Discover the most popular TV show the year you were born

2006: The Office

Much like Friends and Will & Grace, you can’t discuss television without talking about The Office. The NBC single-camera comedy debuted on the network as a midseason replacement, but went on to become a huge hit and lasted nine seasons. The Office followed the lives of office employees at Dunder Mifflin Paper Company in Scranton, Pennsylvania. It was filmed to look like an actual documentary, including characters giving testimonials straight to the camera.

When the show first came to America — the original The Office aired on BBC starring Ricky Gervais — it was met with mixed reviews. The show’s dry humor and documentary-style format took some getting used to, but by the third season, fans and critics alike were onboard. In 2006, the show won the Emmy for Outstanding Comedy Series, and was nominated for a total of 42 Emmy Awards over the years. Steve Carell, who starred as Dunder Mifflin manager Michael Scott, also won a Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Television Series Musical or Comedy the same year.

After Steve Carell’s departure in season 7, many saw a decline in quality of the episodes. Due to this decline, the later seasons are often criticized for paling in comparison to the earlier ones. Rumors of a revival of The Office have been floating around for years, but there haven’t been any confirmed plans (yet).