The American Office is based on the popular British Office series of the same name. The show follows the daily interactions of office employees at a paper company with a documentary style look. Ricky Gervais plays the role of a sarcastic, "un-funny" boss (David Brent) where both his character and his humor make the UK version more interesting, and overall the tone of the show seems more fitting. The US version is faster-paced and has more of an "American humor" which makes the show work in the first place
There's so many ways to look at this: Michael Scott vs David Brent... Dwight Schrute vs Gareth Keenan... Jim Halpert vs Tim Canterbury.. Pam Beesly vs Dawn Tinsley... If you have never seen the British Office, I suggest for you to watch all 14 (fourteen) episodes of them - it's time well spent. Vote now.