The Office Season 6

[GAME05]

it seems odd this far into a series they haven't figured out what to do with the Michael character. he was funny when he first came on as racially-naive, then they had him be the pathetic loser, and now he's mostly just a jerk.

 

i watch 30 Rock sometimes. it's nothing too special, but Alec Baldwin is just so good, his acting alone is enough to hold my attention for 30 minutes.

[Point Beer Is Best]

Point --- hasn't 30Rock dropped off a cliff or do I just keep catching half-assed episodes by random chance? I'm not a consistent watcher of the show until it comes out on DVD. I thought the last half of season 3 really lagged though, save for a few that were among the best they've ever done (Apollo, Apollo comes to mind).

Yeah, 30 Rock has taken a nosedive for me as well. As Game05 said, the only thing that really keeps me interested is whatever plot Alec Baldwin is involved with. Less of Liz/Tracy/Jenna and more of the "writers" would be a plus as well. Kenneth is hit or miss for me. No story archs really carry over through an entire season, save for Donaghy's desire to be chairman of GE (Will Arnett was great as his adversary), but GE selling NBC/Universal to Comcast kind of threw a wrench in that.

 

They do a good job with cameo's - James Franco, Conan O'Brien, Brian Williams, Betty White, etc.

 

But still nothing as "cringeworthy" as The Office has been as of late.

[Schlitz001]

I hated Parks and Rec at first, but right now it's my favorite show of the 4 Thursday shows. The Office is usually when I cook my dinner to get ready for 30 Rock.

[patrickgpe]

I agree that season 1 of parks and rec was bad but this season has been hilarious. I don't get all the office hate around here. This season has been much better than last year. I think the biggest problem is that the show is now in season 6 and there isn't much new that they can do.

[FVBrewerFan]

I don't understand all the hate/confusion over the Michael Scott character. Michael hasn't changed since the first episode. He is always doing or saying something "over the top." I actually find his character interesting, because through all the bluders there are times he proves he's a great salesmen, and even has more business savy than we would think.

 

With that said, I enjoy his "inventing new words" than the real over the top stuff, but since it's Michael it's funny to me. We all have our own sense of humor, I guess. I know lots of people like Earl and/or 30 Rock, and those shows jsut don't "do it" for me.

[Gobias Industries]

I just got done watching all the sitcoms from Thursday since I was outta town when they aired, and I thought this episode was excellent. I hate when Michael pushes the envelope in the workplace. He'd be fired for almost every stupid thing he's done the last few seasons. Since "Date Mike" was outta of the office, and into a scenario where many people act like complete fools, it worked for me. I hate Kevin though. Every second he's on the screen is time that should be given to characters that are actually funny.

 

The writing seemed a lot more clever than the previous 5 or so episodes, so I went back and looked at the credits and BJ Novak was the writer. That explains that.

 

30 Rock has gotten stale (the last few episodes have been getting better though). There's still the funny one-liners, but I think this was a show that was really meant to go only about 2 seasons. There has been no character development outside of Tracy. They still kill it every few episodes. The episode with James Franco was one of the best half hours of comedy I've ever seen.

[Buckylovesbeer]

Dwight can really be a ladies man when he chooses to be, huh?

[Godspeed]

30 Rock has gotten stale (the last few episodes have been getting better though). There's still the funny one-liners, but I think this was a show that was really meant to go only about 2 seasons. There has been no character development outside of Tracy. They still kill it every few episodes.

I agree with these criticisms. 30Rock is almost like a live action Family Guy (not meant as a compliment), but they were untouchable for about the 2 years from the middle of Season 1 to the middle of Season 3. After that, pretty much everything involved with Tracy just came off as really lazily written. His improvising bit in the last episode, written or not, was just not funny.

 

Also, they continually overuse Kenneth. He's a one-dimensional bit part that they try to play off as a main character. How many different ways can they show Kenneth as a simple country bumpkin happy with what life gave him. They should have diminished his airtime after the Muppet dream sequence in Season 3. That was awesome comedy and pretty much tells you all you need to know about the character right there. Give me more Hornberger! Or better yet, more Dennis!

 

___________________________________

 

As for this season of the Office, I think sometimes we just expect too much. I'm currently re-watching the holy grail, Season 2. I think in general, Season 6 suffers more from a surplus of characters rather than a drastic decline in quality. (Of course one could argue point A is the cause of point B...) Other than that, the show is more or less the same.

 

The plots are character-driven now, as it was then:

Jim + Pam + Roy --> Jim + Karen/Dwight + Angela --> Jim + Pam/Andy + Angela --> Andy + Erin.

Date Mike, a persona he's based on the behavior of relationship gameshow douches, isn't any different than his Mambo #5 ringtone, his improve character, or his off-brand cologne.

 

And the Staples-whoring of Season 3 and beyond isn't any different than the Chili's-whoring of Season 2.

 

I think they made a mistake in tinkering with the dynamic when they moved Jim to manager. And sometimes they focus too much on the personal relationships at the expense of the business relationships of the coworkers. But things are more or less back to where they were. And the subtle humor that made me enjoy the show in the first place is still present.

[DougJones43]

So, they just decided to all of the sudden make Erin into a crazy person? Okay...

[BrewCrewForever]

I only caught the very end of last nights episode. I knew there wasn't a new Parks and Rec till next week so I just figured the same went for The Office, then flipping through the channels and it was on and it was new.

[sheethead]

So, they just decided to all of the sudden make Erin into a crazy person? Okay...

I always thought Erin was crazy. And the episode with her brother started to solidify the character as a bit off. Andy will never get his happily ever after.

[chadomac]

Yeah, I also understood that that's where the writers were going. The weird brother relationship was supposed to make that more obvious, I think. She has always been a weirdo.

 

Great episode, I laughed a lot. "What your real name? Lionel Frankenstein?"

[jerichoholicninja]

Erin has always been crazy this is just the first time there was a whole episode devoted to it. She usually has one or two one liners an episode that shows that she's a little unstable. If anyone caught her on Craig Ferguson last week she seems a lot like her character.

[Godspeed]

Yeah, Erin always has been a bit odd. Plus if she wasn't, why would she be with Andy Bernard?

 

Michael's "I'll have what she's having" after Erin goes into her "hair room" during the meltdown in the restaurant was classic. I had to watch this one online, and usually those don't hold up as well, but this one was a winner.

[Flood Pants]

There was a recent interview with the actress in The Onion AV club. She said that Erin was originally only written for four episodes during the Michael Scott Paper Company arc. They decided to keep her around, though. She has gone from a fill-in at the desk to now having one-on-one time with the show's primary star. Good for her!

 

Erin kind of felt like a tack-on most of this season, but they're wisely starting to develop her into a character with some real depth. Having her around has also been good for Andy's character, as well. He becomes more tolerable and sympathetic every week. One thing I always give these writers credit for is realizing when changes need to be made to their characters and making them in a timely way. I felt there was a really good balance of screen time between the actors this week, and that's been one of my biggest complaints of the season.

 

It seems like Ryan continues to be a background character. They ran him through maybe the best character arc of anyone on the show, but now it seems like they don't know what to do with him. Or maybe B.J. Novak is ready to focus more on writing and less on acting.

[homer]

My biggest complaint about the show in recent weeks - not enough Creed!!

[adamb100]

Carell was asked, "How long will you stay with The Office for? How many more series [that's British speak for "seasons"]? How long does your contract run?"

 

"Contract through next season," Carell answered. Asked if he could see himself signing a new contract to stay on beyond that, Carell replied, "I don't think so. That will probably be my last year."

 

http://tv.ign.com/articles/108/1086587p1.html

 

Season 7 could be the last season...

[bjkrautk]

http://tv.ign.com/articles/108/1086587p1.html

 

Season 7 could be the last season...

...if they don't pay Steve Carell (and the rest of the ensemble). Betweeen Friends, Seinfleld, ER, etc. - this is how you get paid at NBC.

 

[And That]

Steve Carell has a legit movie career, he doesn't need the payday from The Office. And I don't think anyone would be too sad to see The Office go after 7 seasons. It had a good run.

[FVBrewerFan]

I agree, I still watch every episode, but don't look forward to it with great anticpation anymore. By the way, last tnight's episode had a really strange flow to it, almost like their was a different director or something. Sure, some good laughs as usual. How predictable was it that the woman was interested in Michael after the whole show was spent with poeple telling him the opposite?

[Godspeed]

FV - last night's episode was directed by Mindy Kaling (who plays Kelly Rajnigandha Kapoor).

 

I'm really liking the awkwardness Gabe from Sabre has brought to the dynamic. If they do a Season 8 without Steve Carrell, it would be interesting to see him in the role of GM. Of course, Season 8 without Steve Carrell could also lead to the loss of several other key players. But I don't think dropping their most polarizing character is necessarily a bad thing. I don't expect the show to last long without him, but it would be interesting nonetheless.

[Invader3K]

I don't think you can really do The Office without Steve Carrell. The whole show is based on the premise of the awkward boss. Having someone else take over just wouldn't really do the show justice at this point. As much as I love the series, one more season is probably enough, as seven seasons is a pretty good run for any television show.

 

Last night's episode was pretty good for me. Some of the ancillary characters like Oscar and Kevin got to have their moments again. I liked the argument about the M&M jar in particular. I did think the ending was kind of predictable, though having no one believe Michael afterwards was kind of amusing.

[BrewCrewForever]

If Steve leaves after season 7 they might as well just hang up the series. 7 seasons is a very good run. The last two, while good are not really on par with how great the first 4 were.

[adamb100]

Decent episode last night. Liked the clffhanger @ the end.

[Buckylovesbeer]

Creed talking about getting $3 from "Darnell" to do a throat-slashing gesture to Andy. Great stuff. "I have done many things for much less."