A stupid move, I don't get it at all. He was funny, and just a huge part of the show. Like when Micheal Scott left Dunder Mifflin. The Office just wasn't the same show after that. Did they just willingly screw things up here?
Maybe George RR Martin (famous for offing popular characters in A Song of Ice and Fire/Game of Thrones) is taking over as a writer?
Wait, haven't they all died in some fashion over the years? Hell, even J.R Ewing came back. Oh yeah, and that Jesus cat.