Watching The Office

The way his employees treated Michael in this week’s episode of The Office would have to be one from Michael’s wildest dreams as World’s Greatest Boss. I mean, he was the man, right? He was the sexy ass man whom they would invite to have lunch together or open doors for or treat like a prince. In Michael’s wildest dreams, this would have to be really perfect. Only, this wasn’t a dream. Their treatment of him wasn’t even sincere. No one from his employees had a change of heart, for everyone had an agenda. And it all had something to do with the branch earning surplus of their yearly budget.

As advised by the office accountant (Oscar), Scranton had to spend this surplus that very day, lest it be used as part of next year’s budget (and thus would mean they would be getting less next year). Half the staff (led by Oscar and Jim) wanted a new copying machine, while the other half (led by Pam) wanted new ergonomic chairs. And Michael didn’t want to make his decision. He’s afraid that if he chooses one side, he is going to be unpopular with the other. To settle the matter, he asked Hank, the security guard, to make the decision, which, being one of Michael’s plans, didn’t turn out so well.

Michael then sought help from Corporate via David Wallace, who tells him that should his branch decide not to use the money, Michael is going to get a personal 15% bonus from it. Realizing how much money he can spend for himself, he tells his staff he has decided not to do anything. But Oscar knows of the personal bonus and calls out Michael in front of everyone. Thus, Michael let them decide for themselves, anticipating that it could get ugly between his staff and they won’t be able to decide before the deadline. But to Michael’s surprise, the meeting was brief and peaceful —- and Michael is out $600+ while everyone is getting new chairs.

This episode felt like a classic Office episode, where everything’s happening in the four walls of the branch (plus the annex). And it’s nice to see Jim and Pam playfully going against each other, if only for something as petty as copier and ergonomic chairs.

But there were also scenes from the outside, particularly, Schrute Farms where Dwight shows the couple, Andy and Angela, their wedding venue.

Watch Andy’s Video of Schrute Farms:

While there, Andy kept stepping on manure which was everywhere, by the way and Dwight managed to wed Angela right under her groom’s nose and under German rites. What just happened there?!

Toby is back at his old HR desk, causing a lot of anxiety for Michael who wasn’t aware of this and who still haven’t come to terms with Holly, former HR and the love of his life, leaving Scranton. Now he has no choice but to face his old nemesis.  Desperate for reasons to get rid of Toby, Michael and Dwight contacted Corporate and were told that this can only happen if there’s a cause. The two check for loopholes in the company policies. When they failed at getting Toby to commit sexual or violent acts (as written in the policies), they thought that framing him for drugs would be the solution.

But Michael is Michael…which means, his plans usually fail him either because it’s a stupid plan to begin with, or he’s just too much of an idiot to carry out the “perfect crime”.  He fessed up to the police about planting drugs on Toby’s desk. While Michael may seem idiotically irrational at times, what he is, is not a heartless man. But as it turns out, it wasn’t narcotics found inside the drawer, but Michael’s salad lunch.

Meanwhile, Jim has bought his parent’s old house as a surprise gift for Pam. It wasn’t that beautiful a house, but it was the house he grew up in, and the house he was prepared to allot a special room for Pam and her artworks. From the way Pam was checking the rooms, you would think she wasn’t going to be pleased about it, especially since ideally a house is a major purchase decision they should make as a couple but she tells Jim she loves it.

Pam is miffed that nobody cares to clean the microwave oven at the office (yes, she too, is back at her desk!). She puts a note left unsigned to remind everybody to clean up after use, but it doesn’t seem to affect her co-workers.

Best part?

• Michael screaming Nooo! to Toby’s face when he saw him back at work again.
• Dwight Schrute, ever the capable assistant to Michael. And I love his Tiffany crime story and the reference to The Shield.
• Ryan trying to get Pam to clean the microwave oven, but Pam outsmarts him. How is this smart woman still at the same job?
• Creed nervous about the Narcs searching the office!

Michael, Andy and Oscar are headed to Canada to meet up with a potential client whose going to make a huge investment on Dunder Mifflin  paper. Michael is very excited about this trip, as he feels this is what he needs to get over the separation with Holly. He’s aboard the business class while Andy and Oscar are a couple of seats behind him on couch. What was supposed to be a normal trip kicks off into a different gear once Michael meets the hotel concierge.

Michael has this notion that concierge are like geishas and she became his one night stand. But Michael feel really badly about the whole thing. While his business trip was a success, it still didn’t make Michael feel better. He is still pining for Holly. He calls up David Wallace to tell him this trip was terrible and he blamed Wallace for sending Holly away (yeah, Michael…us too!),

Meanwhile, Oscar and Andy bond on this trip. The two got drunk at the hotel bar making Oscar brave enough to ask Andy what he sees in Angela. In their state, they dialed Angela’s number with Andy demanding sex from her.  In the morning, Oscar apologized he felt they behaved awfully. Andy though thought it was all a dream and knows Angela would be furious. Dwight, by the way, was with Angela that night. His voice could be heard in the background when Andy was calling her. But he was too drunk to notice.

Jim is excited that Pam is returning to the office after three months. But he later learns Pam failed her graphic design class and was supposed to do another three months of it, leaving Jim a bit disappointed. At the end of the episode though, we see Pam waiting for him by the parking lot. She decides she hates graphic design and would rather come back to work at Scranton. So that means, next week, Pam is sitting back at her desk.

And finally, Ryan and Kelly are back together. Daryll is super cool about it. Hah.

Well, she’s really gone…

When Corporate learned they were seeing each other, they reassigned Holly to the Nashua, New Hampshire branch which apparently was some seven hours away from Scranton. While in the van, Holly did the math and figured out the distance wasn’t going to make their relationship work. She began to cry about it. But Michael assured her that it was, even if he was going to “make it way harder than it needs to be.” I’m so proud of Michael’s commitment to her. Are you?

When Holly continues to cry, Michael’s neediness and desperation finally surfaces. He needs for this relationship to work believing he isn’t strong enough and will have to go back to Jan, even though he hates her. Micael, too, began to cry.

Darryl was in the van with them and was starting to get uncomfortable.

Eventually though, he realizes what Holly’s trying to say about what this can do to their relationship. When he was supposed to stay with her for the weekend, Michael decided to go back to Scranton. In the van with Darryl, he cried some more.

Darryl appeased him by singing the blues.

Back at the office, Dwight shows up wearing a Cornell sweatshirt and tells Andy he was considering applying for extra credits. Dwight intended to tick off Andy with his knowledge of Cornell and even have props for it — the Cornell pennant, the mascot bobblehead and it all worked. As an alumni, Andy conducts Dwight interview with his mind set that Dwight wasn’t going to pass it. But Dwight also evaluates Andy as his interviewee and Andy blows his top.

I love angry Andy. He’s ten times more ridiculous than sober Andy.

Pam and Jim are having dinner with Jim’s two brothers and they pulled a prank that made them more uncomfortable than anything. But Jim’s brothers love Pam so it all worked out.

And finally, the Halloween Costumes —

Creed gets my vote for the best costume. He came in as Joker, the Heath Ledger portrayal and was really, really freaky. Dwight also came in as Joker but his was the Jack Nicholson portrayal I guess? Kevin also donned a Joker costume but it looked as if it was Penguin trying to dress up as Joker.

Angela dressed the same as last time. Oscar was Uncle Sam and I couldn’t tell Meredith costume…Olive from Popeye? I might be mistaken.

Kelly came in dressed as Carrie Bradshaw on Sex and the City, complete with the painful heels. Phyllis was Raggedy Ann. Ryan dressed up as Gordon Gekko but to Kelly, he was Larry King. Andy was Mr. Mephistopheles.

Jim’s was plain and simple. He only had a sticker on and came in as Dave. And Pam was the only person in Corporate who wore a costume — Charlie Chaplin (but with her cap off, she looked like Hitler).

That was the most fun scene this week, everything else was really emotional. Breaking up is hard.

Well, well, well….just look at these two. Do they look like a picture of a new dating couple who did it “twice”? Michael and Holly have been dating for the third time now. Their office romance sort of fills the space reserved for all those PB & J sweetness, now that Pam is miles away in New York (and is part timing at Corporate).

So there they are…Michael and Holly. So giddy for each other.

Even now, I still wonder what Holly sees so greatly in Michael. To the point of believing he’s too good to be true. But whatever is wrong with this woman for believing that, it is what makes her so right for him. She compliments Michael’s crazies with her delusions. They do seem to enjoy each other so much. And it’s a shame we’re being set up to accept that Holly is leaving very soon. David Wallace finding out they have a relationship is a set up to what is about to happen. We all know what happens to office romances and taboos. Oohh, Michael is going to be crushed!

Speaking of crushed…Andy is passing out invites to his wedding to Angela leaving Dwight unsure of what to do next. He seeks the advise of Phyllis except that it was the kind of advise he didn’t like, which was to “move on”. Dwight wants Angela back. The whole scene between the Dwight and Phyllis felt like a whole new storyline which would have been explored more. Because more than Dwight and Angela’s relationship, it was also about Dwight’s relationship with Phyllis. You know how badly he treats her, and yet for a few fleeting moments, she stood as his rock.

One such relationship that seems to be on rocky grounds is Pam and Jim’s. We hardly saw her this episode…or last. I do not know what is happening since last week it ended as if they were fine. This week though? Whatever Roy’s presence did to Jim (yep, he appeared briefly, like under five minutes) made him feeling particularly fragile about his long distance relationship with Pam.

And then finally — C.R.I.M.E. A.I.D. or Crime Reduces Innocence Makes Everyone Angry I Declare  — this acronym came from the man Holly thinks is too good to be true!

The office was robbed this week and in order to recoup their loses, Michael decides to hold an auction. Which doesn’t make sense…as with most of Michael’s idea. The big auction prize was supposed to be tickets to a Bruce Springsteen concert, which didn’t really happen because there were no tickets. But Michael did prepare for his presentation with The Boss’ song playing in the background while the auction was going on. Phyllis’ hug, though, the auction for hug that Michael belittled, became the biggest prize ticket, which her husband, Vance of Vance Refrigeration, eventually won for $,1000.00.

Well, as Kevin said — this is the kind of baby shower that has the baby ruining it. Why so? Because Astird (pronounced Ass-turd) has already been born! Whatever Michael and Dwight did to prepare for her birth were all for nothing. And because I had a painful time during my labor may I say that Dwight’s birthing scene — was the grossest, most uncomfortable cold open ever!

Jan didn’t let Michael know she had given birth to her sperm-donor baby. And only after holding Astird (it’s really Astrid…pretty name!) did Michael realize he has no connection whatsover with the baby who wasn’t even his.

If you have a hard time understanding their baby daddy situation, Jim explains it well:

Meanwhile Jim and Pam had some sort of communication breakdown which is what usually happens when you’re in a long distance relationship. Is this a precursor to bad things ahead? Please, I hope they don’t go there. Can’t they be the TV couple that do not have to break up in order for their characters to evolve? The last scene proved why Pam and Jim should really stay together. The couple is in synch with being out of synch! Wasn’t that a great moment yet again?

Speaking of great moments, how about Michael hugging Holly? Did you tear up too? Because I did. Did it feel like Michael’s been needing that hug for a very, very, very, long time. And it’s even heartbreaking knowing Holly’s number is up (for the time being… she has to come back to the show!!!)

Michael: I didn’t feel much when I held Astrid. But I got a good feeling from Holly.

Awww.

And finally — Whoo! Baby Pictures!

This episode was amazingly funny from start to finish!!! I can’t get over it. I know when the show has delivered a really good episode because the half-hour program seems all too short.

Let’s see…what made this show so good?

Brilliant cold open with the announcement of Jim and Pam’s engagement? Check.

A song and dance number from Holly and Michael (to Let’s Get Ethical)? Check.

Totally agree that Holly is totally fantastic? Check.

Cookie Monsters sings Chocolate Rain on Youtube? Check.

A mind-blowing Meredith storyline? Check! Check! Check!

So what was she in trouble for? Apparently Meredith has been pawning herself for sex, in exchange for discounts on office supplies and steak coupons. Holly is shocked to hear it and prepares her report to Corporate. Meredith could actually get fired.

But Michael is trying to convince Holly to let this one go and punish Meredith instead. Their business lunch didn’t turn out to be great because Holly wants to do what’s right, as the company’s “moral police”.

But guess what? Corporate is turning a blind eye on Holly’s reports! The discounts matter! Meredith isn’t fired and Holly and Michael are friends again.

Meanwhile, Jim monitors Dwight’s activities in order to prove that Dwight is a time thief just like everyone in the office.

But as Jim discovers, Dwight does make use of his company time best…he eats his lunch at his desk and even pees over there too (Gross, Dwight!) Only, Dwight was gone for 19 minutes and 41 seconds much, much later. And well, we know where he’d gone to, don’t we?

Hey, how I’ve missed these losers!

The Office opens up Season 5 with a company-wide weight loss competition for the summer. Corporate is awarding the winning branch five days off. But predictably, and in true Scranton style, they lost to Uthica. I got to that part right away because that’s not exactly the best thing(s) about this episode.

This week, the one hour premiere had plenty of stories to fill our yearning for fresh new episodes. One notable thing they did last night? Every cast member appeared on this episode!

I’ll break down what has happened in parts, by starting with Stanley, after this cut…

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These are random favorite scenes from The Office Season 4. Do you and I have the same favorites?

• Andy singing Take A Chance on Me to Angela during the Launch Party -  On top of his very good voice, his move to try to win over Angela by having his buddies sing a capella with him over the phone — who can resist that? The moment was corny alright, but yet there was something heartfelt about the way he orchestrated it. What can I say, I’m a sucker for serenades.
• A brokenhearted Dwight gets consoled by Jim - Angela and Dwight break up and he isn’t taking it too well. He releases his pain by crying at the stairwell of the building. Seeing Dwight cry like that? Broke my heart, too. And the gesture by Jim to try and console him? That was a really touching scene between these two, a different side to what we usually see with the two of them pulling pranks at each other.
• Jim’s fake proposal -  I really thought he was gonna do it at the pavement. Pam’s reaction was also realistic.Toby’s accidental slip -  Such an awkward scene for everyone involved. I understand why Toby had to jump over the fence because of it.
• Screensaver bouncing off TV - Perhaps considered one of the best episode opener of The Office. The whole staff is gathered at the conference room where Michael is addressing them and it seems like they are listening intently to him. They really aren’t; but are rather focused on the little DVD square screen saver. It’s a pretty hilarious moment. Watch.
• Whoever/Whomever debate - Best performance by an ensemble.
• The Dunder Mifflin Scranton Ad - Sure Michael’s idea for the ad was over the top. But I actually liked theirs better than the actual ad the company ran.
• The confrontation between Michael and Stanley - Michael did fold and come out looking like a sissy when he was asking Stanley why he’s always the way he is at him. But for what it’s worth, Michael handled this somewhat maturely.
• Dinner Party - The worst dinner party ever is one of The Office’s better episodes. Jan dancing to That One Night, Michael’s flat screen TV and bed space, Jim’s attempt to ditch the party, Dwight and his guest…everything was just wrong it was funny!
• Michael’s testimonial at the Deposition: And realizing where he’s at in Jan’s life. More than anything, to me it showed Steve Carell’s depth and capabilities as an actor. 
• Holly thinking Kevin was mentally challenged: She pulled it off and handled him well. For his part, Kevin was just being himself; which makes this comedy gold because they didn’t have to have funny dialogs to make it funny. 

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The site, IGN, picks the episode, Deposition, as its best and gives it an overall score 8.5 out of 10.

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The new HR? Holly? Love her. I know a lot of the viewers feel the same way. She was the best thing in that episode. If she’s going to stay awhile longer, I expect we’ll soon discover her quirks and I think we might have a little preview of it. Remember her trying to fix the chair? Doing the Yoda voice? How wonderful is she?

How wonderful was she with Kevin? Their running gag was one of the funniest. And what’s interesting is that the writers didn’t have to write a lot of jokes around it, their story is the joke. Holly thinking he’s mentally challenged and Kevin behaving his usual self — it just worked.

For someone’s going away party, this sure was actually a pretty boring one… for the person leaving, that is. Did you notice how the party had little to do with Toby? I guess the highlight of his day was this picture taking session with Pam, or the fact that he had to run and find a camera just to have this moment. Ah, Toby…till the very end, he acted like a wimp. Are we going to miss him even if his replacement is such a wonderful person? You betcha.

Michael, who probably woke up that day feeling like Christmas since Toby is leaving, got the surprise of his life when he learned his ex-girlfriend is pregnant. When Jan said that the baby wasn’t his, my first thought was Hunter, her former assistant. I laughed out loud when Michael said, “I specifically told you not to cheat on me!” It was pathetic, but funny. Jan did not, in the conventional sense, cheat on him anyway. But going to a sperm donor while she was still with Michael? How sad is that for him? Especially when he claims to love the new HR he’s only known for a few hours. I wonder if the writers did try to go in that direction, would Michael really be happy with Holly?

Ryan being out of a job was not a surprise to me. It was quite obvious who was going to get fired, as spoilers have initially reported. But I did not see him being sent to jail coming. Oscar explained it best when he said Ryan’s management of sales and the Dunder Mifflin Infinity project was fraudulent. Although, I disagree with the beard. I kinda liked Ryan with the beard. It made his character a lot more douche-y.

The weakest story to me was Jim and Pam’s. It could be because they’re so happy and content, we know there’s something stable and certain about their relationship. Pam even said she was excited about going away to New York for a couple of months to pursue her art because she knows when she gets back, Jim is still going to be there. I don’t wonder about when Jim is going to propose anymore. I now wonder — when will this two encounter a real test to their relationship, and how will they survive it?

And really, Jim — fireworks? That was your idea of a proposal that “would blow you away”? If that did happen, I would have been disappointed because it won’t feel extra special. Fortunately, someone else stole their thunder and Jim can propose in a more original way to Pam in Season 5.

Andy’s proposal to Angela? Did not see that coming. And the writers leave us with the best cliffhanger of all, with the office prudes and watchdogs doing something kinky:

I can’t wait to find out what’s gonna happen to this two and to Andy, Angela’s husband-to-be. Will this be the reason why Andy is going to star in the spin-off? To forget how Angela has broken his heart?

So much going on in this finale and so many things unanswered. I hardly saw Stanley, too…did you?

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So, which booth was the loneliest at the Job Fair?

That’s right…it’s Dunder Mifflin’s. The kids don’t seem to care about a paper company. And for his part, Michael didn’t want “ugly” kids signing up for internship. He wanted the best and the brightest. Except that this was the only person who went up the booth and signified some interest:

Hey look, it’s Frasier’s kid!

Actually, that kid’s name is Justin and yes, he used to be Frederick on Frasier.

Anyway, Michael, Pam, Oscar and a well-dressed Darryl all go to Pam’s old high school’s job fair. They go there with just a piece of paper and no other materials to show for or hand out because Michael believes that “a blank piece of paper equals endless possibilities.�? Michael is behaving pretty much how he is in this episode and it’s an all too familiar scenario.

Jim, Andy and Kevin on the other hand are in the green, and playing against a potential client. Jim tells the camera crew later that he’s under probation with Ryan and this was his chance to prove he cared about his job. He needs to fight to keep it, even if it means losing some self-respect, especially since it may affect his future plans with Pam. When the day ends, Jim scores the account and returns to the office to share Pam the good news.

Andy elicits the most laughs from me in this episode while struggling to hold the golf clubs and drinking from the beer bottle, blistered hands and all. I guess he wasn’t able to drive the golf cart properly, too. He crashes this and falls into a sand trap.

The rest of the staff leaves the office early since the boss isn’t around. Predictably, Dwight and Angela remain until the prescribed office hours. The two have not been on good terms after the break up and this seemed like the perfect way to start repairing their relationship. Their moments were quiet and few, but their politeness towards each other indicates that soon enough, Dwight and Angela would be in good terms again.

Finally, we see Pam at the job fair filling out applications for herself. Is she planning on leaving Dunder Mifflin? Leaving Scranton?

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This week’s episode had three story arches involving Michael and Stanly, Dwight and Andy and lastly Pam’s ugly glasses. But before we get to that… I’m with Stanley when he said that Michael’s a professional idiot. Last week it was peanut butter on hair, this week it was this:

Michael thought it was a brilliant idea (from Jim no less) to leave his face print on the business park’s went cement.

I don’t really think I should be surprised anymore. From Day 1, Michael has always acted like an idiot. It’s just surprising that, as Stanley said — he does always find ways to top the stupid things he has done before.

MICHAEL and STANLEY

While I agree with Stanley on this, the “sass” he displayed on this week’s episode was really a display of disrespect. Sure, he’s got an idiot for a boss but if considers himself as a professional, then he knows better than to stoop down the idiot’s level.

Michael had called an emergency meeting to his staff for ideas on how to energize sales. To Michael’s credit, this scenario really did look like a legitimate ongoing among corporate people (first time I’ve seen Michael handle such meeting, right?). When he asked Stanley for his suggestion, he acted indifferently as usual and proceeded with his crossword puzzle. Michael pressed him on and on until Stanley snaps at him and shouts, “Did I stutter?!” leaving everyone else feeling awkward about what they just witness (I did feel the same, too!)

Michael lets this one go but Toby later sat down with him in his office to tell him that Stanley displayed a classic case of insubordination. But not wanting to look like the bad guy, Michael dismisses Toby and seeks advise from Dwight who suggested that based on his organization chart, he has an authoritative cloak over everyone in the office, if Michael gives him the power. Michael also went to Daryl at the basement who suggested the “fluffy fingers” technique, which involved gang members tickling each other till they end up hugging each other. It sounded gay.

So Michael comes up with his own solution — fake firing Stanley. Jim thinks it’s a bad idea and Toby tells him he can actually fire Stanley. But Michael would hear none of it…for after all, (sarcasm) all his ideas work in this office.(/sarcasm)

And as expected, Stanley’s public fake firing did not pan out and was met with a threat — Stanley was going to sue the company. He was very angry. Michael set him off and he comes back lashing at him until Michael himself got very angry, too. He asked everyone to leave the room except Stanley….who everyone thought was going to get it this time.

But as soon as the room empties, Michael cries and wonders what it is that makes Stanley hate him so. Stanley tells him outright — he has no respect for his boss. Hard as it was to hear it, Michael accepts it but still tells Stanley he cannot talk to his boss that way. It’s safe to say that this two have agreed to disagree. In a way, Michael as boss, was man enough to face a conflict and resolved it himself.

That rarely ever happens with him.

Now, he’s got a little bit of my respect.

DWIGHT and ANDY

You can tell how much of a brilliant salesman Dwight is when he convinces Andy to sell him his car for 1500 less than the asking price and then…

… resells the same for a higher value that very same day.

Dwight earlier witnessed how much Angela and Andy were enjoying each other’s company and perhaps to stroke his ego, he proves to himself he was a better salesman than his ex-girlfriend’s current boyfriend.

PAM’s UGLY GLASSES

Earlier in the season, spoilers hinted of a disgusting secret about Pam. So was this is it? Her granny glasses? Nothing disgusting about that. Although, I agree that the look doesn’t suit her. But Creed doesn’t think so. He still thinks Pam is hot and would like to see her naked. Kevin, too — who we learned that all his girlfriends wore glasses.

There was a moment of another fake proposal by Jim, by the way. I think, like Pam, we’re supposed to expect this every episode to let our guard down. So that when the actual proposal happens, it should be magical. I hope.

Speaking of Jim…Ryan came by the office to meet with Toby. He sees Jim from outside the conference room and calls him in on the pretense that he was gonna ask him about the Eagles. And then Ryan swoops in, the ass that he is, and warns Jim about his slacking at work and his performance. Interestingly, is Ryan even aware that Jim could be having Ryan’s job back then, but instead he chose to stick to Scranton? I see a conflict about to get deeper and deeper….

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God bless Kelly! How she addressed Ryan in last night’s episode was the way I imagined most women would feel about addressing a dou****bag like him:

“Yes I have lots of questions. First — how dare you?!”

However, what is up with this episode Mindy Kaling wrote (Kelly)? I don’t know how I should feel about it and I can’t say which parts I disliked more and which parts I appreciated. I can say though that it was an odd episode, with some role reversals…and maybe it was intended to be that way.

Ryan returns to Scranton because he wants to make sure everybody is on board with working on a Saturday. The staff have been asked to come in and translate the sales they’ve made in the online store, Dunder Mifflin Infinity (Ryan’s pet project) since he wants to make it a more credible and legitimate website. Apparently DMI, which is oddly and partly a social networking site now, has been overrun by sexual predators and it isn’t generating enough sales. This decision has not made Ryan very popular among his colleagues.

Michael, as usual, appears less sympathetic. As with last week’s episode — he’s more concerned about the fact that he badly needs to be with a real woman, someone with a certain amount of “Crawford-ness” in her. He claims later that this “isn’t about the horniness but the loneliness”.

He asks Ryan if he could hook him up with girls from New York and Ryan tells him about the amazing women he sees at the club he frequents. Michael took that as an invitation to come and party with him (it wasn’t, really) and so he and Dwight leave Scranton early to join Ryan at the club. When the two do get there, they are greeted by Ryan with a hug. Something is very peculiar about the way Ryan was behaving that night, and between that hobbit looking friend he had with him, the young and pretty girls Michael wanted to impress but couldn’t, the college basketball beauty that was playing tongue tonsils with Dwight (he got the girl, not Michael!), the brawl Ryan was involved in, no one could tell that Dunder Mifflin’s golden boy was actually high on drugs! Even if he sort of said he did. Michael and Dwight didn’t get it.

Jim had this incredible idea for work that looks really solid on paper. As soon as Michael and Dwight left, he tells everybody that if they can work late on the DMI task that night, then they won’t have to come in for Saturday. Everyone agreed, of course — like I said, it’s a brilliant idea. And true enough at 9 PM, they were all ready to retire and go home and enjoy the weekend. Jim’s plan was genius!

Except that Jim forgot to tell the night guard they were still in the office. So, everyone is locked in the business compound.

The gang all blame Jim for this oversight so he has no choice but to fix it and call the night guard at home — someone he didn’t actually know or have forgotten to give the Christmas tip pool to.

In a parallel world, this would have to be something that happens to Michael a lot. Which leads me to ask — why do people in charge at Dunder Mifflin become people their co-workers loathe? Michael is definitely one. Ryan has grown to become one and Jim had to only assume the take-charge role for the night and they already hate him?

Some random stuff on this episode:

Sorry, but I think I am the only one who did not know what this one is for. It’s supposed to get the bubble gum out of Michael’s hair without any hitches?

We now know he’s not getting any from Angela because — “The old ball and chain has been more chain than ball lately.”

Ewwwww! I was so creeped out by this. Awkward, awkward moment. Made a lot funnier when Toby attempted to flee. To Costa Rica. He actually climb the building’s gate!

So, what do you think of tonight’s episode? Did you find it absolutely dark and bizarre too? Ryan’s looking like a little boy lost, maybe working at corporate isn’t the best choice he’s made…

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Before I start the recaps off, I first wanna say this and get it out of the way — Did everyone put on weight while the show was on hiatus?? It looks like it. They’ve got really rounder faces now and not that it’s bad (I’ve got one myself, ha!) but the strike really left them with plenty of time and nothing to do, huh?

Anyway, on with last night’s episode which had three subplots.

The first one was with Michael, who finally confirms that it is all over with Jan and him and that he’s ready to get meet someone and get hurt again. Michael scene opens with him intently staring at page 85 of the supply catalog. In there is the image of the woman he would like to date — the Chair Model.

Michael tells his staff that should they want to fix him up with their friends, they’d have to look at page 85 for the template. He goes around the office and asks Kevin and Oscar if they can hook him up with someone. Phyllis had a lady in mind; but when Michael asked what type of woman this friend was and “if a rowboat could support her without capsizing”, Phyllis is offended and humiliated.

He tells everyone to submit him names and numbers of women he should date.

• Kevin gave the number of a hot and juicy redhead named Wendy. Turns out it’s that fast food establishment. Haha! Big props to Kevin!
• Phyllis, out of spite, still gave the number of her fat friend.
• Dwight went through all the channels and tried to contact a lot of people. He gave Michael the information he so badly needed — the Chair Model’s. But unfortunately, as Dwight learns, she’s already dead.

The thought left Michael sad and depressed…for a woman he barely knows!

Seeing how upset he was, Pam gave her landlady’s number and Michael and him meet that same day at a coffee shop. But you know, Michael… the prick! He found her the least bit attractive and compares their short time together to something like “talking to the sweet old lady on the bus”.

Michael muses his single state and dating life back at his desk, when Dwight told him he probably needs closure. I thought all along he meant closure with Jan. But I was wrong…Dwight meant closure from her:

The Chair Model’s grave site…

The two end up singing Miss American Pie in front of her grave (with Michael changing the lyrics a bit).

With Michael and Dwight? This doesn’t seem so silly.

The second subplot involves their parking problem at the Scranton building. This was originally the title of the episode (Parking) but I see why they now changed it.

Another tenant in the building is renovating their offices and the construction crew is using the gang’s parking space. So, many of them are forced to park ten minutes away from the office and then walk back. According to Kevin, it’s not such a good idea for people who sweat a lot. (Kevin so cracks me up in this episode!)

With Andy’s help, they arranged to meet with the Five Families, otherwise known as the bosses of the other building tenants, to solve this problem. To be truth about it, Andy didn’t even break sweat convincing the bosses.

Michael was too pre-occupied to help them (he’s trying to get back to dating, remember?). Besides, he’s got a reserved parking slot and don’t really care for their problems.

The final sub-plot and probably the one fans look forward to the most? It’s Jim’s proposal to Pam:

He didn’t do it yet. That’s obviously coming in the next episodes. But he’s got the ring, bought it the first week since they got together and casually warns Pam the proposal is coming and it will blow her away.

Was he warning Pam or warning the female fans who pine for him? Well, I tell you right now — my heart is giddy with anticipation!

The Office, The Office Chair Model, The Office episode recap