As an American, I think it's worth investing in the necessary background in British culture to appreciate the humor. If you don't, you miss out on Douglas Adams of course, but also the incredible and varied world of panel shows, everything that the alumni of 'Monty Python's Flying Circus' ever touched (Fawlty Towers!!!), and so on.

As a kid, Douglas Adams was my first major introduction to British humor, and questions about "what does that mean exactly?" drove me to learn a lot more about it.