# The Office (U.S.) is not funny **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 26, 2010, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-u-s-is-not-funny/533961 "2010-03-26T23:17:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-u-s-is-not-funny/533961/21 "2010-03-27T03:55:36Z")
I’ve tried to enjoy it, but other than one part where Dwight cribbed a Mussolini speech (I’d watch that over and over) I haven’t found it particularly entertaining. ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-u-s-is-not-funny/533961/22 "2010-03-27T03:56:39Z")
> [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](#): > > I am not interested in knowing why other people think it is funny. Than what’s the point of your thread? Just to see a few posts from others who might check in and agree with you? Sorry, but such threads on the SDMB only work with rants against cell phone users and gas-powered leafblower owners. ---
**Author:** ![Speak\_to\_me\_Maddie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/58956e/32.png) [@Speak\_to\_me\_Maddie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Speak_to_me_Maddie)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-u-s-is-not-funny/533961/23 "2010-03-27T03:59:57Z")
> [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](#): > > I am not interested in knowing why other people think it is funny. But that is kinda the whole point of message boards isn’t it? Interaction, argument, the sharing of ideas, debate. I think that’s the difference in a place like this and say the comments sections on a blog, youtube, or a twitter tweet. I’d give my opinions on the US Office, and I might even agree with you on some points, but why should I if you don’t care? Or are you just looking for a “me too” echo chamber? ---
**Author:** ![Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aji_de_gallina/32/260_2.png) [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aji_de_Gallina)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-u-s-is-not-funny/533961/24 "2010-03-27T04:26:59Z")
> [@Speak\_to\_me\_Maddie](#): > > But that is kinda the whole point of message boards isn’t it? Interaction, argument, the sharing of ideas, debate. I think that’s the difference in a place like this and say the comments sections on a blog, youtube, or a twitter tweet. > > I’d give my opinions on the US Office, and I might even agree with you on some points, but why should I if you don’t care? > > Or are you just looking for a “me too” echo chamber? I misspoke. I meant “I already know, having read several threads, why people who like it do so”. I can accept a medium-sized degree of metooechochamberness. ---
**Author:** ![Zjestika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/8edcca/32.png) [@Zjestika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zjestika)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-u-s-is-not-funny/533961/25 "2010-03-27T04:38:11Z")
I didn’t care for it, and I watched several episodes of seasons one and two on instant Netflix. I really tried to like it. Sometimes I hate it when that happens, when I don’t like something that a lot of my friends and family enjoy. I could list all the things I tried to like and didn’t… but then I’d feel like a wet blanket. There’s no reason to declare something sucky and poop on it when other people are enjoying themselves. Especially if you don’t care about having a discussion. Serious question: what’s the point of saying “What you like sucks!” without being interested in a discussion? ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-u-s-is-not-funny/533961/26 "2010-03-27T05:03:53Z")
> [@JKilez](#): > > Oh, yeah?! Well, the jerk store called–they are running out of vous! That’s Le Magasin de Jerques, actuellement. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-u-s-is-not-funny/533961/27 "2010-03-27T05:11:00Z")
I don’t think that the Michael Scott character is the slightest bit believable. He is just too stupid for words. The minor characters are a hell of a lot funnier and I’d like to see a lot more of them. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 7:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-u-s-is-not-funny/533961/28 "2010-03-27T07:39:32Z")
Disagree entirely. Beign a Brit I was well-acquainted with the original before the US version was announced. I joined the many that said the remake was going to be horrible. I fully accept I was wrong. In fact, I was so wrong that I remind myself of it whenever I am about to complain about a remake of anything. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-u-s-is-not-funny/533961/29 "2010-03-27T12:25:48Z")
Yeah, it is bad. I tried to like it, but just can’t. Michael is so over-the-top pathetic and stupid that I can’t find any empathy for him. It seems to get worse all the time. Jim’s antics sometimes made me laugh, but we don’t see them much any more. And the documentary format got annoying very quickly. ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-u-s-is-not-funny/533961/30 "2010-03-27T12:35:25Z")
It never captured my interest. ---
**Author:** ![tumbleddown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9bcb4/32.png) [@tumbleddown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tumbleddown)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-u-s-is-not-funny/533961/31 "2010-03-27T12:46:06Z")
The show seems to predicated on embarrassment humor. I’m not a big fan of that, it can actually make me have to pause a show then do a 30-second fast forward when it’s really bad. And yes, I know that Michael is so dim that _he_ isn’t embarrassed, but the joke is clearly that the audience is meant to be embarrassed on his behalf and… no. I find Mindy Kaling on her own to be hilarious. I wonder how much input she actually has to the final product of each show. From what I’ve seen (which admittedly has been only a few episodes) I don’t think it’s much. ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-u-s-is-not-funny/533961/32 "2010-03-27T13:04:53Z")
> [@Max\_the\_Immortal](#): > > Every weekly The Office thread on this board has a post along the lines of “Blah blah didn’t smile once blah blah not believable blah blah removing it from my tivo.”. Your post isn’t exactly distinctive enough to merit a separate thread. I completely disagree. I deliberately stay out of “The Office” threads these days because I think the show has wrung every last bit of juice out of the orange and are now squeezing the bitter pulp. However, many fans have politely requested that naysayers stay out, which I have honored. This thread was an opportunity to voice my complaint without being a threadshitter. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-u-s-is-not-funny/533961/33 "2010-03-27T13:38:43Z")
> [@Speak\_to\_me\_Maddie](#): > > But that is kinda the whole point of message boards isn’t it? Interaction, argument, the sharing of ideas, debate. I think that’s the difference in a place like this and say the comments sections on a blog, youtube, or a twitter tweet. > > I’d give my opinions on the US Office, and I might even agree with you on some points, but why should I if you don’t care? > > Or are you just looking for a “me too” echo chamber? I think it’s stupid to limit a message board in such a fashion. There are as many different purposes for posting a topic as there are reasons for having a conversation. Many times when you say something, you are just interested in knowing who else agrees with you. The purpose of this thread seems to be a place to say “I don’t like the Office” without impugning on other threads. I would not join into those other threads, but I will this one. The Office wasn’t even funny when it first came out. Embarrassing people isn’t funny. It just makes you look like an ass. The show has plenty of funny concepts, but they are ruined by this other stuff. Parks and Recreation was absolutely stupid to try to mimic it. I’m pretty sure that having two shows like this is why NBC is still in last place. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-u-s-is-not-funny/533961/34 "2010-03-27T14:52:14Z")
Confession here. I don’t actually watch _The Office_ (the UK or US version) but I wanted to comment on this: > [@](#): > > It’s like a show based on the worst part of George Costanza (stupid, selfish and petty) and Kramer (clueless) without any even remotely endearing part. Who said comedy characters have to be endearing? I think that’s been a big problem with American sitcoms - they want the viewers to like the characters. I don’t watch a comedy show to make pretend friends (or _Friends_) - I watch a comedy for the laughs. Stupid, selfish, petty, and clueless can be comedy gold. ---
**Author:** ![Cumberdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8c91f0/32.png) [@Cumberdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cumberdale)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-u-s-is-not-funny/533961/35 "2010-03-27T15:19:58Z")
> [@Khadaji](#): > > Yeah, it is bad. I tried to like it, but just can’t. Michael is so over-the-top pathetic and stupid that I can’t find any empathy for him. It seems to get worse all the time. Jim’s antics sometimes made me laugh, but we don’t see them much any more. And the documentary format got annoying very quickly. I agree, the Michael Scott character is often way over the top for me. The scene that comes to mind is his driving the forklift and destroying the warehouse. However, I do like, at least in the first or second season that they did make him a good salesman who happened to be a bad manager. That is an improvement over the UK version where the manager seemed to be bad at both. ---
**Author:** ![Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aji_de_gallina/32/260_2.png) [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aji_de_Gallina)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-u-s-is-not-funny/533961/36 "2010-03-27T15:20:04Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Confession here. I don’t actually watch _The Office_ (the UK or US version) but I wanted to comment on this:Who said comedy characters have to be endearing? I think that’s been a big problem with American sitcoms - they want the viewers to like the characters. I don’t watch a comedy show to make pretend friends (or _Friends_) - I watch a comedy for the laughs. Stupid, selfish, petty, and clueless can be comedy gold. I didn’t mean _endearing_ as is _nice_. Sipmly that, aside from the obvious moral flaws, there has to be something in the character that makes it funny. ---
**Author:** ![MyFootsZZZ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/myfootszzz/32/12580_2.png) [@MyFootsZZZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MyFootsZZZ)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-u-s-is-not-funny/533961/37 "2010-03-27T15:40:58Z")
> [@Markxxx](#): > > I didn’t find it funny, certainly not as a good at the UK version. Part of it is I just hate Steve Carell. I liked him in _the 40 Year Old Virgin_ but other than that, I don’t think he’s the least bit funny. But I know that’s just me. I don’t blame Carrell. Michael CAN be the worst thing about the show, but he was good, (dare I say _great_), in _the 40 Year Old Virgin_ and was also the bast part of _Little Miss Sunshine_, (where he’s not like Michael at all). I think the writers need to start maturing his character rather than trying to top his worst offences. It’s one of the reasons I still watch. I want Michael’s character to grow, because even though he’s over-the-top, I can relate to him on a few personal levels. If Michael can change, anyone can. I’m not sure that’s going to be a wish fulfilled, but it certainty wouldn’t hurt to see him redeem some of his worst qualities. Kevin’s a character I would like to see change too. In the Webisode currently up at the official website, he shows off his talent with calculator, and in a deleted scene from the last episode, it show’s that he’s good at Ski-ball, (reminded me of the free-throws he was taking at the end of the episode where they were playing basketball). Also, the real life actor is profoundly different than Kevin. The writing is what needs a little tightening imho. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-u-s-is-not-funny/533961/38 "2010-03-27T15:53:08Z")
dude. ur gay ---
**Author:** ![MichaelQReilly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@MichaelQReilly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MichaelQReilly)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-u-s-is-not-funny/533961/39 "2010-03-27T15:56:44Z")
> [@PunditLisa](#): > > The U.S. version jumped the shark around two seasons ago. However, the first two, possibly three, seasons, were comedic gold. I agree completely. They had a real nice run those first three years, but have been awful for the most part since then. ---
**Author:** ![fluiddruid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@fluiddruid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fluiddruid)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-u-s-is-not-funny/533961/40 "2010-03-27T16:10:38Z")
Start from the beginning and call us back. Finish at least seasons 1 and 2. I pretty much keep watching for two reasons: I fell in love with the series during the first two seasons, and because it still does have moments of brilliance. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-u-s-is-not-funny/533961.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-u-s-is-not-funny/533961.md?page=3)