The Office - TV Review

You know... Since I've only started to analyze media seriously in the past couple of years, combined with my habit of sticking to singular subjects, I've missed a lot of things. My father, almost every time I see him, brings up an old movie that I haven't seen and he exclaims how I could I not have seen it before. To that I say, "What streaming service out there will allow me to watch Citizen Cane without putting in money or risking going on any suspicious websites?" sometimes I feel like I can start a podcast or video series about all the movies, TV shows, and video games that I have missed. It could be called, "Late to the Party!" and I would have so many topics to talk about. But there are also pieces of recent media that pass me by, which leads me to the subject of today: The Office (the United States version).

The Office tickled my curiosity ever since I discovered that my younger cousins had a watched the series multiple times, at least four if I am correct. To go through nine seasons of a show must mean there's something really good about it and at the end of last year I picked it up on Netflix. When those first couple of episodes began to play I was slapped in the face with comedy that forced me to cover my mouth in fear of disturbing my neighbors and I exclaimed to myself, "Why have I not watched this already?!" Then over the past two months I've been binging the show and have continued to laugh at all the crazy antics of the employees of a simple paper company. For those who haven't watched the show there will be some spoilers throughout this review, so if you haven't seen the show and don't want to be spoiled then turn back now. And there will be some TWSSs. It has to be put in. That's what she said.

So let's get to the main event, the element of the show that keeps you coming back for more, that element that kept making me go another round after round: The characters. I am not going to be able to go through ever single big employee at Dunder Mifflin because you could write a whole book about all these characters and their wonderful journeys throughout the show. Stanley (Leslie David Baker) was a fantastic grump, Phyllis (Phyllis Smith) had a great motherly personality, Erin (Ellie Kemper) was so upbeat and cheery, poor Toby (Paul Lieberstein) had such a hard time you couldn't help but be sad for him, Kevin (Brian Baumgartner) was so dumb it was hilarious, and Angela (Angela Kinsey) was, please excuse my language but I have to be honest, a great, fat, annoying bitch! Seriously she was the worst character for me. But they all, and the rest of the cast had their own positives and negatives, their own charm and personalities, all of which added to the show and it was amazing to have such diversity! I know sometimes we can't rely on one element, but sometimes too much of a good thing can be wonderful. That's what she said.

Now I will say that even with these characters the show feels very dated. For instance one of the employees of Dunder Mifflin, Oscar (Oscar Nunez) is gay and while he does put on a great performance the way people react to him being gay can be kind of old fashioned. Presently being gay is a lot more accepted, even with all those small groups of extremely loud and nasty individuals saying it's wrong. On The Office though it's not hated but people look at Oscar weirdly and at time were uncomfortable with him like men. There's also the stock market crash of 2008 worrying a lot of employees, the early days of Youtube, and some humor that I'm sure some people first seeing The Office now would not approve of.

This leads us to the main star for most of the show, Michael Scott, played hilariously by Steve Carell. Now I will say that if this show were to premiere now that people would have a massive fit over a character such a Michael Scott; he acts like an annoying, attention-seeking child most of the time, is continually flirty with women to the point it might feel uncomfortable, has terrible social skills, and keeps saying, "That's what she said!" And that is what he said. Okay, back on topic, his character is such an odd-ball and socially inept I had a hard time liking him at times. But Michael is also very kind, sensitive (which can be both a positive and negative), outgoing, and eager to help others (even if what he does sometimes leads to disaster). He even had a few moments of wisdom that surprised me, showing he did earn his position as head of the Scranton branch of Dunder Mifflin.

In his own way Michael Scott was very entertaining throughout most the whole show, but by season 6 of The Office his routine of finding a proper relationship was getting old to me and I wanted him to go. And I got that at the end of season 7 and I was excited to have the rest of the cast get some more spotlight. But then half-way through season 8 I realized something... I missed him and his silly escapades and his non-nonsensical humor. With Michael you couldn't expect what was going to happen next in the show because of his random behavior. He would turn a normal Christmas party into an extravaganza, complete with ice sculptures and endless bottles of booze. Or there was that time he thought Toby was fired and used almost all his rainy-day money to throw an extra special party to celebrate getting rid of him. Every episode with him you knew he was going to do something crazy and I missed those moments so seeing him in the finale episode almost made me cry. I love you Michael Scott. Your finale moment filled a huge hole in me. That's what she said!

But more than Michael I loved Pam Beesly (Jenna Fischer) and Jim Halpert (John Krasinski). These two were kind of the "straight people" of The Office, the ones with the calm collective heads that helped keep people in line. They are also one of my favorite couples in television because they had an incredible journey of romance, humor, and hardships. They aren't together at first because Pam was engaged with a guy named Roy for over three years when the show starts. But it was also obvious that Pam had much better chemistry with Jim and I was just begging for that episode in which Pam dumped Roy and made it official with Jim. It's just that they got along with each other, were eager to hear about the other's life, kept helping each other out, had fun together, and wanted to make sure the other was happy. My god the levels of sweetness between them was enough to give me diabetes!

But that was all before they got together. When they officially hooked up I was cheering in joy and their adventures had just begun. Eventually Pam gets pregnant and Jim takes it very well, then Jim proposes to her and I almost cried, she moves into his old parent's house (which he buys for them both), and then they get married and I seriously did cry. You can clearly see, with how much I am gushing over them, that I idolize Jim and Pam's relationship. When I have a relationship I want a woman like Pam in my life. One that'll make me feel good myself and will do so much with me and we can shower each other in love and affection and OKAY I got to stop, enough is enough. The point of this is that Jim and Pam are a huge part of The Office and it wouldn't be the same without them and their love. They feel realistic on their own and together, which makes them both amazing characters.

And now comes our final main character that blew me away: Dwight Schrute, played by Rainn Wilson. Dwight is farmer turned paper salesman with an eccentric personality, along with a hell-bent willingness to succeed at his job and be on top no matter the cost. In a ways I kind of wish I could be more like him, but if I was try and hide swords, pepper spray, and nunchucks throughout my workplace or dress up as a killer robot on Earth Day to encourage people to recycle more people would view me as a freak and a weirdo. But it's also so amazing how quirky and outgoing he is. He is basically more adult version of Michael Scott with a dash of conspiracy nut. Additionally he and Jim are in a never-ending prank war, with Jim mostly winning in amazing ways, leading to some insanely gut-busting moments. But still he has overpowering presence makes you watch him in glee to he what he does next or how he responds to Jim's tomfoolery.

These three characters, along with the rest of the cast, had incredible interactions with one another. Michael Scott put it best to say they're like a family, both getting along and having arguments with one another, but still having great bonds with one another. And maybe this is just me, but it was so often hilarious because there was no laugh track. Yes, this is a "mockumentary," it is supposed to feel like an actual documentary when it's really all just fiction, so there wouldn't be a laugh track. But the last time I watched comedy that wasn't animated or for adults was The Big Bang Theory over 4 years ago and show relied on those laugh tracks to the point it wasn't funny anymore. But in The Office it's all natural laughs, which makes the comedy genuine.

Another thing this show does right, and that which makes it such a memorable show for me personally, is how it portrays healthy and unhealthy romantic relationships. Most throughout the show weren't very healthy and mostly involved Michael Scott, but there were other hits and misses throughout the show with the rest of the cast. Some ended with both people being friends or quietly while others ended dramatically or violently. I'm going to be using Michael Scott, along with Pam and Jim, to specifically talk about the things this show really nailed down about relationships.

First, things have to be balanced between partners. This means one partner should not overburden the other with their problems, needs, and behavior to the point that their other is wanting to escape from the relationship. You have to give and receive in a balanced way, like complimenting someone even if they've heard the same compliment many times already. I'm not saying it has to be perfectly balanced, but each party has to be comfortable with the other. Sometimes can ask others for help and sometimes you have to make exceptions or solve problems on your own, but you have to make sure that others are comfortable with you. Michael was mostly terrible at this because he was continually sticking his noses in people's business, acted like an unreasonable child, and continually wanted attention for everything he did, even if any of this would harm his employees.

Second, you have be reasonably open with others, especially your significant other, while also being allowed to keep our own secrets. Michael was also terrible at this because he was constantly hiding information and scapegoating other employees for the problems he faces, whether they were romantic, financial, or just plain social. Worse is that he kept spilling other peoples' secrets and it continually caused chaos throughout the office. Having a sense of trust in others is imperative to having relationships, romantic or normal. So you got to know what's important enough to tell others and what you should just keep in your mouth and hold it there.

Third, it won't be perfect and relationships should never be perfect. People have flaws and we, and our friends and partners, should be both accepting of them and helpful in dealing with those that could be improved or fixed. If you are with someone and they seem perfect to you, like they are handsome, smart, funny, have plenty of financial and material resources, and are always there to pick you up, then they own you. There are no prince/ princess charmings out there and if there are they basically own their partner like they're property and that's wrong! Consider Michael's romantic period with his higher up, Jan Levinson (Melora Hardin), where Michael had to basically take care of her after she got fired from Dunder Mifflin. Both she and Michael were often making each other upset and at times they questioned why they wanted to be together. That's the point where, even if it'll hurt you, you should leave a relationship, especially if the other isn't trying to help compromise with you. But remember that when you find someone who can accept your pros and cons and you can accept theirs in return, you found that one for you.

And lastly, relationships take time. Love is like a tree, in that it grows over time and becomes beautiful as it develops. A seed can't just become a tree in just a few weeks (flowers and leaves included), it has to mature slowly. Michael was hitting on almost any woman he saw throughout the show and almost all of them went out fast because he was rushing things and didn't take the time to get to know the person. Pam's mother for instant happened so fast that Michael didn't even ask what her age was, found out she was too old to have kids, and dumped her on her birthday, which made me want to smash my fist into his face. On the other hand you don't want it to go too long like it did with Pam and Roy or else the spark of love will smother out. I'll go into it soon, but seeing Pam interact with him made my heart melt and made me ask my screen every time an episode started, "When are Pam and Jim going to get together damn it?!"

Despite all the praise I have been giving The Office I did have some problems. There were times, as I mentioned, that characters like Michael Scott were really damn annoying at times, but there are still a few other problems I had. First off I think the show lasted a little too long with nine seasons. True, it did end on a strong finale, but by season 7 I was getting tired of certain aspects of the show and how repetitive the writing. So often Michael was mooning over a woman and he lied or kept information to himself or said the wrong stuff to the wrong people and mayhem happens in the office and his subordinates would react to his crazy antics. But then when Michael left the show the magic was gone. So they try to make Andy Bernard (Ed Helms) more like Michael when was having a great character arc of proving he's a good boss. Erin was forming a relationship with a new employee sort of like Jim and Pam. They were reusing old elements and getting rid of elements that were new and great. It's very odd and terrible choices.

I am personally very angry with that they did with Andy because as I said he was going through a great character arc becoming the new boss after Michael left. That was a really good arc and something new for people to go with. I really liked Andy then, he was already a fun character with some interesting talents like banjo and theater, but him trying to prove himself to his family when he didn't have to in the eyes of his fellow employees was great. But as I said after that he was being written like Michael that destroyed his character. Worse yet is that the relationship that he and Erin were building for three seasons was thrown away in less than one season. Writing like this lead to a big decline in episode quality and while I still got some laughs there weren't as many as before.

It strayed away from its original premise: People in an average job making the most out of their situation. It could be silly and bit over the top with its humor, but eventually the staff running the show were running out of material and not only began to reuse old plot elements, but take character traits and go ham with them. Kevin for instance was at first kind of dumb, but more slow in thinking with some hidden talents like basketball and playing in a band. Then in later seasons he was just a complete dumbie. Like multiple times there have been scenes where it shows he likes to eat and each got bigger and bigger. then the last season came along and he talks about how he can't eat a cat... That's odd and kind of cringy. And, as I mentioned already, they really didn't know what to do with Andy and his personality went all over the place.

In the end The Office was a fantastic show at the start, but later seasons brought down the quality, but thankfully not to a point where I wanted to throw it away into a pit of fire like other shows like Fear the Walking Dead. None the less I absolutely loved The Office, it was such journey with so many moments I'll never forget. Stuff like Bill Buttlicker, Andy with his banjo, Jim and Pam finally getting together, the fire drill scene, that creepy ass man played by James Spader, the snowman prank from Dwight, and of course all those TTWS moments. I now see why it has such a following.

Tentative Score: 8.5/10

Definitive Score: 8.5/10

Thank you little cousins, you gave me such a wonderful experience with The Office and one day I'll go through it again. But for those who want to go through it themselves, remember to pace yourselves. It'll be a really bumpy ride at times. You'll be surprised with how big it is, but it's surprisingly easy get into.... Okay last one, THAT'S WHAT SHE SAID!!!