The Office (US)

Well hello there! It's been a while since we've spoken! I hope your festivities are going well and that life is treating you excellently! I did get awfully busy/stressed with university, hence the lack of decent posting, but for now at least, we are back on track with your usual broadcasting!
So, as I mentioned, I was getting rather bogged down with university work, which only leaves one question: what TV series did I marathon whilst I should have been doing university work?

(P.S I am highly aware that I should probably be doing some kind of Christmas related post, but I am neither crafty nor anything else like Ben is; my skills don't translate well into the festivities. So suck it.)

Between season one and season two, Steve Carrell changes physically so
much, just a heads up. It's startling. 

I, like most of you probably, have been aware of The Office for some time now, but never really felt the urge to sit down and watch it properly. It was till I was chatting to a friend on facebook that she urged me to watch it, from the start and right the way through. Considering that I knew it was all on netflix and with the dread of having to write an essay, I figured that it would be the perfect time to start a new show!

#iconic

The Office is based on the British sitcom of the same name and same premise. Set in a documentary style, a camera crew follow the lives of a group of people in a paper company trying to avoid downsizing in a world where mega companies like Staples and Office Depot threaten their existence. I think that the way The Office is presented to us, the audience, is interesting because oft times the camera is outside a room peering through blinds or across the way from a car window giving us the feeling of candid camera. The genius in the actors is in the way that they, especially Michael, play to the camera; the subtle glance to the camera often brings about a performance of some nature knowing that they are On. Just as often they notice that the camera has caught them in some kind of compromising position. One on one time with the camera also gives a new dimension to the comedy from the characters. [Editor's Note: Is it just me or does it sound like Rhona's still in essay-writing mode? Poor thing...]

There are some times where I do think to myself, "erm, no, there is no way the cameras would have been able to be there or to have not caught another camera-person on camera" etc. but it's not hugely irritating and if I don't think about it too much, then it's not something that is too blindingly obvious.

Everyone always looks this grim. It's great.

It's not a show that you're going to want to marathon straight away. You'll watch the first few episodes and think, "ha! that was amusing, now on to other things." and you'll repeat that process for a few days. Then it happens. You'll watch an episode and say, "Hey, wait, they can't end on that. I'll just watch another, just to see how that goes." And then suddenly you're on season five and you've not slept in so many days, you've lost count. It takes you by surprise. My friend asked me what season I was on and I thought I was on season two, but when I went to check, I was an episode away from finishing season four.

Oh, Michael.

Season two is probably where The Office really hits its stride, so do persevere (season one is only six episodes, i'm sure you'll manage). The real draw of the show is the characters; it is really a character-based show than a plot-based one. The Jim/Dwight rivalries are always hilarious (see above gif; pranks galore) and the Jim/Pam relationship is simultaneously heart warming and heart breaking. I just love Jim, okay. I do sometimes go in waves on Michael Scott, portrayed by Steve Carrell. Scott is so insensitive and awkward and weird that I just want to shake him into normalcy; however, in an episode where he is being particularly insufferable, something happens that reminds me that, at his core, he's just a lonely guy who wants some friends, and his heart truly is in the right place; he just has trouble expressing himself.

There! Is this Christmassy enough for you? Gah, there's no pleasing you people.

It's the supporting cast that really makes the show come to life though. Kevin, the somewhat slow accountant; Angela, the stern and judgemental office worker; Oscar, the gay guy who suffers at the hands of Michael's crippling awkwardness and need to make things not weird (which ends up making things weird) when it's found out that he is gay; Stanley, the no nonsense salesman who has little to no time for Michael's antics; Phyllis, the older woman who just wants to get some work done; Kelly, the customer rep who won't stop talking; Toby, the HR representative that Michael hates for inexplicable reasons; Creed, a creep; and Ryan, the temp, who can't seem to digest the insanity going on around him.

Nope. No context.

I'd love to go further into the finer details of the plot and the development of the characters, but I'd hate to take anything away from your viewing experience, so I'll wrap things up there. There are some great faces to look out for in some of the seasons and just yeah. Stopping now before I ruin things.

What have you guys been watching?