I have to admit I had NO intention of picking this show up again after not even being able to get past the season premiere of season 7. But my friends (the same ones who got me into "Modern Family") convinced me the premiere was worth watching; then they fired up the DVR and we watched it.

I have to admit, I was very impressed. The whole opening about planking was hysterical; and Robert California could be a great character. If this pans out, "The Office" could be up their with "Cheers" and "M*A*S*H" with reinventing itself successfully by bringing in new blood.

Honestly, Michael and the Holly thing was the #1 thing that turned me off. But I also never warmed up to a lot of the supporting characters.

With this episode, though, there was a flow that really felt natural again. And Andy Bernard as Nice Michael really does work. He's a dork and a dweeb but he's likable; whereas Michael was unembraceable.

Jim & Pam are uninteresting; but they're not the focus of the story anymore. This new storyline could work. I'm actually interested again...didn't think that would happen. So i have to tip my hat to the writers, especially B.J. Novak (who plays Ryan the Temp) who wrote & directed this premiere. He's been a solid contributor of the show since the beginning.

I was wrong. And I'm happy to be in this case, because I always wanted this show to be up there among the greats when it was all said and done. (I still think season 2 is the best by far though).

dude, you're talking about the Office. Shut up already. Its the same fucking show its always been.

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...and stick it up your butt.

I think I laughed more at this week's The Office than I did all of last season. Last season was way to much a "retirement tour"

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i resemble that remark!

wait...that didn't even make sense.

anyway...onward ho!

WZ, Psycory- I agree with you guys. Very good start. Whatever that show was that came on after it was pretty funny as well.

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Lay off that whiskey and let that cocaine be.

Don't call people names.

Anyway, this weeks episode was phenomenal. I loved it when Dwight knocked Meredith off the bathroom stall.

And Andy Bernard as the boss, awesome. NARD DOG!

I think the whole Stanley catchphrase thing is a jab/homage to TV characters who do that type of thing.

this was the best episode i've seen...in years.

josh groban was a nice touch. really happy to see this show back on track. and boy do i NOT miss michael.

I agree. I still think they should have had Michael die off screen, like Lt. Col. Blake on M*A*S*H.

Started out promising but ended up pretty mediocre. Honestly Parks and Recreation is the only show in this lineup that I find consistently funny.

I really like Community. If I was writing a TV show, I think it'd be a lot like that.

I really can't wait for 30 Rock to come back. If I was writing a TV show and I was actually creative, I think it'd be a lot like that.

The Office has been pretty damn good this season

Parks and Rec is outstanding! All i can say is Detlef Schrempf!!!

Community is also a great show

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"You can kill the revolutionary, but you can't kill the revolution."

boy this episode...sucks.

I haven't seen yesterdays show but this season has been much better than the past two in my opinion.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

I am sad watching the final episodes of one of my favorite shows of all time.
I really don't know how long this is going to make it.
If Catherine Tate shows up, that will be the end.
Of all of the applicants for the manager's job, she was definitely the least funny.

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Host of the weekly "We Fish ASA" podcast
Weekly columnist for the Northwest Herald
Bi-monthly columnist for Illinois Outdoor News magazine
Former host of The Outdoors Experience on WIND and The Great Outdoors on CLTV
http://www.wefishasa.com

I'm hoping they bring will ferrel back as someone funny this time.

yeah, but i've been saying that for years and i know you don't agree with the time period i had originally mentioned...i think it was around season 5 when NBC started squeezing everything they could out of that show, making them do hour long episodes that were far, far too long and because there wasn't anything in the first few seasons to establish the other characters as anything more than caricatures, it was hard to really care about them once jim and pam's arc was complete.

they tried to go with michael, but he was too obnoxious to continue to use. it was funny for a while...but the pairing with holly was atrocious. too much of the same thing. the whole arc with kathy bates didn't work for me, either. it just felt like they were trying to make it into an actual "show" rather than the parodic style of the beginning and it didn't work on that basis.

now, though, they seem to be struggling with giving some of the characters a purpose. take robert california. my friend had a good idea...they need to step back from using him so much. he should be referenced more than he should appear...so he really is a mystery. when he's on screen, there's a lot of times it just looks like he is kind of lost. i know that's probably what they're going for, but it doesn't translate that well and it's almost...too subtle.

the show has been very watchable for me this season but this past episode was just plain bad.

groan...

So we've come to this: Dwight trying to grab Jim's genitals.



(I laughed)

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I thought the show would benefit from losing Carell, who was really just unwatchable over the past year or two (especially last year's Holly stuff), but I think Jim and Pam might have been and continue to be an even bigger problem. The end of last night's episode was just nausea-inducing. Wouldn't be surprised if they start referring to each other as Shmoopy in a "heartwarming" manner.

The beauty of the Carell/Michael Scott character was that although he could be incredibly ignorant, rude and overbearing, they were always able to introduce a reason or two to make him a bit lovable. For all the character's faults, he was virtually impossible to hate. They'll never be able to replace a character like that.

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Host of the weekly "We Fish ASA" podcast
Weekly columnist for the Northwest Herald
Bi-monthly columnist for Illinois Outdoor News magazine
Former host of The Outdoors Experience on WIND and The Great Outdoors on CLTV
http://www.wefishasa.com

there was not whole lot of that episode that did not bring the bile inside to the tip of my tongue.

Best thread I could find

Series finale was last night and it was great. An awesome reminder of what made this show so great before they lost their way the past couple seasons.

Michael Scott returned, had two lines which were perfect.

Really enjoyed it and feel satisfied with the ending for one of my all time favorite shows

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Team Cutler.

Agreed. That was one of the best finales I've seen of any show. I'm sad it's gone though I know it's time had passed. This season was actually pretty good in my opinion. Some of it was pretty forced but it all tied together nicely.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Agreed. Probably the best of the post Carell seasons. Really like what they did with his character last night. Just enough to let you remember him, but acknowledged that the others are what kept the show going and he didn't steal the finale.

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Team Cutler.

Great show overall. I predicted its whole arc. Awesome, get real popular, regress, jim and pam get together, then terrible.

Still awesome.

Really good show. This will be like Seinfeld to me in that I will be able to watch reruns 6, 8, 10 years from now and still laugh out loud at certain parts. The 3 second clip of Jim having a dog dressed up like Dwight had me cracking up for a solid 2 minutes.

Perfect way to work Michael Scott into the finale as well.

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My thoughts exactly.

It did, and then he destroyed it by doing a terrible job for at least his last two seasons. Writers also to blame.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

The Jim-Pam relationship brought a lot of people (like girls with no sense of humor) into the fold, too.

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