For five (arguably six) seasons, "The Office" combined humor with emotion to produce some of the greatest television ever seen over the airwaves. Then, a transition season (seeing the departure of Steve Carrell) left the show with a very unstable future. Sadly, the "circle down the drain" only continues with this eighth season, producing no redeeming moments whatsoever.
This season was lost right from the get-go and never improved one iota. The additions of James Spader & Catherine Tate to the cast proved to add nothing to the "Michael Scott void", while all the other characters begin to really get stale for the first time in the show's now-lengthy run. Some of the "lowlights" of this season (minor spoilers ahead) include...
-The complete ruination of the Andy Bernard character and his relationship with Erin. This was supposed to be the next "Jim & Pam" kind of relationship, but it has failed miserably. The "Nard Dog" was once the funniest character on the show. Now, he is just a shell of his former self. His character just isn't the "leading man" type.
-The new additions to the cast also failed to impress and even further muddy the waters of the show's identity. But, what should have been expected after the failed experiment of the Will Ferrell character in the previous season?
-The auxiliary characters are now old and stale. Whereas their eclectic comments once seemed to never get old, now they are almost cringe-worthy most of the time.
The sad fact of the matter is that Michael Scott was the glue that held "The Office" together. With his departure, everything has completely melted down. I can honestly say that not a single episode of the entire season stood out as "funny". Only Rainn Wilson's Dwight Schrute remains even remotely entertaining (with Jim/Pam now completely played out).
I fully expect the show to continue as it is such a big hit for NBC and the network will milk it dry and then some, but I made have to make the tough decision to jump ship before the resolution. I do not take this decision lightly, as I have invested so much in the Dunder Mifflin-ites, but it has now become a chore to watch each week. I saw the same thing happen with "Smallville" over on the WB/CW network, and it saddens me to realize "The Office", which was once so great, will go out with such a whimper.
If you are a casual fan of this show and don't necessarily need to "see the payoff" in the end, I would actually encourage you to stop watching after the Michael Scott departure episode towards the end of season seven, which could have (and should have, in hindsight) served as the show finale. All that has come since has been pure dreck.