By now, it's probably not a stretch to say that everyone at least has an opinion on the American version of The Office. Its arrival on Netflix in the early 2010s gave it a sort of third life that launched it to fanatic levels of acclaim among the public - you can't throw a stone in a crowd without hitting an Office fan.

Of course, when shows get that big, they tend to become polarizing. For every five people who like the show, there's probably at least one with a burning hatred for it, who can't understand why it ever reached the levels of fame it did. More common, though, are the ones who hold no contempt for The Office...they just don't "get it."

It's not surprising that people feel this way. It was more evident when the show was originally airing, but The Office marks a significant departure from the way most sitcoms operated in the past. Even in shows like Seinfeld and Friends, where the comedy was also mostly situationally-driven, they still cracked hilarious jokes every scene, and there was still a laugh track. TV was just full of characters who were funny people, not unlike the comic writers behind them.

The Office was different. There was one funnyman - Jim - whose pranks served the spot of the more "traditional" jokes, and who always got a laugh from Pam. The rest of the comedy was derived from the juxtaposition of crazy, off-the-wall characters like Michael, Dwight, or even Creed, with the utter unwillingness of the other characters to even give them a charitable laugh when they do something cringe-inducing or attempt humor.

As time went on, the show sort of learned where it could afford to be cringey and where it had to be charitable - to let a joke be earnestly played for laughs. They also went on to develop their characters so that each had a rich, full background and personal life, taking away the instinct to simply laugh or cringe at their transgressions, and instead teaching viewers to accept them the way they would a family member - as though Michael were a quirky, mildly off-color uncle.

Giving the characters room to grow is what made them so lovable, and is probably directly responsible for the massive success of the show. However, it also means that the base versions of them - the ones we see in Season 1 - have a LOT of growing to do, and therefore those episodes can be difficult to get through, even for seasoned fans.

If you've been meaning to watch The Office, but can't seem to push through the first few episodes - or you have a reticent friend you want to introduce to it - here are some of the best places to start.

For the person who really wants to watch everything in order...

If you really feel like you'll be lost and confused if you don't start at the beginning, but watching from the pilot is simply too brutal, starting right at the beginning of Season 2 will be the perfect thing for you.

S2E1 "The Dundies" almost serves as a sort of repilot of the show, which was almost cancelled after Season 1. The writers decided that, in order for The Office to work in America, where TV shows have a tendency to have long, extended runs (as opposed to the limited ones in the UK), all the characters would have to be given redeeming qualities - even Michael.

In this episode, for the first time, we see a little bit of sympathy from Dunder Mifflin Scranton for their Regional Manager. When Michael is heckled by other Chili's patrons while he tries to host a mock awards show for his employees, they respond by giving him those charitable laughs and their enthusiasm they'd been witholding, taking a lot of the awkwardness out of the situation.

If you watch the show this way, you'll most likely want to go back and watch the six episodes that make up Season 1 when you're done all 9 seasons. The only drawback to this method is that you will inevitably be missing some context for Jim and Pam's romantic moments in this episode, but that slow burn lasts long past Season 2, so it's not a major miss.

For anyone who can't resist a pranky goofball...

Given the nature of the show, the best hook of all to get into it are episodes that showcase the lovable qualities of the main characters. The episode early on that does that best for Jim is "Office Olympics," in which our leading everyman gets so bored at work when his boss is away that he distracts literally all of his coworkers with a Mario-Party-esque tournament of time-passing games like paper football ("We call it hateball...because Angela hates it."), a coffee race, and, of course, the famous and very real sport of Flonkerton.

The way these office games bring all the coworkers (who are usually at least slightly at odds with one another) together is a great sampling of what the show is all about. In addition, you get a lot of Classic Michael And Dwight when the pair go together for the closing sale on Michael's condo. Dwight's blunt observations very quickly begin to give Michael cold feet, much to the chagrin of his realtor (who, by the way, is played by Steve Carell's IRL wife, Nancy Carell.)

The episode culminates in a scene that perfectly blends absurdity with heartfelt emotion in a way that The Office would eventually become famous for. It's still a little more bleak than previous episodes - a holdover from the original British sitcom - but it's the most commonly recommended place to start an Office watchthrough. (People usually suggest that if you start with this one, you just keep on going. It's nearly the same starting point as "The Dundies," just a different vibe.)

For anyone who loves a good underdog story...

For fans of stories where a quirky, chronically underestimated character wins it all by doing things their own way, I highly recommend starting your Office watch with the Season 2 episode "The Client."

This is the first episode in which you really see the expanse of Michael's sales talents, making sense of why he was hired as manager in the first place. You see that the "proper way" (his boss Jan's very corporate way) of doing things doesn't always work best on a person-to-person level, which is the point Michael is always trying to get across. Watching it work out and garner them a huge sale, especially after Jan's constant nagging all day, is hugely satisfying.

Not to mention, this episode is the genesis of at least two running bits throughout the series, one of them quite major. I won't spoil the major one, but the minor one is the introduction of Threat Level Midnight, Michael's self-made James-Bond/Batman-esque spy thriller, which is written about as well as you would expect.

If you start with this episode, you probably will want to keep going - it definitely ends on a cliffhanger - and while you absolutely can, you should make sure to go back and watch at least the first half of Season 2 before moving on to Season 3, just to get the full impact of everyone's character development.

For the person who always roots for the lovable idiot...

S2E12 "The Injury" is, personally, my favorite place to introduce newcomers to The Office. It's peak Michael Being Michael, and is also possibly the first episode to cast Dwight in any sort of sympathetic light.

The nature of the plot (Michael burns his foot on a Foreman grill and is as dramatic about it as possible; Dwight gets a severe concussion and pays his issue no mind for most of the day) is such that the two most obnoxious characters are the center of everything, and neither is acting like his usual self. The list of quirky-to-insane things they do in just this episode is long enough to fill three of them.

Additionally, the way each character on the show reacts to the situation is simply a great sampling of all their personalities, and shows all in one episode the range each one has between being annoyed and snarky and showing true care and concern for their fellow workers. It really drives home the theme of "you may not like the people you work with all the time, but in the end, you love them anyway."

Since this episode is in the middle of Season 2, you can easily either go back to Episode 1 or just keep watching, depending on whether you feel you need more context, or just want to see what happens next.

For anyone who likes humor that plays with boundaries...

If you don't care about a LOT of missing context and just want to get to the humor, "The Convict," the ninth episode of Season 3, is a great place to start. Much like "The Injury," this episode offers an excellent sampling of a bunch of characters' personalities, and even contains one of the most famous bits from the show: Prison Mike.

The concept that this episode hinges on is that the office finds out one of the new guys from a recent merger is a former convict. When the employee in question, who was convicted of insider trading, talks about his time in what was clearly an upscale prison, many of his coworkers remark that it sounds better than this job, Michael takes their jokes seriously, and, hurt, tries to defend Dunder Mifflin by trying to "scare them straight" about life in prison...as he imagines it.

The combination of Michael attempting to be as sensitive as possible about prison at the beginning and his odd, mildly classist, definitely cartoonish rant is a drop-dead funny combo that will definitely give you a feel for what The Office is about.

If you start with this one, I definitely recommend skipping around the earlier seasons to catch what you missed, or just watching from the start of Season 2 like I suggest at the beginning of this article. That said, if you want to just continue from there or skip around and sample some of the other episodes I'm about to suggest, that will work as well.

For anyone who loves genuine moments and hurt/comfort stories...


"Business School," S3E17, is a great episode to start on if you want an even mix of humor and Things That Make Your Heart Swell.

On the one hand, the C Plot of Dwight trying to capture a bat that has gotten loose in the office while Jim pretends he's turning into a vampire is the kind of classic hilarity that the show has come to be known for.

On the other hand, between Ryan bringing Michael to give a presentation at his business school only to call him a failure, and nobody coming to Pam's art show, there's a big plot setup that really showcases the depth of these two characters, and it leads to one of the sweetest, most tearjerking moments in the whole show.

If you start here and like the plot, I highly recommend going back and watching from the beginning of Season 3. You don't need much context for this particular episode, but if you like the character development you're seeing (especially on Pam's part), you'll want to see the whole season play out. The beginning of the first episode tells you enough that you won't be lost without watching the previous seasons.

For the person who just wants to be dropped into the middle of the show...


"Fun Run," the first episode of Season 4, is arguably where The Office really nailed down its routine. With the establishing arcs done and our two romantic leads finally nearing the end of their will-they-won't-they period, this episode is where the writers really start to explore the dynamics between everyone in the office, including the more minor characters.

If you want a sample of a little bit of all the best things The Office has to offer, and don't care about missing context or Jim and Pam's slightly painful slow burn (it's painful in a good way, but still), this is the perfect starting point for you. If you like where the show is going, you can absolutely just keep on going from there; if you want a little more background, just go back a season or two.

(PS: If your question is "what was the deal with the bat?" just check out the episode I suggested before this one.)

For the person who just loves absolute chaos...


The Season 5 episode "Stress Relief" was actually written to be an introduction to The Office for many people, back when it was originally airing. The reason? It was slated to come on right after the Superbowl, a timeslot famous for garnering hundreds, if not thousands, of new viewers for whichever lucky sitcom gets to fill it.

"Stress Relief" is a two-part episode of utter insanity, beginning with the hysterics of a "fake" fire drill (with a real fire) in an office of people who are clearly unprepared to deal with it. It is, in short, pure and utter insanity.

The rest of the episode, which includes a fictional movie starring Jack Black and the late Cloris Leachman as romantic leads (yes, you read that correctly), and a literal roast of Michael Scott, is only a little less wild. (It also helps that it features one of the sweetest Jim and Pam moments in the whole series.)

Plus, even if you don't end up sticking with the show, you'll at least have context for that "Okay, it's happening, everybody stay f***ing calm!" reaction gif that pops up everywhere - as well as at least three other iconic Office moments.

If you start here and do like this one, just keep on going, or go back and start at the beginning of Season 4. You're likely the type of person who likes a show that has really hit its stride, and Seasons 4 and 5 are arguably peak striding for The Office.

For the person who loves Shakesperian-level convoluted plots...


As long as you also don't care about spoilers, the Season 6 episode "Gossip" is another really good spot to drop yourself right into the middle of the action. If exposition isn't really for you and you'd rather figure out who the characters are by assessing how they respond to situations, this is where you should start.

It's true that there are some major spoilers in this episode, but the nature of the plot - Michael spreads incredibly specific fake rumors about everyone in the office to discredit the true one he actually spread - presents the perfect opportunity to get a quick snapshot of every character's true nature, even the more minor ones. It's also just funny as a general concept.

Not to mention, starting at Season 6 gives you the opportunity to meet more of the characters; fan favorites like Andy and Erin don't even appear in the earlier seasons, and other characters, like Oscar and Kelly, don't become their true selves until later on.

If you're the type of person who wants to start here, I definitely recommend just checking out all the other episodes on this list when you're done with this one, until you decide you want to know what order everything happens in.

Did you try one of our suggestions? If so, let us know what you thought in the comments! Also, if you're already a fan, let us know if there's an episode you usually start people on that we didn't mention!