i’ve been watching the us version of the office recently, having loved the original uk version. i have to say, i’m pleasantly surprised. jim is of course, better looking than tim, but no less endearing. michael isn’t sad in quite the same way as david brent but he’ll come to a stickier end, i think.
pam, hmm, well i find it fairly unbelievable that every man in the office would have a crush on someone so frumpy but she’s actually a better character for it. i love jim and pam, or ‘jam’. dwight is cartoonish but i have no problem with the idea that someone so weird would run wild amongst average us citizens…
the american finchy, however, is so crap i don’t even know his name. angela is an interesting one. in the uk version i always said what was missing was a uptight, miserable old cow, as per my manager at the time, who existed (and probably still exists) to cause other people pain. i wish they didn’t make her obsessed with cats though – i love cats and its an old joke now.
chili’s – a texmex ‘restaurant’, uk people, there’s one in reading - is the scene of many crimes and this has left me wondering if america doesn’t have townie clubs like chasers, full of drunk suits and local chavs on a wednesday night?
inevitably, as with the uk version, aside from jam, the stupid office pranks are the best thing about the us version. tricks i would have liked to see tim play on gareth in the uk version:
- all of gareth’s stuff in a vending machine for him to buy back
- encouraging gareth to buy a women’s handbag
- convincing gareth that thursday was actually friday, making him miss work the next day
- paying colleagues to call gareth ‘gary’ for a day
- convincing gareth that ‘gaydar’ was an actual, purchasable device
- tricked him into believing he was completing special missions for the MOD
altitudes - work it like a 9 to 5
blackstreet – i like the way you work
eyc – the way you work it
fonzi thornton – i work for a livin’
isley brothers – work to do
kelly rowland – work
mel stewart – no work no pay
michael jackson – working day and night
nel oliver – i have a good job
prince – let’s work
roots – thought@work
tcf crew – hardest working lover
