Season 1, Episode 6, Part 1: "Redundancies"

I can't believe I've written so many recaps already, and we're at the end of season 1! I've had so much fun doing this, and I can't wait for season 2. After that, I still have the Christmas special, Microsoft clips, and documentaries, so I should be doing this for a while. Hope you hang around and continue to enjoy it. So let's get to work on this episode then!

The series began in David's office with him saying: "I don't give shitty jobs." Now we're back there with the same guy he hired in the beginning. I'm gonna save my own time by calling him Alex, which we won't know until David talks to Malcolm later in this same chapter, but whatever. David says, "This is the worst part of my job. I do NOT wanna lose a good man" - and he does the same finger-pointing thing he did in the first episode. "But.. you know.. it's out of my hands... and even if it were in my hands, my hands are tied so..." Hee, that made no sense at all. It's very David though, mixing metaphors. He's talking in a little voice and you can tell he hates doing this. Alex doesn't want to hear it and asks why he's being fired. David says he isn't, it's redundancy. What's the difference? Don't you lose your job either way? "You are one of the unlucky ones.. or one of the lucky ones, in my opinion," David says looking at the camera and chuckles a bit. Hee, don't try to lighten up the mood when you're firing someone, especially with jokes THAT bad. A guy in a green shirt is fixing David's computer under his desk and he surfaces for a moment to get a tool. Alex just stares angrily at David, who plays with his tie awkwardly. He seems so guilty. Yeah, you might have thought of this when you gave him the forklift driver's job without any experience. And claimed there would be no redundancies at your branch.

Alex asks if Anton, the little person, is being kept on because he's disabled. David doesn't think Anton is disabled. "He's a midget, David," says Alex angrily. "Yeah, but you're not disabled if you're a midget, are you? That's not a disability, that's just small. Ronny Corbett doesn't get special treatment, does he?" Hee, Ronny Corbett. I just saw him on Extras, and it was hilarious. Alex points out that Anton is much smaller than Ronny Corbett, only 3'4''. That is indeed small. David makes a very bad point: "So are some children. Children don't get special treatment..." Yes, they do, plus they grow out of that. And he's kind of saying that disabled people SHOULD get special treatment. So bad point there. "I guess children are disabled," mocks David. Yeah, that's exactly what Alex said, brilliant observation. David says it doesn't matter whether Anton's a midget or a dwarf, but Alex says he's not a dwarf. David wants to know the difference. "A dwarf is someone who has disproportionately small arms and legs." David makes a "tiny arms" gesture, looking like he thinks it's funny, and I'm sure he doesn't realize how offensive that is. He even does a "big head" gesture, which... hee. He's openly mocking dwarfs without realizing it. "It's caused by a hormone deficiency," the guy says. "Bloody hormones," says David, as if they're to blame for everything.

The camera pans to Gareth, who asks, "So... what's an elf?" Leave it to Gareth to always think of the least relevant question. Also, what is he doing there? Wouldn't it be awkward enough to fire someone without both Gareth and the computer fixing guy? Gareth is just leaning on the window sill, as if he's supervising the proceedings. "Do you wanna answer that?" says David to Alex, as if it's a valid question. Alex looks suspiciously around him as if he's suspecting candid camera. Not unthinkable, considering the first episode with the "fired" prank. Gareth stares at him seriously and looks like a little boy. "An elf is a supernatural being. Sometimes they're invisible, they're like fairies," Alex says. David nods earnestly and looks at Gareth. "But they don't actually exist, do they? In real life," says David and looks at Gareth, who's nodding and looking like he's thinking hard. I love how David asks that as if he's not quite sure. David looks to his left, and the computer-fixing guy is staring at Alex.

The office. People working hard and looking bored. Behind Tim, Stephen Merchant's Dad opens a door and comes out in a blue overall. He's carrying something - looks like big rolls of tissues or something similar - and he just stands there and stares at the camera. It's hilarious. He looks quite a bit like Stephen. I feel like I already recapped this scene, but if so, it's because there are several identical scenes with him just staring, and I love it. It's like Stephen wanted his Dad to make a cameo on the show, but the Dad didn't want to do any acting. Tim turns around and looks at STMD, who just stands and stares.

Back in David's office, it's getting heated. "What do you want me to do.. Do you think I enjoy doing this? This has been imposed upon me," David self-defends. "This has been imposed upon me," mimicks Alex. Twice. It's getting kind of childish, but it's understandable in this situation. What isn't understandable or acceptable, however, is David's totally defensive behaviour: "What do you want me to say? Ooh, I'm sorry I gave you a job..." He's being really childish here. "Yeah, I want you to apologize and stop passing the buck!" He pronounces it like "book". David insists that it's not his decision. It is, though. He had to fire someone and for some reason, he picked Alex. And he wouldn't tell him WHY it was him, and he wouldn't admit it was his decision. He's such a terrible boss. Alex's behaviour could, of course, be seen as healthist: he thinks that if someone should be fired, it should without a doubt be Anton, because he's shorter. He blames David for positive discrimination, while his own attitude could be seen as the negative variant.

David asks mockingly if Alex gonna go above his head. "Yes, I will go above your head," he says. "Good luck. It's your prerogative." "Yeah, it is. It's my prerogative, yeah." Then they just stare at each other. And the computer-fixing guy stares at Alex too, as if he's somehow in David's position. Awesome. Alex looks away, looking like he's gonna cry soon. Gareth: "So is a pixie the same as an elf?" Even David realizes that this is not the time for that question. He just says, "Gareth", quietly. "What? I just wanna know how come he knows so much about midgets," says Gareth. I love how he can't let go of a thought. Once it's entered his head, he just has to work it through. David and Computer-Fixing Guy look at Alex expectantly. He gets up and leaves, saying, "It's called an education." David looks at him leave, then glances at Gareth. "So what's a goblin?" asks the Computer-Fixing Guy. "How long you gonna be, mate?" says David. Look, David, you could have fired the guy without two other people in the room. That might have had more dignity. I also wonder if this chapter is called "Redundancies" not only because of Alex losing his job, but because they're being totally redundant about the midgets, elves, etc.

People working. The camera seems to be on the floor. Cut to David and Karen walking in the office. Karen is wearing a pretty flower shirt. David says he probably looks like an imposing figure "with my..." and he snaps his fingers. Hee, I doubt she sees you that way, David. She's seen you red-faced and drunk, babbling about how she'll love you soon. "But when you get to know me, you'll see I'm mad." I think if you replace the m for an s, it's a bit closer to the truth. David chuckles and points at a Flat Eric toy over the coat rack. It has its foot in its mouth - clever, because David always puts his foot in his mouth. "I bought that in, so... " David says proudly. Karen forces a chuckle. I love those little stuffed toys. They are so not funny, and yet David seems so proud of them, like they're what makes the office a fun place to work in. I also love his trademark "So..." that never goes anywhere.

David spots Malcolm and walks up to him. "Oh here we go... MalCOLM!" he says in a squeaky, annoying voice. David introduces Karen, "my new secretary... Though you can all...use her... oh, as an actor said to a bishop..." He always says that when he realizes something he said sounds a bit dirty. "Use" is a poor choice of words. Malcolm politely shakes hands with Karen, but then turns to David and asks him quite sharply why he's hiring new staff when he has to fire "people like Alex this morning". It would have been nice to know Alex's name from the get go, though. David doesn't know what to say, and he closes his eyes, then looks away from Malcolm and talks really slowly: "Different people different jobs, right? To wit the answer... to the QUESTION... is it... people or task... is well... you know... people." Except that that wasn't the question, was it? Obviously the decision to hire a secretary was really bad and he can't even think of any lie to cover for it.

He plays off the embarrassment in his usual style: With inappropriate humor. "Like this person. Kojak!" He says and pretends to shine Malcolm's bald spot, complete with idiotic sound effects and "Who loves you baby?" It's really annoying. I think I'd punch him if I were Malcolm. And what is it about David and bald guys? Malcolm looks pained, but contains himself and asks David very matter-of-factly when they will know who's fired. Finally David calms down - though he lays his hand on the bald spot for a moment - and says, "Good question." Yeah, it is. You could have attended to it earlier. "Jennifer is coming in midday today, Greenwich Mean Time, she'll have the verdicts then, OK? I'm just trying to.. keep the troops happy." You mean you're trying to amuse yourself by making fun of others? "They'd be a lot happier if they knew they've got jobs," says Malcolm somewhat sarcastically.

David awkwardly plays with this tie and then looks at Malcolm, the camera, and Karen in turn with a weird stilted grin. Then he says he's trying to think of other famous bald characters. David! Focus on the job! I can just imagine him at school trying to "entertain" others while the teacher was talking. And I'm pretty sure they thought he was a dork even back then. Karen, sadly, helps him out by suggesting some bald guy on the Benny Hill Show. David excitedly taps Malcolm's bald spot. Now Malcolm loses his cool and pushes his hand away. David and Malcolm look in different directions awkwardly. Karen bites her pen and looks like she's sorry she said anything. David, you're an idiot, and this is the worst possible way of lightening the mood on a time like this. Well, at any time, if your way of "keeping the troops happy" is making fun of them.

Karen and David walk up to Tim's desk. David says Tim is thinking of leaving and "he's feeling bad right now" - actually, you'd think he feels good, because he knows he can get out of this boring job - "I'll have a little chat, make him feel good about himself, turn it around." Right. You can really tell he's trying to impress Karen with his leadership skills, despite - or maybe because of? - the fact that she's already seen him
a) act like a horny teenager at her job interview;
b) babble drunkenly and treat another woman like an object;
c) make fun of a bald employee when it was time to talk about redundancies.
I doubt she thinks he's Boss of the Year. And if Tim hates his job, what is David gonna do? Shouldn't he, in fact, support Tim's decision and let him go if that's what he wants?

He does the same voice thing he did with Malcolm: "TimoTHYY!" It sounds incredibly dorky. Tim is kneeling by someone else's desk for some reason. David asks him to come and "have a quick word - walk this way", and then, you guessed it: he starts walking funnily and making funny noises. Karen, walking behind him, looks at him with an expression that shows clearly what she thinks of his humor, and it isn't anything good. David is, of course, oblivious about this, and he looks at the camera like he did something brilliant there. He looks back at Karen, and Karen forces a friendly smile. "Always start with a joke," David tells Karen as if she's her protegé now. Yeah, great way to do it. I think he should let his actions speak for him, because he really shows what bad humor can do for a leader. Tim walks behind them, looking a bit confused, as he often is. He has that confused "Hmm?" face, even if he's the most intelligent character. He just permanently looks like just got out of bed, which is endearing.