Five Things We'll Miss Most About Michael Scott on The Office

We pay homage to the World's Best Boss with clips and memories from his seven seasons on the show

If there were a swing in our office that we could sit on to look forlornly into the distance, we'd totally be doing that right now, and maybe shed one sad tear, too, because tonight, Office fans, we say goodbye to Steve Carell. 

We could crank out a list of best Michael Scott moments or even count down Michael's best characters ("Yo! I'm prison Mike!") but we decided to combine all the best things about Michael and simply talk about why we're going to miss the regional manager at Dunder Mifflin/Sabre. Just because we're happy he found love with Holly (Amy Ryan), it doesn't mean we're excited to see him walk out that door. Let's celebrate/mourn Steve's exit with five reasons why we'll miss Michael Gary Scott on The Office:

1. His Hatred of Toby Flenderson
Does anyone know the origin of Michael's white-hot rage toward Toby (Paul Lieberstein), the sweet and dopey HR guy? We like to think of ourselves as pretty loyal watchers of The Office, having seen every episode at least twice, but even we cannot seem to pinpoint the moment that started it all. And honestly, that's a big part of why his loathing is so funny. Dwight (Rainn Wilson) is often intolerable, Ryan (B.J. Novak) is a douche and Jim (John Krasinski) mocks him constantly, so Michael could have his choice of people to dislike in the office. But no, he directs all his hate to gentle Toby. We hope it always remains a mystery, because either Michael can't explain his feelings, or he has forgotten altogether. Either way, it's classic comedy.

2. All Those Bromances
Second only to his hate for Toby is his love for his bros. As he proves in "A Benihana Christmas," Michael is a firm believer in "bros before hos." And he never just connects with other men in the office. He flat out falls in love with them. Michael's interactions with his friends are the perfect mix of sweet moments (see reason below) and "bust out the restraining order." If you think about it, he has desired and pursued friendships with almost every male in the office: Jim, Andy (Ed Helms), Ryan and Darryl (Craig Robinson). And who can forget his fondness for Todd Packer (David Koechner)? But no bromance will ever be as special as his forever love with Dwight K. Schrute. Michael can't decide if Dwight is an idiot or his loyal best friend, and we don't ever want him to figure it out.  

3. He's In Love With Love
"I want the house, Jan (Melora Hardin). I want the picket fence. I want the ketchup fights and the tickling, and the giggling." Seems like only last season Michael was just looking for a happy ending with Jan. One of the best things about our boss is how in love he is with love. Whether it was making his subordinates find him a date, or butting into Jim and Pam's relationship from start to CeCe, Michael constantly demanded love in his life, even when the timing wasn't appropriate. And while most of the time combining Michael and love led to awkward city, the moment in "Booze Cruise" where he told Jim to "never give up" on Pam proved that someone being in love with love can't always be a terrible thing. Sometimes, it can lead to one of our favorite TV couples ever.  And we are so extremely happy that Michael will get his happy ending with his soul mate, Holly.

4. His Blind Ambition
Michael wants to open up a shoe store called Shoe La La. He also created Café Disco, right below Dunder Mifflin. And we will never, ever forget his labor of love: Threat Level Midnight. Some of the best storylines from The Office came from Michael's blind ambition for...whatever made him happy that week. Like the time he watched Oprah and decided he wanted to adopt a baby. There is something so sincere about a man who doesn't let "can't" into his vocabulary. Michael dreams big, and most of the time it leads to disappointments. But thankfully, he followed through with Threat Level Midnight, and it led to one of our favorite Office episodes ever.

5. "That's What She Said!"
In a way, isn't Michael Scott's favorite phrase the very definition of who he is as a character? Annoying. Inappropriate. Funny at the right moments. Hard to get away from once you experience it once. "That's what she said," will forever be intertwined with Michael Scott and The Office. Long after he has exited the building, his phrase will remain echoing through the halls of our daily lives. Seriously, you will never be able to hear someone at a restaurant say, "I like my meat," without someone quipping "That's what she said!" from the next table. But it's never as endearing as when Mr. Scott does it. Or as Liz Lemon told us: "Steve Carell owns ‘That's what she said!' He owns it!"