20 TV Storylines We Can't Believe Are Real

Though Michael Scott's absence in The Office after Season 7 is noticeable, the mockumentary still functioned reasonably well without him.

With that said, there is one subplot that came dangerously close to messing everything up. In the last season, Jim and Pam begin to experience martial problems, culminating in Pam having a breakdown. Her vulnerability leads to the boom mic operator, Brian, stepping in and comforting her for the next few episodes. 

While this was an ambitious narrative choice, it disrupts the established tone of The Office. The documentary crew remained invisible for most of the series, so it breaks the fourth wall to give a crewmember a speaking role and a character arc.

Additionally, injecting romantic tension this late in the story is contrived and undermines Jim and Pam's relationship, which has been an emotional anchor since the beginning. What was supposed to add depth to the show instead ends up weakening it.

After Jim and Pam reconcile, Brian was written out of The Office immediately after. In hindsight, his entire arc feels like an unwanted and unwelcome detour.