That's All She Wrote

Have you ever experienced a sitcom-induced paradigm shift? No. That's probably a good thing.

But something happened to me that's never happened before when I was watching the new Office this week. I got bored. For those of you who know me (as opposed to everyone else who reads this), you could say that I am a 'fan' of the show. A fan only in the sense that I own all the DVDs, have seen all the extra footage, written two spec episodes myself, and plan on naming my first born Dwight.

But, along with my disenchantment of the LA entertainment industry, comes a breakdown of my interest in all of it's progeny. There are outcasts, of course, but they are rare, and only emerge as happenstance and a stroke of genuine luck. Most new shows and projects are only green lit with one requisite: that they will garner ratings - which in turn gets advertising dollars.

Because it's hard (for any show!) to have a successful first season, the powers that be have started a growing trend. Borrow something else that is already proven to be successful in another country. American Idol, The Weakest Link, The Office, Kath & Kim are just a few, but there are many more. 

The point is that the big networks are businesses, not artistic studios. And for that reason, and the reason that money is what makes the cogs turn - artistic integrity has fallen off the map.

So as I am watching Steve Carell, Jenna Fischer, and John Krasinski go through the motions, just waiting for their much anticipated 100th episode that will put them into syndication - I just can't help being reminded that the show has lost so much of what made it a hit.

The raw, realistic, mockumentary humor is all but lost this season as characters fall back time and time again on catch-phrases, over-the-top gags, and misplaced humor. By misplaced, I mean when Andy stepped in the manure in Dwight's kitchen. It was funny, I laughed, but it proves my point that they are borrowing out of other comedy playbooks just to get some yuks. It wasn't true to the show bible. It was something out of Airplane!, Hot Shots, or Naked Gun.

What made The Office so good was the slightly hopeful, but awkward tension of Jim and Pam, the new guy Ryan, the pathetic boss who just needed friends, and the nerdy sales rep who reminds everyone of someone they know. So my original captivation by The Office has worn so thin that it is now gone. And maybe, *sniff*, maybe,  I'll learn to love again.

Until then I am going to live in the fairy-tale BBC/Ricky Gervais world where all things have a beginning and ending, and shows only last two season... and end because the story was finished, not because they ran out of money or episode ideas.