We’ve all heard the rumors of an Office spin-off, but they were disspelled. Or so we thought! NBC unveiled it’s lineup for next year, and on the schedule for Winter 2009 is an Office spin-off. Who will star in the spin-off? Details are scarce, but here are some articles to check out:
To jog your memory, refer to a post from October 2007
Well people, this is it–the last new episode of The Office for an incalculable amount of time. What happens now that The Office has aired all the episodes it has in its bank? We wait….and savor a delicious “fall finale” (for lack of a better term).
I have been wondering what Jan has been up to since being fired from Dunder Mifflin. It seemed that she had resigned herself to decorating Michael’s condo and sleeping all day. It was strange to see the woman once referred to as “Godzillary” not in a position of power, but Jan (and Godzillary) was back to true form in Thursday’s epsiode. It turns out that Jan has been preparing with her attorney for the wrongful termination lawsuit they are bringing against Dunder Mifflin. Michael is, of course, one of Jan’s key witnesses. Meanwhile back at the office, there’s a table tennis competition going on between Jim and Darryl, Kelly is talking smack (which is different from talking trash because it is not hypothetical), and it is revealed that Dwight and Mose are awesome table tennis players!
Some of my favorite moments:
1. Dwight talking about his favorite table tennis players and his reason for leaving Pennsylvania for the first time in his life: to attend the hall of fame induction ceremony of Andrzej Grubba.
2. Michael, unable to refrain from being inappropriate, makes a “that’s what she said” joke during the deposition. “You were directly under her the whole time?” “That’s what she said.”
3. Michael wanting Toby removed from the deposition. “What is he doing here? Are you renewing your divorce vows before my deposition?”
4. Jim using his “spin serve” ineffectively on Dwight.
5. Pam bringing juice to Jim while he and Darryl are playing table tennis and saying, “My boyfriend is 12,” to the camera.
Which quotes will you hold on to in order to get yourself through the long hiatus? May I suggest re-watching the entire series from the beginning?
The nerve of Ryan! Inviting Toby on a camping trip instead of Michael to a bonding session for the branch managers was a slap in the face. This slight prompted Michael to have his own wilderness trip by himself (after Jim declined because he was giving blood). Why didn’t he just invite Dwight to go along with him rather than having him be his gopher to gather duct tape and a knife? I thoroughly enjoyed seeing Dwight’s secret stash of weapons that were previously taken away from him by the evil Toby (Season 3 Episode “The Negotiation”). My personal favorite: the hiding place for the knife in the file cabinet under Mr. A. Knife. Speaking of Dwight, it’s the second week in a row that he’s in good spirits. He is bouncing back rather nicely.
So while Michael was busy acting out his own episode of Discovery Channel’s “Survivorman,” Jim was left in charge of the office. Surprisingly, Jim took it upon himself to make some changes to the office. I guess he really wanted to leave his mark. His first order of business was to have one big party for all the birthdays in the month rather than getting a cake for everyone’s birthday. This did not sit well with those people that have birthdays during this period and of course Angela, head of the party planning committee. Everyone gathered in the break room to vent about Jim! Usually it’s Michael that frustrates everyone, and Jim is one of the people irritated. Maybe now he’ll realize that it’s not as easy as it looks.
Michael’s “Survivorman” adventures consisted of Dwight driving him out to the woods in Pennsylvania and leaving him there with nothing but the aforementioned knife and duct tape combo. What Michael didn’t know was that Dwight stayed behind for invisible moral support (silly Dwight, that defeats the purpose of moral support!). He vowed not to interfere and to let Michael die if need be. Of course, when given the chance to save Michael from eating poisonous mushrooms, Dwight ran out from behind the bushes and tackled Michael to the ground to prevent him from eating them. Thank goodness for the Assistant to the Regional Manager. Without him, Michael really would have died.
Michael returned to the office later with some sage words of advice to Jim. He revealed that Jim will learn because he once made the same mistake of trying to combine birthdays. Then he revealed that he used to tell himself he wouldn’t be at Dunder Mifflin in ten years just like what Jim is saying to himself now. Could Jim be following in Michael’s footsteps? Is he on the verge of a quarter life crisis?
As usual, I will leave everyone with my favorite line from last night (from Dwight). “I keep various weaponry strategically placed around the office. I saved Jim’s life with a can of pepper spray I had velcroed under my desk. People say, oh it’s dangerous to keep weapons in the home, or the workplace. Well I say, it’s better to be hurt by someone you know, accidentally, than by a stranger, on purpose.”
It was good to see Dwight back in the swing of things as Michael’s #2 last night. Helping to make fake Michael look like real Michael sleeping at his desk made me feel like it was the old days again. It was the Lone Ranger and Tonto (no Bonto), Mozart and Mozart’s Friend, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. I have to agree with Stanley’s assessment of the situation last night. Why is it better for Michael to look like he’s sleeping at his desk rather than just simply not being there? There are things about Michael Scott that we will just never be able to comprehend.
It seems that we are not the only ones constantly (and consistently) stumped by Michael’s behavior. Stanley, for instance, thought that pretending he accepted a job in Utica for more money could be used to get him a raise in Scranton. Who is this manager from Utica with the audacity to poach a Scranton employee? Karen Filipelli! How did she manage to score that job? Michael and Dwight go off to Utica and trick Jim into going as well. They plan on using silly string and bombs (stink and/or real) to show the Utica branch that the Scranton branch doesn’t suck. Halfway to Utica, Jim finds out that he’s been duped and almost backs out, but the lure of office pranks is too great, so he agrees to go along. They never get to use the silly string though, but they do end up ruining an industrial copier. They get caught, but not before leaving Karen with a threat: We will burn Utica to the ground. The Jim and Karen reunion was very awkward, and I couldn’t help but NOT feel bad for Karen. There’s just something about her that prevents me from being sympathetic. Maybe it’s because she says to Jim so condescendingly, “So you’re still doing this?” or something like that in reference to office pranks. Yes, Karen, what of it?
Pam, Toby, and Oscar started a new club at work, The Finer Things Club. It’s an exclusive club that has nothing to do with work. Members are not allowed to discuss work at all. I love that Pam is branching out and making some friends. Oscar has always seemed to like her (he was the one of the two people to go to her art show), and we all know why Toby joined (to secretly get closer to Pam?). I am loving Oscar these days. “WHAT ARE YOU MICROWAVING??” and “Besides having sex with men, the finer things club is the gayest thing about me” were two of the best lines of the night.
I leave everyone with one final thought: The eyes are the groin of the head.
After some feedback (mostly positive), I feel that my original Top 5 Greatest Moments from The Office should include these moments as well (obviously it will cease being the Top 5 Greatest Moments):
Traveling Salesman (Season 3)- The Office staff get broken into pairs to go out and make some sales! Dwight gets paired with Jim, and we get a special treat–a picture from their first trip together. I just love Young Dwight and Young Jim. More than that, I love how good of a team they make despite their “dislike” for one another. Emphasizing customer service was a brilliant idea, and Dwight using their potential client’s phone in the most obnoxious way was hilarious. My favorite part is when Dwight says, ”Here’s my card. It’s got my cell number, my pager number, my home number and my other pager number. I never take vacations, I never get sick and I don’t celebrate any major holidays.”
Pilot (Season 1)- Dwight is singing to himself, “(Little Drummer Boy)….shall I play for you pa rum pum pum pum, (mimics heavy drumming and plugs handset into receiver)…I’ve no gifts for you pa rum pum pum pum, (mimics heavy drumming),” while Jim looks on in complete annoyance.
The Client (Season 2)- Jan and Michael take out the Lackawanna County representative, Christian (played by Tim Meadows), and the meeting goes surprisingly well. At one point, Jan is talking about her divorce and Christian says, “You know, you were really brave. I mean, you, put your arms out there, you slit your wrists. You said ‘World, this is my blood. It’s red. Just like yours. So love me.’”
That’s it for now, but I could come back with more later. With The Office, there are just so many to choose from!
According to the Ausiello Report, the execs at NBC are thinking about making a spin-off of The Office. This seems like a terrible idea to me. The Office is great because there really isn’t anything else like it on television. The last thing we need is for the show to have the same premise, but different characters. Could we really love anyone more than the crazy crew from Dunder Mifflin Scranton? Would the show be about another branch? Dunder Mifflin Camden? I think they had a Camden, NJ office, but come on! No one wants to see a tv show based on an office out of South Jersey. South Jersey sucks, and the people are, quite frankly, idiots.
What are your thoughts on this? Would you want to see a spinoff of The Office?
Rolling Stone recounted their Top 25 moments from The Office. While I think most of them are funny, I think they’ve left off a few. Also, why didn’t they count down to build the anticipation? Here are my Top 5 Greatest Moments from The Office.
#5 The Fire (Season 2)- There’s smoke coming from the kitchen, and all the employees have to evacuate. Outside they’re playing desert island and you have to name 3 books that you would bring. Dwight’s list? “Physician’s Desk Reference……hollowed out, inside: waterproof matches, iodine tablets, beet seeds, protein bars, NASA blanket and, in case I get bored, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. No, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. Question: did my shoes come off in the plane crash?”
#4 Office Olympics (Season 2)- Michael and Dwight go on a field trip to finalize the paperwork on his condo, while back at the office, Jim has organized The Office Olympics (complete with medals courtesy of Pam). Dwight says to Michael about his 30 year mortgage, “A thirty year mortgage at Michael’s age essentially means he’s buying a coffin. If I were buying a coffin, I would get one with thicker walls, so you can’t hear the other dead people.”
#3 Basketball (Season 1)- Michael challenges the warehouse staff to a friendly game of basketball. The stakes are raised when Michael says the loser has to work the weekend. He goes downstairs with Ryan to introduce him the warehouse crew and says, “This is our warehouse. Or, as I like to call it, the whorehouse. But don’t you call it that, I’ve earned that right.”
#2 The Return (Season 3)- We hear Michael doing a voiceover, but the camera can’t find him because he is hiding behind his door from Andy. Michael says, “I don’t understand how a person can have so little self-awareness.”
and now for the moment we’ve all been waiting for:
#1 Health Care (Season 1)- Dwight is put in charge of picking a new health care plan for the office. He ends up “slashing benefits to the bone.” He also gives us his thoughts on health care: “In the wild, there is no health care. In the wild, health care is ’Ow, I hurt my leg. I can’t run. A lion eats me and I’m dead.’ Well, I’m not dead. I’m the lion. You’re dead.”
What do you think of my additions/revisions to Rolling Stone’s list? What is your absolute favorite moment? Or is it just too hard [that's what she said] to pick?
D!!! I was worried when Dwight was missing for a few minutes at the beginning of last night’s episode. I thought maybe he took a sick day even though he never gets sick and doesn’t celebrate any major holidays. It turns out he’s just been busy playing Second Life which I thought was a fictional Sims (it’s actually a real game). Basically you create an avatar for yourself and give it a life. Since Dwight’s life is currently not going so well, what better way to escape reality than make a new life for yourself in cyberspace!
While Dwight is busy withdrawing further from reality, the rest of the Office staff is working on a commercial for Dunder Mifflin to air on the local cable network. Were those guys from the ad company directors in real life? For some reason, I couldn’t shake the feeling that they were making a cool cameo. I’ll have to do some research to get to the bottom of it. Surprisingly the entire office seemed really enthusiastic about making the commercial. And you know what? Their commercial was far superior to the one the ad company was pitching. The commercial that Michael put together made no sense, but it was damn funny. What’s with Jim being so nice these days? I know he’s a nice guy, but lately he has really been opening his heart. Last week he had a heart-to-heart with Dwight, and this week he had the bartender play the “Director’s Cut” of the commercial so that Michael could be proud of his work. I’m not complaining though. Having everyone be just a little more sympathetic is a nice addition to the show. Who says you can’t be funny and nice?
It’s a little out of character for Dwight to be so nice to Andy, especially when Andy keeps talking about getting to first base with Angela. By the way Andy, here’s a news flash for you. Angela is not a prude. Behind closed doors, she was the exact opposite of a prude with Dwight. Maybe it’s not Phyllis who is Mrs. Butterworth, aka the lesser Aunt Jemima. Maybe Dwight is Aunt Jemima and Andy is Mrs. Butterworth. I guess that would make Angela a pancake. Scratch that. This whole metaphor seems inappropriate. Bottom line: When Angela is saying “Oh, D.” during a makeout session, she’s not talking about you, Andy!!!!
Will Angela finally forgive Dwight? What do you think of the show now that it’s back to its usual half hour format? How many of you are going to try to play Second Life at work today?
In the last one hour episode of The Office (until later this season when we will be treated with two more hour-long episodes), we saw the softer side of Jam, Dwight, Oscar, and even Jan! There might not have been any office pranks this episode, but it was still superb. It was nice to see some Scranton solidarity (in the case of Jam helping out Dwight and attempting to hinder Andy’s courtship of Angela). It was also, strangely, nice to see Mose too!!!! We’ll get to Mose and the beet farm turned B&B later.
It turns out that Michael is having some money (not monkey) troubles. To compensate for, presumably, Jan’s outlandish spending, Michael gets a second job as a telemarketer. Even worse, he has to take the bus to his new job because he and Jan traded in both of their cars for a Porsche. I am not sure what the rules are on trading in a company car, but I am pretty sure that is misuse of company property. Michael sucks at telemarketing and his time is spent chatting with co-workers who actually seem to like and respect him! They like his analysis on movies (Die Hard 1 vs. Die Hard 4) and actually seem interested in the movie he is writing (Agent Michael Scarn might have an audience, after all). It’s too bad he never got to be the top seller of the night and take home the $50 bonus. Luckily, Oscar was around to help Michael sort out his finances. It was very nice of him to to that given the history they have had (think back to the “Gay Witch Hunt” episode). Oscar presented all of Michael’s financial problems in fancy power point presentation! Michael, clearly confused by the situation, seems to think that Oscar’s chart will miraculously cut his debt in half, but Oscar tells him that this is just a presentation tool and that he still needs to learn how to spend wisely. This, my friends, is when we get the best line of the night. “You’re a presentation tool!” Michael screams. In true Michael fashion, he can’t deal with the reality of his debt and attempts to run away by getting on a freight train he sees in the distance. Jan drives over (throws her keys at Oscar like he’s the valet), and goes to talk some sense into Michael. This is probably the most hearfelt Jan we will ever see. She confesses to Michael that it meant alot to her that he was the only one who stood by her during her meltdown. You get the sense that she’s going to start treating him with more respect and that they’re going to work together to fix Michael’s financial situation.
Meanwhile, Jam finds out that Dwight has converted his beet farm into a cozy B&B. So, of course they decide to check in and see what all the fuss is about. Dwight is actually not a bad host. It’s Mose that really frightens me with his crazy eyes and sudden movements. Dwight seems genuinely interested in showing Jam the ins and outs of a beet farm, and they even participate in beet farming. During the night (in the “irrigation” room), Jim and Pam are each awoken by strange, almost haunting sounds. The first noise turns out to be the door to the outhouse banging in the wind. Who is in the outhouse? Of course it’s Mose!!! The second noise is the really scary one–a howling cry that turns out to be Dwight. He’s holding something of Angela’s while rocking back and forth. Dwight is still heartbroken over the end of his relationship with Angela and is quite obviously depressed. Perhaps the biggest blow is when Angela instructs Andy that he can ask her to dinner (after he gives her a cat that looks suspiciously like Garbage). Dwight runs out of the office into the hallway and to everyone’s surprise Jim goes out to comfort him. They actually have something in common–what it’s like to be rejected by an office co-worker.
And then we see…..the return of Dwight! No more moping. No more crying. He’s back and lines (of demarkation) are drawn!
