“The Office” Finds Some Much Needed Direction

       

        Last month, news came that Rainn Wilson is teaming up with show-runner Paul Lieberstein to create a spinoff about Schrute Farms and the quirky family members that work there. The plan is to launch the new show next spring, meaning Wilson will only appear in half of “The Office” episodes next season. Additionally, Mindy Kaling has a pilot in development at Fox and if it’s picked up as a series, she will also be leaving. Just this week, James Spader announced that his work on “The Office” will end after this season. “Office” head writer Danny Chun has signed a development deal with ABC and is also likely to leave. And, perhaps most importantly, none of the cast members have deals in place for next season. Ed Helms, John Krasinski, and Jenna Fischer are all in contract negotiations for a ninth season, which has yet to be picked up by NBC. In the past month, the shows ratings have hit series lows. “The Office” is in a state of flux. In all likelihood the show will return in the fall for what will surely be its final season. But who will be back remains to be seen.

      Despite all of this, “The Office” has sunk into a comfortable groove for the first time this season. After about 13 episodes, the show finally gained some direction by sending a group from Scranton to Tallahassee to launch a new Sabre store under the supervision of Nellie Bertram (Catherine Tate). The past few episodes have felt like an improvement on what’s come before. The show has always done particularly well with arcs, and I’m surprised it took the writers this long into the season to finally incorporate one. But perhaps the biggest improvement is the shift in focus. Most of the season I’ve felt as though the show was being dominated by Robert California, Andy, Erin, Kevin, and Darryl.  The Florida arc, while not perfect (it’s trying to be season 5’s Michael Scott Paper Company arc but it isn’t nearly as good), has allowed more of the characters to interact and shifts the focus to Jim and Dwight. California is out of the picture for now, Spader’s deal was only for 15 episodes so he won’t be around much longer, and Andy has been demoted to B-storylines. Meanwhile, smaller characters like Ryan, Kelly, and Stanley have been given some fun things to do for the past three weeks while over-used Kevin has taken the backseat. The writers are juggling the characters more successfully now than they did earlier this season and the show is better for it. Even guest star Catherine Tate is used somewhat sparingly and is a much better fit than Will Ferrell’s awful guest stint as Deangelo Vickers last year.

     Sure, there have been some problems with the Florida arc, particularly the lazy attempt by the writers to cause tension in the Jim-Pam relationship (this isn’t a soap opera, obviously Jim wouldn’t cheat on Pam), but even that story had some funny moments as Dwight kept interrupting (C)Kathy’s attempts to seduce Jim.

       Tonight’s episode, “Test the Store” was my favorite of the arc so far and perhaps the best episode of the season. It had some funny moments, which is really all I should expect from the show at this point. But more than that, I’m interested in what the show is doing with Dwight and Erin. Dwight loves power and being passed over for the manager job seemed to be an afterthought. I felt as thought the writers didn’t focus enough on that, and Dwight only seemed slightly annoyed to being under Andy. Now, he’s finally taking charge with the opportunity to be Vice President of the Sabre special project. At the same time, the writers have made sure to keep him grounded (perhaps this is preparation for having him anchor a new series next spring). Last week, he decided not to have sex with Nellie and chose to get the promotion the honorable way. Tonight, the scene where Dwight begged Jim to do the presentation was surprisingly powerful. In terms of Erin, I like how she has decided to stay in Florida, although I’m sure once Andy finds out he’ll find a way to bring her back. I’ve never liked Erin and Andy as a couple, but it seems inevitable that they'll get together soon. But, I’ll enjoy the Erin scenes in Florida while they last.

       Word has it that Nellie will be returning to Scranton with the rest of the characters to make a play for Andy’s job. In a way, I hope she gets it. Andy doesn’t work as manager and I’d much rather watch the show try something completely new than play it safe and boring by keeping Ed Helms in the manager seat.

      Next year, I’m not sure what to expect. Of course I want the show to end on a high note, but that almost seems impossible at the rate the cast is leaving. I wouldn’t be too surprised if Krasinski’s deal has him doing only half the season’s episodes so the actor can work on his film career (Jim can become a “traveling salesman” or take a job somewhere else). And with Wilson’s spinoff deal a real possibility, the second half of season nine could feature Jenna Fischer as the only main cast member who’s been with the show since day 1 (even though the credits suggest otherwise, BJ Novak does not count).

      But, while the show’s future remains unclear, this season has finally picked up some momentum. It’s been a weird year for “The Office” and nobody knows exactly what next year will bring. For now, I’m perfectly content to watch the show and believe that it can still be funny at times even if it’s been on a downward spiral for about three seasons.

     A year from now, “The Office” will be winding down its run (a 10^th season seems highly unlikely) and I think there are a lot of fun ways to end the show. Creator Greg Daniels said in an interview a few years ago that he has a good idea for a series finale. Maybe we’ll finally find out why the documentary crew has been following these people for so long. I asked Mindy Kaling this at her book signing and she said, “Greg has a plan.” Here’s hoping that plan involves no Dwight spinoff and a guest appearance by Steve Carell.