Weakened "Office" still strong

The end is nigh. Steve Carell will not be returning after the seventh season of “The Office,”  and unless something drastically changes, there won’t be anything worth watching once he’s gone. So it’s time to consider the second-to-last season.

Many people considered Season 6 the weakest of the batch (other than possibly the shortened Season 4). But after examining the episodes and having them all conveniently grouped, it’s harder to blindly accept that.

Season 6 contains important (and excellent) episodes in Jim and Pam’s wedding, the subsequent baby, a crazed Michael playing a murder-mystery game and plenty of other things there isn’t time to list. Unfortunately, lesser episodes like “Mafia” followed the excellent wedding episode. Better timing might have made a less negative impression.

Even widely reviled episodes like “Scott’s Tots” never really hit bottom. The episode is painfully awkward, not of low quality, something with which the show is willing to experiment.

Season 6 of “The Office” might still be a weaker season, but hindsight can only help it.