The Office has been an impactful show that seems to have gained a resurgence in popularity in the recent years. I was sitting back on my chair with my morning coffee, thinking how living in France vastly differs from my life back in Finland or in The Netherlands. I drew some connections between the countries and The Office characters and got inspired to write a whole analysis about it. Without further ado, here’s some fun comparisons between European countries and The Office characters:
Michael – United Kingdom
Loud, self-absorbed, needy, insecure. Seemingly runs the show but in fact just distracts and disturbs everyone else’s productivity.
Jim – The Netherlands
Enjoys the good times and works to live – not the other way around. Goofs around and likes to make other people laugh. Puts in the minimum amount of work to skeet by.
Dwight – Finland
No nonsense. Serious. Bordering autism. Works hard, follows rules, and has strange hobbies.
Pam – Sweden
Innocent, dreamy, artsy, peaceful. Doesn’t ruffle feathers. Non-offensive and tolerant of others.
Oscar – Germany
Competent. Doesn’t draw attention to himself. Separates private life from work. Has no tolerance for hindering productivity.
Angela – France
The embodiment of bureaucracy. Likes cats. Scoffs a lot. Will have two men duel over her love.
Kevin – Poland
Tries hard but is not quite there. One of the overlooked characters but has tremendous impact in building the community. Big heart.
Creed – Russia
Mysterious, has criminal tendencies, bordering insanity. Nobody knows what he’s up to, they only catch glimpses of his turbulent life. Not afraid to intimidate people into submission.
Meredith – Denmark
Likes to party. Will protest anything getting in the way of having a good time.
Kelly – Spain
Confrontational, emotional, and expressive. Loves gossip and playing social games. Likely to shout ”How dare you?”, in the middle of a meeting.
Ryan – Italy
Charming, confident, ambitious. Changes his mind often and erratically. Cuts corners, flies high, and crashes hard because of his vices.
Toby – Latvia
Meek, depressive, quiet. Is there but doesn’t quite exhume a strong presence.
Stanley – Switzerland
Shows up and does the work. Inattentive to what’s happening around him. Will have multiple secret affairs.
Phyllis – Hungary
Melancholic but has a passionate private life. Distrustful of newcomers, likely to say ”you have a lot to learn about this town, sweetie”.
Andy – Austria
Productive and outwardly positive, will attempt to use charm to get ahead. Teases with nicknames but can’t accept criticism himself. May go into a fit of rage and somehow get away with it.
Erin – Estonia
Bubbly exterior covers a dark history. Unintentionally quirky and wants to be included.
The Office (US) is available on Amazon Prime Video I hear.
Some author’s notes:
- Please don’t be offended if your country pairing is not desirable. This show has like two or three characters that one could actually look up to.
- The relationship dynamics between countries/characters don’t necessarily match. That would be a whole different post.