Saturday, February 11, 2006

This season of The Office has become a highlight of my TV schedule. I planned to avoid this show initially, assuming it was a pale imitation of the original British show, but recent episodes have been terrifically funny, still in the feel of the original while feeling new. Original creator Ricky Gervais is coming on to write an episode this season.

What really kills me are funny characters, most notably the excellent Steve Carrell as manager Michael Scott who believes its more important to be a friend than a boss but can't seem to do either well. Every interaction he has with people is a car wreck you can't look away from. There's the unspoken love between Jim and Pam, which I can't believe they manage to sustain for so long. Jenna Fischer and John Krasinski act so well with just a few glances at each other. And B.J. Novak as Ryan the temp was terrific on the Valentine's episode, realizing he hooked up with a co-worker on February 13th. Not to mention Dwight recieving the best gift ever.

I came across the romantic iTunes playlist of Michael Scott, manager for Dunder Miflin. His musical tastes and comments give you an idea where the character is coming from. (click to expand):



Just like the show, I laughed at each pick, and just cringed to think of the headspace this character occupies. The current season will run until the end of March, and has been picked up for September. Apparently, having the show available for downloading on the (U.S.) iTunes site has resulted in increased ratings and awareness.

Now we can hope for a Jim, Pam, or Dwight playlist. The Office airs Thursday nights at 9:30 on NBC. No Canadian outlet was smart enough to pick this up yet.

PS Holy crap that is a talented cast! The woman who plays Kelly, Mindy Kaling, was one of the writers of the satirical play Matt & Ben. She wrote the episode a few weeks back where Michael burned his foot with his George Foreman grill. B.J. Novak has also writen a few, including last week's "Boys and Girls".

Jenna Fischer is keeping a blog for TV Guide.com at Insider - tvguide.com

the2scoops found this at Music For Kids Who Can't Read Good

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