Would I Have Been Friends with Jim Halpert in College? “The Office” and Its Strange Appeal Among College Students
By Ted Kluck
I was at a dinner party with college students recently when one of them circulated a picture he had found of me, clean-shaven, at age 20.
“You looked like Jim from ‘The Office!’” somebody blurted out, but what she really meant was that I was a clean-shaven youngish-looking white guy. Underneath our curated hipster beards (obscuring the lower 2/3 of our faces, long before masks!), apparently all of us looked like Jim Halpert at one time.
I think for college students, Jim represents (and stands in for) the kind of cynical, confident, cleverer-than-thou, good-looking, decent-at-basketball slouchy guy that they all want to be and in some ways already are. “Already are” in the sense that Jim flirts with the same girl for many years without making a move or asking her out or doing anything even remotely risky other than chatting with her at work – which makes Jim not-unlike some Christian college guys. Girls apparently hate this in Christian college guys but find it charming and winsome in Jim Halpert. I’m confused.
I probably would have hated Jim in college and would have made him a nemesis – due in large part to him being better looking and (probably) more popular than me. Then we would have accidentally hung out junior year, had a bunch of laughs, found out we enjoyed making fun of the same stuff and become good friends. This is pretty much my arc with every nemesis I’ve ever had.
College students love “The Office,” which is strange inasmuch as – at face value – there’s nothing (Jim notwithstanding) dreamy or aspirational about it at all. It’s basically a story about a whole bunch of people who have settled in life…as opposed to a story like “Friends,” which is total fantasy but the kind of total fantasy that looks really appealing in terms of the beautiful pre-COVID-NYC-apartment building filled to the brim with hot people who just want to hang out and talk about themselves.
Yet, “The Office” became binge-watch comfort-food for college students who are a good generation removed from its original run, timing-wise. I have students who would literally race out of the classroom to get back to the dorm to binge their way through “The Office” for like the seventh time, just as a sort of exercise in comfort and feeling okay. So there was something about the experience that – like a pet – made them feel comfortable and at ease.
Help me understand this. I’m fascinated.
Rewatching “The Office” Through the Eyes of the Cast
By Andrew Waddey
I have probably seen “The Office” in its entirety eight or nine times. I’ve laughed at every prank Jim pulled on Dwight, and I’ve cried with every sad goodbye to beloved characters. But every time I watch that very last episode, I feel like I need more. Like an addict using up the last of his supply.
I wanted to step up my “Office” intake and broaden what I consume. That’s when I really got into podcasts. I was told about a podcast hosted by Jenna Fischer (Pam Beesly) and Angela Kinsey (Angela Martin) where they go episode by episode explaining behind-the-scenes stories and how each episode originated. The podcast is titled “Office Ladies.”
It was exactly what I needed. Since Netflix took the show off of their streaming service, I had to resort to busting out my DVDs. It feels primitive.
Through the podcast, not only did I get to once again stream each episode, but I also got a running commentary as well. It’s like watching “The Office” from the perspective of the actors.
I was then able to find my latest binge: “The Office Deep Dive” by Brian Baumgartner (Kevin Malone).
While also giving me that same fix that “Office Ladies” gave, this podcast focused on more of the history of “The Office” and dealt with the minds behind it. It’s fun to listen to the actor’s actual voice after only knowing his “Kevin voice.” It was almost intended for podcasts. The show is relatively new, so the binge was short-lived. I’m always ready when there’s a new episode, though.
The fact that three actors from the main cast felt the need to start a podcast to share their insight to the show speaks to there being so much more than just the nine seasons. It shows that it’s not only personal for the audience; the impact was just as big for the cast. Hopefully these podcasts last a few years,because this is an addiction I don’t want to quit.
“The Office:” Is It Worth the Watch?
By Amy Lovins
Last semester, my roommate and I watched the first episode of “The Office.” It was my first time watching an entire episode from the show since I had only seen a few bits and pieces of them previously. Throughout the years, many friends had highly recommended “The Office” to me, and upon discovering that I had not seen it, immediately told me that I was missing out and that I should go watch it. So once I had finally sat down and watched an entire episode all the way through, I could not help but feel disappointed.
With most television shows, I can just dive right in and begin to try to figure out the plot and learn more about the characters. However, with “The Office,” I had a really hard time being invested with the characters and the story. It did not grab my attention from the beginning, and it did not keep it until the end.
Some of my lack of interest in the show could be from my own inexperience in an office space. I could see how someone who has worked in an office setting could relate to a lot of the events that take place during the show, but I feel like a lot of the situations are uncomfortable or unrelatable, such as Michael making fun of his employees and constantly assuming that he is better than everyone else. I think that this unrelatability also takes away from the comedy aspect of the show. This doesn’t make the show enjoyable; it makes it exhausting.
On Scranton, Penn., and Secondhand Embarrassment
By Naomi Mengel
My only real connection to “The Office” is that I’ve been to Scranton, Penn., the real-world location of the fictional Dunder Mifflin Paper Company, Inc. But even that connection is a loose one; the show was filmed elsewhere (California), and I was nowhere near the mall with the sign from the show’s opening or the building housing an actual paper company that also has a Dunder Mifflin sign in the window (I was skiing on the mountain.)
Nevertheless, when my roommate Leah, whose favorite background-noise-while-doing-homework show is “The Office,” heard that I was going to Scranton, her excitement was beyond what I thought a relatively normal city in Pennsylvania warranted. What is the appeal of watching a show about people in cubicles in a boring-looking office space in a regular old town like so many others across America, anyway?
“People are just funny, dude,” Leah said. “That’s all I got for you.”
Personally, I’ve seen a few full episodes of “The Office” and various other scenes just from walking into Leah’s room and staring at her TV like a dad behind the couch in a living room. While I found some of it funny, secondhand embarrassment hit a little too hard for me to keep watching. But I can see how it makes for a good comfort watch for college students in particular. Enjoying the show doesn’t necessarily require the commitment of watching every single episode in order, and the hijinks of each episode don’t require a lot of thought or attention to understand. Add to that the sheer chaos of the characters, their particular brand of memeable humor and the 20-minute episode length, and you’ve got a bingeable show perfect for study breaks or even background noise while studying.
Finally, for students themselves about to enter the “real world” of offices and 9-to-5s, “The Office” might have a bit of escapist appeal. On one hand, your boss will probably not be like Michael Scott (a good thing; could lead to a healthier work environment). On the other hand, your boss will probably not be like Michael Scott (a bad thing; could be boring). Most people probably don’t actually want to work in such an entertainingly dysfunctional workplace, but it’s comforting in a weird way to see that play out and think, well, the real world can’t be this bad.
(Those who watch “The Office” religiously, please correct me if I’m wrong. This is based on my own very limited knowledge, conversation with my roommate and a genuine desire to figure out why my generation has such an obsession with this show.)
So while I don’t really personally buy into the hype surrounding “The Office,” I think I’m beginning to understand where it comes from. Maybe I’ll go back for a photo with that classic “Scranton Welcomes You” sign someday, just for the flex.
