This week's was way better than last week's...

Watching Michael fight against the notion that he will one day be unemployed is fantastic television.

Stanley - "Goodbye."
Creed - "Goodnight, Mary Beth!"
Dwight - "You're welcome."

My only question is, why didn't Jim show up at Pam's exhibition?

Anyone else notice that Joss Whedon directed this episode?

I've been telling friends that watch this that Roy's little change was nothing but a farce. He likes Pam, yeah, but he doesn't really know her or get who she really is. And he hasn't really changed. He's just old Roy putting up a new fascade. I'm guessing with what happened in this episode and what looks to be up in the next is going to set the stage for both couples to break up and Jim and Pam to gravitate towards each other.

Other than that, it was a pretty good episode. Much, much improved over last week's. Creed and Jim's prank were the highlights of the show. Michael putting Ryan back there with Kelly was a great vindictive move on Michael's part.

Maybe Jim showed up after Michael - I was rooting for him to show up, and disappointed when he didn't. I was glad to see Roy reveal his true colors once again, as he left Pam in her time of need, while Michael was there to help her out. This ep had a lot of great quotes in it, and Dwight was great with the bat stuff.

Michael - “I’m the cool teacher, like Mr. Handel. He once hooked up with a student… and then 12 others came forward. Really ruined 8th grade for us.”
Dwight - “Before I do something, I ask “What an idiot do that?”, and if they do, I don’t do that thing”.
Dwight - “There it goes!”.
Stanley - “…goodbye”
Ashley - “Poop is raining from the ceiling. Poop!”
Jim - “I know the bat bit me… but there’s no mark… and yet I feel so powerful! Oh well.”
Michael -“You cannot learn from a book. Replace these pages with life lessons.”
Dwight - “It would make sense for a vampire bat to go to a ‘vania, like Pennsylvania. I’m not saying that Jim is a vampire, just that he caries the vampiric gene.”
Toby - “It’s important to support local art, and what they do isn’t art.”
Michael - “You’ll have more money to buy PlayStations and Beanie Babies!”.
“Real business is done on paper, write that down” (students start typing on their laptops)
“Do you have the tools to turn a broom handle into a stake? What size?”
Dwight - “Animals can’t feel pain.”.
Kelly - “KILL IT! KILL IT!.”
Michael - “He doesn’t know anything and neither do you, so SUCK ON THAT!”

What did Michael say after Pam asked him if he had something in his pocket?

NOW the list is done.

A Chunky.

now now, there is one more line... I am paraphrasing, but what was the exact line that Dwight had about him killing a warewolf and then saying at how at the last minute it turned back into his neighbor's dog?

Also, the Michael Scott character, in my opinion is fully realized by the high grade acting work of Steve Carrell. To write a character like that that is so complex yet so simple and have it work on various levels is top notch with both writer and actor. Last week we see Michael in his classic "clueless, selfish" aspect and this week we see him in full and honest awe at Pam's artwork. The character never knew how much his reaction made Pam's day, and his earnest behavior gives him a child like wonder.

It seems now (and I have watched every U.S. episode a lot) that the writer's idea of what Michael Scott should be is a child between the ages of 7-11 years old. Michael has that selfish, me first obliviousness that kids have (that "center of the universe" thing), he is very much into what he thinks is current and popular (like his Fergie cell phone ring and outdated references) and he uses this to sort of put himself into a mindset of the cool kid in the class. But, he also is very honest and unfiltered in his emotions too, like his loyalty to the company, and his true reactions to things like Pam's art. It is facsinating and really fun to watch and figure out his character along with the others and that is why this show is easily the best written and acted show on TV.

EDIT: the framistan on "r-i-n-g t-o-n-e" is disturbing.

His charachter is finally smartening up?

Rob

Michael tonight at the end felt like a way to balance the insanity from last week. Last week was too much craziness and while tonight had that there was also the sincere and proud side of him that came out. The compliment to Pam and her reaction was top-notch. I was worried at first that there would be nothing in his pocket as a way to ruin the moment somehow, but they didn't. Great ending.

I'm disappointed with the lack of Karen tonight. Yeah, she was there, but she really didn't say much. Creed and Toby had their moments, and Stanley ruled it when he left. But Karen was just kind of there, and it was a little weird.

Is there any surprise that Joss Whedon's episode would end with Pam in tears, realizing she's been too afraid to grow up and move forward, finding comfort in the arms of a shady father figure...

just sayin'...thematic tendencies...



By the way they did an amazing job making the Michael/Pam work, that he was able to comfort her without faking anything or condescending. He was genuinely moved that someone would sit and look at and memorialize their building.

He really needed that after Ryan basically said the company was going to be obsolete soon. A very tender scene. I also loved the line "People never go out of business". Very nice.

I was also glad he had the candy bar in his pocket.

I was thinking that the fact that they did a running vampire joke was the Whedon gag.

Well, yeah. That was a joke on Whedon. The other thing was an inescapable consequence his presence.


I'd love to know how Michael was going to work the Chunky bar into his talk...if things hadn't gotten awkward.

Did anyone else notice the big back bump Dwight took falling off of the receptionist desk?

"BAT.... BAAAATT!!!"

I think Pam in a way really let Jim down by getting back together with Roy, so in a sense he wanted to let her down and show that he wasn't a doormat for her, by not coming to the art gallery.

Or even better would be if he didn't do it on purpose and genuinely forgot.

Either way, I really want Roy to get hit by a train and am so glad he was quickly outed as being the same old Roy. Now we just need some backbones on our two main characters and we're set.

It's gonna take some major league cajones for Jim to switch desks back to Pam-view without a damned good excuse. I'm guessing he'll weasel his way into something believable or trick Michael into asking him to switch.

Well, they've already switched Ryan out of that desk by exiling him to the Annex ...

It hadn't been 5 minutes and Ryan ALREADY had a look on his face like he was looking for ways to kill himself.

"Oh my God! Oh my God! Oh my God! Oh my God! Oh my God! Oh my God! Oh my God! Oh my God!"

Did Pam even invite Jim to the art show? (I missed the first few minutes.)

Isn't that like his thread title on TWoP?

When Michael did his warm up speech with the candy bars, that's got to be my new favorite scene in the series. That was classic and reminded me of all those terrible pep talks and guest speakers you'd have in middle school, kids clamoring over a tossed candy bar..

"I won't! I won't! I won't! I won't! I won't! I won't! I won't! I won't!"

Dear Office fangirls,

Please kill yourselves.

Love,

Bixxy

I agree. Much better than last week's. I kept 'cringing' at Michael trying to have a 'cool' speech while he kept 'burying' himself deeper and deeper.

The 'bat' subplot was GOLD. Forget any wrestling ribs you've heard stories about, Jim's are the best. I was ready to cry from laughter when he left and pulled the collar-up on his coat to leave and Dwight looks freaked-out. And Creed...GOOD LORD!!! :)

Holy shit, that was annoying. Although, it kinda makes me wish the internet was around/as popular during Moonlighting and Cheers.

Why has nobody brought up the awesomeness brought on by CREED this week? Everyone in the office is freaking out because of the bat, and Creed's just sitting there chillin.

And then....

"Do you have the tools to turn a plain wooden mop handle into a stake?

"What size?"

And of course....

"Animals can't feel pain."

The bonus scene with Creed was awesome too.

"She's on vacation, she'll be back in 6 weeks."

"... I'll wait."

Rob

Stanley rules that deleted scene - "Phylis is away for three months, which means I'm also in paradise.".

It's cliche by this point, but damn, Stanley's "GOODBYE" had me laughing for minutes. Perfect delivery.

Roy is too awesome.

From the Arn Anderson look to being a typical man's man.

My wife and I have been ribbing each other in regards to Roy ever since the art show episode. As soon as the guy showed up with his brother, Pam was pissed off at him. At first I didn't understand why Pam was mad, I said "Roy was the only one there from the Office!" But my wife kept saying "You men don't understand!" From what I gather after discussing it and rewatching the scene, Pam was disappointed that Roy only wanted credit for showing up at the show rather than genuinely being there because he's happy for her and her art. So over the weekend a couple of times when I didn't show interest in whatever it was she was doing, the wife was saying "OK, Roy!" to me (all in fun, of course).

Probably showing up with his brother didn't help his case, and neither did calling her art "pretty", nor wanting her to come to his place after the art show. But at the same time, being there looked like a torturous thing to have to show interest in.

Also, bringing somebody to something you were planning on hitting up solo is an easy out.

"Shit, sorry, gotta go drive ______ home" or something like that.

Wasn't it "the prettiest art of all the art?"

I know we do a lot of overanalysis here, but wow, that TWoP board is such a wasteland.

Anyways, this week is new, right? Thursdays have been so awesome lately with this, Scrubs, and then Inside the UFC over on Spike later on at night.

Yeah, new this week.



Sounds like some big-time shit could be going down.

Something bad happened there...something with a similar extinction-level consequences as the sleaze thread in the wrestling forum here...maybe the arrival of The O.C., or the continued chugging along of American idol...or just that site being namechecked in Entertainment Weekly...but yeah...it's not what it used to be.

But I also get the sense that Office fansites generally are much more "squeeee" and fan-video than are, say, Arrested Development sites. It's the risk of including actual melodrama...a thin enough line for the Office writers to tiptoe each week, but release those pheremones out into the internet message board kngdom and dear, sweet Christ....just....bury the rag deep in your face...now is the time for your tears.

Wow, that all sounds tremendous. Anytime booze is involved with an episode of The Office it tends to be pretty memorable.

Meredith should be gold in this episode.

I believe tonight's episode is directed by JJ Abrams.

It was indeed. I wonder if we'll get any Lost "in jokes" like the Vampire stuff last week?

Jim is going to DIE.

"I am gonna kill Jim Halpert."

What an awesome episode.

I missed a few minutes due to a power outage, but goddamn was that an awesome episode. Despite that, I'd still call this a series classic given how much major stuff happened. I cannot wait to see where the Jim-Pam-Karen-Roy storyline goes next week.

Michael - Can Michael the Magic escape from extreme bondage!?
Jim - Why don’t I want to go? Well, I don’t know these people, it’s a requirement, I don’t like talking paper in my personal life (or work life), and did I mention that it’s pointless?
Jan - What’s the upside? Well, the nausean and self-loathing will be gone and I could fall deeply in love. On the downside, I’ll be dating Michael Scott publicly and could collapse into myself like a dying star.
Why is it so hard? That’s what she said… oh God.
Creed - I run a small fake ID company out of the trunk of my car with an ID maker I swiped from the sheriff’s department.
Dwight - Oh good, you’re up. Who made this chair?
Roy - You use the Jetski money?
Kenny - Yup.
Roy - I’m going to kill Jim Halpert.

I hope that if/when Jim and Karen break up it's NOT because Jim catches Karen cheating on him. Because it seems pretty obvious that we're heading in that direction.

Words cannot describe the ownage that was Creed's fake id scheme, along with Roy and Kenny demolishing the bar and Toby's quest for Pam it was a damn fine episode.

And I can't be the only one who was expecting the CFO to offer Jim Michael's job when they were out shooting hoops.

Go back and rewatch...the SECOND Roy starts yelling at Pam and breaking stuff in the bar, Kevin balls his fists and is ready to throw down!

Did they ever follow up on Toby trying to win that stuffed animal for Pam? If they did, I missed it.

Yeah, Toby gave it to her and she asked where he was all night because she wanted to hang out with him. He pointed to the machine and she gave the duck back to him and said "Don't you have a daughter?" to which Toby did his Toby exasperated "yeah."

Yeah, he eventually came over and gave it to her. She then said something like 'don't you have a young daughter?' and gave it back to him so he could give it to his kid. Toby moments are becoming my favorite thing about the show.