Saturday, April 30, 2011

Great Scott

Just thought I would share some quick thoughts on Steve Carell's final episode as Michael Scott on The Office. I will admit that it was sad to see him go and I think the episode struck the right tone in emotion. I liked how Michael had some interaction with each of his employees before leaving and each meeting did a nice job of truly reflecting the relationship that character had with him. Whether it was maintaining a hatred of Toby, laughing off how much Oscar doesn't value him, playing a father figure to Erin or being so emotionally connected to both Jim and Pam. I also really enjoyed Michael acknowledging that this whole thing is supposed to still be a documentary before off-mic giving us one final "That's what she said".

The Office will certainly miss Carell's presence, but I also think this gives them an interesting opportunity to reinvent themselves by bringing in a new character or two. Let's just hope that permanent person isn't Will Ferrell, who has thus far been a disappointment in his three episodes. I love Will, but he's been more of an annoying distraction rather than a comedic boost during this story arc. His character is ill-defined and all over the place. In some ways, his screentime has taken away the significance of Carell's departure. Then again, maybe in some perverse way, that was the intention of bringing him on. Next week will be Ferrell's last episode, but then things get real interesting for the finale, which features several big name actors including Jim Carrey, Ray Romano, Ricky Gervais, James Spader, and Will Arnett all coming on to apply for the job. I'm not sure I'm convinced any of them are staying on full-time, but it should be fun to watch. In the meantime, I, along with all the Office fans, should thank Steve for seven wonderful season of awkward, but hilarious humor that will go down in the annals of one of the greatest TV characters of all time.

No comments: