TV Roundup: The Office, #12
It's time to rejoin the TV Roundup. The last installment - that is, a few days ago - I listed 24 as my 13th favorite show of all time. For what it's worth, that already seems too high to me, but I do stand by my reasoning -- the first few seasons were SO great that it was on pace to be a top five show. It's important - for me, anyhow - to adhere to the set of rules I established at the beginning.
21. Kids In The Hall
20. Taxi
18. Dexter
17. The Simpsons
16. The Daily Show
15. Mad Men
13. 24
What landed 24 lower than it originally was slotted for befalls the next selection as well. In fact, the #12 choice is a show that at least two of my rules were established for...
My 12th favorite show of all time is ... The Office.
Now, many of you are saying -- which one, dude? The two-year, 13 episode masterpiece from the UK? Or the US version, currently gearing up for its seventh season? The answer is ... both.
There are two reasons for this -- one, again, it's my list. But primarily it was this - the BBC version wouldn't normally qualify with just two seasons, and it was going to be really awkward to use two of my top-20 shows of all time being the same damn show. So, we're going for a combo meal.
Let's start back with the original BBC show, the brainchild of Ricky Gervais, who played the lead character of David Brent. (US corollary: Michael Scott) Brent is the manager of the Slough based paper company, and is way more concerned with being recognized for the comedic talents he (and perhaps he alone) thinks he has than being successful at his actual job. His second in command, Gareth Keenan (Mackenzie Crook, with Dwight Schrute being the US corollary), assigns himself much more authority than he actually has. And, of course, at the heart of the show is a love story with Tim (Martin Freeman) pining after Dawn the receptionist (Lucy Davis), despite her being engaged to a warehouse worker. (Tim and Dawn became Jim and Pam in the US version, of course.)
The format of the show is a documentary - which set the stage for many copycat shows, including of course the US version. (The UK version actually acknowledges the cameras overtly, something I wish the US show did more of.)
Brent's main flaw is his desperate desire to be loved by his employees, which leads to inadvertent sexism, racism and other incredibly awkward moments. (My personal favorite is probably his moment as a 'motivational speaker' when he, for no good reason, starts rapping.) The Office was the first show I can remember that preyed upon making its audience feel incredibly uncomfortable -- and yet, while I groaned and physically recoiled often during the series, I was laughing while I did it.
The BBC series ended after just two six-episode seasons (though it did tack on a brilliant Christmas special), and when I heard that they were making a US version of it, I was extremely pessimistic. Part of it was that the late Bruno Kirby was mentioned in the David Brent role, and while I loved Kirby and he died way too young, it didn't seem like a great fit.
Of course, Steve Carell got the gig and launched to stardom with it. As Michael Scott, he is a wonder -- and the supporting cast is flat out brilliant. From Rainn Wilson as Dwight to John Krasinski (Jim), Jenna Fischer (Pam), and a supporting cast that understands what is ridiculous about office work without (too often) going into the ridiculous.
Unfortunately, that only lasted so long -- The Office (US) has slipped in the last season or two. I can't put my finger on anything specific (I don't believe, for instance, that Jim and Pam actually getting together has led to any great creative loss) except to say this -- Gervais often says that he ended the BBC series because he didn't want to get to a place where they were just making shows to make more shows (and, of course, more money). That can't be said for the US version, and it really feels like it has lost steam of late. Carell has announced this will be his last season, and I have to say - they should end the whole show and try to go out with a bang. With props to writers/actors B.J. Novak (Ryan) and Mindy Kaling (Kelly) - two folks I felt the need to mention regardless of the awkward flow here - there really isn't much of a reason to keep it going.
While with 24, I ended up losing interest altogether in the show, I can't say that (thankfully) about The Office. I will say, however, that the episodes have sat on my DVR for days, even weeks. That, combined with the short tenure of the BBC series has moved the show, collectively, down to "just" my 12th favorite show of all-time.
THAT'S WHAT SHE SAID!