Line #9 YMMV/GarthMarenghisDarkplace


1	* AdaptationDisplacement: Most of the cast originated in a couple of stage plays, ''Garth Marenghi's Fright Knight'' and ''Garth Marenghi's Netherhead'', performed at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2000 and 2001 respectively. The fact that it was Edinburgh makes things ten times better.
2	* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic:
3	** The theme song, and "One Track Lover". The former is effectively a ClicheStorm of early eighties theme tunes and the latter is both hilariously catchy and done as an in-universe music video by Todd Rivers, complete with a side of AWildRapperAppears by Dean.
4	** The chase theme from "The Apes of Wrath". It's an absolutely classic chase theme that's tacked onto a hilariously awful chase.
5	* BetterOnDVD: The sheer amount of bonus mock interviews, plus the in-character commentary, gives a much better experience than watching the show on its own.
6	* CrossesTheLineTwice:
7	** During "Scotch Mist" Dagless tries to make amends with the Scottish people he offended years ago by explaining he didn't like being in Glasgow, but as he apologises he comes off as even more bigoted. And even though the Scottish people talk in plain English, the show adds subtitles to their lines as if they were speaking incomprehensible gibberish.
8	** The eyeball monster raping a man with a giant pixelated penis, and ''[[MisterSeahorse impregnating him]]''.
9	** Renwick exploding? Horrifying. His head surviving and having a conversation with Dag about how [[MajorInjuryUnderreaction he thinks he's going to die?]] Funny. Renwick [[ICannotSelfTerminate begging Dag to kill him because he can't finish the job himself,]] and how "It ''really'' hurts?" Very funny. Dag lightly whacking his head ([[SpecialEffectFailure which turns into a dummy]]) with a shovel that just happens to be in the room? Hilarious. Sanch poking his head through the door and saying "I'll get a mop?" Utterly hysterical. Garth giving a perfectly serious speech on how he has "never exploded," but that he knows what it would be like, followed by a clearly moved Dean waxing lyrical about Garth's writing abilities? Comedy gold. [[OverlyLongGag This isn't even the end of it.]] The joke continues to escalate for the rest of the episode.
10	* CultClassic: Invoked in-universe or, at least, presented as one by [[SmallNameBigEgo Marenghi]]. Appropriately, it has [[LifeImitatesArt become one itself]].
11	* HilariousInHindsight:
12	** Creator/MattBerry plays Dr. Sanchez, who at one point thinks about how he wishes he could get the ladies like Dagless (Marenghi's character)--his accent, however, makes it sound like he's saying "Douglas". Funny enough, Douglas actually is the name of [[Series/TheITCrowd one of Matt Berry's later roles]].
13	** Similarly, ''Darkplace'' (InUniverse) is the sort of woefully schlocky TV that one can easily imagine [[Series/ToastOfLondon Stephen Toast]] being a part of -- and Berry puts on the [[AccentUponTheWrongSyllable sAme aCCeNt]] for both Todd and Toast.
14	** In one of the DVD extras, Dean Learner, played by Creator/RichardAyoade, laments how many great shows are gone, one being ''Series/TheCrystalMaze''. Not only has that show been revived, but Richard now hosts it!
15	** The show could easily be taken as a parody of ''Series/KingdomHospital'', given that they share the premise of a haunted hospital, plus Creator/StephenKing obviously being one of the inspirations for Marenghi, but the two shows aired almost simultaneously. In fact, ''Darkplace'' debuted a few weeks before ''Kingdom Hospital'' (though it's probably more a case of both shows being a riff on ''Series/{{Riget}}'', with ''Kingdom Hospital'' as a sanctioned remake and ''Darkplace'' as a satire).
16	** One of Sanchez's first lines is telling Liz "You're a woman." Matt Berry would later voice a medical bot in ''Series/{{Fallout}}'' who greets Lucy in the same manner.
17	* HoYay:
18	** The friendship between Dag and Sanchez is clearly written this way. Sanchez telling Dag that he won't stand in his way of being best buddies with Renwick again feels like he's telling a lover that he's okay with them getting back with an ex.
19	** Dean Learner has a StalkerWithoutACrush like obsession with Garth Marenghi, though this definitely seems one sided.
20	* MemeticMutation:
21	** [[{{Anvilicious}} "I know writers who use subtext and they're all cowards."]]
22	** [[HamAndCheese "You're acting like an ape! A WILD APE!"]]
23	** "He's right Sanch, one of the main reasons I went into medicine was for the laughs. [[WeirdAside That and the pussy. And that dried up ten year ago if you'll pardon the expression.]]"
24	** "You and he were... ''buddies'', weren't you?" "Buuuut if you and he wish to be best buddies again, I won't stand in your waAAyyY."
25	** [[GagPenis "Look at the size of that thing's rod!"]]
26	** [[HeAlsoDid Plus actor.]] This one has actually caused a series of edit wars on Matthew Holness' Wikipedia page.
27	* NightmareFuel: It may be because of its somewhat fake feel, but some of the content of the series manages to be genuinely terrifying in spite of its intentional hokiness.
28	** Dagless's occultist partner Renwick spontaneously exploding into a gory mess may take you off-guard, though the situation quickly becomes hilarious when Renwick's still-animate head begs Dag to put him out of his misery.
29	** One particular standout is Liz's [[BlackEyesOfCrazy black hollow ghost-eyes]] in the first episode. They are the only part of the entire series ''not'' to suffer from SpecialEffectsFailure, and are fairly shocking as a result. Dagless gives some genuine advice about not doing that in the ward.
30	** Some shots of Liz levitating in the climax of "Hell Hath Fury" are legitimately quite disturbing.
31	** Ironically, many of the interviews with Dean Learner are more frightening than anything written by Garth, since Dean is all but stated to be a paedophilic serial killer.
32	* RetroactiveRecognition: Paul King, director of ''Film/Paddington2014'' and ''Film/Paddington2'', appears in "Scotch Mist" as one of the techies mentioned by Dean to have been poisoned by the mist used for the titular effect.
33	* SpiritualSuccessor:
34	** ''Series/ManToManWithDeanLearner'', a chat show using many of the same characters. Also, ''Series/SnuffBox'', which starred Matt Berry, had Alice Lowe in a cameo (as Music/DavidBowie, of all people), and had Dean Learner show up a few times.
35	** The short film [[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1975105/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1 "A Gun For George"]], written/directed by and starring Matthew Holness, is a much DarkerAndEdgier take on the "conceited hack writer creates idealized AuthorAvatar" concept.
36	** ''Darkplace'' itself bears something of a resemblance to the Gelliant Gutfright sketches from ''Series/ABitOfFryAndLaurie'' such as "The Red Hat of Pat Ferrick".
37	** ''Series/TheSpoilsOfBabylon'', the TransAtlanticEquivalent that's also about a VanityProject TV series made by [[SmallNameBigEgo a narcissistic author]], has actors playing actors playing characters and takes a similar StylisticSuck approach.
38	** Internationally, ''Series/ChildrensHospital'' could be considered one. A tropey ShowWithinAShow with a cast interview framing device that's SoBadItsGood out-of-universe...and both take place in a hospital, even!
39	* VindicatedByHistory: The original run of the show was poorly advertised and placed in a terrible timeslot, and so the show had terrible ratings and was swiftly cancelled. Years later, it's considered an absolute classic and enjoys an international audience well beyond that of many more supposedly successful shows of its era.
40	* {{Wangst}}: Much hay is made about Dagless being a 'brilliant yet troubled doctor'. Given the nature of the show and the quality of the writing, this usually translates to angsty, over-the-top brooding about ill-defined and ludicrous things.
41	* TheWoobie: Madeleine Wool, Liz's in-universe actor, thanks to the extremely misogynistic script, where she plays a stereotypical, [[HystericalWoman hysterical]], {{d\|umbBlonde}}itzy MenstrualMenace, despite having ostensibly been to "Harvard College, Yale." Madeleine herself is "missing, presumed dead, with the presumption heavily on dead." It's implied Dean Learner killed her.

Context YMMV / GarthMarenghisDarkplace