Few things in life can captivate an audience like the hit American sitcom “The Office.” The five-time Emmy Award-winning television show which aired from 2005 to 2013 is widely revered as one of the best of all time. “Office” fanatics, of whom there are many, would be hard-pressed to find a work of any other artistic medium that entertains the way their beloved show does, especially in the category of literature.
Is this because “The Office” appeals to a simpler, less refined crowd — the kind of crowd that finds amusement in sexually suggestive jokes about what she said? Maybe. But we all know that there are a ton of great books out there that we should read. Famous essays are not typically as famous as famous books, but they exist as well. Book or essay — or movie, song, painting, poem, etc. — it is hard to top “The Office” in terms of overall entertainment value.
“Conference Room, Five Minutes” is a collection of essays written by Shea Serrano about “The Office,” and as far as essays go, it is terrific. It won’t make a lick of sense to those who have never seen the show, limiting its potential impact substantially. But for “The Office’s” cult followers, this essay is wildly entertaining.
Serrano uses a unique approach in each of his 10 essays to celebrate a unique aspect of the show. Whether he is ranking memorable moments or analyzing different characters, Serrano employs a different organizational strategy that makes his essays very readable. He gets creative with this too. An example is when he uses the “bronze medal, silver medal, gold medal” ranking system to present his opinions about different aspects of the show in “The Olympiad” chapters five and six.
Like the ranking system that pays homage to the episode titled “Office Olympics”, each element of the “Conference Room, Five Minutes” is “Office” themed. The essays are referred to as “meetings.” The graphics, illustrated by Arturo Torres, are either headshots of the main characters or unique expressions of memorable moments in the show. Torres creatively expresses Serrano’s intended message in sketches like the one of Jim on the cover of “Slam” magazine. The team of Serrano and Torres team up to make a very visually pleasing work, which increases its entertainment value.
Serrano doesn’t take himself too seriously in the way he puts his essays together, paralleling the nature of the show. His tone is very conversational. He even takes the liberty to include curse words to convey emotion when it is called for. His inclusion of inside jokes referring to specific moments in the show elevate the reader’s experience. Similarly, Serrano makes pop culture references and comparisons to things like the movie “Ocean’s 13” to help convey his points, finding common ground with his readers and driving home the points he makes about the show.
“Conference Room, Five Minutes” uses footnotes throughout to elaborate where Serrano believes that more information could be useful. He gets carried away at times with the length and amount of footnotes he includes, but they are almost always helpful for the reader.
Because most of the essays are opinion-based, Serrano’s presentation of his opinion can create tension with readers who might see certain aspects of the show differently and disagree with him. Serrano is obviously well informed and provides sound reasoning for his takes on the show, which most fans of “The Office” should be able to appreciate.
Overall, I would give this literary work a 4.5 out of 5 stars. I would not recommend it to anyone who has not seen “The Office.” It will not make sense or keep their attention for long. I would, however, recommend it to die-hard “Office” lovers like myself or to anyone who has seen the show entirely and enjoyed it.
“Conference Room, Five Minutes” has this indefinable quality about it that is special, not unlike that thing the show itself possesses. “Office” fans who finish reading this piece can’t help but feel that this isn’t just by happenstance, but that the show fundamentally changed Serrano in such a profound way that would allow him to write with such bold, quirky sincerity.
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