Yes, I cried. A lot. But when she had the oil paints and the picture of him with "Never give up", I knew it would all work out ok.

And David told Finchy to fuck off! Yes!

I will buy that on DVD and watch it over and over again.

I have to admit, for a fleeting moment when there was the shot of the taxi going off into the distance and it didn't turn around, I didn't think she was going to come back.

But I was still happy with that, because he made his point with the present and it made her cry. And I would have accepted that as their ending, her realising he really cared and maybe feeling that way herself and not doing anything about it. Even though I was thinking to myself "If someone gave me something like that, I'd be going back and kissing them in front of everyone, fiance be damned." So imagine my glee when it actually happened!

I loved the way they walked off. Happily and quietly, with the party continuing behind them, not in an attention-grabbing Officer and a Gentlemen kinda way.
Aww.

Lovely. That is exactly the word for it. I just keep walking around the house with a grin on my face and sighing occasionally. I think it borders on gushing.

Best Lines:

"Could we please not talk about my dead mother's breasts?" -- Just hilarious.

"Chris?...Why don't you fuck off?!" -- Brent's moment of redemption, funny and touching, which was amazing given how awful David is. Perhaps he's capable of a human relationship after all.

I also liked how they made Neil less sympathetic -- although David shouldn't have been in the building so much, the way Neil kept turning the knife made you wonder if maybe in a few years he was going to get busted for Enron-esque activity...

I loved it when Dawn and Tim started winding up Garreth again as if they'd never stopped.

Tim taking the bullet for Brent, just so he wouldn't be humiliated at the hands of Preggie was a moment of real class.

The little references sprinkled throughout to previous episodes were great too -- Brent dancing, the crush on the black guy, even the monkey: priceless.

The burgeoning relationship between Brent and Carol -- I feared that David was such a charicature, you'd could never believe anyone could stomach him for long, but they actually managed to show some real chemistry there, especially when David displayed a faint hint of real self-awareness about how people take the mickey when he's PA'ing and she told him to take the money and screw 'em.

And even though I guessed there'd be THE happy ending (I accidently saw the title to this post while I was downloading the episode), I still got all misty when Dawn walked in. I had no idea how they were going to resolve this in a way that worked, but they did -- that was a perfect moment and a perfect kiss, and a perfect exit.

Even though the show stayed true to its cringe worthy close-to-the-bone honesty, its ability to maintain an underlying generosity (that was always there but which really came out in this last episode) is part of what makes this show really special, especially compared to a lot of TV humor around that's just based on jeering and meanspiritedness.

Now, if you'll excuse I'm off to fire up media player again!

There was an interview in the Irish Times with Ricky Gervais last week

I'd like to read that, but Nexis doesn't have it -- was it in a supplement?

Ooh! Ooh! I just noticed something else that I think is really well done. You know how one of Brent's signature pieces of body language is that he's always glancing around, especially at the camera? Whatever is going on, whoever he's talking to, it's clear that the camera is really the most important thing around to him. But as Brent and Carol go through their date, he spends less and less time looking around. By the time Brent and Carol walk to the car, he's totally focused on her, and when she drives off, when Brent would normally mug for the camera, he only looks over once or twice, instead visually hunting for her car, not the camera.

oh i know, it was lovely! and david brent telling chris finch to fuck off - well, that was the first time he'd ever said anything worthwhile. (yes, i'm a bit uncharitable - he reminds me a lot of my old boss, although no-one's ever mentioned david brent having body odour.) and tim and dawn! awwwww!

mind you, i do think it's kind of funny that they did this just because the public was crying out for a happy ending. i mean, ricky gervais is pretty sick of the office, i hear.

Hi, I hope you wouldn't mind if I add you...I'm 10 years older than you, live in L.A., have lived with an irishman by birth who's lived here since he was 7, went to Ireland last year for the first time, stayed with his family in Dublin, went all over,, hope to end my days there(not yet), work in animation here(I'm an artist), and was just terribly lonesome for Ireland, looked up Irish posters, so found your LJ, have RTE as my homepage(sad, isn't it?), saw that this Sat a special on Dermot Morgan is going to be aired, got all excited about it though I can't watch it, work with a Dubliner(a real one-she too hates 'faux irishness'-and you get a LOT of that in Los Angeles)...what else? Anyway, hope you don't mind. : )