Given the fanfare with which NBC is closing
The Office after nine seasons (at least two too many), you'd think it was a
Cheers or
Seinfeld-sized hit from the "must-see" glory days, instead of the show that presided over the slow fade of a once-powerful comedy brand on the back of too many same-seeming niche comedies specializing in preciously arch irony. At its best (the
Steve Carell and early Jim-Pam years),
The Office had heart as well ...