When The Office first came on, I have to admit, I didn't get it.  All of my friends loved the show, but I just didn't understand it.  This happens often to me, btw.  I'm a bright guy, but I often puzzle over what makes some art work, though eventually I usually figure it out.

Such is the case with The Office.  But after much prodding, I finally rented the first season on DVD, powered through it, and it's now one of my favorite shows, right up there with Arrested Development.

Anyhow, with the summer lull, I decided to rent the UK version, to see where the show came from, etc.  I was surprised to find that a) it only ran for two seasons in the UK, and that b) each season was only 6 episodes.  I'm not sure if this is standard on the UK or not, and I'm way to lazy to do the research, but I find that number very strange.  Either way, it's just not enough episodes for such a great show.

Yes, that's right, I got this one right from the start (though I'm sure the US version helped prime my art-getting pump).  The first season was hilarious, and the second season was hands down the funniest television I've ever seen.  Pure genius!  I still have the post series specials on DVD at home, and I can't wait to see what they did with those.

My only lament is that I think maybe watching the UK version will damage my love for the US version.  Don't get me wrong, I still love the crazy crew at Dunder Mifflin.  However, some of the crazy things they pulled off in season two over there are topics they'd never cover like that over here.  Especially some of the racial and sexual antics.  It'd be nice to see that here, on NBC, but sadly there's no way that's happening outside of HBO.

Gotta love UK TV.