Flowers [DVD]

I'm not sure how to approach a review for this TV show as it's without doubt one of the most refreshingly original things I've seen in ages. This is spoiler free!At it's heart, there's no doubt that the show's main theme is manic depression/bipolar disorder and mental illness - but don't let that put you off as it's portrayed in such a fantastic way that it's not depressing at all to watch. Julian Barrett puts in a stunning performance as the main character - the husband to Olivia Colman's character and father to the two 'children' and throughout all of the episodes, he's trying to tell them of a dark secret he's struggling with, but things just keep happening to interrupt him from being able to do so. Of course, there's an element of them perhaps not wanting to listen to or accept the truth.All of the actors (Olivia Colman, as always, is brilliant) put in amazing performances, but the thing that really shines throughout every episode is the quality of Will Sharpe's writing - which is impressive as he also acts in and directs every episode. The script crackles with one-liners and wit, but there's also an undercurrent of warmth and compassion to the show which will leave you feeling fuzzy by the end of it. There are also a couple of moments of tragedy which will leave you grasping for the tissues - consider that a warning!All in all, this is without doubt my favourite comedy/drama show in a very long time and I'm itching to see the second series!

A true original, and a triumph for writer/director/actor Will Sharpe. Poignant, weird and hysterically funny. A sort of tragi-farce. All clothed in a middle-class English veneer about to self-destruct. As in all the best comedy, there's a deep sadness at its heart. Scenes from it haunt the memory, well mine at least, and you can't say much better than that. Brilliant contributions from all concerned. Coleman, Barrett are outstanding. Angus Wright as the unspeakable neighbour and Anna Chancellor as Deborah's recently-divorced equally unspeakable sister, offer wonderfully over-the-top supporting performances. It fully deserves its boxed-set format. One appreciates the absence of deeply unwanted commercials, and the resulting continuity is a major plus. Buy it, settle down for an afternoon and watch it from start to finish.

A fantastic mix of comedy and sadness,wonderfully performed by all , every character is brilliantly quirky and you genuinely care .Creator and writer Will sharpe is particularly lovable as the ever cheerful and helpful shun .The reason why he cares so much about the family will tear you apart ,cannot wait for the next series.Perfection.

It says comedy drama but i didn't laugh once ..I'm very liberal minded . Diversity of thought and action is the substance that stimulates me and is the essence of life but I found a comedy about two dysfunctional parents ;.one who tried to kill himself and two children One who is narcissistic and can't think of anything beyond himself. A dysfunctional daughter who is so damaged she doesn't even know who she is .I like dark humour and i tend to look at my own situations with dark humour.Maybe it's a sign of the times with so many people i know dying and struggling in life generally .but i found this truly depressing .

I've been on a Olivia Coleman kick as of late and read online she was starring in a new series called "Flowers".I'm Stateside and was able to watch the first episode on Seeso... and that was it. So I re-watched the first episode three more times.It's the dark comedy I've always been attracted to, but with SUCH heart.I was happy to see that Amazon UK had the DVD for sale shortly after the series aired; I purchased a region-free player for emergencies such as this when I'm not able to view brilliant British TV.I just had a marathon of all 6 episodes and it went beyond expectations; beautifully acted and written. Shun's story had me bawling in episode 5 and again for the voice-over storybook (within the story) closing. Perfection.Cannot wait to watch those other 5 episodes three more times... and then some.Will Sharpe is freakin' amazing.

Was very disappointed with this show. I realise that the people where supposed to be quirky and dysfunctional, but this was too much. What a waste of good actors.

This could be intended to show how mental illness affects a family, but the family members are so weird already that it is hard to make out to what degree the individuals are affected by their father - since they are all self-absorbed in different ways, they pretty well ignore their father anyway. The son is clearly a work-shy fool who think he is an inventor but is not, the daughter is not sure of she is lesbian but would like to try, the mother appears to accept little or no responsibility for the family at all and believes that life owes her a lot, although she is unsure what....Sigh. We only persevered beyond episode 1 because we discovered that the Japanese au pair (I think that this is what he is) brightens things up and is quite amusing (rather like Patrick Walsh McBride in Shakespeare and Hathaway). Is it just intended to be entertainment, is the message important? ( In which case, what is it exactly...). 'Weird but all right' is the general opinion of our family.

...all in one package.I wasn't sure I was going to like this but my goodness it sucks you in and some of the situations are both incredibly awful and simultaneously genuinely hilarious in a manner I haven't seen in a TV drama for decades.