Weird to the Bone -But it Works for Him

He is, upon first glance, odd looking-gangly with an unusually large head. This is thanks to his portrayer, Rainn Wilson.

Dwight's look is consistent. He wears wire rim glasses. His hair is parted down the middle and matted to his forehead. His suits are an off-brown color and his shirts are always mustard color (he claims to have "a guy" to keep him in said shirts). His wrist watch is a small, silver-plated digital job, the kind that was the rage for a week in 1981.

The original prototype for Dwight Schrute was a character known as Gareth Keenan in the original, Ricky Gervais-Steven Merchant, BBC version of The Office. Gareth was an ex-army man who was a stickler for the rules and had an unnatural loyalty to his boss.

While military crafted Gareth's disciplined world view, Dwight had life on a beet farm to and his Germany family, some of whom might have Nazi Party connections.

Regarding family matters, he claimed to have been a twin who "resorbed" his brother in the womb, which resulted in his birth weight being 13 pounds, 5 ounces.[1] Even more strange is that Dwight claimed to remember his birth.

Dwight runs the family's 60 acre beet farm in rural Scranton, Pa with his cousin. In addition to the farm, they also run a bed and breakfast out of the main house.

Where Dwight grabs hold of you and doesn't let go is in his daily routine at the paper company he is employed (Dunder Mifflin, now Sabre).

Dwight, according to Rainn Wilson, is a "fascist nerd."[2] He works very hard, leading the sales team in volume. He believes he is a superior person and employee. His arrogance is often directed at the salesman who sits next to him, Jim Halpert (played by John Krasinski).

Dwight and Jim have been in a feud that rarely lets up. Jim handles his aggression by way of pranks, such as:

Putting Dwight's stapler in Jell-O; Dressing as Dwight; Loading coins in the hand set of Dwight's phone; Moving Dwight's desk to the men's room; Sending Dwight a modified metal detector as "gaydar"; Inserting his desk top belongings in the break room vending machine; Faxing him from the future, and numerous others.

When it comes to women, Dwight has shown a softer, passionate, and frequently sneakier side, especially during his fling with co-worker, Angela Martin (played by Angela Kinsey).

The Dwight-Angela affair kicked off during season two and was a hush-hush thing.

The road for Dwight and Angela got rocky when she asked him to look after her cats. Dwight fed one cat allergy medicine, and while sleeping, he put it in the freezer, where it later died.

Angela was upset at the loss of her beloved pet and broke things off with Dwight. Growing up on a farm, he was used to euthanizing animals and felt that he was doing her a favor.

Angela eventually met got engaged to salesman, Andy Bernard. Dwight fells into a depressive funk, irritating everyone even further, particularly Phyllis Vance (played by Phyllis Smith).

When Angela pressed Andy into having their wedding at Schrute Farms, there were hints that the Angela-Dwight flame hasn't gone out. It hadn't.

Dwight rebounded from his heartbreak to charm other women in ensuing episodes. We also got a number of hints that he and Angela weren't completely over.

The most important relationship in Dwight Schrute's life is with his manager Michael Scott (played by Golden Globe winner, Steve Carell). Despite Michael Scott's clueless blundering, Dwight stands by his side-as "Assistant to the Regional Manager," a made up position.

Michael frequently takes advantage of Dwight's fierce loyalty, often making him a co-conspirator on many wild romps. The chicanery would get most workers fired, and in some cases even arrested yet the team of Dwight and Michael skate free.

In perhaps their nuttiest moment, Dwight helped hold a pizza delivery man against his will over a coupon issue. [3]

Most people would realize that kidnapping is a bloody awful thing to do but Dwight, ever loyal to his boss, didn't flinch or give the moment a second thought.

There seems to be no limit to his weirdness. He is a science fiction fan. He holds a purple belt in karate. He has weapons strategically placed all over the office.

He seems to be an expert on everything, whether he knows the right answer or not.

Simply stated, Dwight Schrute is my favorite character on television. This is in large part thanks to the excellent work of the writing team and the Emmy nominated performances that Dwight's real life alter-ego, Rainn Wilson.

When the going gets weird that's when Dwight is just getting started.

[1] "Grief Counseling" The Office, Season 3, Universal Studios, 2007.

[2] Wilson, Rainn. "Pilot (Commentary Track)," The Office, Season 1, DVD Universal Studios, 2005.

[3] "Launch Party," The Office, Season Four, Universal Studios, 2007.