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[Merged] The Office (USA Version)...Official Thread!

Zadillo said:
The real question as I see it is why do they feel like they couldn't just take a British show and air it as is, without doing a remake? The British certainly seem to be able to handle various US shows in their original forms.
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And a good question it is. Excellent shows like Larry Sanders and Curb Your Enthusiasm are dripping in pathos, and, though they don't have the largest sections of viewers at any one time, any attempt to re-make in Brit-flavoured portions would be futile.
 
NBC's take on "The Office"

NBC's adaptation of the BBC comedy "The Office" premieres tonight at 9:30 p.m. Eastern (8:30 p.m. Central). Since I have yet to see the original series, I'm looking forward to seeing this one (and hoping that they don't just completely screw it up). I'm looking at some of the reviews linked from Google News and it sounds promising, with Steve Carrell from "The Daily Show" playing the boss. Is anyone else planning on watching this tonight?

P.S. No, my cable company doesn't carry BBC America (or at least not on the plan I'm subscribed to, they don't). No, my local video rental place doesn't have the box set(s) for the original series. No, I don't actually want to buy it, I just want to see it. ;)
 
Yeah. I think I'll Tivo it and check it out. I've never seen the original BBC version either, so I have no reference point. Dont watch much TV but I'll at least give it a shot.
 
I was a fan of the BBC version and I already have my DVR set up to record tonight's show. I have high hopes for it since it looks like it might keep close to the BBC version from what I have heard, but that will probably mean bad things after the first 24 episodes. The original series consisted of 2, 6 episode seasons. I believe that they were longer than a half hour so they might be able to squeeze out 24 episodes from the original series if it takes off. After that things could get ugly.
 
atszyman said:
I was a fan of the BBC version and I already have my DVR set up to record tonight's show...
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Yeah, I'm curious to hear what you (and other fans of the original series) think after they've seen this one.
 
Oh Dear...

A friend of mine downloaded this a couple of months back and it was awful, the script was very similar to the UK version but with slight americanised alterations (eg. using the word "corporate" instead of head office). It just doesn't have the right atmosphere for that sort of comedy to work and many here in the UK doubt it will be a hit with the americans without canned laughter.
The origianl series was great and I'm glad that they ended it with the Christmas Specials and didn't beat it to death. Gervais won't mind being paid to be exec producer on the US version as he already has the Golden Globe, why should he care how well the remake does.
 
atszyman said:
I was a fan of the BBC version and I already have my DVR set up to record tonight's show. I have high hopes for it since it looks like it might keep close to the BBC version from what I have heard, but that will probably mean bad things after the first 24 episodes. The original series consisted of 2, 6 episode seasons. I believe that they were longer than a half hour so they might be able to squeeze out 24 episodes from the original series if it takes off. After that things could get ugly.
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The original series was 6 half hour episodes, the second series was another 6 half hour episodes then there were 2 45 minute christmas specials. I don't think this will last 24 episodes and if it does then I feel very sorry for those still watching it at episode 24.
 
yogi477 said:
The original series was 6 half hour episodes, the second series was another 6 half hour episodes then there were 2 45 minute christmas specials. I don't think this will last 24 episodes and if it does then I feel very sorry for those still watching it at episode 24.
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Ok, I couldn't remember, but they were a Brit TV half hour which has slightly less commercial time so they might be able to squeeze some extra material out.
 
I'm going to watch it, but after the "Coupling" debacle, and seeing a couple of preview clips, I'm not expecting anything good to come from it. What next? "Father Ted" based in LA?

By the way, the one or two episodes of the US version of "Coupling" that were /not/ based on the British version were an order of magnitude better than the ones using the British scripts (even though the British scripts were better), so if this lasts long enough to cover the original series, it might even be watchable.

Being based in Slough was a masterstroke for "The Office", and somehow, I can't think of anywhere in the US as apt for this series as Slough was.
 
After watching I can't say that I'm overly impressed or disappointed. I like the casting, the humor seems to be similar to the original but since I watched the original there wasn't that much I saw that was new to me. We'll see how it progresses. I don't know how it'll fly with the rest of the viewing public though. I have a feeling it will be short lived.
 
Having just watched it I thought it was rather funny. Unfortunately, I think its humor will probably be too involved for the average sitcom watcher. It's amazing to me how really quality half-hour shows like "Sports Night", "Arrested Development" and even "Scrubs" struggle while crap like "Two and a Half Men" do so well. I guess most people need to be told when something's funny via a laugh track rather than actually making that decision on their own.
 
Okay, I've never seen the original, but I watched NBC's version tonight with a couple of friends and...we thought it was hilarious.

Yes, there were a few awkward jokes that didn't work, but the ones that did were wacky. The two that got the biggest laughs were the stapler in the Jell-O, and Steve Carrell's incredibly tacky introduction of Pam: "If you think she's cute now...you should have seen her a few years ago. Rowwrrrr!" (To which Pam gives him a bewildered/offended "WTF?!?" look.)

If you think about it, the show's really covering a lot of the same territory as "Dilbert", albeit in a much different style. If upcoming episodes can keep up this pace, I'll be watching it every week.
 
I'll have to check it out. I've seen every episode of the original series, and I think this one will be hard-pressed to top it. Americans never seem to capture British comedy properly. But, I'll reserve final judgment until I check it out for myself - just not getting my hopes up, that's all. ;) And of course, it always depends on the individual's sense of humor. :cool:
 
It seemed decent enough, very funny at some points and very awkward at the others. I moslty think the awkwardness was coming from seeing the British version and then seeing the same thing but just "Americanized".

It just doesn't translate the humor as well as watching the original. I don't get why NBC just doesn't air the original version as a off season thing of another show. Most Americans can understand what British people are saying. :p

All in all it wasn't bad. But like posted above I don't know whats going to happen if the show is a success and goes past 24 shows.
 
It wasn't as good as the BBC version. Just like I'd thought. Everyone seemed to be 'playing the part' this time, instead of them being the part. It felt as if they were trying to act the same as the british cast, and on most fronts failed. Also, there just isn't the uncomfortableness that the british cast had (except for my discomfort watching it) that made it feel like I was watching a real office; many subtle mannerisms were not there which made it feel less real to me.

I had high hopes as the original was absolutely great and I'm a big fan of Steve Carrell. The only actors in it that I thought did a good job were Tim and the receptionist.
 
atszyman said:
After watching I can't say that I'm overly impressed or disappointed. I like the casting, the humor seems to be similar to the original but since I watched the original there wasn't that much I saw that was new to me. We'll see how it progresses. I don't know how it'll fly with the rest of the viewing public though. I have a feeling it will be short lived.
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I tried to post last night after the show finished but my wireless connection was flaking out on me.

I think Steve Carrell did a fine job of portraying a typical idiot American boss. I haven't seen the original series, so I hope that his was an original interpretation of the character and that he wasn't just mimicking the character that Ricky Gervais played. My favorite bit from him was probably his listing of his four heroes (Bob Hope, Abraham Lincoln, Bono and God) and explaining why he chose them.

I know that the rest of the characters were supposed to play straight man (or woman) to him, but the result for me was that I just didn't care much about them either way. It looks like they're going to play up the flirtation between that one main guy and the receptionist (sorry, haven't learned the characters' names yet) and that may help things in the future. But so far the show seems really familiar to me, almost like a live-action Dilbert, and so it didn't exactly bowl me over. I will give it a few more episodes to see where things go. The previews for next week's episode (which looks like a "diversity training" session) looked funny.

But it was no "Arrested Development." ;)

P.S. No offense to fans of the original series. Regardless of what happens with this version of "The Office", I've heard so many good things about the original that I definitely still want to see it some day.
 
Thomas Veil said:
Okay, I've never seen the original, but I watched NBC's version tonight with a couple of friends and...we thought it was hilarious.Yes, there were a few awkward jokes that didn't work, but the ones that did were wacky. The two that got the biggest laughs were the stapler in the Jell-O, and Steve Carrell's incredibly tacky introduction of Pam: "If you think she's cute now...you should have seen her a few years ago. Rowwrrrr!" (To which Pam gives him a bewildered/offended "WTF?!?" look.)
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I loved the boss' list of his four heroes, and particularly the order in which they came to mind. That, and the look his black employee gave him when the boss told them that he was going to "look out for his chillun" -- I think those were probably my laugh-out-loud moments.

Thomas Veil said:
If you think about it, the show's really covering a lot of the same territory as "Dilbert", albeit in a much different style. If upcoming episodes can keep up this pace, I'll be watching it every week.
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Yeah. I've always been a big Dilbert fan, and so I'm hoping that this will bring something new to the table (and it still has a lot of opportunities to do so). I do like the documentary-style presentation.
 
Two seasons was not enough

I am glad to hear that the Americans are re-doing The Office. The original was a brilliant series but two seasons was nowhere near enough. Imagine if The Simpsons was stopped after only two seasons; the best episodes never would have happened.

My favourite scene from the original was when David Brent told Oliver that his favourite actor was Sydney Poitier. British humour at its best.
 
Sol said:
The original was a brilliant series but two seasons was nowhere near enough.
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But sometimes that ensures the series claim to greatness and relative immortality -- just like Fawlty Towers, going out on a high.

It's refreshing to see creative minds not being swayed by the almighty dollar (or pound) to come up with yet another series...

With the second series of The Office and the Xmas specials, I felt that some (not many) ideas were becoming a little too stretched and where it was left was perfect. Same with the Royle Family.

What's that Kenny Rogers song about knowing when to fold?
 
Sol said:
I am glad to hear that the Americans are re-doing The Office.
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You may not be saying that after you watch it... ;)

Sol said:
The original was a brilliant series but two seasons was nowhere near enough. Imagine if The Simpsons was stopped after only two seasons; the best episodes never would have happened.
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That's what makes a lot of the British sitcoms great though - knowing when is enough, and making each series meaningful, and not to drag it on like a run of the mill show with a ton of episodes - the comedy becomes diluted in this way.

And as for the Simpsons, yes, the best seasons obviously were after season 2 (about 3-7 specifically), but The Simpsons is the perfect example on why shows shouldn't last for years and years. You kinda disproved your own point there. :p ;) That show needs to die, fast. :cool:
 
Thing is, the original consisted of two six-episode seasons (not counting the Christmas program).

Admittedly, after I watched the premiere last night I wondered, how many episodes can they make out of this concept?

Who knows? Hollywood may surprise us. Personally, I think Seinfeld and Friends had concepts even more superficial than this show, and they were successful for years.

I have to think they can squeeze more than twelve or thirteen good stories out of this idea.
 
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