After the somewhat unfulfilling end of the second season, The Office - Christmas Specials serves as the real finale to the show. The creators did not opt for a full third season to end it all, and instead produced two episodes of 45 and 50 minutes each. It’s good that we at least got this given that last season’s finale did not show off what actually happened when David was made redundant and he didn’t want to, and if Tim and Dawn’s potential relationship has really hit a dead end.
The finale starts off a few weeks after the end of the previous season and we see that everything that it promised had occurred. David was made redundant and he is no longer an employee of Wernham Hogg, Dawn and her boyfriend Lee has moved out of Slough, and Gareth is now manager of the branch. It’s actually a bit depressing seeing the end result because everyone is so unhappy. The backdrop here is that the documentary has been completed and aired, and now they’re back for an epilogue of sorts.
Since you can’t teach an old dog new tricks, David still revels in arrogance, refusing to admit he has fallen on harder times. He doesn’t have a permanent shop and is still in his delusions thinking he is a funny person or a well-known celebrity, thanks to the documentary. As per usual, it is painful watching him dig a hole for himself, step in it, and then get buried. While watching other people’s reactions to his antics is funny, you can’t help but still feel a twinge of pity for David given he still does not get it at all.
You would have thought with David not working at Wernham Hogg anymore, then what would be the framing device to link him back to his ex-colleagues in the office? The solution is a very David Brent type of explanation and works well here (pretty much David is butting into other people’s business, just like normal). With the departure of several employees, there are some new faces, but the one thing in common with everyone is that they all look down and beat up, as if they are suffering from life itself. Gareth naturally is an insufferable boss, in a different kind of way, and coupled with the absence of Dawn, Tim is suffering immensely.
While this is supposed to be the ending to the show as a whole, it doesn’t really quite feel like it. We do get closure with Tim and Dawn, it keeps you guessing right up until the end on what will happen (but you are constantly reminded of why would Dawn stay with Lee given Lee does not respect her at all). David becomes more and more annoying with his obnoxious obliviousness. However, the show kind of just ends, with a quip / wise saying from David, yet still leaving things quite open ended.
Overall, The Office - Christmas Specials gives us more of the unique crude humor the show brings, but as an ending, it leaves some to be desired. Wrapping it all up in a Christmas theme, the characters, for better or worse, are memorable. Not all the characters’ fates felt like they were deserved but the biggest negative with the show is how the ending closes out several plot threads, but leaves the characters’ ultimate fates open.
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