The writing process varies for anyone who puts pen to paper, literally or figuratively. Some people think of an idea and dive into it, headlong, without knowing where that idea will lead them, or even if it will have a definitive ending. I've tried that when writing scripts, and have been mostly thoroughly displeased with the results. Whether it takes me a week, a month, or a year, I'm almost always going to know the vague aspects of the ending of any story I tell. It's worked the opposite way one time, but I wonder how much of good timing and luck entered into it. The point remains: some people write with a roadmap in their minds, and some don't. But we all have a process.
While I imagine there are advantages (or people would say there are) to diving in headlong, I have to wonder sometimes why people don't plan ahead when they're writing. Specifically, I'm thinking about the writing staff on NBC's highest-rated scripted series, The Office. I've been a fan of the comedy for almost its entire run (I tried out the first few episodes, didn't like it very much, but then came back near the end of the second season and was impressed with the show's improvement), but have grown more and more concerned as its seventh season has progressed. As probably everyone and his mother knows, the show's ostensible star, Steve Carell, has left the show. He made the decision official at the end of April of 2010, and his farewell episode aired at the end of this April. Let's presume, for a second, that Carell had let someone on the show, such as the executive producer or showrunner, know that he intended on leaving (as opposed to just saying so to get a bigger contract) well before he announced it in public. Even if he didn't, we know that the writing staff had a year's head start, roughly, to craft Michael Scott's exit strategy.
I will freely admit that I was getting extremely frustrated with the show this year, because as each episode aired, I kept asking myself the same question: "Why on Earth is Michael Scott going to leave these people behind?" The idea that Michael would not only leave the titular office, but leave the Scranton area (he'd have to, because otherwise the fictional documentary crew would film him at home or at a new job, as they've done with other characters in the past) made less and less sense as no actual plot emerged. Once the exit strategy came into play, I was either impressed with the story or just dazzled by Carell and Amy Ryan playing off each other. Whatever the case, I was fine with Michael's reasons for leaving Scranton. His farewell episode was funny and moving. With one exception.
I love Will Ferrell's comedy. I've been a fan of him since his time on Saturday Night Live. Anchorman is one of my favorite comedies. And, let's be fair: whatever issues there were with Deangelo Vickers, Ferrell was not one of them, which would have been pleasantly surprising. Ferrell is notorious for being an over-the-top comic performer, which is the antithesis of what is needed on The Office. But, lo and behold, Ferrell was appropriately low-key in his four-episode stint. Unfortunately, that was the one consistent element of his character's development or lack thereof. His final episode was especially baffling, because I kept asking myself a variation on the aforementioned question: "Why is this character going to leave the show, forever, by the end of this episode?" With only a couple of minutes left, the question was left unanswered until Deangelo was felled by an errant basketball hoop, giving him apparently permanent brain damage. I'm going to pause here so you can laugh so hard that drool drips all over your keyboard.
You good? OK then. So, yeah, Ferrell's gone. And I have to wonder, why did the writing staff on the show not have any better idea of what to do once Carell left? When Will Ferrell's casting was announced, some people wondered if it amounted to Ferrell (or someone at NBC) saying that he wanted to be on the show to reunite with Carell. Clearly, that's exactly what it was. There was no point to Deangelo Vickers (even the name is so jokey that you knew he'd be gone soon), and there never was. What's more, while I'm kind of curious to see actors like Will Arnett and Jim Carrey (oh, and Ricky Gervais, because the show's writers really like tempting fate, I guess) interact with the cast, it's so obvious that these people are showing up simply so the show or the network can stave off the fears that The Office is creatively kaput until the fall. I welcome an injection of creativity in season 8 of the show, but I'm not holding my breath.
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