Jump to content

The Office (American TV series) season 4

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by BaconLover (talk | contribs) at 21:43, 28 April 2009 (Undid revision 286532428 by Mastrchf91 (talk)). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

The Office Season 4
Season 4
The season 4 Office DVD cover
No. of episodes19
Release
Original networkNBC
Original releaseSeptember 27, 2007 –
May 15, 2008
Season chronology
← Previous
3
Next →
5
List of episodes

The fourth season of the American television comedy The Office premiered in the United States on the national terrestrial television network NBC on September 27, 2007, and concluded on May 15, 2008. The season consists of 19 episodes. The Office is an American adaptation of the British TV series of the same name, and is presented in a mockumentary format, portraying the daily lives of office employees in the Scranton, Pennsylvania branch of the fictitious Dunder Mifflin Paper Company. The season was interrupted and shortened due to the effects of the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike, in which the writers and some actors of The Office went on strike.

The fourth season of The Office aired on Thursdays at 9:00 p.m. (Eastern) in the United States. The season was released on DVD by Universal Studios Home Entertainment in a four-disc box set in the Region 1 area on September 2, 2008. The DVD set contains all 14 episodes, as well as commentaries from creators, writers, actors, and directors on some of the episodes. It also contains deleted scenes from all of the episodes, as well as bloopers and other promos.[2]

Production

The fourth season of the show was produced by Reveille Productions and Deedle-Dee Productions, both in association with NBC Universal Television Studios. The show is based upon the British series created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, both of whom are executive producers on both the US and UK versions.[3] The Office is produced by Greg Daniels,[3] who is also an executive producer, along with consulting producers Larry Wilmore and Lester Lewis.[4] The show's writers include Daniels,[3] Michael Schur,[5] Jason Kessler, Lee Eisenberg, Gene Stupnitsky, Jennifer Celotta, Brent Forrester, and Justin Spitzer. Steve Carell, Mindy Kaling, Paul Lieberstein, and B.J. Novak double as writers as well as actors in the show.[6] Wilmore and Schur also act in limited roles on the show. Daniels serves as the show runner for The Office.

This season featured 19 episodes directed by 11 directors. Greg Daniels, Craig Zisk, Ken Whittingham, Paul Lieberstein, Jason Reitman, Joss Whedon, Paul Feig, Julian Farino, Jeffrey Blitz, Randall Einhorn, and Tucker Gates each directed episodes during the season, with Feig and Whittingham directing multiple episodes. Although The Office was mainly filmed on a studio set at Valley Center Studios in Van Nuys, California,[7] the city of Scranton, Pennsylvania, where the show is set, was also used for shots of the opening theme.[8]

Originally, NBC ordered a full season[9] of 30 episodes.[10] After 12 episodes were filmed, production was suspended due to the effects of the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike. The Writers Guild of America (WGA) went on strike at 12:01 a.m. Eastern Standard Time on November 5, 2007.[11][12] Filming of The Office immediately halted on that date, as Steve Carell, who is a member of the WGA, refused to cross WGA picket lines.[13] Members of Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America, West voted to end the 100-day strike on February 12, 2008,[14] and writers were allowed to return to work on the same day.[15] The WGA allowed for show runners to return to work on February 11,[16] in preparation for the conclusion of the strike. The show runner for The Office, Greg Daniels, returned on February 11,[17] and the show's writers returned to work on February 13.[15] The duration of the strike resulted in a script of a Christmas-themed episode being discarded, as production of the episode was due to start the week that the strike began.[18]

Cast

Many characters portrayed by The Office cast are based on the British version of the show. While these characters normally have the same attitude and perceptions as their British counterparts, the roles have been redesigned to better fit the American show. The show is known for its generally large cast size, with many of its actors and actresses known particularly for their improvisational work. Steve Carell stars as Michael Scott, Regional Manager of the Dunder Mifflin Scranton Branch. Loosely based on David Brent, Gervais' character in the British version, Scott is a dim-witted and lonely man, who attempts to win friends as the office comedian, usually making himself look bad in the process. Rainn Wilson portrays Dwight Schrute, who, based upon Gareth Keenan, is the Assistant to the Regional Manager, although the character frequently fails to include "to the" in his title.[19] John Krasinski portrays Jim Halpert, a sales representative, assistant manager, and prankster, who is based upon Tim Canterbury, and is in love with Pam Beesly, the receptionist.[20] Pam, who is based on Dawn Tinsley, is shy, but in many cases a cohort with Jim in his pranks on Dwight.[21] B.J. Novak portrays Ryan Howard, who for the first two seasons is a temporary worker, but is promoted to sales representative in the third season and later ascends to the position of Vice President, North East Region and Director of New Media.[22]

The show includes many minor characters playing roles of office workers. Angela Martin, Oscar Martinez, and Kevin Malone are the office's accountants, and are portrayed by Angela Kinsey, Oscar Nuñez, and Brian Baumgartner, respectively. Schrute, Halpert, Phyllis Lapin (portrayed by Phyllis Smith), Stanley Hudson (portrayed by Leslie David Baker), and Andy Bernard (portrayed by Ed Helms) compose the sales division of Dunder Mifflin Scranton. Kate Flannery portrays Meredith Palmer, the promiscuous Supplier Relations Representative, writer-actress Mindy Kaling portrays Kelly Kapoor, the pop-culture obsessed Customer Service Representative, writer-actor Paul Lieberstein portrays Toby Flenderson, the sad-eyed Human Resources Representative, and Creed Bratton plays a fictionalized version of himself as the office's Quality Assurance Officer. Other characters include Warehouse Supervisor Darryl Philbin, played by Craig Robinson, and Jan Levinson, Michael's main love interest, who is portrayed by Melora Hardin. In the season finale "Goodbye Toby", Holly Flax, portrayed by Amy Ryan, replaces Flenderson as Human Resources representative.[23]

Reception

"While "The Deposition" was the high point in the season, there were several terrific episodes. "Money" showed us a glimpse of Dwight's frightening home life on the Schrute beet farm. "Local Ad" is a fun episode that shows us Michael's true passion for what he does. When the team put together what is actually a clever little commercial, it includes the well meaning but misguided catchphrase "Dunder Mifflin, limitless paper in a paper-less world." The episode also featured Dwight's adventures in Second Life–where he's a paper salesman who plays "Second Second Life.""

—Reviews website IGN[24]

The fourth season premiere "Fun Run" received a 5.1/12 share in the Nielsen Ratings among viewers aged 18 to 49, meaning that 5.1% of viewers aged 18 to 49 watched the episode, and 12% of viewers watching television at the time watched the episode.[25] "Fun Run" attracted 9.7 million viewers overall.[26] Both of these figures built upon the marks set by the third season finale "The Job".[27] In the weeks following "Fun Run", The Office never received more than nine million viewers. After the Writers Strike, The Office once again eclipsed the nine million viewers mark, when the episode "Dinner Party" received 9.3 million viewers.[28] The episode "Chair Model", the second episode to be released after the end of the strike garnered 9.9 million viewers,[29] a high for the fourth season. While the episode "Job Fair" received the lowest number of viewers for the season, at 7.2 million,[30] it and the episode following it, the season finale "Goodbye Toby", both scored the highest viewer percentage increase among digital video recording users for their respective weeks.[31]

Critical review

Travis Fickett, a reviewer from IGN, praised both the writing and the acting of season 4. When speaking of the season finale "Goodbye Toby", Fickett went on to say "It's a great episode that ends a great season. There are more than a few questions raised that will have us eagerly tuning in when the show returns in the fall."[24] Aubry D'Arminio praised the season, but she also showed disapproval at what she felt was a lack of use for some of The Office's supporting cast in the episodes directly following the Writers' Strike, saying "I just feel a bit sad that, minus Leslie David Baker's Stanley, these excellent actors/characters haven't been highlighted nearly enough since the series' return in April."[32] In a comprehensive review of the fourth season DVD, IGN reviewers Travis Fickett and Phil Pirrello both believed "this season to be one of the show's best, [but felt] that 14 episodes across four discs gives way to crowding, especially when the season tries to tackle Jim and Pam dating, Angela and Dwight breaking up, Andy and Angela dating by way of awkward silence, Michael and Jan breaking up, Toby leaving the office and a new love interest for Michael joining the cast." Fickett and Pirrello gave the season a total score of 8/10.[33]

Honors

The Office received eight nominations at the 60th Primetime Emmy Awards. The show's producers received a nomination for "Outstanding Comedy Series", while Paul Lieberstein and Paul Feig both received nominations for "Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series", for the episodes "Money" and "Goodbye, Toby", respectively. For his portrayal of Michael Scott, Steve Carell received a nomination for "Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series", and for his portrayal of Dwight Schrute, Rainn Wilson received a nomination for "Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series". Dean Holland and Dave Rogers both received a nomination for "Outstanding Picture Editing For A Comedy Series (Single Or Multi-camera)" for their work on "Goodbye, Toby", while Ben Patrick, John W. Cook III, and Peter J. Nusbaum were all nominated in the "Outstanding Sound Mixing For A Comedy Or Drama Series (half-hour) And Animation" category for their work on the episode "Local Ad". For the episode "Dinner Party", the creative writing team of Gene Stupnitsky and Lee Eisenberg received a nomination for "Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series".[34]

Episodes

"Series #" refers to the episode number in relation to the entire series, while "Episode #" refers to the episode's number in the season. Production Code refers to the episode's individual code, with the "4" referring to the fourth season, and the two final numbers referring to the order each episode was filmed.

Template:Episode list/The OfficeTemplate:Episode list/The OfficeTemplate:Episode list/The OfficeTemplate:Episode list/The OfficeTemplate:Episode list/The OfficeTemplate:Episode list/The OfficeTemplate:Episode list/The OfficeTemplate:Episode list/The OfficeTemplate:Episode list/The OfficeTemplate:Episode list/The OfficeTemplate:Episode list/The OfficeTemplate:Episode list/The OfficeTemplate:Episode list/The OfficeTemplate:Episode list/The Office
Series # Episode # Title Director Writer(s) Original US air date Prod. code

References

  1. ^ "The Office Season 4 DVD releases on Sept. 2". TVShowsonDVD.com. Retrieved 2008-05-27.
  2. ^ "The Office DVD". Universal Studios. Retrieved 2008-08-23.
  3. ^ a b c "American Office gets green light". The Guardian. June 22, 2008. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  4. ^ "The Office TV Show Series on NBC—"about the office"". NBC. Retrieved 2008-11-01.
  5. ^ Paumgarten, Nick. Fender Bender The New Yorker, retrieved April 13, 2008
  6. ^ Creer, Jen (2007-11-07). "';Desperate Housewives, The Office & More Affected By Writers Strike". Yahoo!. Retrieved 2008-04-13. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  7. ^ Pastorek, Whitney. "The Office: Working Overtime". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2008-08-24. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  8. ^ Marchese, John. Scranton Embraces The Office Infamy The New York Times, retrieved April 16, 2008
  9. ^ "NBC renews hit series The Office, My Name is Earl, Heroes, and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit for full season of episodes in 2007-'08" (Press release). NBC Universal. 2007-01-17. Retrieved 2008-04-12.
  10. ^ Goldman, Eric (2008-07-19). "New Details on The Office's Fourth Season". IGN. Retrieved 2008-08-08. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  11. ^ Cieply, Michael (2007-11-05). "Writers Begin Strike as Talks Break Off". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-04-11. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  12. ^ McNary, Dave (2007-11-04). "WGA goes on strike". Variety. Retrieved 2008-01-19. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  13. ^ TV Guide Staff. "Office Closing: Carell, Others Won't Cross Picket Line". TV Guide. 2007-11-07. Retrieved 2008-06-13. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  14. ^ "Writers Guild Members Vote to End Strike" (Press release). Writers Guild of America, West. 2008-02-12. Retrieved 2008-02-13. {{cite press release}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  15. ^ a b Littleton, Cynthia (2008-02-12). "It's official: WGA strike is over". Variety. Retrieved 2008-02-13. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  16. ^ Littleton, Cynthia (2008-02-10). "Showrunners back to work Monday". Variety. Retrieved 2008-02-13. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  17. ^ "Pencils Down Means Pencils Down". Writers Guild of America, West. Retrieved 2008-05-25. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  18. ^ Daniels, Greg (2008-04-10). "Strike effect". NBC. Retrieved 2008-06-13. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  19. ^ The Man Behind The Office's Favorite Suck-Up, Dwight Schrute ABC News, retrieved January 27, 2008
  20. ^ The Office Transfers to a New Cubicle The New York Times, March 20, 2005, retrieved January 28, 2008
  21. ^ An American-Style Office With a Boss From Heck The New York Times, March 24, 2005, retrieved January 28, 2008
  22. ^ Hawaii, The Office & Lost in Space Castings Variety, retrieved February 1, 2008
  23. ^ Dahl, Oscar (2008-06-20). "The Office: Amy Ryan to Return as Holly". BuddyTV. Retrieved 2008-09-21. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  24. ^ a b Fickett, Travis, (May 22, 2008) "The Office: Season 4 Review," IGN. Retrieved on August 8, 2008.
  25. ^ Fitzgerald, Toni (2007-09-28). "CBS takes first Thursday of the season". Media Life Magazine. Retrieved 2008-09-13.
  26. ^ "Thursday Ratings: Meet the New Boss, Same as the Old Boss" (Press release). CBS. 2007-09-28. Retrieved 2008-10-15.
  27. ^ "NBC Ratings Results for the Week of April May 14–20 and the 2006-07 Television Season". NBC Universal Media Village. May 22, 2007.
  28. ^ "NBC Ratings Results for the Primetime Week of April 7–13" (Press release). NBC. 2008-04-15. Retrieved 2008-10-10. {{cite press release}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  29. ^ "NBC Ranks #2 in Adults 18-49 for the Week of April 14–20, Paced by The Office, SVU and The Biggest Loser" (Press release). NBC. 2008-04-22. Retrieved 2008-10-15.
  30. ^ "NBC Results for the Primetime Week of May 5–11" (Press release). NBC. 2008-05-13. Retrieved 2008-10-10. {{cite press release}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  31. ^ "Nielsen TV Ratings Office Again Tops Broadcast Shows w/ 41.2% Time-Shifting Gain". Tvbythenumbers.com. Retrieved 2008-10-15.
  32. ^ D'Arminio, Aubry. ""Goodbye, Toby"". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2008-08-10. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  33. ^ Fickett, Travis (2008-08-20). "The Office Season 4: DVD Review". IGN. Retrieved 2008-09-21. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  34. ^ "The 60th Primetime Emmy Awards and Creative Arts Emmy Awards Nominees". Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Retrieved 2008-08-10. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Office_(American_TV_series)_season_4&oldid=286729395"