I was admittedly a bit opposed to the U.S. version of The Office simply because of how many people were obsessed with it. I was honestly a bit reticent about watching a show that seemed to have such a broad appeal. Also, several people I knew became, once they found out I didn't watch it, almost militant in their attempts to get me to tune in. I’m happy to say, though, that I was totally wrong. I love the show, and, like the rest of America, am eagerly awaiting the sixth season. I wouldn't say that it's one of my favorite shows of all time just yet, but it’s definitely getting there.
Another reason I was a little hesitant about this show was that I am admittedly not a big Steve Carrell fan. Other than Little Miss Sunshine, I have roundly hated him in every film I’ve seen or even just seen commercials for (Dan in Real Life, for example, looked atrocious). He seems to me to be a disciple of Will Ferrel's brand of acting, which consistently churns out characters that are socially, sexually, or mentally incompetent but are generally good guys. Anchorman, 40 Year Old Virgin, Get Smart, etc. do nothing to dispel this notion. And I’ve never really warmed up to his wildly awkward shtick as Michael Scott. I am perpetually annoyed that someone (Toby or Stanley, most likely) doesn’t simple beat the bag out of this guy for his outrageous conduct.
However, the show is peppered with these little moments where you really like/feel for the guy, like when he shows up at Pam’s art show or that absurdly depressing scene from “Take Your Daughter to Work Day” where Michael (as a ten-year-old) says his dream is to have thousands of kids so he’ll never be lonely. On the whole though, the guy annoys the crap out of me, but I do recognize how important he is to the show. Without him, it’s just a bunch of people begrudgingly trying to get through the day, which is not funny. Toby once casually summed up Michael's appeal by saying that he’s like “an in-flight movie. It’s not great but it’s something to watch. Then it’s over, and it’s like, ‘how much time is left on this flight. Now what?’”
I did not like the first season. With the exception of a few episodes ("Diversity Day" and "Basketball") I thought it was pretty weak, especially when looked at in comparison to the later seasons. I’ve never seen the British version, but from what I understand a lot of the plot-lines and jokes were mined from that show, which might explain why things feel a little forced. The show really hits it stride in the second season; the last episode of that season ("Casino Night") is one of my favorite episodes. Overall, seasons 2 and 3 of this show are awesome. The Jim/Pam story was really the driving force behind the show during this stretch, almost like the Laura Palmer investigation in Twin Peaks. It's not always the most important plot-point in a particular episode, but it's there to keep the viewer intrigued and wanting to come back for more.
(SEASON 5 SPOILER ALERT) I am a little worried now that things seem to be perfect for everyone’s favorite television couple that the show will stagnate. I felt the beginning of season five was a bit directionless. The episodes were funny, don’t get me wrong, but it just seemed like the show didn’t know where it was going. The second half of the season did a nice job rectifying this with the Charles Miner/Michael Scott Paper Company plotline, but I don’t know how long the show can last without a story arc on the level of the Jim/Pam courtship.
What is odd to me about The Office is that, for a show that seems to have such a broad appeal, it is so outside the mainstream of your typical American comedy in just about every conceivable way. The mockumentary style thankfully ensures that there is no laugh track, which to me is a blessing. I can’t tell you how much I despise laugh tracks. There’s nothing worse than watching a formulaic, Everybody Loves Raymond-type show and watching the actors waiting for the laughter to die down so they can make their next by-the-numbers joke. I think the biggest thing that separates The Office is the ensemble cast element of it. It’s very rare for a comedy to use such a large group of characters. Even really good shows like Seinfeld, Curb Your Enthusiasm, or 30 Rock don’t have a ton of characters. It’s a pretty risky move, if you think about it, to (for instance) base an entire storyline around an Oscar or a Phyllis. It completely pays off though, because slowly learning about the characters over the seasons is a lot of fun. It's fun to pick up on these random tidbits about Creed or Stanley and slowly crafting an idea of their characters over the seasons.
It’s tough to pick out a favorite character from a show that is so rich in character development, but Andy “Nard Dog” Bernard might be my favorite. I know he's a new addition to the cast, but the guy is simply hilarious (check out The Hangover for further proof), with his love of a cappella music, the way he tries to slip the fact that he went to Cornell into every conversation, and his general kick-assness. I love Andy’s line about how he’s going to rise to the top through “personality-mirroring, name repetition, and never breaking off a handshake.”
I’m also a big fan of Kevin Malone. I wish we got to see more of Scrantonicity. One of my favorite scenes with him is when he’s talking to the cameras about his band and the possibility of playing Pam and Roy’s wedding and he says something along the lines of “We actually don’t play in public a lot. (Pause) This could be a turning point for the band.”
I find the interplay between Dwight and Jim to be another one of the show's biggest strenghts. The two play off each other beautifully when they're enemies and even more so in those rare cases where they're forced to work together, like the sales call they make together or when they begrudgingly plan Kelly's birthday party. However, I do think Jim needs to do a little less of his trademark "I can't believe these shenanigans" eye-brow raise, which gets annoying when he does it five times per episode. Dwight, though, is consistently the funniest character on the show. He's got such a unique personality and worldview that I enjoy just listening to him talk, even though he's a complete dick most of the time. Like this story about his insanely detailed "perfect crime":One criticism I have is that the show can oftentimes stretch the boundaries of authenticity. This was a bit of a big problem in the fifth season, but may be an even bigger one looking to the future of the show. One of my few complaints with Seinfeld is that, in the later seasons, the characters had become caricatures of themselves. Instead of being relatable, flawed human beings they became cartoon characters. I think this is a big problem The Office could face, especially when you have the already cartoonish Michael Scott as the fulcrum of your show. There were several times during the fifth season where he did things that seemed completely out of step with his character, seemingly placed in just to garner some laughs. The best example (SPOILER ALERT) is when he attempted to get Toby fired by planting weed on him. This was funny enough I guess, but it seems like something out of a sitcom.
At least initially, The Office was about the mundane occurrences that happen at a typical 9-to-5 job. One of the best examples I can think of is the scene where Michael is holding a meeting in the conference room, and everyone is watching the DVD logo, desperately hoping to see it go into the corner. With absurd, sit-comy things like the Dwight/Andy/Angela love triangle, it has slowly been losing some of its authentic nature that makes it consistently good. Let's hope the writes never get to a point where they're trading authenticity for laughs.
Well, that’s pretty much it. As you can probably tell, I’ve kind of been obsessed with this show over the last month or so. I even bought the fifth season on Itunes because for some reason it does not come out on DVD until September. I want to leave you with a few YouTube videos people made compiling different clips from show to make faux movie trailers. They're pretty funny. Enjoy.
