Michael Scott: Or "Michael Snot" as alleged best friend Todd Packer once claimed
I'm expecting Season 7 of The Office in the post this week, so as difficult as it was to walk into my local DVD rental shop this morning and see it on the "Box-sets to buy" shelf, I only have to exercise patience for another day or two (presuming postal competence, of course). So far I am up to the end of Season 6, which is pretty bloody obvious, really. I don't go scouring the internet for brand new series, tempting as it can be given Universal's TV-to-DVD distribution arm Playback's lethargy in bringing us Region 2 dwellers complete seasons (Office S7 ended on US telly in May of last year, we're only getting it now). For years I have loved the excitement and anticipation of pre-ordering a film or TV series from an online retailer, or going into a shop and taking the plunge on an impulse purchase that ends up giving me hours and hours of viewing pleasure for years to come. So I sit, and purchase, and wait patiently for the release date that can often get put back time and again, for reasons never divulged to us mere consumers. Fortunately, I am not the sort of sad-act fanboy who, if he can't be as up to date as those across the Atlantic, will stick his fingers in his ears and yell out "La La La, I'm not listening!" at the first sign of any spoilers. Spoilers generally don't tend to bother me. Yes, I know who ends up taking the job of Dunder Mifflin Regional Manager at the start of Season 8, and I don't mind that, even though it will probably be another year or so before I get to watch that episode. Maybe it's because The Office is so damn rewatchable, and the more times you watch it, the more you remember exactly what happens and who says what to whom, and all the best one-liners and vox pop cutaways and so on. Of the six seasons I own as of today (seven tomorrow, touch wood!), I think I've watched each one a minimum of 10 times each, more times for outstanding seasons such as the second and third.
The one thing that really grinds my beans about British TV viewers is their arrogant insistence that the UK version of the show is far superior to the US Office. With the majority having never seen more than a handful of the US episodes, they in some sort of faux-patriotic ignorance claim that the original BBC series, on which the American version was originally modelled, is unsurpassed and it's Transatlantic cousin is a poor, phoney-looking copy of Ricky Gervais' early-noughties masterpiece. These people are entitled to their opinion, naturally. They're wrong, and they're grotesquely ugly freaks, to paraphrase Chris Morris, but they are entitled to spout whatever bollocks they like out of some sort of misguided loyalty to Gervais, a once-talented writer now so insecure and precious about his work, he didn't hesitate to block yours truly on Twitter for daring to give him negative feedback about his woeful recent Beeb effort Life's Too Short, an insipid, useless 6-parter that basically cast Warwick Davis as David Brent with dwarfism. Gervais, a man so British through and through, he fucked off to Hollywood the first chance he could get to see if he could simulataneously work his way into the A-List while offending his peers by telling near-the-knuckle gags about them at awards ceremonies. Ricky Gervais is, or rather was, a good writer and a funny man, and the UK Office had some blinding moments, in particular the beautifully-done climax to the Tim and Dawn unrequited romance arc in the final episode. But comparing a UK sitcom to a US one, even when they're basically borne of the same vaginal canal, is pointless. And if the naysayers would give the US Office a chance, they would see that it's no ordinary American comedy series.
The mockumentary style nicked from Gervais' original, means that The Office doesn't come across at all like your bog-standard J. Arthur sitcom, all laughter tracks and loud whooping from the audience when a favourite character enters a scene. The production and direction of Greg Daniels' adaptation means that you laugh when you want to laugh, cringe when you have to cringe, and in the workplace of Dunder Mifflin, it's the bizarre blend of documentary realism and often-cartoonish silliness that makes it addictive, laugh-out-loud telly. What other show on the planet could pull of something so utterly ridiculous as one of my all-time favourite scenes, where Jim comes to work impersonating Dwight, and it be not only gut-achingly funny, but also somehow believable too? Though that would never happen to any of us in real-life at our workplaces (present company excepted because I don't currently have a workplace), The Office has taken the time to let us get to know these characters, to feel how they feel about their co-workers. We know why Jim always pranks Dwight, and we love him for it. We equally love Dwight's petty reactions, because we know Dwight Schrute and have grown accustomed to his eccentric behaviour.
Indeed, when you talk about Dwight Schrute, you are talking about arguably the greatest comedy character of modern TV times. Michael Scott may have been the one-time Regional Manager and the star of the show, and his escapades rank up their as some of the most hilarious ever witnessed by viewers. But it's the fascistic yet somehow endearing Dwight who often steals the episode, with his on-going feud with Jim Halpert, his obsession with beets (or beetroot to us Brits) and his unquenchable desire to consistently be the top paper salesman in Pennsylvania.
Dwight Schrute: middle name "Fart" and a security risk. FACT.
Played brilliantly by Rainn Wilson, the good news stemming from Dundler Mifflin closing it's doors for good next year is that Dwight and his dysfunctional family are to get their own spin-off series The Farm, which means we will be able to witness the peculiar, pompous behaviour of Dwight for at least a little while longer. Speaking of the final Office series, it is also hoped that Steve Carell, who quit his lead role as Michael towards the end of Season 7, will reprise his iconic role as the childlike, inconsiderate but eternally-loveable former manager for at least one episode. I for one feel that the staff of the Scranton branch of Dunder Mifflin cannot say a proper goodbye to it's millions of loyal fans without him being involved in some way. But time will tell on that one.
The general consensus of opinion is that The Office is ending probably at the right time, and although it could feasibly carry on for umpteen more years with a rotating cast, the show has lost a lot of it's steam and original quirky charm for the past couple of series or so. I always subscribe to the cliche of all good things must come to an end, and while I've not seen anything from Seasons 7 or 8 yet, from the reports, spoilers and tidbits I've read, this fine sitcom is finally running low on fresh ideas. We Dundler Mifflinites will always have the DVDs that, as I said earlier, are so fantastic you can never tire of watching them over and over again. The Office will never die, just like other all-time comedy classics like Only Fools & Horses and Frasier haven't. Can I recommend a favourite episode to those of you who are Office virgins yet to experience the weird universe of fictional Scranton? Not really, because there are so many absolute pearlers to choose from. But if I had to tell you to start somewhere that I know would get you as hooked as I am, I'd say forget the short first season for now (which many people slated at the time but has some brilliant moments) and start with the opener of Season 2 The Dundies, an office party with a difference.
I could sit here for hours more and ramble on about why I love The Office so much, above is just a few reasons why, and there are many, many more. I implore you to check out the series for yourself and give it a proper chance. It doesn't matter if it's American, British, or made by a naked tribe of Amazonian warriors, it is sheer comic gold. I must end this now, as I'm off for a long walk to the nearest post collection depot to pick up a box-set of 1960's psychadelic mindfuck drama The Prisoner (now there's another story!). Till the next time.
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