The Office running thread

FYI - Catherine Tate is the woman up for the manager's job.

 

I did not like this episode one bit because it turned out almost exactly as I feared it would. A sweeps stunt that essentially wound up spinning its wheels for 60 minutes.

There wasn't a story, there wasn't a plot. Just as happened with Will Ferrell, the gameplan seemed to be, "Let's throw in a bunch of big names in a pot and comedy will happen." And it didn't.

Now I'm not the kind of viewer who needs miles and miles of character development or procedural advancement in every episode of a show, but they've got to at least give us SOMETHING. As I tried to put my finger on what, precisely, I didn't like about this episode, the answer I came up with was that ... nothing happened.

Sure, there were a few funny lines. Kevin talking to the puppet got a laugh out of me, and Dwight dressed in gauze was worth a cheap chuckle.

But they stranded a LOT of runners in scoring position. The Andy-Erin dynamic went nowhere. Gabe got pissy with Andy and wound up slinking off to Tallahassee in a storyline that had promise but trickled out. Same for the Phyllis-as-Erin's-mom? plotline, which ended with a casual and unsatisfying "Results were negative. Ho-hum." The Angela-vs.-coworkers clash over her fiancee could have gone several different ways, but ... nothing. And the who's-the-boss plot ended the same way it began, with no real movement at all.

There's a fine line between subtlety and boredom. I very much appreciate subtle humor. This one, sad to say, had all the inspiration and playing-out-the-string effort of a Pittsburgh Pirates game in August.

 

I loved last week's episode -- maybe a little too silly, but it worked -- but thought the finale was horrible.

None of the new manager candidates, with the exception of perhaps Spader, were very interesting. Carrey was funny, but his bit was too short. Hell, I like the Deangelo character more than any of the interviewees last night.

And other than finding out Erin isn't Phyllis' child, not a whole lot was resolved. Usually, if nothing else, the Office is great about ending the season with a bang (Casino Night, etc). I still enjoy the show, but this year's finish felt more like a thud.

 

Great write-up, I definitely agree. The Office just punted its finale. Sure, it was funny, but as you write, nothing freakin' happened. I like the episode on my initial viewing, but as I've thought about it, the taste has gone a bit sour in my mouth.

The episode was like a candy bar - initially satisfying, but ultimately empty. I loved some of the skits, like Gabe freaking out about the Sun, but nothing really flowed and everything was just one big "eff you" cliffhanger.

 

You put your finger on it there. That's it.

So much could have happened ... and nothing did.

 

Has there ever been a more drawn-out will-they-or-won't-they storyline that nobody cares about than Andy and Erin?

 

Glee has two Emma and Will, and Rachel and Finn. Or depending on perspective, Finn and Quinn. </crossthread>

 

Spader as the boss would certainly return the show to its awkward-moments-equal-comedy roots.

I was all the more bummed by this ep because Paul Leiberstein (Toby) wrote it, and his eps are usually gold.

 

Just read that James Spader might join The Office ... but to replace Kathy Bates. He's be named manager but talk his way into CEO or something like that. The role would be more extensive than Bates, who only showed up once in a while.

I thought he was awesome on the finale and wouldn't have minded him as the manager. But if he's in for Bates then you still need a manager. Plus there was that new secretary they added at the end. A lot of additional cast.

 

Spader in for Bates would be brilliant.

 

Forgive me if this has been covered already, but did you know Phyllis Smith was once a cheerleader for the St. Louis football Cardinals?

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/gameon/post/2011/06/phyllis-smith-nbc-the-office-nfl-cheerleader/1





My mind is completely blown ...

 

Wow on Phyllis. And would love to see Spader join show. Love him.