Oz edition of The Office is basically Kiwi

The whole world is ready to hate this latest remake of The Office. It’s incredibly brave (or stupid) and ambitious to try and follow the unprecedented success of two English-speaking versions with yet another… albeit one in Ocker-speak. Both the UK and US versions of this show are utterly fantastic television, incomparable to one another, hilarious, unique, beautifully character-driven, exceptionally well written and performed.

Even putting aside the two other versions of the show, this Australian (and Kiwi, if we are honest) version of The Office has an uphill battle. People are going to decide how they feel about it before they even watch it. Not only does it have a (gulp) female David Brent/Michael Scott protagonist, but people are going to judge it as being an unnecessary remake, possibly forgetting that we all viewed the US version in the same way before it nestled its way into our hearts in its own right.

I was no different. I’ve watched Ricky Gervais’ and Stephen Merchant’s original series well into double digits over the years, and the US version is hardly ever not on loop in my household. I adore both shows and have watched them more than any other series (apart from maybe Community). After seeing the trailer for this latest rendition I huffed and rolled my eyes.

As I often am when I prejudge things based merely on the fact that they exist rather than on the quality of the show, I was wrong. The Office (Australia) is a good time and although it doesn’t stray far from the formula of the versions that paved the way, its performances are solid, its jokes are genuinely funny, the majority of the characters are excellent and the dry Aussie humour places it somewhere between the US and the UK versions on the awkward scale.

If you have seen any version of The Office then you aren’t going to be overly surprised by any of the main character archetypes or the developing storylines. At this point it’s all pretty rudimentary. We have the best friends and lovers, the awkward but endearing boss, the grovelling wannabe boss, and so on. The unfolding story and relationships in this version are all pretty typical of what we got in the previous iterations. Much like the US version, when it steps into territory that hasn’t been approached by its predecessors, it begins to show glimpses of where the show will go when it’s brave enough to stand on its own two feet.

The casting for the most part is really good. Felicity Ward shines as the boss and manages to nail the required mix of unbearable yet somehow annoyingly endearing and likeable. Her comic timing is immaculate and she doesn’t try to copy the bosses that have gone before her, but instead rests on her own awkward comedic chops to make it feel familiar yet refreshingly different. Edith Poor as the Gareth/Dwight archetype doesn’t feel as natural and throughout the season she’s almost too cartoonishly portrayed to fit in with the rest of the show’s vibe. I’m not sure if this is down to writing or performance but I hope the character is developed beyond the obvious character beats (pun intended) we have come to expect. Shari Sebbens and Steen Raskopoulos are fine in their portrayal of the best friends/lovers and play with genuine realism and commitment. However, this Jim & Pam storyline feels a little rushed and undeveloped so I wasn’t overly invested in them and the stakes of their relationship felt quite low to me.

It’s the supporting cast that truly shines in this, with Kiwi Jonny Brugh fulfilling the weirdo role with absolute perfection. His comedy is incredibly dry, genuine, pathetic and endearing – he genuinely doesn’t miss a beat. Equally so is Josh Thomson, nailing the Toby Flenderson role as the too-serious and judgemental HR rep. Both these gents provide hilarious performances that drew audible laughter each time they spoke or shot a look at the camera. Special mention also to Lucy Schmidt, whose chain-smoking mother and dark voice of accounting and reason provide many genuine chortles along the way.

Overall, this show has a huge amount of potential. It deserves an audience, an open mind and a 2nd season. It starts to find its feet impressively quickly for a show in the shadow of some hugely successful predecessors and I hope it continues to develop and take risks in the future. I think it’s time we start considering The Office as a genre of comedy rather than copycats, so we stop prejudging the new takes on the formula before they have a chance to succeed. The cast is extremely talented and with the likes of Jackie van Beek and Jesse Griffin taking on a huge amount of the writing and directing, it’s no wonder this Aussie version has so much potential. It’s basically Kiwi.