A Hivatal

This has been the most successful British television export since Red Dwarf. It is a departure from classic sitcom productions, in a way an experiment that contradicts the classic exaggerated situational comedy in favor of realistic acting and has humor that relies more on the absurdity of minor everyday work conflicts and character nuances of employees at a small company. Each of us has probably encountered similar types of people to the characters in the series to some extent in life, and we can insert our own specific names and faces as the characters of the show. It is difficult to describe what exactly the tremendous success and response is based on, but thanks to its originality, the series has excelled practically on all continents and in various cultures. A self-centered arrogant boss, an ambitious career climber, a dim-witted office girl, a timid underdog, and several other types of characters can entertain the viewer with a series of seemingly trivial incidents if they embrace the rules set by the creators of the series. Overall impression: 90%. (2007.05.30)

Compared to the American remake, this British version is slightly more restrained and has great assets in the form of Martin Freeman and a toned-down Ricky Gervais. However, I found the rest of the cast better in the US version. The humor is surprisingly in a similar vein in both versions, but the American relies more on gags, especially later on in the series. Which is probably due to the greater number of episodes. But both versions work pretty well. (2007.07.18)

Place, where the stickiest awkwardness slowly spreads and where it spreads, it will stay there. David Brent is an overgrown child, a bit mischievous, a bit of a tyrant, a bit of a racist, and a big chauvinist. He does many of these things unintentionally, but unfortunately, it cannot be said that he does less harm because of it. It is precisely in those moments when he tries to please someone and colleagues sitting around do not understand what the hell is going on, are the spices that have created a cult from the series, but at the same time, this is where I often turn away from the screen because I simply cannot handle such a portion of embarrassment and crazy mishaps. I prefer Tim and Dawn and the relaxed atmosphere of their sincere banter and casual winking. And I like it the most when things get serious. When the course of events surprises me as if something similar were happening in my workplace. All the hilarious laughter and eye rolling over the existence of bosses only adds to the strength and the desire to know what will happen next. The Christmas special is just the icing on the cake, proving that Ricky Gervais can be a terrible jerk, but he can also play incredibly well. (2024.04.05)

The first episode is a bit of a start-up, but from the second one on, The Office bites into you and doesn't let go. It is absurd that you can laugh at situations that you yourself experience almost daily. But the whole series is absurd, isn’t it? No? Awkwardness has never been so funny. (2009.10.08)

I've been avoiding this series for quite some time, but I guess now is the right time to give it a watch. I must admit that the series is fundamentally very original, and Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant have created something that is not often seen. On the other hand, a different style of humor resonates more with me, and I didn’t always enjoy this. Still, David Brent is a character you won't forget. (2017.01.12)