Watching The Office

Tonight’s episode of The Office was initially entitled Parking but was now changed to Chair Model. This episode is written b B.J. Novak (who plays Ryan on the show).

Episode Summary: Michael’s fascination with a woman modeling a chair in an office supply catalog makes him feel things he hasn’t felt in a while. With Michael distracted, Kevin and Andy team up to win back Dunder-Mifflin’s stolen parking spaces, forcing them into a showdown with the bosses of the five businesses of the office park.

Here’s the promo video:

This April 17 episode is one to definitely watch for, since according to TV Guide, this will set as a “staging ground” for what is about to happen on the following Thursday. It’s supposedly a “big stuff” between Jim and Pam.

The Office, The Office Sneak Peek, The Office Chair Model

Clips from the “Dinner Party” episode of The Office, airing April 10th:

I have not attempted to watch it because I’d like to have a fresh, unspoiled view of the episode once they come back. But you guys should enjoy this!

The Office, The Office Dinner Party

What’s going to happen at the dinner party over at Michael’s house? Here’s what NBC’s press kit for The Office is telling us:

“Pam (Jenna Fischer) and Jim (John Krasinski) find they have run out of excuses and are forced to go to Jan (Melora Hardin)and Michael’s Golden Globe winner Steve Carell) house for dinner. When Andy (Ed Helms) and Angela (Angela Kinsey) are also invited to dinner. Dwight’s (Rainn Wilson) jealousy gets the best of him.”

The episode will air on April 10th, the return of The Office since the strike.

More than anything, I’m quite excited to watch what Dwight will be up to. It seems we’re up for another hilarious episode. Or it could go the other way…and we’ll find Dwight crying again (like he did in the episode, Deposition.) Awww.

Photos from Just Jared.

The Office, Dinner Party

Guess what I’ve decided to do over the weekend? I watched old episodes from The Office Season 1, for both the USA and the UK versions! I’m taking it all in. I’m doing my best to take notes of even the very little things about the series, things and tidbits I completely ignored when I was watching it before.

This site, WatchingTheOffice went live on October of 2006, which was the start of the show’s third season. And in rewatching the episodes this week, I’m hoping to shoot two birds with one stone — 1) fill the void left by the show’s absence since the strike; and 2) fill this blog with back episode recaps and notes.

To start with, every fan of the show knows that the series originally began airing on British Television in 2001. The concept was simple: a camera follows an everyday man at the office and their story is told documentary style.

The British version was actually the first one I saw, nearly a year before the USA version would premiere its pilot episode (2005). My first reaction to the original production was actually — pleasant disbelief. I kept asking friends who’ve seen it before I did (and who were the ones who’ve recommended it) if it was an actual office and if those in the cast aren’t actors. What the UK version brought was a very realistic portrayal of the average person; and the embarrassing situations their boss goes through was nothing I’ve seen on television before. I sometimes couldn’t get the British references, I have to admit, but taking that out of the equation, I still found the the show watchable and very entertaining.

When the USA version premiered, Coupling (which was another British Series adapted for the USA-audience) had just an unsuccessful run in America. Hence, I didn’t have very high expectations from The Office USA. But maybe it was because they did the pilot episode exactly like its British counterpart, that it made me actually want to tune to the next episode…and then the next…and then the next…to see how they would treat the “adaptation”.

So that’s when it all began for me.

This week, I’ll do my best to put in mini-recaps of each of the episodes from Season 1. In the meantime, I’d like to hear about your first time watching this series (any version).

When was it and was it good (or bad) for you? —> This phrase feels like it needs a “That’s what she said!” comeback! Bwaha.

The Office, The Office USA, The Office UK, Coupling, The Office British Version

As any Office fan or viewer should know, the last of The Office episodes for this year airs this Thursday. The big set back is on account of the still unresolved writers’ strike. The Office became the very first TV show to fold, with production shutting down less than 48 hours after the strike began; and with the studio firing about one hundred of its crew.

How the show has suddenly come unprepared for this situation, with nary a back-up plan that would not keep viewers hanging, could be due to the fact that the show offered four one-hour episodes last October. Also, I’ve came to learn that The Office is one of those shows which would tape episodes closer to the airdate. The cast was set to shoot next week’s episode the Monday the strike began. But, as we’ve learned, the show has closed early.

Technically, Deposition would have been its 12th episode, if I did my math right. And had that been the case, the show would have lasted us till February.

Episode Title: Deposition
Episode Summary: Michael (Golden Globe winner Steve Carell) finds himself between a rock and a hard place when Jan (Melora Hardin) sues Dunder Mifflin and Michael is deposed as a witness. Meanwhile, Kelly (Mindy Kaling) trash-talks Pam (Jenna Fischer) after Darryl (Craig Robinson) beats Jim (John Krasinski) at ping-pong.

This is the promo ad NBC ran for all of Thursday night’s comedy line-up this week and you’ll see a very short scene with Michael telling the litigators just who the “twins” are.

Those few seconds of Michael cracked me up! And just for a while, it makes me forget that we won’t be able to watch new episodes of this brilliant series in a long while… only to snap back to reality and feel all sad again.

For sentimental reasons, I have a feeling Deposition will be one of its best episode.

I miss this show already.

The Office, The Office preview, The Office Deposition

Last night’s episode of The Office was penned by Steve Carell, who is a card carrying member of the WGA. Steve has written the celebrated episode, Casino Night for Season 2 but tonight’s Survivor Man is a bit modulated compared to it. Although, I have to say that the last scene between Michael and Jim was sheer perfection.

The episode opens with Toby milling with some of the gang in the kitchen and their discussing the wilderness trip Ryan organized for Dunder Mifflin’s executives. The trouble is, Michael wasn’t invited to the said event and he’s pretty sour about it. So, Michael being Michael he decides to go on his own wilderness camping trip, pulling inspiration from Survivor Man, a cable show he watches with Jan. With Dwight’s help (who shows us just how mighty prepared he is for anything relating to life in the wild), they drive to the woodlands of Pennsylvania. And there, Dwight leaves him to commune with nature. Or so Michael thinks.

In pure roughing-it manner, Michael brought only two things with him — a knife and a duct tape. He shows the camera crew various ways in which one turn pants into something useful other than as an article of clothing:

• cut said pants into comfortable shorts
• use the remaining pieces as headgear or a scarf
• make a tiny shelter out of it
• if cold, duct tape said pants back to the original (the shorts)

About four hours later, it was time for Michael to find his meal. And as he scourges for food, Dwight has some bird eggs already boiling, not a few meters away from Michael. When it was apparent that Michael was about to swallow inedible mushrooms, Dwight swiftly jumps out of his hide-out and comes to his boss’ aid.

Back at the office, Michael leaves Jim in charge for the day (or until he comes back from his self-organized trip). And the office is celebrating Creed’s birthday. When Angela tells Jim about the party and four other different birthday parties that were to take place within the month, Jim decides that a bigger one-time celebration would be best. And it would all be done today. He sends out a memo to the staff, but not everyone liked the idea. Each celebrator wanted something special for his or her birthday and Jim is pressured to do what is right, without realizing that he’s already stepping into Michael’s shoes and is being treated the same as him.

In the end though, Michael is back and safe at the office, just in time for Creed (and only Creed’s!) birthday party. Jim and him sat together and enjoyed the food. Jim tells him how his day as the boss went. And Michael sort of indicated that it was how things were for him several years ago. Then the camera pans to Jim, who just realized what he will become if he rots in this company.

The Office, The Office Survivor Man, Steve Carell, The Office episode recap

Thursday night’s episode is one supposedly written by Steve Carell. It’s also part of NBC’s thrust to “go green”.

Episode Title: Survivor Man

Episode Summary: After Ryan excludes Michael from a corporate wilderness retreat, Michael heads into the woods for his own survival adventure with nothing but the suit on his back. Back at work, Jim tries to revolutionize the office birthday party.

Spoiler TV has a a short sneak peek of the episode, with Toby quite excited about the company retreat, while NBC carries this promo for their Thursday line-up:

The Office, The Office episode guide, The Office episode recap, The Office Survivor Man

The sixth episode of The Office, which airs November 1st, sees the return of Karen Filippelli, Jim Halpert’s ex-girlfriend. The episode is written by Mindy Kaling, who plays Kelly on the show and Joss Whedon returns as director. Whedon first did Business School for The Office back in Season 3.

Episode Title: Branch Wars
Episode Summary: When Karen tries to woo Stanley away from Scranton, Michael fights back, dragging her ex, Jim, into his war. Meanwhile, the existence of a “Finer Things Club”; further disturbs Dunder Mifflin’s calm.

And here’s the promo video or TV spot for this episode, where you can watch how Michael rounds up Jim and Dwight, while all three are garbed in what looks like janitor clothes and mustache. The episode by the way, is the Halloween offering for this season:

Plus, an 8-minute preview, which was shown during last weekend’s Office Convention (the audio isn’t of best quality, though)

The Office, The Office episode preview, The Office Branch Wars, Joss Whedon

And we’re back to the 30 minute episodes for The Office this week! I previously wasn’t too thrilled about the extended or supersized episodes, so I’m looking forward to this one.

Airing October 25th, the newest episode is entitled ”Local Ad”.

And it carries the following synopsis:

When the Scranton branch is asked to participate in a Dunder Mifflin ad, Michael seizes his chance to exhibit his creativity.

Which means, more of those ”Michael Scott Joint” videos, huh?

Meanwhile, Dwight explores the online world of Second Life.

Alright, I won’t pretend to know what Second Life is, as I honestly don’t. My online activities are so far limited to watching TV series and keeping my blogs up to date. So,  I went ahead and googled for more information and evidently it’s a very popular social networking service/virtual reality game that began in 2003 and now has some 10 Million users. Alright, that’s not exactly my cup of tea, but it looks like an interesting playground.

But I definitely could not imagine that it is something Dwight could get into because, let’s face it, he’s one of the less sociable characters we know.

So, what is Dwight doing on Second Life? Is this his way of getting over Angela? Is he trying to hook up online? Or maybe he’s conquering the world of DunMiff/Sys which he has, so far, outsold and outperformed at Dunder Mifflin.

Promos for Local Ad is up at Youtube, and you can view them here and here. If you’re looking for photos, there are tons posted on this website.

Local Ad is the first 30-minute episode of the season and showtime is at 9 PM.

By the way, last week’s episode, Money, drew very divided opinions from fans of the show. Has the show been going in the wrong direction? Slate Magazine outlines what could be wrong with The Office today:

NBC finally has a hit on its hands, but now the network is giving the audience too much of what it wants—Jim and Pam together, Michael acting infantile, Dwight killing innocent animals, Ryan being a villain. It’s true that the hourlong episodes make the problems we’ve enumerated seem more glaring. But they’re problems all the same. Will the show return to form next week when it goes back to the half-hour format? That would be awesome.

Suffice to say, tomorrow night is going to be the real test, now that the show returns to its 30-minute format. But is anyone actually expecting perfection from this show?

The Office, The Office Local Ad, The Office episode guide, The Office episode preview, Second Life, Slate Magazine

This week’s episode on The Office features Michael declaring bankruptcy in a less than normal fashion — by shouting “Bankruptcyyyyy!” out for everyone to hear.

Click on the image to be directed to the video

The video is a combination of three shows (My Name is Earl, 30 Rock and The Office) so the previews for each are a bit short, there’s nothing much to actually be very excited about yet. But these pictures of PB & J perhaps will.  

And just to remind you of what The Office will be about this Thursday, here’s the summary:

Episode Title: Money
Episode Summary: As Jan renovates the condo, Michael confronts his growing debt every way he can, which includes pressuring his employees for a loan. Pam and Jim spend a night out on Dwight’s family farm, now a bed and breakfast.

The Office, The Office episode preview, The Office Money, The Office Michael Scott, The Office Pam, The Office Jim, The Office Pam and Jim

This Thursday…. Meredith is back! And it looks like she’s going around the office letting them sign her body cast. Or she just wants to freak Jim out:

It oddly looks to me like she’s so *happy* to see Jim, too!

For the actual video, you can view it here.

I am quite surprised that this particular video has been approved to run on network television. Has NBC been trying to get away with it, pushing the limits? Last week, I was taken aback by a scene from My Name Is Earl, with two gay men smooching at the prison (on an 8 PM time slot, at that!). And it did not just happen in passing, it happened more than once.

Not that I’m complaining. Noooo, sir! I think that the preview (and that Earl episode, if I may add) is hilarious and quite funny, actually. It’s just one of those things where you sometimes think: “I can’t believe they got away with that on network television!” …. and then secretly enjoy and find amusement in the fact that they really did. And you seeing that? Well, it feels like you’ve also been part of something naughty…harmless fun is all it is, yeah?

Anyway, just to remind you of what we’re supposed to expect from The Office tomorrow:

Episode Title: Launch Party
Summary (NBC): The Dunder Mifflin Infinity website is launching and Michael is excited about going to the big launch party in New York while Angela plans a satellite party for the Scranton branch. Meanwhile, Dwight competes against the website to see who can sell the most paper in one day.

The Office, The Office Launch Party

Last night’s episode had some scenes I could not quite get into. Michael seems to have become more and more absurd as the show progresses. Sometimes the meltdowns are not as amusing to watch anymore. I feel so awful for Michael for his strings of miscalculated behaviors. Whether that shows how much of a vulnerable man he is; someone who isn’t capable of handling changes and stress, there are times when where his character is going feels almost unrealistic. It’s like watching a cartoon.

Anyway, episode two of The Office opens with a kiss from PB to J…

And the look on Toby’s face, upon seeing the two as a couple, just spelled b-i-t-t-e-r-n-e-s-s. If you recall, Toby has a big crush on Pam and even intended to ask her out.

The kiss prompted Toby to issue a memo reminding them of office policy or the fact that the office frowns upon public displays of affection, which Michael thought was a memo meant for him and Jan (with Michael revealing more than what was needed). This incident officially outs PB & J as a couple to their officemates, which Michael received with genuine happiness…

(more…)

Dunder Mifflin Infinity is the second one-hour episode of The Office which will air at 9:00 tomorrow evening. The episode was written by Michael Schur (who appeared as Dwight’s cousin Mose in an episode from the previous season.).

This detail from the official site:

Episode Title: Dunder Mifflin Infinity
Summary (NBC): Much to the dismay of Michael and many of the employees, Ryan returns to the Scranton branch of Dunder Mifflin to bring the company into the digital age. Angela is still upset about her cat.

Here’s one of the promos already up on Youtube:

The latter promo reveals a lot more from the episode. It looks like Angela is breaking up with Dwight over her cat’s death. It also shows Kelly telling Ryan….she’s pregnant?! Hilarious. They just showed the right amount of previews to tease our viewing taste. I’m sure fans cannot wait for Thursday night again.

The Office, The Office Dunder Mifflin Infinity

It is done. The anticipation and the wait is over. But the excitement remains. The hour-long episode last night was pretty solid.

Here’s the recap:

The show opens with Michael in his apartment, having the cereal breakfast Jan prepared for him. Michael updates the camera crew on how he is. And while he didn’t get the job in New York, he couldn’t have been happier with Jan around.

He goes to the office bursting with positive energy, when he accidentally hits Meredith with his car. Michael was looking at the camera crew when this happened:

At the office, we find Jim and Pam huddled with the IT Guy at Pam’s station. Apparently the celebrity porn she downloaded caused her computer to crash. We also learn that Karen left Jim and Scranton. They are so over. Then, Jim tells the camera crew he is very much a single man now. But Kevin doesn’t believe it. He is convinced Jim and Pam have hooked up.

Meanwhile, Michael tells the gang the bad news, first omitting the fact that it was he who ran over Meredith. But eventually everyone saw through him, as usual.

Dwight: Why did you do it? Is it downsizing?

(more…)

The episode synopsis for The Office’s third and fourth episode for season 4 have now been released:

Launch Party
Date Airing: October 11th

The Dunder Mifflin Infinity website is launching and Michael is excited about going to the big launch party in New York while Angela plans a satellite party for the Scranton branch. Meanwhile, Dwight competes against the website to see who can sell the most paper in one day.

The Dunder Mifflin Infinity website was discussed previously here.

Angela and her parties! *rolls eyes* (and yes, I would have to someone not invited at Angela’s parties since I’m probably not her kind of people, haha!).

And of course, Dwight’s competitive side is always something hilarious to see. I can’t wait!

Money
Date Airing: Oct. 18th 2007

EASY COME, EASY GO–As Jan (Melora Hardin) renovates the condo, Michael(Golden Globe winner Steve Carell) confronts his growing debt every way he can, which includes pressuring his employees for a loan. Pam(Jenna Fischer) and Jim (John Krasinski) spend a night out on Dwight’s(Rainn Wilson) family farm, now a bed and breakfast.

Okay, wait a minute…Dwight runs a bed and breakfast? So, I guess that’s where the Hell Convention takes place?

And the idea of Jan taking charge of Michael’s personal space? It does seem like where this couple’s story is going, based on how Season 3 ended. I remember Michael going iffy when Dwight spent a couple of days in his condo. But then again, in fairness to Michael, I would also grow uncomfortable if my roommate happens to be someone like Dwight!

And ahhhh —- Jim and Pam’s night out! Whooooot!

Season 4 Episode Guides:

1) Fun Run - Sept 27
2) Dunder Mifflin Infinity 10/4
3) Launch Party 10/11
4) Money

The Office, The Office Season 4 Episodes, Dwight Schrute, Jim Harper, Pam Beasly, Michael Scott, Jan Levinson, Angela Martin