I've recently become terribly fond of the US version of "The Office." Its first season was a little shaky and didn't really grab me, but with season two on, I've been plumb hooked. And that makes me self-conscious, because I haven't seen the UK original, and thus my fandom of a derivative version makes me a total poser.

It puts you in some awkward situations, because in the wrong company expressing enthusiasm in a US sitcom without being able to acknowledge the British original is like saying that you're a huge fan of the live-action version of "The Guyver."

Cultured people are a hard segment of the populace to fall in with, because, on the one hand, they tend to be very intelligent people capable of making great conversation, while on the other hand, they're a bunch of smarty-pants, holier-than-thou cat molesters. They're basically like super-hardcore comic book nerds, except instead of working themselves up into states of near-religious wrath when you confuse Prince Namor with Aquaman, they wait until you confuse Jeremy Brett with Basil Rathbone. Also, they don't have naked fantasies involving She-Hulk, a fact which does, admittedly, tip the scales somewhat in their favor.

I love British TV myself, by the way -- but I also hold them fully responsible for the entire run of "The Benny Hill Show." No culture is absolute.

According to Wikipedia, there are no less than FIVE different versions of the Office, worldwide, each with their own cast and writing staff. Wow. Enjoy your factoid, world.