An opinionated batch of Office updates
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- July
- 16
After days with little to say Office-wise, there comes a small flurry of Scrantony tid-bits. By the way, we’ve made it almost halfway through the summer hiatus. Just 10 weeks to go.
You’re not late to The Office—The Office is late to you
You’d think with a half-dozen more episodes to squeeze in by May the folks at The Office would want to get a jump on things.
Yeah, not so much. NBC Universal announced today the fall premiere will be just that—a fall premiere. That’s a Sept. 27 debut for Season 4. It beats 30 Rock’s mid-October launch of last year, but it’s still at least a week longer than I figured we’d have to wait to find out just what Jim meant by “It’s a date.”
For the record, 30 Rock returns Oct. 4.
Blah blah blah 360
I’m not really interested in this whole Office 360, the fully interactive online experience adapted from Heroes 360. I mean, I’m obsessive enough to love this concept. But seriously, how many hours are there in the day?
I’d say about a half-dozen too few for me to give this much thought. That said, lots of folks in the fandom are probably stoked about the details the network put out today on it.
Beginning with the launch of a special Dunder Mifflin corporate site, fans will be able to join and form new branches as part of an online job fair. Once branches are established, weekly tasks will be assigned from “Corporate.” Tasks will mostly correspond to topics or events featured in the broadcast show, but will also include online-specific challenges such as creating individual branch logos or ad campaigns, completing online games and interacting with other Dunder Mifflin branches.
To paraphrase Beavis of Beavis & Butthead, that sounds a lot like work. It continues…
Through continued participation fans can earn Schrute-Bucks for themselves and their branch, which they can use to decorate their virtual office as they climb their way up the Dunder Mifflin corporate ladder.
I’ll give you 40,000 Brian-Dimes not to make me do this.
Mose speaks
Part 3 of OfficeTally’s chat with Mike Shur, aka Mose Schrute, is up. Find out just who wrote the Oompa Loompa song. Learn the explosive potential ending to Season 4. And guess the word that’s OK to say numerous times on network TV but wigs me out to think about reprinting here on a family TV blog.
Green is universally superficial
NBC Universal is putting the spotlight on the environment. Through its TV programming . For a week.
How would you like to be the public relations rep who had to write this bit of silliness?
Through its worldwide programming, specials and consumer-focused events, the week will focus the entire company’s resources and efforts toward educating viewers, web & wireless users, and the company’s employees on ecological issues and our impact on the environment.
No doubt the environment is a worthy cause. I mean, where would we be without it? (The correct answer is space. We also would have accepted limbo or Times Square.) But this is meaningless. TV is for entertainment.
I’m sure someone thought this would make the fourth-place network look good. But you know what else would do that? Better programming. (We would also accept “less Howie Mandel”.)
She could play Michael’s mom
I seem to remember last summer, when The Office took home its Emmy, there was some talk about cast members awed at meeting Carol Burnett backstage. A few even fantasized about her guest starring on the show.
If only I could find a link to some such chatter. Alas, I can’t. So just trust me.
Well it seems the feeling’s mutual. Burnett, whose variety show was the last great one of its kind, says a stint at Dunder-Mifflin Scranton is a dream of hers.
“I keep calling them,� Burnett tells HollywoodToday.net, “but they keep changing their number. I don’t know. I don’t think they have guest stars (on ‘The Office’) that much, but if they did, I’d be right there.�
Someone get me Greg Daniels on line 3.
And holy moly, all that for special effects?
First it disappointed at the box office. Then it failed to be as edgy as its prequel. Now Evan Almighty has risked offending a major world religion.
By turning the story of Noah and the ark into a comedy and by portraying God as a human being, the movie insults Islam, declared Malaysia’s Muslim Consumers Association.
I have only two things to say in response. First, Morgan Freeman played God in Bruce Almighty so it’s not like this is unprecedented. And second, the movie wasn’t even that funny, so that criticism doesn’t really hold water.
This entry was posted
on Monday, July 16th, 2007 at 10:33 pm by Brian Howard.
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