The Office star Jenna Fischer has defended the sitcom against criticisms that the quality went downhill after Steve Carrell's exit in 2011, saying that some of her favorite episodes were in the final two seasons.
"I think there was this lore, especially among the cast and the creatives, that maybe we hit our peak in season 3 or season 4," Fischer told the Fly on the Wall podcast. "And also this belief that the two seasons after Steve left, we were just treading water and maybe they weren’t as good. But when I watched everything, some of my favorite episodes were in seasons 8 and 9 after Steve had left. There were still these amazing storylines."
