Michael

Hi Everyone,
Ok, so if you've noticed i loove sharing my opinions with you all, i can't help it!
I've decided to right my first real opinion piece on Michael.

I think Michael is probably the hardest character to write for on the show. He must straddle the line between believability and idiocy, he IS the branch manager and therefore needs to be competent, but he is one of the main comedy cornerstones of the show and certainly is what i would call an odd duck. He is politically incorrect, a sheltered mama's boy, maladjusted to the real world and has a warped sense of relationships. At the same time he is sweet and the only animosity we truly see is when Toby is around (although i think Ryan is up for the part of Michael's nemesis this year).

The main reason that Michael must be kept believable is because unlike his counterpart on the UK Office, David Brent, the show, the writers and its creator obviously want to keep the character around for a while. For David Brent, as Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant had basically planned for a 12 show run, David could be as horrible as possible as he would eventually be fired, thereby maintaining the believability that the show really was documenting the workings of a real company. David Brent was a terrible person, both in actual skill and in personal likability. He threw his branch under the bus in order to secure himself a promotion and was waaay beyond inappropriate most of the time. Michael can't be.

And therein lies the problem. Michael needs to be reigned in. Season One established Michael as quite the oddball and very inappropriate at times, but in order to let the audience know he's capable, Season Two gave us The Client. This is probably one of the most important shows of the Office. Not only did it start the Jan and Michael Romance, but it established what an amazing salesperson Michael is...he is smart and can be manipulative in order to make a sale. Thanks to this episode, much of what Michael does can be forgiven because he is a GREAT salesman and we can see why he was promoted. Take Your Daughter To Work Day also gave us a glimpse into who Michael really is. They say kids can see something adults don't and Sasha did, Michael is a sweet guy with really good, although sometimes misguided, intentions.

Season Three also gave us Traveling Salesman, where Michael's great attempts were thwarted by the less than great Andy, his love and loyalty to the office was shown in Branch Closing (vital in differentiating him from his UK counterpart) and Grief Counseling and Women's Appreciation showcased his vulnerability.

Yet sometimes Michael is shown to be really politically incorrect, to the point that it is impossible he doesn't incur some legal consequences in fact (Diversity Day, Sexual Harassment, Gay Witch Hunt), as well as petty (The Fire, The Convention, The Coup, Business School), idiotic (The Injury, Safety Training) and way beyond believable inappropriateness (Email Surveillance, Cocktails).

Now so far this season, Michael has run over Meredith, driven into a lake, failed in a business basket plan and kidnapped a pizza boy. I dearly hope this is not the layout for the season. I cannot stress how important it is that Michael is shown to be capable. I get that he is an easy source for comedy and yes, his antics do make me laugh, but he is still a higher up in a company run by intelligent people such as David Wallace (possibly minus Ryan). My message to the writers is clear, please show us some more of "The Client" Michael, the Michael that awes us with his salesman and business finesse...please for the future of the show. That being said, I'd be cool with him running over Ryan...