HaMisrad


HaMisrad is an Israeli television sitcom, that aired on the Yes Comedy channel. It is a version of The Office, a 2001–2003 British sitcom that had already been remade in nine other countries. HaMisrad is a mockumentary set in a branch of the fictional "Paper Office" office supplies company, in the industrial city of Yehud. The series stars Dvir Benedek as Avi Meshulam, the branch's regional manager, a character based heavily on the character of David Brent in the original series. It is co-produced by Yes and July August Productions.
Like the original series and many of its spinoffs, HaMisrad lampoons office life as well as gender and ethnic relations. In the case of HaMisrad, the office and warehouse include native-born secular Jews, Arabs, Orthodox Jews, and Russian and Ethiopian immigrants.
The first season aired from August to November 2010. Most of the episodes in the first season were based on the 12 episodes from the British series. Many of the early episodes featured identical plots and some of the same dialogue, though as the season went on the episodes' plots diverged increasingly from the originals.
A second season aired in late 2012 and early 2013. It contained all original plots.
The series is broadcast in HD.

Production

The series' writer is, and the director is. Both are Israeli television veterans, who had both previously written and directed for BeTipul, an Israeli drama series that was itself adapted in various countries, including the American series In Treatment.
HaMisrad was created with the approval of the British series' co-creators, Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant. Gervais, when asked about the Israeli series after it was first announced in early 2009, said he was "thrilled" about the idea, adding wryly, "who ever heard of Jewish entertainers?"
By agreement with the BBC, the main characters had to match the main characters of the UK series, and the first three episodes had to correspond to the UK series' first three episodes. Weill decided to pattern the series even more closely than required on the original UK series, because he felt it was "an official satire" which "had a lot to say about the world and about people." By contrast, Weill did not want to emulate the American version, which he considered "a parody about funny people in a funny place with a lot of feel-good factors thrown in." Weill described his approach to adapting the source material as "In an English or American office, you would keep your views to yourself, but here, all the racial and religious aspects of our lives are out in the open. We’re constantly talking about it – it's why you come to work! So to create an embarrassing situation, you have to take it further comedy-wise. It's not based on 'what would happen if I say this totally horrible thing' because I've already said it. Instead, it's 'what will happen after I say it?'"

Characters

  • Avi Meshulam – Regional Manager. An obnoxious, overweight and dimwitted boss who tries unsuccessfully to ingratiate himself with his employees.
  • Yariv Shauli – Assistant to the Regional Manager. A proud veteran of what he refers to as a secret branch of the Israeli Army, who is extremely loyal to Meshulam and tries hard to maintain office discipline.
  • Yossi – Senior Sales Representative. Sarcastic and underachieving, with a long-term unrequited crush on Dana.
  • Dana – Receptionist. A generally optimistic person, stuck in a job and a long-term engagement, neither of which she's happy with.
  • Lavi – Dana's fiancé, who works in the company warehouse. Macho and often insensitive.
  • Shimi Guetta – Travelling Sales Representative. Obnoxious, bullying, and prone to insulting jokes.
  • Yelena – Corporate Supervisor. Avi's boss, and a Russian immigrant who is straitlaced and business-focused.
  • Karol – Accountant. A lecherous, cynical Romanian immigrant who hates his wife.
  • Yevgeni – Accountant. A socially awkward Russian immigrant.
  • Leah – Office worker. A seemingly perpetually pregnant Orthodox Jew who is very opinionated.
  • Abed – Sales representative. A gay Israeli Arab who is assimilated into Israeli society but feels alienated.
  • Ababa Sharon – Accountant, merged in from the Kiryat Ono branch. An Israeli-born Ethiopian Jew. Mild-mannered, and dislikes being viewed as different.
  • Riki – Office worker, merged in from the Kiryat Ono branch. A woman who uses a wheelchair and is aggressively looking for love.
  • Regev Steiner – the temp. Is descended from the Rothschilds and is somewhat contemptuous of the rest of the office.
  • Shiri – new office worker. Fun-loving and ditzy.
  • Sammy – Warehouse Foreman. Very dismissive of Avi.

    List of episodes

Season one

  • Episode 1 – The staff is introduced; Yelena informs Avi that the branch may be closed down.
  • Episode 2 – Rumors of the potential branch closing continue; Avi introduces new office worker Shiri; a pornographic email leads to an investigation.
  • Episode 3 – It is Yossi's 30th birthday; some of the staff attend a quiz night.
  • Episode 4 – News of a military incursion into Gaza has the office on edge; Leah suspects Abed is talking to the enemy.
  • Episode 5 – An outside facilitator holds a training session about customer relations; Avi reminisces about his musical past.
  • Episode 6 – Avi hires a personal secretary; some of the office staff go out to a bar.
  • Episode 7 – Yariv finds out that Abed is gay; Abed preemptively tells the entire office, and introduces his boyfriend; Avi is pressured by Yelena to fire his new secretary, who then accuses him of sexual harassment; Avi then manages to successfully accuse her of leaking company secrets, which ends the internal investigation.
  • Episode 8 – Yelena informs Avi that his branch will be shut down in favor of the Kiryat Ono branch, but that Avi himself will get a promotion; Avi tells the staff, who are dispirited at the news. Yelena then convinces Avi to trick his employees into signing away their rights to a hefty severance package. Avi's former secretary decides to press a criminal sexual harassment charge against Avi, which causes the company to decide to fire Avi instead. After Yelena tells him the news, Avi puts the signed release forms in the shredder instead of handing them over to her, which forces the company to keep the Yehud branch and terminate the Kiryat Ono one instead.
  • Episode 9 – Two employees of the closed Kiryat Ono branch who have been merged into the office are introduced: Riki and the Ethiopian Avi. Avi the boss tells a racially offensive joke, which causes a staff complaint; there is an altercation between Lavi and Yossi.
  • Episode 10 – Yelena tells Avi that she has been secretly giving consulting advice to another company, against company rules, and asks Avi to keep it a secret; Lavi apologizes to Yossi for hitting him; the staff are required to give appraisals of their own work, as well as of Avi; lukewarm appraisals of Avi from the two new employees cause him to take them out to lunch in order to try to gain their approval, but the lunch goes poorly; Shiri begins openly flirting with Yossi; Yelena promises to deliver positive news about Avi's feedback in return for his silence.
  • Episode 11 – Avi is asked to speak at a motivational seminar, then brags to the office about how much he will be making; Yevgeny begins publishing heavily on Twitter in order to win a "Twitter of the month" contest, and most of his "tweets" are embarrassing facts about Avi; the office has a fire drill, during which Avi and Yariv leave Riki in the stairwell, then forget about her for the rest of the day; Yevgeny wins the contest, which causes Yariv to start publishing heavily on Twitter as well, revealing embarrassing information about other co-workers, as well as company secrets; Yelena tries to pressure Avi to fire Yariv as a result; Yossi begins dating Shiri, which makes Dana uncomfortable.
  • Episode 12 – Yariv bonds with the visiting computer geek; Avi and Dana travel so that Avi can present at a motivational seminar, where he gives a rambling talk that bewilders the audience.
  • Episode 13 – Dana breaks up with Lavi over his refusal to set a wedding date; Avi plans an office-wide production for Purim, featuring comedy and dance; Avi indirectly causes Leah to eat a cheeseburger, which she then tries to throw up; Yossi breaks up with Shiri; Yelena fires Avi over his inability to put together a productivity plan; Avi tells the staff he was fired, then holes up in his office, leaving only after everyone else has gone.
  • Episode 14 – Avi, still at the office for the duration of the week, is in good spirits about his planned next ventures: a motivational-speaking career and a motivational book he's co-writing with a female journalist. Yelena asks Yossi to become the new manager, but he turns it down, saying he's leaving the company to become a student. With no other options, Yelena asks Yariv to become the new manager instead. Dana decides to leave as well, in order to study painting; Yossi suggests to Dana that they get an apartment together, since they're both looking for a new place, and Dana agrees. At the farewell party for Avi at a bar that night, Avi alienates his journalist co-author, and finds out that the motivational-speaking company is not interested in employing him.
  • Episode 15 – It is around two weeks later, and Avi is an unsuccessful travelling salesman, living out of his car. He visits the office, but gets little reaction, and Yariv informs him that he has gotten a raise over Avi's old salary. Dana and Yossi are both still at the office, near the end of their two weeks' notice. Regev goes into Yariv's office to complain about Yariv's sexual harassment of Shiri, they get into an argument and Yariv fires Regev. Yariv then also fires Ababa and Sami in quick succession when he feels a lack of respect from both of them. Yelena finds out about the firings, then un-fires the three and demotes Yariv back to his old position. She finds Avi sleeping in his car in the parking lot, and asks him to become the manager again; Avi enthusiastically agrees. Lavi, contrite over the breakup with Dana, re-proposes to Dana in the office, promising to treat her better; Dana accepts. While the staff celebrates, Avi returns with his own good news; Yossi then walks in, sees Dana together with Lavi, and slinks out of the office.