Rating: 
Summary: Ever Worked?
Review: If you have ever worked in a cubicle, this is your series. The Office has it all - a boss that tries to be too funny, the creepy assistant manager, the office flirtation that just won't die. This show is so funny it is almost painful. There is no laugh track and no dumbing down of the humor. This is the evil laugh child of Spinal Tap, Faulty Towers, and Absolutely Fabulous.
Rating: 
Summary: brilliant, but painful
Review: If you've seen the Office already, you've most likely made up your mind and there's no reason for you to be reading customer opinions. But if you've never seen it, beware of these glowing reviews. I recommend you go rent a season before you decide to buy anything, because you just might find it too much to bear.
I agree with the reviewers who call the Office brilliant and subtle, but the difference between them and me is that Brent, the desperate office manager, is simply too painful for me to enjoy. Most of the characters are very funny, played by wonderful actors, and I wish they would get more screen time to balance Brent's obnoxious persona. I love the awkward pauses in the show, the go-nowhere plot, the discreet jokes, but there's just too much Brent; he sours the mix for me. While part of me is laughing as he embarasses himself, I'm mostly cringing and wishing that he would shut up. Which of course is the intended effect; but I just don't like being so irritated by a TV show.
Rating:
Summary: Hilarious
Review: One of the best comedy series I have ever seen; this is a great price, and if you dont like owning I recommend renting it. You won't be dissapointed.
Rating:
Summary: haha we brits are still the kings of comedy
Review: ricky gervais leads a brilliant cast in this funny british comedy, i dunno what to say about it thats already been said, oh well, the office is a must see, and if you think thats the newest best british comedy then you should definately see My Family if it airs in America.
Rating:
Summary: Cringeworthy genius
Review: Set in the bleak, awfully-named industrial town of Slough and the fictional office of the Wernam-Hogg paper merchants, a BBC film crew documents the expressionless workers, ringing phones, copiers churning out clone after clone after clone, pointless meetings and pointless bureaucracy that exist within typical, uninspiring companies.Sadly, the majority of people in Britain work in dull, dead-end office jobs with lives that go nowhere and even the most meager of ambitions going unrealized. Maybe if they had a boss like David Brent their day would be livened up. Not because he's the 'boss/entertainer' he thinks he is, but for the morbid curiosity of watching a desperate, delusional and detestable man slowly crash and burn. The majority of laughs in The Office come from awkward and embarrassing situations. Brent constantly forces his bullheaded and bawdy humor on unwitting staff. At first they appear scared of his ruthlessly imposing presence but towards the end they all ignore him completely. But he never realizes this and resorts to even more tasteless ways of getting attention. He loves the camera and rather than acting 'normal' for the purposes of the mockumentary he exaggerates his beastly character to the point of being sickening. He gets what deserves in the end and by this point the audience has lost all sympathy for him. His brutalized and beleaguered staff struggle to get on with their work as Brent's tyranny escalates. Among them we have Tim, an increasingly unhappy man who wishes to escape the monotony and drudgery 'ordinary life' brings him. He's long had the confidence crushed out of him but still has more humanity than anyone else. Gareth is Tim's worst enemy. A dorky, 95 pound weakling who boasts of being in the (territorial) Army and is keen to assume more and more power from Brent's failing management. Like Brent, he has no clue about social interaction and behaves strangely among potential friends. Dawn is the receptionist. She is engaged to a controlling, unloving boyfriend who insists she spend her life doing dull work despite the fact that she has higher and happier dreams. She has feelings for Tim, and they are more than mutual. But fear of change and happiness stops her from falling for him. As soon as once branch of Wernam-Hogg incorporates the other it becomes clear how useless Brent is. The new staff are amazed at how such a horrid man has been employed at all, never mind become a boss. Complaints and unfinished work rise and the upper management are forced to take action. Sadly, Brent just won't learn. In the end, his staff have the slightest chance at happiness and escape. Brent however doesn't learn from his mistakes and will probably go on to have an endlessly miserable life. If you work in an office, get out! Among the blackest of humor there is a message; office life is fit for no human being. And Ricky Gervais' dark comedy is filled with thousands of examples of why this is so. It's absolutely classic stuff that is far ahead of dozens of canned laughter sitcoms. This DVD set features all 12 episodes. The are in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen with Dolby 2.0 sound. The deleted scenes, outtakes and behind the scenes stuff are, for a change, very funny and interesting.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliantly biting, uncomfortable and hilarious
Review: Set up as a fake documentary/reality tv show, The Office manages to capture humour in a way we've rarely seen before. The branch manager, David Brent, is painfully pathetic in his attempts at being funny to garner popularity. You can just feel the discomfort and awkwardness that everyone around him suffers as a result (as the camera continues to roll following his horrid jokes), and this is part of the show's brilliance - moments that make you cringe and laugh simultaneously. Each of the main characters are so unique and well executed that there's no sense of dead weight. There are definitely some very poignant moments from time to time, and it's these rare tidbits that make you care about the characters so much. Having found so much to relate to in these stories, these DVDs are hilarious and strangely comforting - I've watched them several times over. A side note: there were two Christmas specials that came out after the conclusion of the second season which wrap up the story quite nicely, but these are not yet available on DVD.
Rating:
Summary: The Office
Review: The Office is a wonderful example of British humor. So much smarter than anything on American tv. Every time you watch it you hear and see little things you'd missed previously. The characters are so perfect, and so believable that many remind me of people I actually know! I've shared it with people at my work, and everyone loves it. It's just too bad there's only 2 seasons!!
Rating:
Summary: Best of British
Review: The office is amazing and i'm glad its doing so well in america, but there's another show thats right up there in the same league called 'phoenix nights' staring Peter Kay. They were competing with each other at the comedy awards (office won) but if it ever comes out over here then buy it. Also look for his 2 stand up performances, they're all out back home so i'm guessing they'll be available over here soon too...
Rating:
Summary: Wait for the FULL set of shows
Review: This DVD set only includes the first and second series. They made a further two long episodes for Christmas 2003 that didn't make it to this set. No doubt they'll release a full boxed set sometime down the road and you'll wish you waited. By the way, the two Christmas episodes were brilliant :)
Rating:
Summary: Art imitates life...
Review: This is the most horrific television ever to be aired. It's the train wreck you can't look away from. Comedy? Horror? Suspense? Terror? Documentary?(the term mockumentary doesn't do it justice) All of these things! What can be said that hasn't been already? See it. Now. Don't wait for the Christmas Episodes, buy them later. You will care for some of these characters and you'll pity the rest of them. This show will drag you from one emotional extreme to the other within a moment. When watching, you will be in television heaven or hell (depending on the scene). It may not be real, but it has what makes the few good reality shows good and more.
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