Rumor has it that B.J. Novak may be leaving the “The Office”. He’s already planning to leave the show for several episodes this season to star in Quentin Tarantino’s “Inglorious Bastards”, but word on the street is that B.J. is ready to move on from the show for good.

Sounds like a good idea to me.

Ryan’s character is completely useless in his current role on the show. He was interesting as Michael’s boss last season – and it was interesting when he was arrested. Having him just come back and be the receptionist this season, however, has seemed forced and kind of sad…and not in a good way.

Ryan should be exiting stage left either tonight or next week – after that…who knows if we’ll ever see him again.

(S04e06 “Customer Survey”)

In This Episode:

Dwight and Jim team up to find out why their customer surveys were so bad.

What a great episode.

This week Pam and Jim decided they wanted to spend the entire day together on the phone, so they used “the world’s smallest bluetooth” to achieve that goal, resulting in some comedic hilarity, and another moment of not so much hilarity.

The show continued to weave several main stories together with ease this week – although it is reducing the amount of time we get to spend with secondary characters like Stanley, Phyllis, Kevin, Oscar, and Creed – which is a shame. 22 minutes of “The Office” each week just doesn’t seem like enough, and I’d really love it if they’d just expand the show to an hour.

Jim and Dwight pulled double duty this week stuck in their own separate sub-plots, as well as the main plot which focused on the terrible customer reviews they received. Michael referred to their scores as “a poopie” and felt the need to micro manage them, resulting in one of the funniest scenes of the season set in the conference room.

Dwight suspects that Kelly has forged the reports for some reason, and is part of a larger conspiracy against he and Jim.

Meanwhile Andy and Angela are discussing their wedding, and Angela decides that Andy can have the tent wedding he wants…but only if it’s on a beat farm within 5 to 8 miles from the office.

More and more the signs point to Kelly, and Jim finally pieces it together, and determines that Dwight actually was right, and she did forge the reports to get back at Dwight and Jim for not going to her “America’s Got Talent” finale party.

After confirming it by calling customers Kelly is called into Michael’s office. After the boys are asked to leave Michael tells Kelly that he’s sympathetic to her reasoning – and she doesn’t get in trouble.

Shortly there after, Pam is at work when her college friend shows up at her job, and wants to “talk to her in private”. Jim is listening the whole time, and while we all expect him to come out and confess his love for Pam – instead he tells her that he thinks she should stay in New York.

“If even a teeny-tiny part of you really wants to be an artist” he pines….frankly, I think it’s just because he’s in love with her, but it was a nice twist on the plot, and Jim was affected by it, but not in a “Jealous Jim” kind of way.

Things are moving along in a very interesting – not exactly as expected way – and I can’t wait to see where they go from here.

(s04e05 “Employee Transfer”)

Official episode description

“Employee Transfer.”
Pam (Jenna Fischer) is embarrassed when she is the only person at corporate wearing a costume on Halloween. Holly (guest star Amy Ryan) and Michael (Golden Globe winner Steve Carell) take the long trip to Nashua after they get some shocking news from corporate. Meanwhile, Dwight (Rainn Wilson) torments Andy (Ed Helms) and tries to get under his skin.

Office Episode Description:
“Crime Aid.”
Michael (Golden Globe winner Steve Carell) helps Pam (Jenna Fischer) get a part time job at corporate so she can afford to go to art school. Michael and Holly (guest star Amy Ryan) get an early start at the office on their date night. After the office gets robbed, Michael decides to hold an auction to raise money for all the items lost.

This was a MASSIVE episode tonight. If you’re a die hard ‘Office’ fan and you didn’t see it – then leave now…because I’m fixing to spoil the hell out of it.

I’m also going to be talking about what we know about future episodes in this post as well – so keep that in mind. Now that we have all of that out of the way — let’s talk…

Tonight’s episode had three (count ‘em, three) major plotlines flowing through it.

1) Michael and Holly’s relationship. When we first see them they have already been on their second date. They make plans for their third, which include plans for “doing it”. After work (and after tricking the camera crew out of the building) Holly pulls Michael back in and “makes out” with him in the stairwell.

The next morning the Office has been robbed – because Michael and Holly forgot to lock up. So Michael plans a charity auction called “C.R.I.M.E. A.I.D.”. It goes about like you’d expect (with some truly hilarious moments) – and even David Wallace shows up for it. This is either an odd, out of character action to move the ongoing plot forward – or its a sign that David might be a little nutty too…I mean why on Earth would he drive down for this thing?

Regardless, at the end of the episode he sees Michael and Holly kissing – and is obviously not happy about it.

So here’s what we know about next week. The episode is called “Employee Transfer” and Michael and Holly are supposed to get some shocking news from corporate. I think it’s pretty clear that Holly is getting transfered. That’s a bummer – but hopefully it won’t be the end of their relationship.

2) Dwight and Angela and Andy – A new dynamic is established tonight as Dwight and Phyllis spend some time together since he has no one else to talk to after he finds out Andy and Angela have set the date. He needs advice on what to do, and Phyllis tells him to give Angela an ultimatum.

Dwight does – and Angela doesn’t respond. It seems very likely the she has, in fact, chosen Andy. Their wedding is still moving forward. Dwight takes his frustrations out of Phyllis – but after realizing that she was truly trying to be nice to her, he returns to the charity auction where no one is bidding on her offered gift of “a hug”. He begins to bid (always bidding higher than the previous bid by “and one cent”). It’s a rare, sweet, moment from Dwight that almost seems like a turning point for the character. I’m not sure where they’re going from here – but it seems like it’s going to be very, very interesting.

3) Pam and Jim – Pam has a part time job at corporate headquarters. It doesn’t matter much this episode – but it will be important next week. Jim gets a voice mail from Pam that lasts 6 minutes where she’s obviously drunk at 3:00 am, hanging out with a dude named “Josh” and acting like a sorority girl.

He doesn’t seem bothered by it. Jim continues to seem unhappy, as he has all season, and when the C.R.I.M.E. A.I.D. auction of “having a beer with the warehouse guys right now” comes up – he bids on it, and he an the warehouse workers go to “Poor Richards”. There, he runs into Roy, who ends up sitting with them and having a drink. After telling Roy Pam and Jim’s current status, Roy points out that she’s having fun with a friends…and Jim used to be a friend.

So Jim hauls ass to New York. It looks like the plot we’ve all be expecting – and dreading – is going to happen tonight.

Then when he literally reaches the turning point to head to New York – Jim turns around, and tells the camera “No…because…I’m not that guy…and we are not that couple.”

One one hand, it could be the first crack in his armor that will eventually lead to him being “that guy”…but I don’t think so.

I think it’s a fairly clear statement from the show that says “you thought we were going this way – but we’re not”. Looking at descriptions of future episodes, there is no indication of turmoil betwen the two.

Next week Pam is going to be embarrassed when she’s the only person at corporate who wears a Halloween costume. The week after that Pam and Jim decide they want to spend every minute together using their bluetooth headphones.

The week after THAT merely says that Jim is counting the days until Pam gets back from school.

There could be problems ahead for them – but I genuienly think after tonight’s declaration from Jim that the writer’s are smarter than that -a and that we’re actually going to see something quite different.

I certainly hope so.

All in all this was the best episode of the season thus far. It has some great moments, and wonderful story movement.

Oh and by the way, incase you didn’t know “It squeaks when you bang it.”

Best “That’s what she said – EVER”

“Baby Shower.”
Michael (Golden Globe winner Steve Carell) practices for the birth of Jan’s (Melora Hardin) baby by having Dwight (Rainn Wilson) go over possible birthing scenarios. Meanwhile, Michael tells Holly (guest star Amy Ryan) that he will pretend to dislike her for Jan’s benefit.

Tonight’s baby shower was…surreal. The show opened with Michael practicing for the birth of Jan’s child, and that led to an incredibly weird set of moments with Dwight and Andy. Things quickly moved ahead with Michael getting ready for the baby shower, and telling Holly that he was going to pretend to be mean to her while Jan was around…because Jan was pregnant and fat.

Then Jan showed up.

And she’d already had the baby. That’s right – she had the baby and didn’t even call Michael. The baby shower that ensued afterward consisted of Jan singing a song about losing virginity to her new daughter, and then taking a nap. Michael held her daughter for the first time…and it all finally hit him.

Meanwhile, Dwight was taking Jan’s $1,200 stroller out for a series of endurance tests, and Jim and Pam were trying desperately to talk to each other on the phone…but it just wasn’t working out. The frustration of their separation was apparent, and I don’t think it’s leading down a good road.

After Michael held Jan’s daughter (who is named “Astrid”), he sought out Daryl for “baby daddy” help, but nothing good came of it. As Jan left the office, she told Michael not to date Holly, who he’d been insulting the entire episode. Michael stood there as she left…contemplating what he’d just gone through.

Then, in a wonderfully awkward moment, Michael walked up to Holly, and hugged her. The hug just continued…and continued…and continued…and Holly teared up. Michael looked at her and said “you wanna go out?” – and she said “yeah”.

It was a great moment – and was followed by another great moment where Pam and Jim called each other at the exact same time and left messages on each other’s voice mail. It was great – and really showed how they love each other. It really showed how the emotion of the characters drive the show.

All in all it was another really great episode, and it makes the fact that Holly is just a “guest star” all the more heartbreaking.

NBC has posted some deleted scenes from last week’s episode of “The Office”. Check them out below…

Wow…Phylis has some issues…
Read the rest of this entry »

(s05e02 “Business Ethics”)

Official Episode Description:

Following Ryan’s recent scandal at corporate, Holly must hold a business ethics seminar.

Tonight was a Holly/Michael specific episode. Pam did not even appear in the episode (much to the dismay of most of the male viewing audience). We did hear her voice in the opening when JIm told everyone in the office that they were getting engaged…and none of them cared.

The main story focused on an Ethics seminar that Holly was required to give due to Ryan’s recent misconduct. During the course of this meeting it was revealed that Meredith was sleeping with a supplier to get the company a discount on paper.

Holly was horrified by the situation, and felt obligated to tell corporate about it. Michael, on the other hand, wanted to push the whole thing under the rug. Michael also chose this time to try to take Holly out on a lunch date…because he has terrible timing. The result was a “classic Office” awkward moment that culminated with some extremely hilarious petty behavior on Michael’s part.

After Holly filed her report – which she believed would get Meredith fired – the head of HR had a phone conference with Holly and Michael. He was not happy with Holly for bringing it to the company’s attention – and essentially threatened to fire her if she didn’t forget about it and get statements from everyone signing off on the ethics seminar.

This was interesting not only because it put Michael back in defense mode, where he tried to help Holly get the situation back under control- but also because it gives us incite as to how people like Dwight and Michael can continue to be employed after all their bizarre antics. Corporate clearly just doesn’t care.

The Jim and Dwight sub plot this week had Dwight attempting to prove that he never “stole company time” by doing non work related things. Jim decided to follow him around with a stop watch and log every second he wasn’t working. Again this week Jim seems kind of mean without Pam there to ground him. This particular prank is not worse than the phone full of nickels or moving Dwight’s desk into the bathroom…but for some reason Jim seems more sinister and mean spirited than he normally does.

That situation reached its ultimate conclusion when Angela called Dwight away for almost 20 minutes of…together time. Dwight finally admitted to Jim that he might not be ethical. Then smiled into the camera, proud of his forbidden love.

All in all this episode had all the classic characteristics of a great Office episode, and built heavily on where things started two weeks ago. We’re just getting warmed up this season, and things are looking good.

Last night’s premiere of “The Office” set up most of the major story point for season 5, but the next episode looks like we’re going to see some serious Michael and Holly dork time.

I love it. Take a look.

(se05ep01) “Weight Loss”

Tonight we got a chance to see just exactly where “The Office” was going after the excellent season finale “Goodbye Toby”.

We caught up with our favorite office workers just a few weeks after the end of Season 4 and followed through an 8 week long summer that saw them trying to lose weight to win an HR sponsored contest.

During this time Pam left for school, and Jim began to learn what life was going to be like without here there. Andy and Angela continued to discuss their wedding, with Angela trying to stave it off at every turn – all the while meeting Dwight down in the warehouse whenever she felt like it. Phyllis is now the head of the party planning committee, and hasn’t said a word about catching Angela and Dwight. Ryan returned to the office as well – this time as an employee of the temp agency. He is now answering phones in Pam’s place. Holly is still trying to get Michael’s attention – and Michael seems to be trying to her attention as well…but he’s just terrible at it. Holly also discovers that Kevin is, in fact, not mentally challenged. Finally, we found out what happened to Toby.

Let’s address all of these interesting developments one by one –

Angela and Andy – We get a hint that this relationship may end up broken up because of Andy’s acapella group not being allowed to perform at the ceremony. Frankly, the sooner the better. Angela running around behind his back seems sinister in a way that completely compromises the convictions that her character has established (and yes – I realize that is probably the point), but it almost makes she and Dwight seem like villains who are taking advantage of “poor Andy”. I’m sure there will be differing view points on that statement – but that’s what I was left feeling after watching it. Dwight and Angela having an affair is fine – but let’s get Andy out of the mix. Making that guy into the most pathetic guy in the office isn’t helping anything.

Ryan – The fact that Ryan is back in the office is really hard to swallow. There is no possible way that a company would allow a former employee that committed fraud against the company to work in one of their branches in any capacity. It just wouldn’t happen. There are a lot of things in this show that one has to just sort of ignore (like the fact that Michael hasn’t been fired yet) but Ryan being back in the office is a bit much.

Pam and Jim – The road that they’ve set up for Pam and Jim this season looks like its going to be filled with pot holes. Jim seems miserable and unhappy at work without Pam, and she seems to be having a much better time than he is while she’s at school. Jim’s attitude went straight in the crapper as the episode continued, until it finally ended with him not being able to wait and proposing to Pam at a rest stop in the rain.

Not exactly the “perfect moment” he’d hoped for. I’d be willing to be that scene is a foreshadowing of the season to come. Jim is going to find himself in the Roy role with Pam’s “friend” trying to work his way into Pam’s heart. I’m betting Jim will say something about it – and Pam will be offended, hurt, and might even call off the engagement over it. Not because she likes the other guy – but because Jim doesn’t trust her.

It’s pretty clear that there are going to be trying times ahead for these two…and I’m not excited about that at all.

Holly and Michael – The story of Holly and Michael is one that I sincerely hope lasts longer than the 5 episodes that Holly is currently scheduled to appear in. If it doesn’t it will be a shame. There interest in one another is the brightest spot in the show right now, and I’d really like to see it develop over time. We’ll just have to wait and see what the ultimate plan is.

Toby – Costa Rica didn’t go so well for Toby and now he finds himself in a hospital with a broken neck. If Holly truly is only going to be around for 5 episodes – expect Toby to make his way back to Scranton. I couldn’t help but smile at his pain – while at the same time feeling bad that the poor guy can’t catch a break.

With all of that out of the way – how was the episode? Not bad. The weight loss angle with Kelly was not surprising for her character, but kind of twisted. Something seemed really “off” about Dwight too. I’m not sure I can put my finger on what, exactly, but something just felt wrong.

Overall the show had some laughs, and certainly set up the season well. The real question now is will this be an enjoyable ride? I’m not sure – but I will definitely be here to find out.

I have had “The Office” on the brain over the last few days. In fact, while I’ve been working, I have had the show on, and have run through the entire series twice this week. I don’t know why it is that I love this show. I think it might have something to do with the fact that I work at home, and I have no “Office” of my own. I don’t have co-workers that I’ve ever seen in real life – Instant Messenger is as close to a water cooler as I ever get.

Whatever the reason, I simply cannot wait for the 5th season of this show to start. So, I’ve decided to kick things off a little early with a few predictions about where I think the show MIGHT go. I have no insider information, and I haven’t heard much in the rumor department…so we’ll just have to wait and see.

So…here we go…5 predictions for “The Office” season 5…feel free to tell me how and why I am wrong in the comments below…

Keep in mind there will be spoilers in relation to the previous seasons of the show from this point forward…

5. Phyllis hasn’t told anyone – The last thing we saw at the end of Season 4 was Phyllis walking in on Dwight and Angela “being intimate”. My guess is that Phyllis will be keeping this little secret to herself, and forcing Angela to be nice to her to keep her mouth shut.

4. Proposal at Christmas, Wedding Season Finale – My guess is that Jim will finally get the chance to propose to Pam at the Christmas Party this year. Maybe even on the rooftop where they had their first “date”. The engagement will be on with a wedding planned for May. The couple will hit a road bump or two along the way leaving us wondering if the wedding will actually take place…then it will.

It’s either that – or Pam meets a male friend at art school and Jim finds himself in the Roy role – and I sincerely hope they just let Pam and Jim get together, and keep the “will they won’t stuff” over in the Michael and Holly side of things.

3. Holly will stick around for more than 5 Episodes - It was immediately clear in the season finale of season 4 that Holly was a good fit with the employees of Dunder Mifflin. Currently she is only contracted for 5 episodes, but the chemistry between Amy Ryan and Steve Carell is impossible not to see. Holly added a new dynamic to the show in the season finale – and its one that I hope stays around for the rest of the series.

2. Angela and Andy will still be engaged – My guess is that Andy will be completely clueless about Dwight and Angela having a secret love affair -which will continue throughout the season – coming to a head either at the Christmas Party or at Pam and Jim’s wedding.

1. Karen will be Michael’s new boss – This may be wishful thinking on my part, because we’ve heard nothing about her returning to the show – but the rumor for a while was that the spin-off would focus on her character. Brining Karen back to the series as Michael’s boss would be perfect. It would return that dynamic that Michael originally had with Jan, and provide some interesting tension between Karen, Jim and Pam.

I can’t wait for the season premiere! If you have predictions of your own feel free to leave them in the comments below!