The Office
The Office is a successful comedy humoring the experiences of working in an office setting. The American version of the show is based on the BBC version which originally aired in 2001 in Great Britain. The show aired for two seasons before being pulled. In contrast to the BBC version, the American version is much less vulgar and much more successful. There have been over 6 spin-offs of the original BBC version, translating it into many different languages. In America, the show has been very successful and enters its fifth season this September.
The point of the show is to portray a failing paper company in the ever increasingly paperless world. Dunder Mifflin is a small, independently owned competitor of many big businesses such as Office Max and Staples. Much of the show takes place at the Scranton, Pennsylvania branch where you get to know many of the characters quite well. The other portion of the show that does not take place in the office is when the people from the office go on little adventures dreamed up by their moron of a boss Michael Scott.
The show tries to draw on the humor of office pranks and tries to relate the characters to people we might have had similar experiences with. If you follow the show from its beginning, you will get to know the characters very well and will be able to pick up on smaller jokes that the untrained eye might not catch. In the American version, there are four main characters.
Michael Scott (played by Steve Carrell) is the moronic regional manager of the Scranton branch. He is always looking to “boost troop moral” and make the office “more productive” by holding pointless meetings and joking around way too much. He never gets any work done and prevents others from doing their work. He is very oblivious to other people's feelings and does not know the difference between stereotypes and facts. In the end you get the feeling that he means well but you cannot help but laugh at some of his ideas or actions.
Dwight Schrute (played by Riann Wilson) is an authoritarian. He is always making sure that the laws and rules of the office are upheld and will always be willing to “discipline” those who disobey. Dwight sucks up to Michael and is always looking for more power and recognition. He is the top salesman in the company and desperately tries to be known as “The Assistant to the Regional Manager”. He acts quite childish at times and this causes him and Jim to get into many disputes.
Jim Halpert (played by John Krasinski) is a very nice and funny guy. His character is quiet yet funny. He gets into many disputes with Dwight do to the fact that their desks are right by each other’s. When Dwight gets annoying, Jim plays office pranks on him and this is a big part of where the humor of the show comes from. Jim is kind of like the class clown of the office but he cannot do it all on his own.
Pam Beesly (played by Jenna Fisher) is the sweet, attractive receptionist. She helps Jim prank Dwight and takes a lot of abuse from Michael. Throughout the show she is the victim of many inappropriate looks and remarks.
There are many other characters in this show such as Toby, Darrell, Angela, Andy, Karen, Stanley, Creed, Phyllis, Kelly, Ryan, Jan, David, Meredith, Oscar, Roy, and Kevin. These characters play a more supportive role and it seems like they rotate taking bigger turns in the episodes, depending on the plot and how it fits in with their character traits.
This show is highly successful and I feel there are many reasons why. First of all, you get to know the characters so well it’s as if you know them personally. You start to understand and witness different parts of their lives when they are not at the office and you can begin to predict how they will interact with each other, depending on who the two people are.
Secondly, there is a lot of drama. There are a couple love stories written into the script, playing off of the office romance idea. Also, because you know the characters so well, you are even more shocked when a twist is thrown in that you did not expect. The writing is so fantastic that as soon as the show ends, you are counting down the hours until the next week begins. It usually leaves each week with an unanswered question or some type of cliffhanger.
Lastly, I believe that this show is unique from all other on television because of the use of cameras. The Office started in Great Britain as I said earlier and for those of you who do not know this, actors look at the cameras over in Great Britain. In the US the camera takes on the role as an innocent bystander not noticed and pretty much non-existent to the show. In the office, they acknowledge the cameras and even talk to them at times. Some scenes show one of the characters in the conference room either lending their thoughts on what’s going on or answering questions the camera man apparently asked them. This lets you into the minds of the characters and helps you to get to know them on a more personal level. Also, it makes you feel like you are a part of the show. They way the camera moves as they are running and they way the characters talk looking into the camera gives the show a first person feeling.
The office is one of five shows I watch on T.V. I also watch How I Met Your Mother, Lost, 24 (when it was on), and Sports Center. I do believe that The Office is still my favorite. One thing that might be interesting to look into is how all of the different versions of the office compare. For example: the first episode of the American version has the same exact script as the British version’s first episode.
The Office Wikipedia Website
Best Office Moments
5 comments:
The description of the show and description of the characters are very thorough. I agree with your analysis of the show. The characters are presented in a way to familiarize the audience with them, which makes the drama in the show more interesting. The camera angles are used effectively in this show. Because of the use of cameras, it feels like the viewer is in the office which is effective in attracting viewers to the show. It is a "mockumentary" of the cubicle workplace; to make the audience feel like they are a part of that experience, makes the show engaging and hilarious.
I don't watch this show regularly, but I've seen a few episodes off of the DVDs. I really enjoy what I've seen and your analysis of the series is very informative and helpful for someone like me who isn't able to catch the show weekly.
What I really like is how it seems structured so differently than sitcoms. On top of the "Talking Head" sequences and the focus on character development and drama, it seems to set a different mood than the other shows on television. I find myself cringing at what happens as much as I find myself laughing with this show, so the difference in mood this show has with others might be interesting for further analysis.
Add "The Office" to your TiVo's To Do List. I like that the show is about a paper company branch and its daily operation. The characters are more developed than other in other shows which makes it more interesting. I personally believe that Dwight makes the show, he is the best character on television that I've seen in a while. Mockumentarys are always pretty interesting but there aren't very many out there. The Office is just pure genius and thats it. Really well thought out descriptions. Nice.
Good job on the discription and the analysis. One of the reasons i like it so much is because of the in depth development of the charaters. This show is starting to be one of my favorites. although i may have only seen 10 episodes at the most i find my self cracking up a lot, which is somthing that is hard for me to do at tv shows.
I absolutely love this show. I think that the way they use the camera is great and makes a big part of what the shows about. I mean the whole show is about them being taped in a regular office with day to day events going on and even though the events are always out there and often politically inccorect everything is played very well and the show would not be what it is if it werent for these things.
Post a Comment