Complaining about the quality of “The Office” is old hat. Complaints began soon after the marriage of Jim and Pam, and it’s only gotten worse over the last two seasons. I thought it couldn’t get worse than last season, though. There were a lot of times during the previous two seasons which I had hoped that the show could stop focusing so much on Michael Scott’s character, who I thought had been completely played out, having become a caricature of a parody of himself.
But, man: I miss Steve Carell. For all the problems endemic to his character, it’s clear now that he was holding that show together with spit and gauze. The first half of the first season without Steve Carell wasn’t good. The last half — since the Florida trip — has been awful. And I don’t mean “awful” in terms of “The Office.” I mean awful relative to the rest of television. At this point, there are probably a lot of CBS sitcoms that are better than “The Office.”
The current showrunner, Paul Lieberstein (who plays Toby) has made a total mess of things, and it’s a good thing he’s leaving that post at the end of the season. After spending the last half of last season and the first part of this season dealing with who would take over for Michael Scott, I CANNNOT BELIEVE the show has returned to that. This show used to mine comedy from the hilarious minutia of office-life; now, it’s like “Game of Thrones,” for Dunder Mifflin office manager, only there’s no sex, there’s no drama, and it’s no f—ing good.
Nobody cares who the manager is. REALLY. And Catherine Tate — who I love — has been absolutely terrible. She walked into Dunder Mifflin and took the manager job … just because. And when Andy walks back in and demands his job back, she says “No.” Robert California just stands by idly and watches it all unfold until Andy throws a temper tantrum, and then Robert California fires him. THIS HAS NEVER HAPPENED IN AN OFFICE EVER. The best comedy is based in reality; there’s a nugget of truth to it. Nothing about what’s going on is based in reality. I also cannot believe that, eight season into “The Office,” Kelly and Ryan are STILL on again, off again. That joke has been played. It has no mileage left on it. KILL THAT STORYLINE, KILL IT WITH FIRE.
There was a five minute scene in last night’s episode in which the entire office discussed Andy’s inability to have an erection. Toby/Paul Lieberstein perfectly summed up both his position as the head of HR and as showrunner during that scene: “HR is a joke. I have no control over anything.” No, he doesn’t. The entire show has spun completely out of control, and all the new characters in the world cannot salvage it. I used to be able to say, “It’s bad now, but at least it’s better than most of what passes for comedy on television.” I cannot say that anymore. It’s not just bad for “The Office,” it’s now one of the worst sitcoms on network television.
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Preach on brother.
I agree with everything you say here and wish to subscribe to your news letter.
My fiance made me stop watching the office because I would sit there and just yell at the TV- literally, the show has been so bad the last 18 months I was yelling at my television without even realizing what I was doing.
Funny that you posted this. Last night felt like the last straw. Probably the worst episode the show has ever done.
I agree, I’ll see how the rest of this season plays out then I am done. I hate Catherine Tate with a passion and last night just cemented this for me. Andy’s freak out was my reaction to that episode, fuck it all I’m walking out.
Cosign dRail. I gave up on the show last year or perhaps it was the year before, it’s hard to remember. A while back I turned it on and saw this random English chick who didn’t seem to be there for any reasons except to play a perverted version of Ricky Gervais. And then I saw LAST night’s episode…no thanks.
There were times I laughed out loud in the past two weeks but it had nothing to do with Andy, Robert California, or Nellie. Stanley not having a mustache was good. Phillis talking about rain cliches was good. Daryl is still good. Maybe the Office should just be a 5-10 minute short every week.
Re: “I also cannot believe that, eight season into “The Office,” Kelly and Ryan are STILL on again, off again. That joke has been played. It has no mileage left on it. KILL THAT STORYLINE, KILL IT WITH FIRE. ” – I think that was the joke and why Pam just started booing.
At this point, there are probably a lot of CBS sitcoms that are better than “The Office.”
The show has definitely bottomed out, but come on, that’s just mean.
I tried to watch this since it began like 3 times. Got nothing. I couldn’t get the love so many people has for this show. Nevertheless, I cringe everytime a sucessful comedy show goes to the drain.
i am going to have to disagree. i thought last nights episode was the best one this season and probably the best one in a while even when steve carrell was on the show.
you keep comparing to it the “steve carrell office” and really, its like comparing apples and oranges now. the show is a whole new animal and you have to look at it that way.
at least it doesn’t have a damn laugh track…the audacity to claim CBS has better sitcoms. haha
Criminal Minds is hilarious.
I mentioned this on Uproxx, but it really feels like they’re honestly splicing together clips from previous episodes to create new episodes. I noticed this subtly in a couple episodes, like they’re trying to prove Andy is as dumb as Michael, but last night was completely out of hand; the hole punch in the wall, quitting because he didn’t like the new boss and wasn’t getting his way, taking the girl with him.
Seriously, is he going to start his own printer sales company in a broom closet at the Sabre business park? Would I really be surprised? No.
After having not watched the show for a year or two, I inadvertently saw a scene last night – it was that ridiculous goddamn hole-punch scene. It made me sigh.
Unfortunately, I’d assume The Office still has better ratings than everything else on NBC’s lineup…
I don’t understand how when this show began part of the premise was that a documentary film crew was making a film about the office. Yet, this film crew has been around for 8 years and follows people to their homes. I realize that this was never a huge deal but seriously, can no one address this problem…why is there still a film crew here after all this time!?
If I were writing it (and thank Vishnu I’m not), I’d have them discover that the documentary was cancelled 6 years ago, but the documentary guy just kept following them around because he didn’t know what else to do and he’d become too wrapped up in them.
Once Carell’s character was played out, they should have ended the show. He was the heart.
The documentary crew question was one of the best jokes on Carell’s last episode.
so andy bernard paper company happening next?
Homo_Erectus I love that idea. It would make about as much sense as anything else.
Nellie the character has arrived at me forever hating Catherine Tate as an actual living person. Not even Joffrey has spilled over to Jack Gleeson for me at this level.
Totally agree with Scoobs! Once Carell was out, they should’ve ended it.
It has been awful, much like the rest of NBC’s programming this season. I have to say, my husband and I have way more shows from CBS and ABC on our DVR than from NBC. It has gotten ridculous.
The only way this season can be salvaged is if it turns out that Spader is deliberately setting Sabre up to fail because he is invested in a rival organization (remember in the fiale last year when he said paper is a dying industry, why else would he willingly work with these idiots) and will make millions off Sabres demise, then he moves to Boston and starts a spin-off with Shatner.
Very nice. I was just saying to myself yesterday how I have just stuck with watching The Office each week much in the same way that I watched Lost until the end. I keep expecting something awesome to happen.
Last night sucked because of exactly what you said. No one cares about the manager.
Watching Carell take his microphone off and walking away into the airport should’ve been the last image for The Office.
On a semi-related note, Community was fucking garbage last night. Not one laugh. Not one Brie-cleav. Nothing. Just terrible. I’m starting to think that Chevy Chase is right (and I don’t really want to be on Team Ty Webb). That was pure shit. I was almost expecting Catherine Tate to walk in just to be the final turd on that shit sundae.
Was it an abomination or just an atrocity?
Totally agree…especially considering it was built up to be the next “Chaos Theory.”
It’s not as good as it used to be, but I don’t think it is one of the worst things on television. I’m sure it hurts that it’s fallen from what it used to be, but not to the very bottom. There are still some funny moments scattered throughout.
It has become something I dvr then play as background noise to muffle the sounds of my violent masturbation sessions
Don’t you NEED a laugh track for that?
Ha ha Moose GOTTEM
No seriously I make so much noise and shake so hard growing up my parents thought I was being attacked by a bear in my room
Would not watch 4/20.
Seriously. The funniest thing about The Office last night was when Parks and Rec started.
Two Words: Andrew Bernard
Start watching from episode 1. About the time the Andrew Bernard character gets back from anger management the whole series is torpedoed by him.
I agree. While Andy is actually a really fun character, he doesn’t fit the show, and would be better suited for another sitcom.
The Office may have bottomed out the last two seasons, but it’s been going downhill now for nearly 5 years now, and it’s because of these reasons:
1.) Late-seasons-of-Friends-ism: The show has gone too far with ridiculous romantic triangles and other forced drama (like multiple manager and ownership changes) to plot shows around, without even considering how funny it’ll be. It’s bad enough that Andy and Erin are really boring as a couple, but it’s also so derivative of two other romantic angles this show has done.
2.) This show used to be sad: This show used to be about an inept-yet-chronically-optimistic boss trying to motivate a group of near-suicidal employees, and there used to be a natural hilarity from dealing with regular, everyday problems with such a incompetent boss. A few seasons later, however (not coincidentally, after Pam and Jim started hooking up) most of the characters became much more content and supportive, and the comedic tension that hung over the office like a ticking time bomb was gone. Michael Scott seemed less inept and more idiot savant, and Dwight Schultz went from being a legitimately angry villain to a declawed joke (but, props to Rainn Wilson, he still makes the character work, and the only saving grace for this show is that the Dwight character might be more interesting than anyone else). Now, it’s harder and harder to relate to the problems characters on the show have, and everything just seems a lot more saccharine than before. Some shows like Happy Endings make good work out of everyone getting along, but it just doesn’t seem to work on The Office.
3.) Too many characters. Remember how Angela married a gay State Senator and faked a pregnancy with him? There might have have been two or three episodes this season that brought it up, I guess. The reason why Kelly and Ryan are still on-again off-again is because the show hasn’t bothered to update their characters for a long time; better to keep them one-note and predictable than give them actual screen time that needs to be used on the dozen or so other characters.Craig Robinson should be starring in his own show, but he’s become fairly redundant on this show; he’s practically the Black Jim now. There’s so many funny people affiliated with this show you’d think comedy would happen by accident, but perhaps the cast has been around long enough that they’re content just to go through the motions.
The Office is like a stale marriage, or like the last 30 or so minutes of the last Lord of the Rings movie; a story that’s already ended (like when Jim and Pam got married, for example) yet the movie/show keeps going on and on and on….hopefully the “reboot” next season will start a new story, instead of going over the same contrived plot points. I still think it’s better than most of the shit CBS puts on the air.
Great points…and number 3 really seems spot on. Not every character needs to have something every week (Creed works because he only has 1 line per episode), but some have real chunks missing from their plotlines. How’s Oscar’s relationships doing?
Great points, especially 2.
In seasons 1, 2, and somewhat 3, you never knew how the end of an episode would make you feel. Bittersweet, happy, hopeful, depressed, or something else.
How funny that I got here by googling the name of this article. Yup the show got stale, it hurts. Watch the old seasons and watch the new crap going nowhere. Anyways what other shows do you recommend?
Kinda makes me concerned that one day Parks and Rec might fall into the same hole.
they should have just left the cast alone without robert/nellie. Seriously, I get that Robert is Andy’s boss but Jan was Michael’s boss and she wasn’t there every 2 seconds like Robert is. Over the years they gave us these secondary characters to love (Kevin, Creed, Daryl) and then instead of allowing them to stay in that role or even move up, they give us Robert and Nellie with Andy as the stars. Dwight, Jim, and Pam have been moved to secondary (okay with Jim and Pam being there) and the characters people love are now nonexistant or have 1 line.
Instead of forcing new characters on the audience, let the other characters that they already have a relationship with grow.
Fuck you Toby.
You know, the show hasn’t become bad. It’s not good. But when a show was as good as The Office in its prime, average appears like it’s worse than it actually is. Still, it has become a show where you can miss an episode without actually missing anything.
99 times out of 100, if ANY show stays on this long, it will become a shitty shell of itself. Pick a show, any show, particularly sitcoms.
It’s time to take the old girl out back and put her down. Ol’ Office had its day in the sun, but now it’s starting to get a severe case of “Nightcourtia”.
I hated this show from episode one, so I’m kind of treating all these rants as people slowly realizing it’s sucked this entire time and they got taken for a ride.
Simple problem: the show became more about the characters than the story.
When the story is fixed around the characters rather than the other way around, shit goes bad really fast.
Maybe it’s just being very meta by having real-life Toby ruin everything, thereby vindicating every bad feeling Michael had about Toby.
That really is one of the only redeeming factors of the mess this show has become. Toby and Lieberstein becoming one.
The show started tanking for me when Jim and Pam got married, bought a house, had a baby and started get all serious. Dude, I don’t want to watch my life on TV.
I find the talk about the state of the show interesting, because I had stopped caring about halfway through last season, and only came back for Michael’s farewell at the end of last year. And, like most shows I stop watching, I can’t really tell you why, I just lost interest. I’ve watched a couple episodes this season and I’m even still DVRing. So I can’t entirely let it go, but I can’t really see myself becoming a regular viewer again, either.
I totally get why Michael hated Toby now.
The crux of the entire problem is Jim and Pam. Michael may have been the heart of the show, but Jim and Pam were the soul. Everyone wanted them to get together…and it made us want to tune in to watch it.
I never liked Friends, but the Rachel/Ross, Monika/Chandler thing held the audience, long after a show like that should have. After both those couples got together….people started loosing interest. Who really cares who Joey is with?
If you watch Castle, I think this is exactly why the writers are prolonging Castle and Beckett from getting together. Their attraction is what keeps the show together (in this case, people are upset the show is not progressing…but as soon as it does, it will loose its fizzle).
Yeah, Michael Scott was funny, but the show lost its soul when Jim and Pam got together. The other relationships were just filler and fodder for the real action- Jim/Pam/Michael.
This show is acting like its lost its heart and soul.
You couldn’t be more wrong. The Office has been on fire lately…in a good way!
The show had been slipping over the past few years, but this year things were looking up. The intro of Robert California early in the season was a ‘shot in the arm’ to series (creatively speaking).
Ever since the Tallahassee episode where Catherine tate became a regular, the show has been at a creative peak the likes of which it hasn’t seen in about 3 or 4 seasons. The show is downright frakkin’ hilarious right now (in no small part to Tate!!!)
The show is great. This is one of the best seasons they have ever done, right up there with the early seasons.
What the hell happened to the Office? EASY: They fixed it. It got better. It’s great now.