Perfect World is a BBC Two sitcom starring Paul Kaye which aired from 2000 to 2001. It features a man named Bob Slay (Kaye), a man who is the personification of Unsympathetic Comedy Protagonist. He is obnoxious, lazy, and amoral, but this somehow does not stop him from having a fancy office, being well-regarded by his Manager, or having an attractive girlfriend.
Part of the supporting cast includes Vaughan (Derren Litten), Bob's hard-working friend who is really behind all the achievements which Bob claims that he has achieved, Maggie (Nina Wadia), who can be just as shallow as Bob, but lacks his nastiness, and his sex-crazed Pointy-Haired Boss Terrence Bentley (Michael Cochrane).
At the end of Series 1, Bob breaks up with his girlfriend, the model Lauren, leaving him free to pursue other conquests (albeit unsuccessfully).
Tropes in this show:
- Affectionate Nickname: Lauren usually calls Bob "Bobby" to show that she's his girlfriend.
- Amazingly Embarrassing Parents: Vaughan's parents are this to him, thanks to the fact that they're nudists.
- Aside Comment: Bob will occasionally turn towards the audience and make a remark to them regarding his situation.
- Fake Twin Gambit: "Tarquin" is about Bob making up a fake twin named Tarquin when he criticizes his job in front of a woman intending to review his work, which becomes problematic when he is asked to bring his "brother" to a business meeting.
- Flowers of Romance: In "Love", Bob convinces Vaughan that Maggie is in love with him, so he reciprocates by gifting her flowers. She doesn't appreciate this, as she isn't in love with Vaughan. When Lauren breaks up with him, he tries to make it up to her by gifting her the same flowers, but Lauren doesn't accept them.
- Got the Whole World in My Hand: The opening credits of the show depict Bob playing around with a model of the Earth and spinning it on one of his pinkies, emphasizing how the world is his oyster.
- Karma Houdini: Despite his annoying behavior, the worst thing which happens to Bob is that his girlfriend breaks up with him in "Love".
- Lousy Lovers Are Losers: In "Tarquin", Bob has sex with a woman whilst passing himself off as his fake twin brother. When he asks how good the brother was in bed on a scale of 1 to 10, he is told that he rates either a 2 or a 3. Fitting, seeing as he's immoral and lazy.
- Lovable Sex Maniac: Bob's boss is obsessed with sex, even pissing off Bob's possible mother-in-law because he is too flirtatious with her, but this is used to play up his eccentricity and is Played for Laughs.
- Meet the In-Laws: The plot of "Parents" is about Bob being introduced to the parents of his girlfriend Lauren. At first, Bob proves to be embarrassing, which actually pleases Lauren as she's tired of her boyfriends sucking up to them. However, Bob discovers from Maggie that they are very rich, convincing him to try to get back in their graces.
- Parental Abandonment: Bob was abandoned by his parents when he was a baby at Sainsbury's, providing a Freudian Excuse for why he is a git.
- Pointy-Haired Boss: Bob's boss is a sex-crazed eccentric who fails to realize just how much of a git that Bob is.
- Ridiculous Procrastinator: Bob is so lazy he'll leave his work until the very day he needs to hand it in, and even then, he'll struggle to work on it, as seen in "Deadline". By the time he manages to start working on it, he is called up early, although the meeting is postponed.
- Stealing the Credit: "Charity" shows that Bob is perfectly willing to take credit for work done dominantly by another person, such as Vaughan.
- Uncomfortable Elevator Moment: Bob has one in "Deadline" when he gets into an elevator packed to the brim with other business people, where he loudly announces that someone has farted before annoying the rest of them.
- Unsympathetic Comedy Protagonist: Bob is immoral, lazy, and obnoxious. He is also our main protagonist.
- Wounded Gazelle Gambit: In "Tarquin", Bob is forced to bring his twin brother to him on a dinner. Problem is that the twin was made up, so he attempts to cover for the missing twin by faking a severe car accident, which turns into several leg injuries when Vaughn goes overboard. He is annoyed with this, but is able to use this as an excuse to cover up the fact that he was cheating on his girlfriend, as well as convincing Lauren to drop the vegetarian diet she was forcing him on.