jim halpert

Don't do it Rainn.

Fox News' Roger Friedman reports that NBC is actually thinking about giving the Dwight Schrute character his own spin-off show. Friedman is often wrong but this time it was confirmed (sorta) by Wilson himself. Friedman met Wilson at a party after the Tony Awards the other night and Wilson is the one who brought it up.

Remember the twist at the end of the season finale for The Office, where Ryan got the job that Michael, Jim, and Karen interviewed for? Judging from e-mails and other comments, many fans were confused and didn't think that Ryan really got the job, that it was some sort of trick out by the show that would be explained when the new season starts. But it looks like Ryan did indeed get the gig (which is probably good, since it would be weird being in the same office as the girlfriend you just said "we're done" to).

I finally watched the original, British version of The Office, and it's quite good. I still like the American version more though. That has nothing to do with the quality of the British version, really, it has more to do with the pace, the rhythm, the American-ized problems that the show focuses on, and the cast. Though I do think it's just funnier too.

This UK critic agrees. Though he thinks the Ricky Gervais original is a masterpiece and that some of the darker nuances have been lost in the American version, he thinks it's more entertaining and hasn't had that feeling that it had to burn out after a dozen episodes. He loves the fact that after three seasons it's still "remarkably fresh," and likes that Michael Scott is a different sort of annoying boss than David Brent and appreciates the real drama in the Jim/Pam relationship.

I recently posted news that producers of NBC's The Office were seriously thinking about extending the show to an hour every week next season. Some of you loved that idea and some of you hated it. Well, looks like we have a compromise.

According to Kristin over at E! Online, the show will have four, one-hour specials next season, as well as 24 episodes total. That's really good news, in this new age where many "full seasons" of shows often don't even hit 22 episodes. I was watching some old comedies on DVD the other day and noted that they often had 25 or 30 episodes a season back then.

Speaking of one hour, The Office one-hour season finale airs next Thursday at 8.

I get a little bummed out whenever there's a rerun of The Office (I feel the same way when Letterman has a repeat week). But I saw this over at Best Week Ever and it will do until next Thursday.

It's a sneak preview of the next episode, and features Jim Halpert coming into work dressed like and talking like Dwight, which amuses Pam instantly and freaks out Dwight. I gotta say, John Krasinski does a terrific job impersonating the character of Dwight. It would have been so easy to go over the top with the voice and mannerisms, but he's actually kind of subtle.

"Identity theft is not a joke Jim! Millions of families suffer every year!" Video after the jump.

These paintings are rather good and quite inexpensive.

They're drawings of the cast of The Office (the U.S. version, though there are pics of David Brent, Dawn, and Gareth from the original too). The mouth on Kevin is just about perfect, Pam looks especially worried, and Toby looks...well, exactly like Toby. You can also buy pics of Michael, Jim, Dwight, Angela, Ryan, Kelly, Stanley, and Jan.

And the paintings are only $8.50! That's not a bad price at all to get a print that you can hang in your cubicle. Or maybe you won't want to hang it in your cubicle. Hard to say. It could either be a funny reminder that there's a TV show that understands the pain of working in an office day after day after day or it could be a sad reminder that you work in an office day after day after day.

[via Best Week Ever]

First Stephen Colbert, now The Office.

On a recent episode of the NBC comedy, boss Michael Scott (Steve Carell) went to Wikipedia for tips on how to fire one of his employees. So fans of the show have, naturally, gone to the site and started to edit the entry on negotiations like crazy. Because, as Michael put it (I'm paraphrasing here, don't remember the exact quote), "having a bunch of people edit a web site is best way to get accurate information."

First off, it was a great episode. Dwight shooting Roy in the eyes, all the Toby/Michael stuff (Toby is truly one of the great characters on TV right now), and Ed Helms returning at the end (which I didn't see coming) were all really funny moments. But I'm wondering: was the show really "supersized?"

Oh, I know it was longer. It started at 8pm and got over at 8:40, so it was longer in length, but didn't it seem like there were more commercials than usual? And what about that 4 minute long commercial for 30 Rock? Sure, they increase the length of the episode by 10 minutes, but 4 of those minutes are for an extended promo for another one of NBC's shows? It seemed to be shoved in there and was rather distracting.

Well, this is interesting. I'm not a big fan of David Foster Wallace (1), but anyone who attempts to film something that he has written has my respect.

John Krasinski, Jim on The Office, is directing the movie version of DFW's (2) Brief Interviews With Hideous Men. Not really sure how the movie will be structured, since the book is a collection of short stories, but it's a daring choice for a first time effort. The movie stars Timothy Hutton (3), Rashida Jones (4), Josh Charles (5), Will Forte (6), and Bobby Cannavale (7).

1. He's a smart, interesting guy, but sometimes you just want to throw his books across the room.
2. I can't remember if you're supposed to call him "Foster Wallace" or just "Wallace."
3. From Kidnapped.
4. Karen on The Office.
5. From Sports Night.
6. From SNL.
7. From Will & Grace.