their seemingly unreasonable parents. If you peel away all the layers of sex and raunchiness you will find some tender issues.

The four main characters are diverse enough that you’re bound to find someone to relate to. The main character, who also narrates the show, is Will McKenzi (Simon Bird). At the beginning of the series he transfers from private school to the very public Rudge Park Comprehensive. Finding it extremely difficult to make new friends, he eventually forces friendship with the other three main characters, Jay, Neil, and Simon. Will, arguably the most likeable character out of the four, is intelligent and a stickler for rules. He also wields sarcasm like a lightsaber, often pointing out the ridiculousness of the other characters’ plans, but still going along with them anyway. His journey includes trying to lose his virginity, a task often derailed by very loudly and publicly pooping his pants or having “alopecia of the ball sack” thanks to a prank by his friends. And, he learns very quickly that “rubbing up against the perineum” doesn’t count as losing his virginity.

Whereas Simon is super smart, Neil (Blake Harrison) isn’t so much. He’s the dumb one of the group, often taking sarcasm literally and never realizing when he’s caused a problem. However, because he’s so gullible and nice, he ends up getting the most girl action out of them all. Blake Harrison appears to be very talented at doing the robot- so guess what Neil does every chance the writers can fit it in? BEEP BOOP, YOU ARE CORRECT, HU-MAN.

The most easily provoked group member would be Simon (Joe Thomas). He tends to be on edge at all times, going off on rants when the slightest thing doesn’t go his way. He spends the whole series with one goal in mind: to pair up with the girl he’s been in love with since he was a child, Carli D’Amato (Emily Head). His obsession with her drives everything he does almost to an unhealthy point, like trading his nice tennis shoes for a homeless guy’s urine soaked shoes just so he can get into a club Carli is in. He’s also constantly ignoring other, much friendlier girls, in the hopes of making things work with Carli.

Last but not least, we have the annoying one, Jay (James Buckley). He’s the most sex-obsessed, but least-experienced and most prone to awkwardness of the group. Every word out of his mouth is either a lie about his sexual experience or something quite misogynistic. He provides a contrast from the other characters with his largely abrasive remarks and constant prevarication which (surprise) makes it difficult for him to find a date. He doesn’t want to feel embarrassed about not knowing everything about sex, so he lies, lies, lies. This can be seen as early as the first episode when Neil asks, “do you put the balls in?” Jay answers, “You can do that. Some girls like it, some don’t.”

“The Inbetweeners” received multiple nominations during its run, and won a majority of them, including, “Best New British Television Comedy” and Best Male Comedy Newcomer” for Simon Bird at the British Comedy Awards. If you’re looking for a show that takes brutally awkward teen mishaps and exposes them in a humorous light, “The Inbetweeners” is the right choice. You can sit back, laugh, and be thankful you don’t have to go through your teen years again. And if you are a teen, make sure to watch the movie, too, so you can see that life does get better.