Follow Up – The Office (US)

The Office – NBC – 6 Seasons – USA

What a difference four years can make. Who could have imagined we’d live in a world with a black President AND in a world where we’d no longer debate whether the American version of The Office is better than the British version. Finally we’ve come to accept them as separate entities that share the same title; gone are the days of justifying your enjoyment of Jim and Pam over Tim and Dawn by insisting both shows are funny but in different ways, almost as if they were different programs.

There is no doubt that as The Office leaves its sixth season behind that it has consistently been one of the best comedies of the decade. The kind of show that is able to marry great belly laughs with moments that touched our hearts. With news that the seventh season will be Steve Carrell’s last as Dunder-Mifflin Manager Michael Scott, the question has to be asked: is it time for The Office to hang up its boots?

The Office is a show that has gone through many peaks and troughs throughout the years. Obviously the first season was universally acknowledged rubbish that completely turned around in the second and third season, only to take a creative dip in the fourth. At the moment The Office seems to be coasting along just fine. With weddings, and babies, and corporate takeovers, The Office continues to find things for its staff to do whilst delivering consistently amusing episodes on a weekly basis.

What would a Carrell-less Office even look like? Other than the obvious gap in the self-destructive shenanigans department, what else would be different? Would we spend more time with the increasingly dull Jim and Pam? Would Dwight become more absurd? Would we be forced to put up with A-storylines featuring the stupid on stupid action of Andy and Erin: the anti-Jim/Pam? Or would we be left with the somewhat intriguing idea of Darrel taking on the role of manager? Or better yet, Creed?

There are a lot of things The Office does very well and being able to adapt and change over the years has been one of them. However, finding a way to make the show work without that whirligig of drama named Michael Scott spinning at the centre of it all may be too much to ask even of these talented writers. I’d love to see them try though as Michael becomes more tiresome the longer they allow him to screw his entire life up. Even brief moments like his sweet relationship with Holly are cut short by writers determined to make Michael’s life miserable. Although, with the promise of Holly returning to Scranton in season seven it would seem that despite all the pain the writers may leave Michael Scott with some happiness after all.

There are few comedies on television that can tell simple stories the same way The Office does. Despite being wildly different shows, the writers of 30 Rock pale in comparison when it comes to simple storytelling. Often the show will lean heavily into the absurd but The Office always manages to keep the humanity behind it all. There are few shows that really do the sort of serialized storytelling that The Office does; multi-episode story arcs that remind us that this world is ever changing, rather than always reverting back to the norm after the credits roll.

The Office is one of the most popular shows on television, and the most popular show on NBC, so business sense would suggest that there will be life after Steve Carrell. Artistic sense may advise wrapping things up as he leaves and go out on a high note. You know what though, with these writers even if a Carrell-less season does suffer a creative slump these guys will find a way for the show to bounce back. Either way I’m looking forward to the journey.