catching up
On spring break I wrote essays. then my Mom came for a day and we saw Bridge to Terabithia which was fucking sad and Robert Patrick is still badass.
last few geekeries:
By Ressa Peters
February is African-American history month. Today on tv African-Americans are still few and far between and those that are on tv aren’t always positive, fully developed or progressive. There are few excellent characters and shows but it’s like finding a full scholarship, they’re out there somewhere but you may have never seen one. So here’s my list of four steps forward and four slips backward for television, African-Americans and society in general.
1. Frank Pembleton, Homicide: Life on the street.
There are so many cop show clichés by now that they’re almost as familiar as fairy tales. But Homicide was a different breed, based on the book “Homicide: A year on the killing streets” by journalist David Simon, Homicide featured some stories based on true events. Not the kind on Law and Order when you can tell what famous case they were ripping off, but the real life stuff that happens close to home; drug killings, hit and runs, bar brawls and anything that could happen in any city. The cases weren’t always solved, sometimes the cops mess up, sometimes the criminals get off on not enough evidence or a killer gets found ‘innocent’ because they jury just wants to get home for the weekend; these happen more often then serial killers and celebrity murders. Frank Pembleton (Andre Braugher) is a complicated, complex cop. A devoted husband and father, a conflicted catholic, an ace interrogator and a black man who didn’t act like a stereotype or a white man on the inside. Along with Pembleton, the cops at Baltimore Homicide were unique, intelligent and fully developed from tough, gregarious Sargeant Kay Howard (Melissa Leo), old school Leautenant Al Giardello (Yaphet Kotto) of African and Sicilian heritage, and rookie Tim Bayliss (Kyle Secor) another television rarity, a bisexual man who isn’t promiscuous or unstable.
2. Lester Freamon, The Wire.
Sharing many of the same crew, cast and location as Homicide, The Wire is it’s spiritual sister show. The Wire goes where the NBC-made Homicide could not, into the “ghetto” to expose the drugs, the violence, the language and the sex. The ghetto and the law meet and intertwine to show us the lives of all sides of the law, and how similar they all are. The cops are flawed, the criminals sympathetic. The Wire renounces the cliché of good vs. evil, it’s just people vs. people. There are no easy answers presented to the problems of drugs, racism and poverty, it’s simply presented as reality. The majority of the cast is African-American, accurately reflecting Baltimore’s demographic and the characters are all just as rich. The Wire has some of the most complex characters, black or white, cop or criminal, on tv. Lester Freamon (Clarke Peters) is a good cop, he’s not a great, superman cop that knows everything and can do anything, he’s an older guy who just does the right thing. Banished to the Pawn shop unite for thirteen years and four months after charging a criminal with connections after he was warned not to. Now he’s back in action in the Barksdale task force doing what he does best, good police work with an eye for detail. He has a Morgan Freeman-like intensity, makes doll furniture in his spare time and knows the words to The Pogues’ “Body of an American”. He’s a surprise all around.
3. Kareem Said, Oz.
Not only the first Muslim main character on tv, Said (Eamonn Walker) was a Black man who grew up in the projects, converted to Islam and pledged to lead and help people wherever he was, no matter what colour or religion, he even acted as legal counsel for Neo-Nazi leader Vern Schillinger (J.K. Simmons). He’s not a terrorist or a bigot. He preaches non-violence and equality, fighting for the rights of all, especially those trampled by the system and society, those of colour, the poor and the most ignored of all, prisoners. As with everyone on Oz, prisoner and staff alike, he was flawed; with pride, self-righteousness and a temper that sometimes got in the way of his non-violent ideals. He was an embodiment of the ideals and flaws of not just the Islamic religion but all religions. Oz itself was a microcosm of society, with all races, ages 16-65, all points on the Kinsey scale, and questions about religion, law, life, love, hate, death and everything in between. It’s every issue in sociology and criminology today wrapped into on brutal, realistic story.
4. Oprah Winfrey and LeVar Burton.
Oprah, what can’t she do? She’s an actress, book critic, publisher, talk show host, and hero to millions of people everywhere. She’s one of the most influential African-Americans of the Twentieth century and the richest. She’s richer than God but she does some good stuff with it, she donates more of her money to charity than any other person in show biz. She gave to Hurricane Katrina relief, put 100 Black men through college with her scholarships, and instituted the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for girls.
LeVar Burton is a great actor, he was Kunta Kinte in the amazing mini-series Roots, Geordie LaForge in Star Trek: The Next Generation, and tons of voicework such as Captain Planet, Batman: The Animated Series and Gargoyles. Since 1983 he’s been hosting and executively producing Reading Rainbow on PBS. The show and LeVar encourage children to read, and teach about different topics like immigration, music, food and dinosaurs as well as topics not usually taught to children like slavery, poverty in U.S. inner cities, September 11th and prison. You’re never too old to have LeVar or another celebrity voice read you a story. Never.
Now here’s were we need to make progress:
1. BET. They said they were going to play The Wire, I was excited, then I changed the channel and all I saw was rap videos. Aaron MacGruder was right, it’s all just a black woman’s gyrating rear end. It’s only perpetuating stereotypes.
2. 24. Sherry Palmer, Julia Milliken, Marianne Taylor. All Black women, all untrustworthy. And almost all of the non-Americans and non-whites are evil.
3. Flavor of Love. Not just a disgrace to the Black race, but the human race. Flavor Flav, who already has 6 kids and 2 grandkids, whores himself out to a slew of women who degrade themselves and each other to win his affection. Flav gives them nicknames like nibblz, sumthin, like dat and deelishis and spends time with several different women a night. I feel bad for everyone involved.
4. Simply, we need more African-Americans on tv that aren’t tokens, stereotypes or insults. African-Americans make up about 12% of America and 2.2% of Canada, but are not represented as such on tv. We need more minorities on tv, we need to show their stories, their lives and their voices.
Rome
By Ressa Peters
There’s something about movies and series that take place in the past. There’s a wonder of what it would be like to live back then and the relief that you don’t inhabit a time rife with slavery, gladiator fights and public executions, but then in the end you wonder if we’ve really come that far. How much has really changed that we don’t believe that stars are lights of the heavens shining through holes in the enveloping dark but in a few thousand years who knows what the future will think of our ideas, hell, we can’t even decide if Pluto is a planet or not. But sex and love, alliances and betrayal, high society and the street, triumph and downfall, mercy and murder, some things never change.
In 52 BCE the immortal city of Rome is at its height as a republic. Gaius Julius Caesar (Ciarin Hinds) is commanding Roman troops in the Gallic wars in what is now France. These victorious troops include two ordinary soldiers, family man Lucius Vorenus (Kevin McKidd) and drinking, womanizing Titus Pullo (Ray Stevenson) based on two actual soldiers named in Caesar’s Commentarii de Bello Gallico (Commentary on the Gallic wars). Back in Rome Caesar’s niece Atia of the Julii (Polly Walker) schemes to gain power and influence using anything, including her own sexuality and that of her daughter, Octavia (Kerry Condon). Her son Octavian would eventually become Emperor of the Roman Empire as Caesar Augustus. In the events leading up to 44 BCE their paths cross with many well known figures like Cleopatra, Mark Antony, Brutus, Cicero, Pompey and Others. Ending with Caesar’s assassination on the Senate floor on the Ides of March, 44 BCE, the lead up is as tense as anything you’ll see in a present day drama.
The cost of a reported $100 million dollars for 12 episodes, this HBO/BBC collaboration brings together the best of talents from both sides of the pond. With luscious costumes, breathtaking sets, a superb cast, twisting storylines, and a heavy dose of history, Rome is as decadent as you’ve ever imagined. Sadly, like the Empire, the series won’t last forever, with the series ending after season two. Season One is on DVD and season Two airs on the Movie Network Sundays at 10pm and check the schedule for other times to catch up.
Ice-T’s rap school
By Ressa peters
Reality television is a double-edged sword. For every show that documents real people overcoming adversity and growing closer together, there are five shows that reward back-stabbing, attention whoring or just plain whoring. The best parts of reality tv are assembled in Ice-T’s rap school; a fish out of water premise with challenges and weekly rewards and even a little bit of personal growth and lessons learned. Now in case that sounded too mushy, to quote the man himself “rap school’s in session, shut up!”
If you’ve ever heard any of his trail-blazing hip-hop or seen Law & Order: Special Victims Unit you know how bad-ass Ice-T is. I don’t think any of the 8th Grader’s from New York’s prestigious York Prep School had, however. Ice waltzes into York Prep and proceeds to try and do the impossible; teach these kids rap, rhyme, fashion, and maybe even self confidence, hard work, leadership, and not to judge a book by it’s cover.
The transition from privileged, well-mannered prep school to rappers isn’t easy. They are a mixed group of eighth graders with different personalities. There’s Dodge, so old-school he likes pinstripes and Buddy Holly, whiney Leir, cocky Sam, stutterer Phil, shy Mary, in the midst of her parent’s divorce; bossy Sophia and quiet Arielle and Erin. During the first episode, Ice lets the kids dress up in rapper’s clothes and takes them to the south Bronx, Sophia freaks that she’ll be shot in the south Bronx, but once they get there and take some lessons from Grandmaster Melle Mel a.k.a. Flash (of “The Message” fame), she realizes what it’s really like where the other half lives. Ice brings in Rapper friends like Common, MC Lyte, DJ Premiere and in the final episode, Public Enemy, to help the kids find their own skills, talents and strengths.
Each week Ice-T gives a few new challenges to the crew, first comes finding the beat (harder than you’d think), spinning records, dancing and writing your own rhymes as well as free style. At the end of every week of challenges, the kid who tried or worked the hardest or made the most improvements receives the “golden mike” to wear around their neck. Ice can be as tough a teacher as you’d expect him to be, like the time Leir complains about not enjoying the group and Ice-T tells him to either commit hole-heartedly or just leave, but he also knows when to give a kid a few encouraging words or a hug.
Check out Rap School on Much Music at various times through the week or just go to www.muchmusic.com/tv/rapschool/ and skip all the commercials.
EDIT: KNEW I FORGOT ONE
The Office
By Ressa Peters
Let’s get one thing out of the way first: I haven’t seen but one episode of the original, British version. I will watch the whole thing eventually, but for now the American version suits me just fine. It’s set in an office, but it doesn’t have to be. It could be just about any job, school, the bus, your extended family or just about any situation where you’re stuck in closed quarters with a bunch of people you have little in common with and can barely tolerate. We’ve all been here and we’re all stuck here constantly. The guy that thinks he funny but isn’t, the guy you can barely stand, the girl who’ll criticize your every move and the guy or girl you see all the time but can’t tell how you really feel. These are all closer to real life than the sitcom clichés of the wacky neighbor or the rich, eccentric uncle. You’ll see these people on tv, you’ll laugh at them and at the same time you’re laughing at the people in your life they remind you of but you’d never laugh at to their face; it’s a win-win situation.
Set in Scranton, Pennsylvania (not glamorous New York or LA) Dunder-Mifflin sells paper, yep, paper, and you thought your job was boring. Michael Scott (Steve Carell, who you’ll recognize from The Daily Show or 40 Year-old virgin) is one of those incompetant bosses who you wonder about how they ever rose to their level of incompetence in the first place while almost everyone under them is smarter than them. He thinks he’s the funniest, coolest, sexiest boss on the earth but nothing could be farther from the truth. The only person who looks up to Michael is Dwight Scrute (Rainn Wilson), a sycophantic Assistant (to the) Regional Manager who loves paintball, karate and anime and takes everything way too seriously (don’t we all know a guy like this?). Dwight’s mortal enemy is salesman Jim Halpert (John Krasinski) who loves to prank Dwight by putting office supplies in Jello, paying the other employees to call him “Dwayne” all day, moving his desk closer to the wall an inch everytime he goes to the bathroom and other hilarious things you wish you’d thought of. The brunt of much of Michael’s bad jokes and frequent co-pranker of Dwight is receptionist Pam Beesly (Jenna Fisher), the object of Jim’s affections. The other office drones at Dunder-Mifflin are squirmy temp Ryan (B.J. Novak, also a writer) and the accountants: uptight Christian Angela (Angela Kinsey), immature Kevin (Brian Baumgartner) and Oscar (Oscar Nunez) who takes double the bad jokes from Michael for being Mexican and gay. The sales reps include no-nonsense Stanley (Leslie David Baker), Phyllis (Phyllis Smith) a shy woman who went to high school with Michael and newly transferred from the Stamford branch attractive Karen (Rashida Jones) and Andy (Ed Helms) who’s trying to become Michael’s best friend.
One of the most surprising things about The Office, (other than how hilarious boring jobs can be if other people are doing them) is that it contains one of the most bittersweet, surprising love stories on television. Throughout seasons one and two, Jim slowly realizes that he cares for the engaged Pam as more than a friend. Every scene they share is cute but not cutesy, palpable but not forced in its romantic tension. You root for Jim to work up the nerve to catch that diamond in the rough, the perfect girl stuck in the imperfect world. She’s like Willow on Buffy the Vampire slayer; the quiet, slightly geeky girl next door we all want (coincidentally, I heard a rumour that Buffy mastermind Joss Whedon will be directing an episode soon.). And Jim is the perfect guy she deserves. You’ll find yourself a “Jammer” (Jim/Pam supporter) before you know it, even if you hate sitcom romances as much as I do.
Seasons one and two are on dvd and season three airs Thursdays at 9:30 pm on NBC.
last few geekeries:
By Ressa Peters
February is African-American history month. Today on tv African-Americans are still few and far between and those that are on tv aren’t always positive, fully developed or progressive. There are few excellent characters and shows but it’s like finding a full scholarship, they’re out there somewhere but you may have never seen one. So here’s my list of four steps forward and four slips backward for television, African-Americans and society in general.
1. Frank Pembleton, Homicide: Life on the street.
There are so many cop show clichés by now that they’re almost as familiar as fairy tales. But Homicide was a different breed, based on the book “Homicide: A year on the killing streets” by journalist David Simon, Homicide featured some stories based on true events. Not the kind on Law and Order when you can tell what famous case they were ripping off, but the real life stuff that happens close to home; drug killings, hit and runs, bar brawls and anything that could happen in any city. The cases weren’t always solved, sometimes the cops mess up, sometimes the criminals get off on not enough evidence or a killer gets found ‘innocent’ because they jury just wants to get home for the weekend; these happen more often then serial killers and celebrity murders. Frank Pembleton (Andre Braugher) is a complicated, complex cop. A devoted husband and father, a conflicted catholic, an ace interrogator and a black man who didn’t act like a stereotype or a white man on the inside. Along with Pembleton, the cops at Baltimore Homicide were unique, intelligent and fully developed from tough, gregarious Sargeant Kay Howard (Melissa Leo), old school Leautenant Al Giardello (Yaphet Kotto) of African and Sicilian heritage, and rookie Tim Bayliss (Kyle Secor) another television rarity, a bisexual man who isn’t promiscuous or unstable.
2. Lester Freamon, The Wire.
Sharing many of the same crew, cast and location as Homicide, The Wire is it’s spiritual sister show. The Wire goes where the NBC-made Homicide could not, into the “ghetto” to expose the drugs, the violence, the language and the sex. The ghetto and the law meet and intertwine to show us the lives of all sides of the law, and how similar they all are. The cops are flawed, the criminals sympathetic. The Wire renounces the cliché of good vs. evil, it’s just people vs. people. There are no easy answers presented to the problems of drugs, racism and poverty, it’s simply presented as reality. The majority of the cast is African-American, accurately reflecting Baltimore’s demographic and the characters are all just as rich. The Wire has some of the most complex characters, black or white, cop or criminal, on tv. Lester Freamon (Clarke Peters) is a good cop, he’s not a great, superman cop that knows everything and can do anything, he’s an older guy who just does the right thing. Banished to the Pawn shop unite for thirteen years and four months after charging a criminal with connections after he was warned not to. Now he’s back in action in the Barksdale task force doing what he does best, good police work with an eye for detail. He has a Morgan Freeman-like intensity, makes doll furniture in his spare time and knows the words to The Pogues’ “Body of an American”. He’s a surprise all around.
3. Kareem Said, Oz.
Not only the first Muslim main character on tv, Said (Eamonn Walker) was a Black man who grew up in the projects, converted to Islam and pledged to lead and help people wherever he was, no matter what colour or religion, he even acted as legal counsel for Neo-Nazi leader Vern Schillinger (J.K. Simmons). He’s not a terrorist or a bigot. He preaches non-violence and equality, fighting for the rights of all, especially those trampled by the system and society, those of colour, the poor and the most ignored of all, prisoners. As with everyone on Oz, prisoner and staff alike, he was flawed; with pride, self-righteousness and a temper that sometimes got in the way of his non-violent ideals. He was an embodiment of the ideals and flaws of not just the Islamic religion but all religions. Oz itself was a microcosm of society, with all races, ages 16-65, all points on the Kinsey scale, and questions about religion, law, life, love, hate, death and everything in between. It’s every issue in sociology and criminology today wrapped into on brutal, realistic story.
4. Oprah Winfrey and LeVar Burton.
Oprah, what can’t she do? She’s an actress, book critic, publisher, talk show host, and hero to millions of people everywhere. She’s one of the most influential African-Americans of the Twentieth century and the richest. She’s richer than God but she does some good stuff with it, she donates more of her money to charity than any other person in show biz. She gave to Hurricane Katrina relief, put 100 Black men through college with her scholarships, and instituted the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for girls.
LeVar Burton is a great actor, he was Kunta Kinte in the amazing mini-series Roots, Geordie LaForge in Star Trek: The Next Generation, and tons of voicework such as Captain Planet, Batman: The Animated Series and Gargoyles. Since 1983 he’s been hosting and executively producing Reading Rainbow on PBS. The show and LeVar encourage children to read, and teach about different topics like immigration, music, food and dinosaurs as well as topics not usually taught to children like slavery, poverty in U.S. inner cities, September 11th and prison. You’re never too old to have LeVar or another celebrity voice read you a story. Never.
Now here’s were we need to make progress:
1. BET. They said they were going to play The Wire, I was excited, then I changed the channel and all I saw was rap videos. Aaron MacGruder was right, it’s all just a black woman’s gyrating rear end. It’s only perpetuating stereotypes.
2. 24. Sherry Palmer, Julia Milliken, Marianne Taylor. All Black women, all untrustworthy. And almost all of the non-Americans and non-whites are evil.
3. Flavor of Love. Not just a disgrace to the Black race, but the human race. Flavor Flav, who already has 6 kids and 2 grandkids, whores himself out to a slew of women who degrade themselves and each other to win his affection. Flav gives them nicknames like nibblz, sumthin, like dat and deelishis and spends time with several different women a night. I feel bad for everyone involved.
4. Simply, we need more African-Americans on tv that aren’t tokens, stereotypes or insults. African-Americans make up about 12% of America and 2.2% of Canada, but are not represented as such on tv. We need more minorities on tv, we need to show their stories, their lives and their voices.
Rome
By Ressa Peters
There’s something about movies and series that take place in the past. There’s a wonder of what it would be like to live back then and the relief that you don’t inhabit a time rife with slavery, gladiator fights and public executions, but then in the end you wonder if we’ve really come that far. How much has really changed that we don’t believe that stars are lights of the heavens shining through holes in the enveloping dark but in a few thousand years who knows what the future will think of our ideas, hell, we can’t even decide if Pluto is a planet or not. But sex and love, alliances and betrayal, high society and the street, triumph and downfall, mercy and murder, some things never change.
In 52 BCE the immortal city of Rome is at its height as a republic. Gaius Julius Caesar (Ciarin Hinds) is commanding Roman troops in the Gallic wars in what is now France. These victorious troops include two ordinary soldiers, family man Lucius Vorenus (Kevin McKidd) and drinking, womanizing Titus Pullo (Ray Stevenson) based on two actual soldiers named in Caesar’s Commentarii de Bello Gallico (Commentary on the Gallic wars). Back in Rome Caesar’s niece Atia of the Julii (Polly Walker) schemes to gain power and influence using anything, including her own sexuality and that of her daughter, Octavia (Kerry Condon). Her son Octavian would eventually become Emperor of the Roman Empire as Caesar Augustus. In the events leading up to 44 BCE their paths cross with many well known figures like Cleopatra, Mark Antony, Brutus, Cicero, Pompey and Others. Ending with Caesar’s assassination on the Senate floor on the Ides of March, 44 BCE, the lead up is as tense as anything you’ll see in a present day drama.
The cost of a reported $100 million dollars for 12 episodes, this HBO/BBC collaboration brings together the best of talents from both sides of the pond. With luscious costumes, breathtaking sets, a superb cast, twisting storylines, and a heavy dose of history, Rome is as decadent as you’ve ever imagined. Sadly, like the Empire, the series won’t last forever, with the series ending after season two. Season One is on DVD and season Two airs on the Movie Network Sundays at 10pm and check the schedule for other times to catch up.
Ice-T’s rap school
By Ressa peters
Reality television is a double-edged sword. For every show that documents real people overcoming adversity and growing closer together, there are five shows that reward back-stabbing, attention whoring or just plain whoring. The best parts of reality tv are assembled in Ice-T’s rap school; a fish out of water premise with challenges and weekly rewards and even a little bit of personal growth and lessons learned. Now in case that sounded too mushy, to quote the man himself “rap school’s in session, shut up!”
If you’ve ever heard any of his trail-blazing hip-hop or seen Law & Order: Special Victims Unit you know how bad-ass Ice-T is. I don’t think any of the 8th Grader’s from New York’s prestigious York Prep School had, however. Ice waltzes into York Prep and proceeds to try and do the impossible; teach these kids rap, rhyme, fashion, and maybe even self confidence, hard work, leadership, and not to judge a book by it’s cover.
The transition from privileged, well-mannered prep school to rappers isn’t easy. They are a mixed group of eighth graders with different personalities. There’s Dodge, so old-school he likes pinstripes and Buddy Holly, whiney Leir, cocky Sam, stutterer Phil, shy Mary, in the midst of her parent’s divorce; bossy Sophia and quiet Arielle and Erin. During the first episode, Ice lets the kids dress up in rapper’s clothes and takes them to the south Bronx, Sophia freaks that she’ll be shot in the south Bronx, but once they get there and take some lessons from Grandmaster Melle Mel a.k.a. Flash (of “The Message” fame), she realizes what it’s really like where the other half lives. Ice brings in Rapper friends like Common, MC Lyte, DJ Premiere and in the final episode, Public Enemy, to help the kids find their own skills, talents and strengths.
Each week Ice-T gives a few new challenges to the crew, first comes finding the beat (harder than you’d think), spinning records, dancing and writing your own rhymes as well as free style. At the end of every week of challenges, the kid who tried or worked the hardest or made the most improvements receives the “golden mike” to wear around their neck. Ice can be as tough a teacher as you’d expect him to be, like the time Leir complains about not enjoying the group and Ice-T tells him to either commit hole-heartedly or just leave, but he also knows when to give a kid a few encouraging words or a hug.
Check out Rap School on Much Music at various times through the week or just go to www.muchmusic.com/tv/rapschool/ and skip all the commercials.
EDIT: KNEW I FORGOT ONE
The Office
By Ressa Peters
Let’s get one thing out of the way first: I haven’t seen but one episode of the original, British version. I will watch the whole thing eventually, but for now the American version suits me just fine. It’s set in an office, but it doesn’t have to be. It could be just about any job, school, the bus, your extended family or just about any situation where you’re stuck in closed quarters with a bunch of people you have little in common with and can barely tolerate. We’ve all been here and we’re all stuck here constantly. The guy that thinks he funny but isn’t, the guy you can barely stand, the girl who’ll criticize your every move and the guy or girl you see all the time but can’t tell how you really feel. These are all closer to real life than the sitcom clichés of the wacky neighbor or the rich, eccentric uncle. You’ll see these people on tv, you’ll laugh at them and at the same time you’re laughing at the people in your life they remind you of but you’d never laugh at to their face; it’s a win-win situation.
Set in Scranton, Pennsylvania (not glamorous New York or LA) Dunder-Mifflin sells paper, yep, paper, and you thought your job was boring. Michael Scott (Steve Carell, who you’ll recognize from The Daily Show or 40 Year-old virgin) is one of those incompetant bosses who you wonder about how they ever rose to their level of incompetence in the first place while almost everyone under them is smarter than them. He thinks he’s the funniest, coolest, sexiest boss on the earth but nothing could be farther from the truth. The only person who looks up to Michael is Dwight Scrute (Rainn Wilson), a sycophantic Assistant (to the) Regional Manager who loves paintball, karate and anime and takes everything way too seriously (don’t we all know a guy like this?). Dwight’s mortal enemy is salesman Jim Halpert (John Krasinski) who loves to prank Dwight by putting office supplies in Jello, paying the other employees to call him “Dwayne” all day, moving his desk closer to the wall an inch everytime he goes to the bathroom and other hilarious things you wish you’d thought of. The brunt of much of Michael’s bad jokes and frequent co-pranker of Dwight is receptionist Pam Beesly (Jenna Fisher), the object of Jim’s affections. The other office drones at Dunder-Mifflin are squirmy temp Ryan (B.J. Novak, also a writer) and the accountants: uptight Christian Angela (Angela Kinsey), immature Kevin (Brian Baumgartner) and Oscar (Oscar Nunez) who takes double the bad jokes from Michael for being Mexican and gay. The sales reps include no-nonsense Stanley (Leslie David Baker), Phyllis (Phyllis Smith) a shy woman who went to high school with Michael and newly transferred from the Stamford branch attractive Karen (Rashida Jones) and Andy (Ed Helms) who’s trying to become Michael’s best friend.
One of the most surprising things about The Office, (other than how hilarious boring jobs can be if other people are doing them) is that it contains one of the most bittersweet, surprising love stories on television. Throughout seasons one and two, Jim slowly realizes that he cares for the engaged Pam as more than a friend. Every scene they share is cute but not cutesy, palpable but not forced in its romantic tension. You root for Jim to work up the nerve to catch that diamond in the rough, the perfect girl stuck in the imperfect world. She’s like Willow on Buffy the Vampire slayer; the quiet, slightly geeky girl next door we all want (coincidentally, I heard a rumour that Buffy mastermind Joss Whedon will be directing an episode soon.). And Jim is the perfect guy she deserves. You’ll find yourself a “Jammer” (Jim/Pam supporter) before you know it, even if you hate sitcom romances as much as I do.
Seasons one and two are on dvd and season three airs Thursdays at 9:30 pm on NBC.