Doomsday
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Post by Doomsday on Dec 18, 2020 18:16:29 GMT -5
I rewatched season 1 because Ian inspired me and while I said I'd hold off on airing my grievances about the show this simple rewatch got me going.
Of the two or three big things that changed The Office for the worse, one was the dynamic between Michael and everybody else. The BBC show nailed it as did the first couple seasons of the American series in that Michael was still the 'boss' and the other characters were his subordinates. He was still ignorant and offensive but he wasn't their friend either. He irritated them, he screwed them over, he threw them under the bus, they didn't respect him, it was very much a stupid employer/annoyed employee relationship. As the show progressed it turned into a 'we're all a family and we're best friends and we love each other' show and one of the main things that made it funny and relatable gradually vanished. Look at the last couple episodes before Carrell left and they had that dumb Rent song. Can you imagine the characters doing that in season 1? People might call that 'progress' but just because something changed doesn't mean it's for the best.
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IanTheCool
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Post by IanTheCool on Dec 18, 2020 21:39:06 GMT -5
As we were watching last night, we realized that the show certainly has the same problem lots of sitcoms have, in that the characters' notable traits become more and more dominant until they are more charactature -like. As far as Michael and the coworkers becoming more endearing of each other, that doesn't really bother me as its just sort of the way the show evolved and separated itself from its predecessor.
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Post by IanTheCool on Dec 21, 2020 22:14:02 GMT -5
Season 2 Ranked
Casino night - jim kisses pam
Christmas Party - they have a Christmas party
The Injury - Michael clamps his foot on a forman grill
The Client - chili's baby back ribs
Conflict Resolution - Michael tries to solve disputes
Booze Cruise - self explanatory
Office Olympics - self explanatory
Boys and Girls - Michael destroys the warehouse
Take Your Daughter to Work Day
Email Surveillance - jim's party
Dwight's speech - Dwight as Mussolini
Halloween - Michael fires someone
Sexual Harassment - self explanatory
The Dundees - award ceremony
The Fire - Ryan starts a fire
The Secret - Michael spills about jim and pam
Valentines Day - Michael goes to New York
Michael's birthday - Kevin doesn't have cancer
The Fight - Dwight and Michael fight
Performance Reviews - Michael tries to figure out jan
Drug Testing - Dwight finds a joint
The Carpet - gross
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IanTheCool
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Post by IanTheCool on Dec 30, 2020 23:13:43 GMT -5
Season 3 ranked
Benihana Christmas - Christmas at Benihanas
Gay Witch Hunt - they find out Oscar is gay
Traveling Salesmen - paired up for sales calls
The Negotiation - michael and Darrell try to get raises
The Return - dwight works at staples
Business School - Michael speaks to ryan's class
Branch Closing - scranton almost closes
Beach Games - beach games
Phyllis' Wedding - Phyllis' wedding
The Job - michael jim and karen interview for corporate
Diwali - the staff attends Kelly's party
Initiation - dwight trains ryan
Back From Vacation - michael and jan
The Convention - michael sees jim at paper convention
Product recall - bad watermark
The Coup - dwight tries to take michaels job
Safety Training - michael pretends to jump off the room
Cocktails - party at david wallace's house
The Convict - prison mike
Women's appreciation - michael takes women shopping
Grief Counselling - old manager dies, bird funeral
The Merger - branches merge
Ben Franklin - bachelor parties at work
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Dec 30, 2020 23:27:17 GMT -5
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Post by Neverending on Dec 30, 2020 23:27:17 GMT -5
Ah, yes. The iconic Prison Mike episode. Ian is not a fan.
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Post by Neverending on Dec 30, 2020 23:32:22 GMT -5
Because of my familiarity with the British version, I watched the U.S. Office when it premiered. Although very casually. But it’s fair to say that season 3 was the breakout season for the show. Most of those episodes were a big deal when they came out.
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Post by Neverending on Dec 30, 2020 23:38:33 GMT -5
Yeah. Office season 3 was 2006-07. That’s when NBC’s Thursday night line-up was Scrubs, 30 Rock, My Name Is Earl and The Office. That’s mean nothing to Canadian Ian, but Dracula can vouch that was a killer line-up. Scrubs was in its latter years, but Jibbs and I stuck with it till the bitter end. |
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Post by Dracula on Dec 31, 2020 6:48:20 GMT -5
Yeah. Office season 3 was 2006-07. That’s when NBC’s Thursday night line-up was Scrubs, 30 Rock, My Name Is Earl and The Office. That’s mean nothing to Canadian Ian, but Dracula can vouch that was a killer line-up. Scrubs was in its latter years, but Jibbs and I stuck with it till the bitter end. Possibly the last time in TV history that a "line up" mattered. |
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Post by IanTheCool on Dec 31, 2020 9:45:03 GMT -5
Because of my familiarity with the British version, I watched the U.S. Office when it premiered. Although very casually. But it’s fair to say that season 3 was the breakout season for the show. Most of those episodes were a big deal when they came out. Yes season 3 is really solid. |
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Post by IanTheCool on Dec 31, 2020 11:13:21 GMT -5
Season 4
Goodbye Toby - tobys out, hollys in Money - michael has second job, dwights bnb Dinner party - really awkward dinner party Local Ad - they make a commercial Branch Wars - they prank karen's branch Did I stutter? - stanley snaps at michael The Deposition - michael testifies in jan's case Job Fair - they go to a job fair Fun Run - michael hits meredith with his car Chair Model - michael tries dating again Night Out - michael and dwight party with ryan Dunder Miflin Infinity - Ryan makes website Launch Party - ryan launches website Survivor Man - michael tries to live in wilderness
This was a much weaker season
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Doomsday
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Post by Doomsday on Dec 31, 2020 12:31:15 GMT -5
You're flying through these seasons too fast for me. Is it tomorrow when The Office leaves Netflix and heads over to Peacock? I don't know what the availability is going to be like when it makes the jump, if it'll be free with ads or if you need to actually pay a subscription fee to watch them but I'm sure as shit not paying for yet another streaming service. My memory will have to do.
But since you bring up seasons 3 and 4 I think it's high time that I mention my final major issue with how The Office progressed because it's around this time that it really started rearing its head even though both seasons had a lot of really solid episodes.
Everybody's crazy - you've probably heard of the concept of 'straight man and crazy man' in comedy, namely that someone funny (crazy) needs someone normal (straight) to play off and make it grounded or else it goes off the rails. The first couple seasons did this to great effect. As the show went on though more and more characters became crazy and while the normal characters try harder to be funny the ones that were initially crazy just became more insane. Before long the entire show was just a complete circus with almost every character trying to out-funny and out-weird the other ones. Even the new characters, Erin, Gabe, Jo, Robert California, Nellie, they're all weird, none are normal and oftentimes come off as just trying so desperately hard to be funny with varying degrees of success. Now shows are allowed to breath and grow but it all depends on the direction the creators take their characters and with The Office they decided to make everything into a punchline as much as possible. Unfortunately for them that's not how you make a show funny.
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Post by Neverending on Dec 31, 2020 13:36:31 GMT -5
Yeah. Office season 3 was 2006-07. That’s when NBC’s Thursday night line-up was Scrubs, 30 Rock, My Name Is Earl and The Office. That’s mean nothing to Canadian Ian, but Dracula can vouch that was a killer line-up. Scrubs was in its latter years, but Jibbs and I stuck with it till the bitter end. Possibly the last time in TV history that a "line up" mattered. No. Parks and Recreation and Community30 Rock was still around Although by that point The Office had become the Scrubs of that particular line-up. |
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Post by IanTheCool on Dec 31, 2020 14:11:03 GMT -5
You're flying through these seasons too fast for me. Is it tomorrow when The Office leaves Netflix and heads over to Peacock? I don't know what the availability is going to be like when it makes the jump, if it'll be free with ads or if you need to actually pay a subscription fee to watch them but I'm sure as shit not paying for yet another streaming service. My memory will have to do. But since you bring up seasons 3 and 4 I think it's high time that I mention my final major issue with how The Office progressed because it's around this time that it really started rearing its head even though both seasons had a lot of really solid episodes. Everybody's crazy - you've probably heard of the concept of 'straight man and crazy man' in comedy, namely that someone funny (crazy) needs someone normal (straight) to play off and make it grounded or else it goes off the rails. The first couple seasons did this to great effect. As the show went on though more and more characters became crazy and while the normal characters try harder to be funny the ones that were initially crazy just became more insane. Before long the entire show was just a complete circus with almost every character trying to out-funny and out-weird the other ones. Even the new characters, Erin, Gabe, Jo, Robert California, Nellie, they're all weird, none are normal and oftentimes come off as just trying so desperately hard to be funny with varying degrees of success. Now shows are allowed to breath and grow but it all depends on the direction the creators take their characters and with The Office they decided to make everything into a punchline as much as possible. Unfortunately for them that's not how you make a show funny. Yeah this is a good point, but its also a pretty common problem with sitcoms. Characters gradually move to the more extreme ends of their stereotypes. Almost all tv comedies taht are around for a while do this. It happened with Community, its happening with brooklyn 99. etc. |
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Post by SnoBorderZero on Dec 31, 2020 14:36:58 GMT -5
"Goodbye, Toby. It's been niceeee."
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Post by Dracula on Dec 31, 2020 15:12:01 GMT -5
You're flying through these seasons too fast for me. Is it tomorrow when The Office leaves Netflix and heads over to Peacock? I don't know what the availability is going to be like when it makes the jump, if it'll be free with ads or if you need to actually pay a subscription fee to watch them but I'm sure as shit not paying for yet another streaming service. My memory will have to do. But since you bring up seasons 3 and 4 I think it's high time that I mention my final major issue with how The Office progressed because it's around this time that it really started rearing its head even though both seasons had a lot of really solid episodes. Everybody's crazy - you've probably heard of the concept of 'straight man and crazy man' in comedy, namely that someone funny (crazy) needs someone normal (straight) to play off and make it grounded or else it goes off the rails. The first couple seasons did this to great effect. As the show went on though more and more characters became crazy and while the normal characters try harder to be funny the ones that were initially crazy just became more insane. Before long the entire show was just a complete circus with almost every character trying to out-funny and out-weird the other ones. Even the new characters, Erin, Gabe, Jo, Robert California, Nellie, they're all weird, none are normal and oftentimes come off as just trying so desperately hard to be funny with varying degrees of success. Now shows are allowed to breath and grow but it all depends on the direction the creators take their characters and with The Office they decided to make everything into a punchline as much as possible. Unfortunately for them that's not how you make a show funny. Yeah this is a good point, but its also a pretty common problem with sitcoms. Characters gradually move to the more extreme ends of their stereotypes. Almost all tv comedies taht are around for a while do this. It happened with Community, its happening with brooklyn 99. etc. Sometimes it gets to the point where they're so crazy that they decide to do a waterski leap over a caged aquatic predator of some kind. |
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Doomsday
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Post by Doomsday on Dec 31, 2020 17:48:35 GMT -5
You're flying through these seasons too fast for me. Is it tomorrow when The Office leaves Netflix and heads over to Peacock? I don't know what the availability is going to be like when it makes the jump, if it'll be free with ads or if you need to actually pay a subscription fee to watch them but I'm sure as shit not paying for yet another streaming service. My memory will have to do. But since you bring up seasons 3 and 4 I think it's high time that I mention my final major issue with how The Office progressed because it's around this time that it really started rearing its head even though both seasons had a lot of really solid episodes. Everybody's crazy - you've probably heard of the concept of 'straight man and crazy man' in comedy, namely that someone funny (crazy) needs someone normal (straight) to play off and make it grounded or else it goes off the rails. The first couple seasons did this to great effect. As the show went on though more and more characters became crazy and while the normal characters try harder to be funny the ones that were initially crazy just became more insane. Before long the entire show was just a complete circus with almost every character trying to out-funny and out-weird the other ones. Even the new characters, Erin, Gabe, Jo, Robert California, Nellie, they're all weird, none are normal and oftentimes come off as just trying so desperately hard to be funny with varying degrees of success. Now shows are allowed to breath and grow but it all depends on the direction the creators take their characters and with The Office they decided to make everything into a punchline as much as possible. Unfortunately for them that's not how you make a show funny. Yeah this is a good point, but its also a pretty common problem with sitcoms. Characters gradually move to the more extreme ends of their stereotypes. Almost all tv comedies taht are around for a while do this. It happened with Community, its happening with brooklyn 99. etc. I watched and loved the first few seasons of Community, I didn't stick with it though. My problem though with The Office wasn't that some of the characters became more extreme even though they did, it was that ALL the characters became caricatures. It just made it very, very silly and ultimately was night and day compared to seasons 1 and 2. |
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Post by Neverending on Jan 1, 2021 21:21:55 GMT -5
Yeah this is a good point, but its also a pretty common problem with sitcoms. Characters gradually move to the more extreme ends of their stereotypes. Almost all tv comedies taht are around for a while do this. It happened with Community, its happening with brooklyn 99. etc. I watched and loved the first few seasons of Community, I didn't stick with it though. My problem though with The Office wasn't that some of the characters became more extreme even though they did, it was that ALL the characters became caricatures. It just made it very, very silly and ultimately was night and day compared to seasons 1 and 2. Then you have Saved by the Bell. It started as a silly kids show. “Hey, let’s have Screech’s birthday in Mr. Belding’s office and invite Kevin the Robot.” And it evolved into a “hip” teen show. “There’s no hope with dope.” |
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Post by Doomsday on Jan 1, 2021 22:21:18 GMT -5
Don't forget when Screech has to play Valley's Russian chess champion so Zack and Slater kidnap the guy so Zack can impersonate him and throw the match.
Or when Screech gets struck by lightning and can predict the future and instead of playing the stock market Zack makes him cheat on a test.
Or when the class gets scammed by the ring salesman Gem Diamond and they pretend to have Screech beat up Slater in order to intimidate the guy into giving them refunds.
I haven't watched the new Peacock show but I guarantee it doesn't come close to any of the fun that the original series had.
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Post by Neverending on Jan 2, 2021 14:36:49 GMT -5
Cocktails - party at david wallace's house I just finished watching this on Comedy Central. Great episode. Directed by J.J. Abrams. I love how the three relationships are so radically different from each other. The awkward goofiness of Jim and Karen. The abusive nature of Roy towards Pam. The love vs lust battle between Jan and Michael. Oh, Toby’s crush on Pam. lol. |
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Post by IanTheCool on Jan 2, 2021 14:50:24 GMT -5
Cocktails - party at david wallace's house I just finished watching this on Comedy Central. Great episode. Directed by J.J. Abrams. I love how the three relationships are so radically different from each other. The awkward goofiness of Jim and Karen. The abusive nature of Roy towards Pam. The love vs lust battle between Jan and Michael. Oh, Toby’s crush on Pam. lol. That's a really good point. I just found it lacking on the funny a bit. Except Dwight exploring the house.
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Post by Neverending on Jan 2, 2021 15:24:32 GMT -5
I just finished watching this on Comedy Central. Great episode. Directed by J.J. Abrams. I love how the three relationships are so radically different from each other. The awkward goofiness of Jim and Karen. The abusive nature of Roy towards Pam. The love vs lust battle between Jan and Michael. Oh, Toby’s crush on Pam. lol. That's a really good point. I just found it lacking on the funny a bit. Except Dwight exploring the house.
What’s your take on Jan and Michael? Were you a Karen fan? |
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Post by Neverending on Jan 2, 2021 15:38:27 GMT -5
I’m not an Andy (Ed Helms) fan, but him and Jim running into his girlfriend, the part-time frozen yogurt chef, at the high school is hilarious. |
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Post by IanTheCool on Jan 2, 2021 15:51:28 GMT -5
That's a really good point. I just found it lacking on the funny a bit. Except Dwight exploring the house.
What’s your take on Jan and Michael? Were you a Karen fan? I found the Jan episodes really annoying. I liked Karen, but I'm okay only having one season with her. She's better as Anne. |
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Post by Neverending on Jan 2, 2021 16:03:32 GMT -5
I found the Jan episodes really annoying. I can see why you ranked the episode so low. When Parks & Rec premiered I thought she was playing the same character. lol. |
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Post by Neverending on Jan 2, 2021 16:08:15 GMT -5
You ranked this episode waaayyy too low. This is clearly a series Top 10. “Jan likes the schoolgirl roleplay.” “That’s very common.” “But I feel uncomfortable wearing the dress.” LMFAO |
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