Christmas Special: Part 2

The perfect end to a near-perfect television series.

Even 17 years later, this episode encapsulates what made this series so good.

The blend of comedy and drama is just right.

Satisfying pay-offs all round.

Emotional in many different ways - including the inevitable melancholy of a top television show ending after just two wonderful seasons.

Gervais and Merchant knocked it out of the park here, and in my humble opinion, nothing they have made - jointly or otherwise - has come close in terms of sheer quality... though the Extras Christmas special gives it a good run for its money.

A timeless classic.

This is it: the last triumph of The Office, or at least the British original, which then left the door open for the equally good American remake. Pulling the plug on their first and best creation, Stephen Merchant and Ricky Gervais pander to audience expectations in a way, but they do so with their typical British gusto and irony. In short: paired with the first part, this Christmas Special qualifies as a top notch series finale, not to mention the absolutely best episode of the show.

Continuing with the storyline introduced in Part 1, the Christmas Party is closer for every passing day. Tim is anxious about seeing Dawn again, Gareth keeps applying a military logic to everything, the overweight Keith will be the special evening's DJ, and David Brent, who has started using an Internet dating service, is an uninvited guest at the event, along with his rude humor which finds its soul-mate in the drunken shape of Chris Finch (Ralph Ineson). However, the night could end in a way no one had expected.

The post-modernism of Part 1 is less emphasized, in favor of a more plot-driven approach which gives the story more poignancy as the epilogue draws closer. There's a hint of a fairy tale atmosphere in the last fifteen minutes, but thanks to really clever writing one gets the feeling it's all part of every character's natural evolution. This applies even to Brent, who always came off as an unbearable, incompetent moron (which he was), but is now able to show a more human side, in spite of all the insults, stomach-churning dances, bad jokes and "Freelove Freeway". Sure, there was always a slight trace of hidden sympathy in him, all due to Gervais's careful performance; now, however, the actor finally gets the well-deserved opportunity to part ways with his iconic role in the most dignified manner.

Overall, it is a bit sad that such a great show lasted only fourteen episodes. Then again, it's wiser to end something while it's still excellent (a lesson HBO has mastered to perfection), rather then keeping it on the air far longer than its dramatic core would consider letting it live (as in the case of the long overdue ER and Law & Order, both of which started superbly and are still watchable, but no longer the same). As Jack Lemmon pointed out when hosting the Oscars: "Brevity is the soul of wit". Looks like Gervais and Merchant paid attention to those words.

The best end of any show I have ever seen. I almost cried. I won't give away any spoilers, but it does not disappoint in the slightest.

The acting, directing... all carry on beautifully from the show into the finale, which is supposed to be the reuniting of all of the characters from The Office a few years after their split. Dawn and her husband come back from America, David comes back from his colleague-imposed exile, and everything is--more or less--the same, with just as many difficulties as in the old days. Amazing, and nothing more to say of this. Dawn has annoyed tension with her husband, Tim and Dawn are both quite on edge around each other, Dave has tried to make it as a celebrity who does nothing, but has come out on the rough edge of things, and Gareth... is still the same old Gareth that we all love! I would definitely recommend a watch for anybody at all who was unsettled with the way the show actually ended. This is most definitely worth it!

This is very much what we had come to expect from 'The Office'. It was funny, it was touching, it walked a very thin line between being PC and not. It was toe-curlingly eventful at times too.

So this finale (and remember it's very difficult to end a sitcom, just ask Jerry Seinfeld) being able to capture all of those elements is to its credit.

I thought it was a bit dragged out, especially as this was the second half of the Christmas episodes, but you can't fault it for the performances and the way they are delivered.

I think I prefer the more sunnier in tone US version, but there's still a lot to like about this series too.

After 12 cringe inducing but genius funny episodes, The Office closed down with a two part Xmas Special. Thankfully it turned out to be a fitting closure. We catch up with the departed employees who are destined to end up at the Wernham Hogg Xmas party. As we head towards that night we are introduced to more cringe worthy sequences involving the deluded Brent, the lovelorn waste that is Tim and Dawn and Gareth's power trip. Internet dating figures prominently and brings superb comedy scenes that are typically tinged with sadness. Then the party begins and some home truths are said, some backbones are shown, and finally us fans get the punch the air moment we always hoped we would get. Brilliant. 10/10