TVSquad

(S02E06) How do you round off a series like Extras?

Well, nabbing someone like Robert De Niro for the finale is probably one of the best places to start, and as sad as I am to see this fantastic show come to an end (let's hope I'm wrong), I'm happy with the way Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant let their characters walk off into the sunset.

With the UK's top chat show host, Jonathan Ross, kicking off the episode in his typical Friday night interview style, and a sterling appearence from British actor Robert Lindsay -- not to mention a sublime performance from De Niro (as himself), I can happily say goodbye to Andy Millman, Darren Lamb, Maggie Jacobs and the rest of the Extras cast, without feeling the urge to demand more.

However, I wouldn't say no to a Christmas special -- just to round everything off after my turkey dinner on the 25th December.

This week, Andy was a changed man. Life was looking good; his sitcom When the Whistle Blows was almost behind him, and he had started mixing in social circles with some of Britain's A-list celebrities.

However, when a presumptuous parent coerced Andy into making an appearance at her dying son's hospital bedside, he soon found himself torn between the life of a charity celeb, and furthering his career at a meeting with his acting hero, Robert De Niro.

Adding insult to injury was a brilliant Robert Lindsay, feeling snubbed at missing out on the opportunity to entertain a sick child in hospital, and spending his short scenes hilariously over-emphasizing his own self-importance as an actor in British comedy and light entertainment.

Of course, Andy's agent is never far from the general mayhem which usually crops up in Extras, and when Andy accidentally caught Darren masturbating over a saucy pen (yes folks -- a pen with a picture of a lady who turns naked when you hold her upside-down) Darren found himself faced with an ultimatum; set up a meeting with De Niro, or face the sack.

But Andy's conscience soon got the better of him, and when he received a subtle text message from Maggie whilst traveling in a taxi to meet De Niro, he changed his mind and went to the hospital instead.

Of course, all the while, Darren was waiting in a salubrious London hotel with none other than De Niro himself, and the awkward silence between the two was eventually broken when Darren produced his saucy pen, much to De Niro's delight, and the two headed off for a few pints somewhere in London. Not wishing to leave Andy out of the fun, they called up Andy and invited him out to join them.

Like most of the viewers, I found myself waiting on the horrible punchline which normally follows such a disaster-prone set-up. But thankfully, it didn't arrive.

Andy and Maggie wandered off down the hospital corridors to a social meeting with an acting legend -- and perhaps, on to whatever insane mishaps Gervais and Merchant have planned for them somewhere down the line.

I honestly don't feel as sad as I thought I would at the end of this brilliant series, perhaps because these guys know how to make you love their characters, even though chaos reigns all around them and it can be difficult viewing at times; they just know how to make you talk about their characters and stories all day in the office tomorrow.

And they also know, that no matter what they produce next, we'll watch it -- and we'll cherish every minute of it.