There's probably a reason for placing Ed Helms in the promotional material since season 5. It would seem an obvious choice in retrospect. But it might not be for long, and some others are mulling departures too.
I wonder what they've planned for a cliffhanger. It's rather Dickensian and doesn't involve the principals but they set up the possibility Phyllis could be Erin's mother.
There's probably a reason for placing Ed Helms in the promotional material since season 5. It would seem an obvious choice in retrospect. But it might not be for long, and some others are mulling departures too.
The reason I figure it's not Andy, even though that seems like the most likely option, is because I'm not sure the stories they'd be able to tell with him as boss would be that different from Michael as boss stories. I'd be willing to be proven wrong, though: he is the biggest star on the show.
As for Jim Carrey: no. The energy would be all wrong. The converse problem of Ray Romano. (Of course, Ray has his own show that's going strong, so he's definitely not a possibility.)
Care to explain? I know Jim can be crazy (Ace Ventura, Liar Liar), but he can also balance his comedy (Bruce Almighty, Yes Man)
I think he'd almost be perfect as boss.
Yeah, I meant more or less what you guessed. I know he's done some pretty good stuff, and isn't just a comedian, but he's still, almost always, tightly wound to some degree (in my experience). Part of the reason Helms would work is that his comedy comes primarily from a place of empathy, as Carell's does. That was the biggest difference between Carell's boss and Gervais's - but then that was partly the fact that a long-form American sitcom has different needs than a British series. Carrey can clearly play sympathetic - I think he's quite good in The Truman Show, but I also sort of feel that he's too intellectualized a presence. You can see the wires, you know? There's that level of thought that you can't quite get through, to get to a level of feeling. I'm not sure he's right for a comic center, at least on a sitcom.
And if the show does only last one more season, as many suspect, they do have a bit more freedom to go experimental with the boss, as Carrey would be, or as Craig Robinson's Daryl would be, for that matter: Daryl as boss would lead to a boss who is much more straightforwardly competent, and would be the "one sane man" form of comedic lead. And Arnett: well, he'd be off-putting too, in some of the same ways Carrey might be expected to be, and he is, from what i hear, Gervais's favorite, so: anything's possible.
Last edited by Attila the Professor : 05-10-2011 at 10:43 PM.
Haven't seen any of The Office S7 yet (waiting for the DVD set later this year), but I've been reading the episode synopses online and it's a shame that Michael Scott finally left the show (though we knew this was going to happen long ago).
Re: who should replace him as office manager, that's a hard call. IMHO, Part of what made Carrell such a success on the show was the fact that he was a relative unknown, and therefore didn't bring any preconceived ideas of how he should act and/or baggage to the show.
So, here's my take on the various rumored 'contendors' for office manager in S8 (I may have missed some):
- Ricky Gervais: Too distracting, since he was the office manager on the original classic BBC show. Don't get me wrong, he would undoubtedly be funny, but we've already seen him as the manager on the previous show and I want to see something different.
- Jim Carrey: Way too big of an actor to be on a show like this, and would also be distracting as a result. Also, though he can be very funny (Liar Liar, Dumb and Dumber, etc.), I'm not sure if his brand of somewhat slap-stick humor is what the show calls for.
- Dwight Schrute (R. Wilson) - Perfect choice. He's already established on the show and has been bucking to be a manager since day 1 (i.e., the running jokes when he makes a big deal of being "assistant regional manager" when he's actually "assistant to the regional manager"). And, like Scott, he thinks he is/can be a great manager when the exact opposite is true
- Andy Bernard (Ed Helms) - A good choice, but he probably wouldn't be quite as funny as Dwight in the position.
In any case, I hope the show doesn't last much longer after S8 (unless S8 is much better than I think it will be). With Scott gone, it just won't be the same.
Oh man last nights episode Dwight accidentally fired off a gun in the office and made the nard dog deaf in one ear.
Laughed pretty decently just from that deafening BANG.
next week is the hour long season ender... can't wait... who's gonna be the boss??
Oh man last nights episode Dwight accidentally fired off a gun in the office and made the nard dog deaf in one ear.
Laughed pretty decently just from that deafening BANG.
He's never been as Barney Fifey as he was in that scene.
Yeah, but they stopped short of it. Not sure what to think of that call.
As for Ed Helms...after the extent to which they lampshaded how he's the safe, bland choice, would they really go with him? I'm an Andy Bernard fan, but he'd just be Michael Scott 2.0.
I have no idea what the writers have planned for next season... but I will say this: I don't believe that the shows balance would be the same if Dwight became the boss (again) so I don't think it's him.
Hilarious picture, and I agree it seems to imply that Andy will be office manager in S8 - however, we'll have to wait and see.
It's hard to believe this show has lasted 7 seasons. It's a great show, but back when it first debuted in 2005 I just saw it as a wannabe re-make of the very well-done BBC show. Howver, IMHO it didn't take long to eclipse the BBC show in terms of quality/humor.
Dwight accidentally fired off a gun in the office and made the nard dog deaf in one ear.
