The Office question
 

I'm gonna rent one but not both....or maybe both if ya'll convince me. I just don't have much TV watching free-time and I need to maximize my viewing power.

Re: The Office question
 

BBC first. Then American. Both are good. But the BBC one is one of the best television shows ever.

Re: The Office question
 

The UK version is the best for me, so I voted with that. The US version was also very good and worth watching. However, it may be that the UK version just won't work for some yanks, others will be better qualified to comment.

Re: The Office question
 

I've never seen the NBC one but I can't imagine it being anywhere close. Gervais is perfect. I've had to watch all of them several times to catch all the little nuances in his acting. Brent is one of the greatest comic characters ever.

However, I'm English and thus probably a bit biased, plus a lot of Americans just claim not to "get" English humor...

Re: The Office question
 

The American version is hysterical. I haven't seen the BBC one yet, but it's in queue. I think I'll wait a bit though.

Re: The Office question
 

[ QUOTE ]
I've never seen the NBC one but I can't imagine it being anywhere close.

[/ QUOTE ]

I had this attitude and was 100% prepared to hate the US version and really didn't see the point in watching it. The first episode was meh, but it got better and actually manages to stand on it's own as a pretty damn good show. Of course, the UK version is the nuts.

Re: The Office question
 

haha, great avatar

Re: The Office question
 

Also, if you didn't know, Gervais's new show Extras is on HBO. IMO, it's even better than the Office.

His character is much less stylized and over-the-top. Every episode has a famous guest star. Samuel L., Winslet and Ben Stiller (who I can't stand) have been in it. Also, Stephen Merchant, who co-wrote the Office with Gervais, plays his agent in the show. The scenes with him are brilliant.

Episodes can be found in various places on the web. I recommend episodes 5 and 6 especially.

Re: The Office question
 

I think the American one is funnier, but is it even out on DVD? I check Best Buy on Saturday w/ no luck.

The BBC one is also funny as hell though. The episode w/ the acoustic guitar nearly killed me.

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I haven't watched much of the american one, but I find it really hard to believe it could be better than the BBC one.

Re: The Office question
 

According to Amazon, it's out.

Re: The Office question
 

[ QUOTE ]
I haven't watched much of the american one, but I find it really hard to believe it could be better than the BBC one.

[/ QUOTE ]

Steve Carell is a riot.

Dwight >> Gareth

Doesn't hurt that Pam is infinitely hotter than Dawn too.

Re: The Office question
 

Both excellent, and funny in different ways

British = bum-tightening, cringingly embarrassing, off-the-deep-end comedy.

American = embarassing, quirky, witty comedy.

Let's all dance to celebrate the differences...
http://www.happyhunter.com/the_office.gif

Re: The Office question
 

[ QUOTE ]
According to Amazon, it's out.

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I have this on my shelf at home already. It has been out about 3 weeks I think.

Re: The Office question
 

They're pretty different shows...the UK one is --ing hilarious, but season two is more thoughtful...I mean, there are stretches of silence between characters with phones chirping in the background that are as funny and sad as anything Wes Anderson could put in a movie. The American show is just fast and funny and not mean-spirited or disheartening...so I like it less. 1 disc of each...

Re: The Office question
 

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They're pretty different shows

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oh, definitely.

FWIW, i haven't watched series 2 of the BBC one, or season 1 of the NBC one for that matter.

Re: The Office question
 

rent the UK version. US Season 1 here

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I love em both.


Favourite bits?
UK: David Brent's dance - easy!
US (season 1): Dwight Schrute talking about a nice lady who's selling bags as a potential mate (I'm paraphrasing): She has great breasts! They're not for me, you understand, that's for my children. Schrute babies are very hungry...

Favourite Episodes:
UK: All very good, but the guitar one Ray talked about is firmly in my mind now, and it's a hoot!
US: Diversity day - I laughed so hard watching this on the train, I had to switch it off (and I have a high threshold of embarassment)

Okay, Dwight > Gareth, but Keith > the fat American guy (Stanley?)

Re: The Office question
 

The NBC version is currently my favorite show. I have downloaded all the episodes off of Limewire and watched them a ton this last week. I also downloaded the first three BBC versions and found them funny, but didn't like them quite as much.(If I lived in England I would have probably liked them more than the US version) BBC's Dwight didn't do it for me, and the NBC's portrayal of the Jim and Pam relationship is very very good, I love the interaction between them. Both lead actors can get somewhat annoying at times, but I think in the NBC version, that the other characters have a more important role.

Re: The Office question
 

I have a meta posting beef.

Why is there a poll here. Clearly you have to read the answers to understand the justifications for why people vote the way they do. If you're going to read the answers, then what the heck is the point of the poll, other than to possible keep people from posting because now they can just vote in a poll instead?

Re: The Office question
 

[ QUOTE ]
I have a meta posting beef.

Why is there a poll here. Clearly you have to read the answers to understand the justifications for why people vote the way they do. If you're going to read the answers, then what the heck is the point of the poll, other than to possible keep people from posting because now they can just vote in a poll instead?

[/ QUOTE ]

Dear Nit -

First, I usually really enjoy your posts. But the reason I included a poll here is precisely for the reason you gave. I wanted to give people an opportunity to respond quickly and easily. If people want to include more information, they have that choice. Otherwise, you have to read threads that simply have responses such as "British", "American", "British is teh awesommest1!"

What's the issue w/ polls? I'm a visual person and I love me my bars n graphs. Without a poll, it wouldn't have been as clear to me what the runaway favorite was.

[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] Mike

Re: The Office question
 

[ QUOTE ]
BBC first. Then American. Both are good. But the BBC one is one of the best television shows ever.

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This is obviously the correct answer.

Both are great, but you shouldn't treat them as different versions of the same show.

BTW, if we insist on comparing them, the Dawn/Tim thing is done waaaaay better in the UK version.

Re: The Office question
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
BBC first. Then American. Both are good. But the BBC one is one of the best television shows ever.

[/ QUOTE ]

This is obviously the correct answer.

Both are great, but you shouldn't treat them as different versions of the same show.

BTW, if we insist on comparing them, the Dawn/Tim thing is done waaaaay better in the UK version.

[/ QUOTE ]

I see that Dawn has lost a lot of weight and has gone to hollywood.