The Office: My New Seinfeld

I dunno if you know, I am a Seinfeld fanatic. I have watched almost all of the Seinfeld episodes and still watch the reruns whenever I catch them. The comedy is original and you relate with the characters' quirkiness. Unfortunately, Seinfeld is no longer on the air. So I have been looking for something to replace Seinfeld to satisfy my Comic needs.

I think I have found it in NBC's The Office. It started last season with a great fanfare. It was inspired by the original British Comedy of the same name. I remember watching the first couple of episodes and saying that they are trying unsuccessfully to mimick the british show and it was not working (atleast for me). But this season has been just awesome. The mimicking of the British show has long been dropped and this show has developed a following of its own.

The characters in this show - Dwight, Jim, Michael, Ryan & Pam are just great. Over this season, they have grown on me slowly and it has now become a "must watch" comedy show. The show is about happenings of a Dunder Mifflin (fictional paper company) branch office, located in Scranton, PA. It is not a sitcom, and its shot in an unique documentary-like style (the characters speak directly to the viewers in between shots). It's refreshing to watch, hence.

Like any office, there are interesting characters, office romances, office parties etc. My favorite character has been Dwight Schrute. He's a borderline delusional and downright creepy. But his antics often are the funniest to watch. Growing romance between Jim and Pam has been fun to watch. Ofcourse, Michael and his pathetic attempts to impress upon his employees always make me crack up. Believe me, there are moments for anyone working in an office to relate to and laugh at. Some of the punch lines from the Season Finale yesterday are:

• Why are you the way that you are?
• I hate so much about the things that you choose to be.
• Guys... Afghanistananis

There have been so many great episodes this season which just ended yesterday. New season starts in September. I have become hooked to this show and am downright enjoying it every Thursday night. If you haven't been following it, you should definitely check it out!