Call me Toby . . .

One of my favorite shows on TV is The Office. This show originally aired in Britain and before the American version even hit the airwaves there was controversy about whether or not the American version could possibly be as good as the original. I read an article about the show and made a point to watch the pilot; as an employee in an office I thought that it might be a show that I could relate to. I'd like to brag a bit here and say that I loved the show right from the start, even though the ratings and viewership were not that good. Yes, I know a good thing when I see it.

One of the classic and often repeated lines on the show is "what she said". Michael, the boss, uses that line when he can't think of a good come back and it's always funny. You really need to hear it in context to get the humor. I use the reference in some of my title columns - look to the right.

The show is just all kinds of awesome. The boss is Michael Scott, and I'm so very glad that I've never had a boss like him because I'm not sure that he would be as funny in real life. But this is TV and he's hilarious!!

My counterpart on the show is Toby, the HR Manager. We are the fun-wreckers in the office, the policy police, and Toby plays the role so well. On the last show of last season Toby left The Office, and that made me so sad. Here's Toby, played by Paul Lieberstein; he's also a writer and the Co-Executive Producer of the show:

He has such deadpan delivery and plays the part so well. I hope he comes back because the show just won't be the same without him!

The first show of Season 5 aired last night and I have it on my DVR but haven't watched it yet. I know! It's on my list of fun things to do this weekend.

If you haven't watched The Office yet you really should check it out. I'm not even getting paid to say that.