Customer Reviews

The Office: Season Six

5 star:		(62)
4 star:		(22)
3 star:		(17)
2 star:		(12)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

For several years, The Office was easily the funniest and best written comedy on television. Its hard to pinpoint which season is the pinnacle of the series, it may be a tie between seasons 2, 3, 4, and 5. Every one of them is tremendous. Considering season one was barely half of a season, The Office was still fairly young heading into its 6th year, so it was reasonable for fans to expect the same level of high quality comedy we'd been enjoying since the show's inception. Tragically this isn't exactly the case with #6. The season begins with a very promising start that maintains both the energy and the quality of the previous seasons. In fact the entire first half of the season is, for the most part, very well done... but eventually season six dissolves into a mix of mediocre and sometimes, painfully bad episodes (the finale being one of the worst eps in series history).

The biggest problem of season 6 is the massive story arcs. Now, multiple episode storylines have always been a strong point for this series; whether it was the Dwight and Angela affair in seasons 2-5 or the Michael Scott Paper Company in season 5, reccuring plots on The Office were always successful. This is also mostly the case in season 6; the problem is that the show ultimately becomes so reliant on large story arcs that they eventually lose sight of what the foundation of The Office's success had always been: great characters and great comedy. There is a glaringly obvious shortage of stand alone episodes. No matter how many reccuring storylines there were in previous years there was always a large number of classic stand alone episodes (naturally revolving around the hysterical antics of Michael Scott). As I've said, there is nothing wrong with extended story arcs but when every single episode relies on them it is inevitable that the humor and the character development will suffer. As is the case here.

Most of 6's storylines are engaging and well written. The financial trouble of Dunder Mifflin is topical and provides several great episodes (Michael making empty promises to a room of angry Dunder Mifflin investors is classic) but ultimately the writers paint themselves into a corner and make drastic, unnecessary (I cannot stress the word unnecessary enough!) changes to the series. The introduction of Sabre turns a very good season into a shockingly mediocre one. The changes to the cast are awful. We lose the subtlely hillarious David Wallace and are force fed two bland and awkward replacements: Gabe Lewis and Jo Bennett. The presence of Kathy Bates is especially intrusive. Not that she's a bad actor, but her character is just so out of place that she literally sucks the comedy out of every episode she's in.

Its also terribly obvious at times that the writers are either not working together or are on seperate pages. Some of the ongoing subplots are incredibly inconsistant; many are forgotten about for episodes at a time, never resolved or never even lifted off of the ground. At the end of a mid-season episode, an alliance is formed between Dwight and Ryan the Temp; the goal: to bring down their mutual nemesis, Jim Halpert. This promising subplot is then instantly forgotten about until a much later episode, when it is put to a sudden, dissapointing end. There is also a mid-season resurfacing of the Dwight/Angela saga, which again, is consistantly ignored, conveniently brought back every two-three episodes or so before another quick ending. The only story that gets constant attention is the awkward relationship between Andy and Erin, which has its moments but is also often filler material. Andy is a great character but Erin comes on way too strong when heavily featured.

Fortunately though, season six actually starts out fairly strong with a string of very memorable episodes, and even throughout the rough stretches there are still a handful of good eps. One of the major story points that drives much of the early season is the promotion of Jim to the "co-manager" position. This one works very well (while it lasts) as it advances the progession of the character from goof-off to responsible future parent and it provides the basis for some great early episodes that play off of the rivalry/friendship of Michael and Jim, as well as the rivalry/rivalry between Jim and Dwight. Though, at the same time, putting Jim in a position of responsibility undermines the foundation of his character and all later attempts to regress him back to what he used to be come up short.

Basically, The Office simply runs out of steam halfway through its sixth year. The scripts begin to allow very little room for Steve Carell to shine. Creed no longer gets his usual one liners. Character development comes to a near halt. There are no more stories about Pam as a salesman. Ryan is pushed to the distant background. Dwight doesn't get nearly enough screentime, and even more disturbing: he gets almost no screentime with Michael, depriving us fans of the show's best comedy duo...

When it comes down to it, #6 is still a good season, especially when you look at the first twelve or so episodes. The top highlights are...

The Promotion- New co-manager Jim has trouble handling the job while Michael has trouble with Jim's style of managment. Meanwhile, Dwight tries to spark rebellion.

Niagra- Jim and Pam's wedding. Very well written episode. A series classic. Aside from the less than creative inclusion of a cheesy you tube video and the disturbing fact that Creed has no dialogue this episode is near flawless.

Secret Santa- When both Michael and Phyllis dress up as Santa, Michael gets jealous, turns his suit inside-out and becomes a bitter, sarcastic Jesus. Obviously a hillarious episode.

The Delivery- Another classic episode that revolves around the birth of Jim and Pam's baby... and Dwight's demolition of the Halpert kitchen. Probably the best season 6 has to offer.

Happy Hour- Michael becomes 'Date Mike' in one of the few strong episodes of the season's second half.

With #7 set to be Steve Carrell's last, I sincerely hope this series can get back on track. My message to the writers is this: Pull yourself together and get back on top! That's what she said.

I just want to express how ripped off I feel that after buying the entire season 6 of The Office the Halloween open is missing from the episode Koi Pond. I hope that NBC and the creators/actors of The Office read this and realize how they are making their fans feel ripped off. If they were going to remove it from the episode, they should have included it in the deleted scenes. To make matters worse they included a still pic on the menu of Disc 2 just to remind us what we're missing. I tried to see if maybe it was hidden as an Easter Egg but have had no luck. Perhaps if everyone expressed how disappointed they were, Universal will create replacement discs. We are paying for the ENTIRE season of The Office including DELETED and BONUS material. I hate it when organizations complain and get "offended" by things thereby making it impossible for everyone else in the world to enjoy it. I don't care if the American Society for Suicide Prevention was offended by a FICTIONAL character making an inappropriate joke. Newsflash: the Michael Scott character's main purpose on the show is to make inappropriate jokes. It's almost like they were just sitting around waiting to find something to be offended by so they could shove their cause down everyone's throat. Seriously, if someone were actually going to kill themselves they would do it regardless of if they saw an episode of The Office or not. And don't try to say someone might see it and then decide to kill themselves. That's just stupid. If by any means that were true, it would be a Darwin Award. Why not stop there then? Why not omit all the Erin scenes where she says she's been in foster care because that might be offensive to people who were in foster care? Why not omit the Dwight character when he talks about his farm because that might be offensive to people who own farms? Why not omit the episodes where Pam is pregnant before marriage because that might offend people who are against pre-marital sex? You see where I'm going with this. If every single comedian or comedy show adhered to trying not to offend people, there would never be anything on TV ever. Do you think the creators of South Park care who they offend? In fact, that's what makes the show funny. Do you think Dave Chappelle decided not to certain skits because they might be "offensive" to people? Seriously people if you work in comedy, it's a given you're eventually going to offend someone somewhere at sometime. And for all those complainer or "offended" people out there. You DON'T have to watch it. Instead of ruining it for the rest of us with your griping, just let us enjoy our shows in peace.

In reviewing the sixth season of "The Office", there is good news and bad news: On the positive side, the season gave us such landmark episodes as "Niagara Falls" (Jim/Pam wedding) and "The Arrival" (Jim/Pam baby), easily in the top echelon of episodes in show history. On the flip side, though, the show also went through two separate little dry patches that produced some episodes that just didn't measure up well against earlier efforts.

The theme of "change" runs at the core of the entire season. At the beginning, Dunder-Mifflin employees worry about the long-term stability of their company, then (about half way through the season), the company is actually bought out by Sabre, a printer company headed by Jo Bennett (guest star Kathy Bates), with the crew having to adjust to their new ownership. On a more personal level, the Jim/Pam relationship moves from one of flirtation & fun to more real-life undertones (marriage, parenting, etc.), while two characters (Andy Bernard and new receptionist Erin) become smitten with each other...only to provide some of the most awkwardly hilarious conversations/situations in show history!

In terms of acting, the sixth season was on par with the previous installments. Steve Carrell as Michael Scott is still the glue that binds everything together, and the supporting cast keeps turning in hilarious performances when called upon. The introduction of the Andy/Erin romance was a breath of fresh air for the show, as its innocence harkens back to the early Jim/Pam seasons, but due to Andy's total and absolute goofiness, it takes forever (but in a good way!) for things to really get off the ground. About the only two things that got a little annoying were the continued Dwight/Angela battles that never seem to end, and Bates' new character, who doesn't seem to add much comedy to the show whatsoever.

So, despite the fact that the episodes were a bit uneven in terms of overall quality/hilarity, I cannot drop this season below five stars due to the extraordinary content of the really good episodes. Basically, the season started off a bit slow, hit its stride during/after the Jim/Pam wedding, then leveled off again after the baby episode, only to limp to the finish line. Also, the final scene hints at the possible return of a fan-favorite character, which could easily rejuvenate the proceedings for the seventh season next fall.

This is another solid season of the The Office, full of great humor. That being said, there's a big reason to save your money here.

NBC decided to cut the cold open from the episode "Koi Pond" for no clear reason. The opening, the halloween haunted warehouse, was probably the funniest of the season. Yet for whatever reason it has been removed from the episode on the disc - even though a clip from halloween is shown on the menu disc. You can actually still stream it the opening in question right on the NBC website. Whether it's backwards censorship or an oversight in the product creation, it's a BIG problem.

Don't buy this - if sales are down for the 6th season dvd/blu ray then maybe they'll include it down the road for a purchase that's actually worth paying for.

First, I have to say that I've watched Seasons 1-5 of The Office at least three times, plus commentaries, plus deleted scenes, plus bloopers, plus googled all the actors--so I'm a big fan. But after some of the awful reviews here on Amazon, I almost didn't buy Season 6. I was afraid I wouldn't recognize Jim, Pam, Michael, Dwight...but I shouldn't have worried.

Yes, Dunder Mifflin has changed. Yes, the characters have evolved (some devolved). But I love the show so much that I just went with those changes...and enjoyed them. Even Ryan, who seems like a different character every season, is fun to watch. Season 6 has some brilliant moments, some so-so episodes, and some real depth and beauty, so overall, as long as your expectations are reasonable, I think you'll like this set.

Since others have already written about the episodes, what I'd like to offer is that very few long-running shows can sustain the kind of high-caliber excellence we've come to expect from shows like The Office. Writers are human; sometimes they have an off-episode or even an off-season. (Season 3, with Jim at the other branch, was a lot more disjointed for me than Season 6. Even the writers in one of the commentaries admitted it was a misstep to separate the cast. Oh well...it happens. It's just the creative process. I still loved Season 3.)

So to those of you on the fence like I was...if you love The Office, you'll probably love Season 6, too. (The last five minutes of the blooper reel alone is worth the price of the entire set.)

Having read some of the reviews of this season I was unsure what I was getting. Having watched it I am more of a fan than ever. The characters and their relationships with each other are what drives this show and season six will be hard to top. "Niagara" and "Secret Santa" are two of the best episodes to date (with the exception of "Stress Relief" from season five) and are almost reasons alone to buy it. "Happy Hour" and "The Lover" are almost as funny and also serve to flesh out the characters even more. Can't wait for a Dwight Shrute spin-off series (please!).

I had some technical problems with the discs the first time I tried to play them. I have a Sony BDP-S570. So I updated the firmware and now they all play fine. I'm currently in Afghanistan, and if I can manage to update my blu-ray player, it shouldn't be a big deal for others. One time a disc skipped a lot during an episode, so I took it out and cleaned it off. It played fine after that. There's lots of dust and stuff in the air where I'm at, so I figure that had something to do with it. And as for that Halloween scene people are complaining about, I'm not going to lose any sleep over it.

My oldest son requested this series because of his work and social schedule. (I think he just likes to watch it without commercials and all at once!) It arrived before Christmas within a week, so I was pleased!

The Office is a great show and this season is one of the most hilarious seasons that's come out. Soooooo funny.

We have purchased early seasons of The Office from Amazon. They always come in superb condition and the price is usually cheaper than i can find anywhere else. Also, always arrives before stated. If you are an "Office" lover, this is the way to go.