I was watching old episodes of this show recently and it reminded me how good it used to be. Seasons 1-3 are solid gold and still have me laughing years later and after multiple viewings. Since then I wouldn’t say it all went downhill because there were many great episodes afterwards and many that were just good enough to keep us going. I always thought the show got a bit too silly in the later years as Steve Carell prepared to exit the show. Once he was gone I was surprised to find that the show seemed to get a bit better for a while before dragging again. I did not like the James Spader episodes and thought enough was enough for Dunder Mifflin. However this past season has been a pleasant surprise. I think Clark Duke has been an excellent addition to the cast and Ellie Kemper just keeps getting better and better. The show is winding down now and will be over for good in merely a couple of weeks. This show may not be as great now as it once was but I will still miss it. I have been an avid viewer for over eight years now and it’s always hard to say goodbye to something after that long.
I have read only a little about the series finale but I know it will involve a wedding. There are many guest appearances in the episode including Mindy Kaling and B.J. Novak so I am making what I would call a safe assumption in that the episode will involve a wedding between Ryan and Kelly. I suppose the finale wouldn’t be fitting without some closure to that long standing relationship. I do not know this but simply feel safe in assuming that is what will happen. The big question as to the final episode is of course “Will we see Michael Scott again?” I have read conflicting reports in regards to this. Steve Carell was not on the list of guest appearance I read and his people have said more than once that he is not returning. Recently there has been speculation though that he is making some sort of small guest cameo during the last episode. I hope it is not like the cameo we saw of him in Life’s too Short in which he simply appeared through FaceTime on Ricky Gervais’s computer. That would be horribly disappointing, nearly as disappointing as an ending to this show without an appearance from one of its best characters.
I thought Michael Scott got way too over the top long before his exit from the show and I did not miss him when he was gone. However having seen so much without him I have found that I do miss the character and the presence of Steve Carell on the show. I was actually watching season 3 the other day just to kick back and enjoy the good old days of the show when I decided to write this. I hope the finale episode of The Office is one that makes us all laugh like we did in season 3 when the show was the best of the best. I also hope we do see Steve Carell, because the show wouldn’t be closed right without him.
While I’m on the subject I would like to go over something that’s been on my mind about Jim and Pam. The show got everything it could out of this relationship years ago and everything sense has been monotonous. To be perfectly honest I don’t really think John Krasinski and Jenna Fischer even have good chemistry with one another. As two lovers divided by circumstance I think they were great. They loved each other from a distance and seemed to be perfect for one another but once they actually got together I thought the fire was burned out. I don’t think they came off as a real couple or two people who actually loved each other even before this season threw a wrench in their relationship. All the teasing of infidelity and divorce was awful too. I always have a problem with the show I watch to laugh getting awkward or dramatic. This show has always done far too much of that but I felt they really went too far with the Jim and Pam thing.
UPDATE**
Let me kindly revoke a few things I said earlier today about Pam and Jim. The episode that has aired this evening has been nothing short of incredible and I particularly admire how the writers brought something from the past back into the backbone relationship of the show. The letter from the tea kettle was particularly brilliant and I really thought it was awesome.
Also, it appears I am mistaken about the wedding in the season finale. I assumed too soon that it would be Ryan and Kelly getting married but I am happy to be wrong when it means something better is in order. I had always hoped for a reuniting of Dwight and Angel but eventually felt they went too far to make it happen. In truth I still feel they have gone too far to make this a happy ending for either Dwight or Angela. We are meant to overlook several things in order to see the love the show ultimately built up to but I don’t buy it. The show got too weird with Angela’s character over the years to make this a seriously happy ending. Since it is in the final end of the show though I will excuse it and simply laugh at what is to come. I was really impressed by tonight’s episode and I realize I underestimated the writers. I shouldn’t make any assumptions now and should trust in the potential ahead of us.
The Movie Snobs 