Michael Scott is a character loosely based off of the regional manager in the original British version of The Office, who brought heart, hilarity and ridiculousness to the Scranton branch of Dunder Mifflin Paper Company. He left at the end of season seven, and in all honesty, the show should've followed right behind him.
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The very first episode I ever saw was "Stress Relief," which aired right after the Super Bowl XLIII. It begins with someone simulating a "fake" fire to get everyone to follow the basic fire drill procedure. But it gets completely out of hand and people are crawling through the ceiling and throwing chairs at the vending machine because they’re apparently already dying of starvation. I kid you not, I hadn't laughed that hard at a show I had never seen before, and all the way into the fifth season, too. Who tries to break open a window by chucking a projector at it or save their cat by throwing it up through a drop ceiling? Apparently, these people. I decided I needed to find out more about this show by binge watching it on Netflix ASAP, as any normal American would. And just as I suspected, I ended up falling in love with it just like that.
For being a sitcom, the cast is pretty big with about fifteen characters who each have their own moment on every episode. During season two, the characters began to find their niche and all the magic really started to happen. By the end, we fell in love with Jim and Pam's nonexistent romantic relationship about just as fast as he fell in love with her. They are the definition of soulmates and I think we can all agree that Jim Halpert is the epitome of perfection. During this season, Michael Scott also really started to develop as the crazy, annoying boss that he was for the remainder of his time on the show. But I'll admit that if he was a regional manager of an actual paper company, I would love to work under him in a heartbeat. That's what she said.
Personally, I think that his character being just so ridiculously stupid is what made me fall in love with him; not in a romantic sense, but in a personal way. I'm not into Steve Carell's humor all that much, but Michael Scott just gets me in every way. I even have his World's Best Boss mug that I drink my coffee out of every morning. I think I've become so attached to the show because I find nonsensical humor to be the absolute best. But there is a fine line between stupid and completely unintelligent, unnecessary humor and he is very careful not to cross it, which is another reason why I adore him so much.
Yes, every character brings something great to the show; whether it be Kevin and his famous chili or Phyllis and her backhanded compliments. But Michael brought life to The Office and every character has become who they are because he was the center of their attention. And I say that literally because he would make announcements about driving his car into a lake, hold conference room meetings about weight loss or life in prison, and would keep everyone from doing their job by distracting them with his ridiculous antics and semi-crude humor. Let me remind you, this is supposed to be a boring, typical job in a basic office park, yet Michael makes it look like the most entertaining place to work.
Over the years, I’ve developed an obsession with this show. But because I became so accustomed to having Michael being the center of attention, I knew that if he left, it would just not be the same. Say you work at a job where you converse with coworkers regularly to the point that they’ve become good friends and part of your motivation for going to work every day. Then, one day, they suddenly quit and are no longer part of your work atmosphere, causing you to adapt to an unfamiliar setting that’s most likely less fun and more depressing.
I have just described to you how I know I would’ve felt if I had allowed myself to watch The Office past Michael’s leaving. Sure, Robert California is a dreamboat (seriously, I have the biggest crush on James Spader), but I’ve heard he’s the opposite of Michael and made the show more serious and dull than it was ever meant to be. Michael just should've been the last boss instead of fifty different, insufficient replacements after him.
Regardless of what anyone says or thinks, I believe The Office was at it's best during the third, fourth, and fifth seasons, and then it started to lose its luster. So if anyone thinks that the last seasons are just as good as the earlier stuff when Darryl still worked in the warehouse and Michael hated Toby with a raging fire, we'll just agree to disagree. I've seen the series finale, but only because I heard Michael was going to be on it, and I still thought it was just 'okay.' I'm that stubborn.
Maybe, one day, I'll watch the last couple seasons, but I'm be waiting to hear a really good argument as to why I should before I even consider it. For those that haven't been exposed to the greatness that is Michael Scott, I urge you to jump on the bandwagon and start The Office immediately because, I promise, you are missing out on one of the funniest and most ridiculous shows you will ever watch in your lifetime.
