The Office: Come for the tablemaking, stay for the beets
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- October
- 19
Seeing Pam snuggled cozily in Jim’s arms as Dwight read aloud from Harry Potter and Mose stared creepily at them, things just seemed right – even as they were going entirely amiss.
Michael’s financial health was in jeopardy, along with his employment prospects. Dwight moaned away in the wee hours like a hungry feral barn cat. Andy schemed and connived his way into Angela’s cold heart. And Kelly rubbed Ryan’s nose in her new romance, even as she accessed her crazy side with Darryl.
Yup, all is right with the world.
Tonight’s episode of The Office was titled “Money” and it’s time to dig a little deeper, past the manure and beet roots, to get to the heart of that title’s possible other meanings.
The obvious is that Michael hasn’t got any, because Jan is spending it faster than he can rake it in. Money beets comes to mind. Dwight’s trying to cash in on agri-tourism, though you have to figure the décor in the “irrigation” room couldn’t have come cheap. But I’m thinking the title refers to the money shots, the priceless frames of celluloid (Yeah, I know it’s digital, but digital isn’t poetic.) wherein the payoff of 51 episodes finally arrives.
Oh yeah, Jim and Pam settled the “It’s a date” question in “Fun Run” and were outed to the office in “Dunder Mifflin Infinity.” And yeah, they were just as much an item in last week’s “Launch Party.” But it felt like we got a little more tonight. We got heart. For lack of a better term, they showed us the money.
Jim squatted alongside a weeping Dwight in the stairwell and laid bare what we all knew but hadn’t heard aloud in such detail.
“Did I ever tell you why I left Scranton? Yeah I didn’t think I had. Well, it was all about Pam. Yeah, I mean, she was with Roy, and uh, I just couldn’t take it. I mean, I lost it, Dwight. I couldn’t sleep. I couldn’t concentrate on anything. And weird stuff like food had no taste. So my solution was to move away. It was awful. And it is something that I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. And that includes you.”
And with a dramatic entrance, Jim planted a kiss on Pam that was reminiscent of the kiss at the end of The Princess Bride. Let the talking heads tell it.
Pam: Jim’s just really passionate about Italian food.Jim: Yeah. I’m very passionate about Italian food. In fact, um, I’m in love with Italian food.
Michael was completely crazy and ridiculous tonight, and yet he never once approached the over-the-top Michael who has been driving into lakes and terrorizing former clients with gift baskets lately. He was relatable. Running out of money is scary. It’s a common fear. And while he knew the cause, he would rather take a demeaning night job as a diet pill telemarketer than tell Jan. Maybe now his breakdown is complete and we’ll see some growth from him. Yeah, I don’t think so either.
I love that Oscar, who has so much reason to dislike Michael, again went to his aid. I love that Michael turned first to Kevin for gambling advice before turning his back on Kevin and asking Oscar for help. And I loved that when things looked bleak, Michael thought to hop a freight train out of town.
Then there was Schrute Bed & Breakfast. Mose running alongside the car as Jim and Pam pulled up was topped only by the sight of Mose in the outhouse in the middle of the night, as spied by Pam in a night shirt… What was I saying?
Oh yeah, the range of amenities and activities at the beet farm is impressive, though I agree that I was expecting less manure.
I’ll probably have more to say about this phenomenal episode after repeat viewings. But just off the top of my head, there were a few interesting moments worth noting:
- Kevin is now in Scrantonicity II and wants nothing to do with Scrantonicity.
- Dwight cleared the line of demarcation with Jim’s desk, a direct callback to The Pilot.
- Ryan has a Pavlovian effect on Darryl.
- It’s hard to keep whoever and whomever straight.
- Michael gets his NetFlix sent to work. (And Pam is fearing for her life.)
- As she did last week, Pam took pity on Dwight yet again. Oh my God, Dwight’s kind of her friend!
- Andy knows how to give a girl a cat. He can also spread his legs really wide when he stands at reception.
- Michael is the most popular guy at his second job. Plus, he could have been chief of surgery back home.
- The product registration pop-up is a dead giveaway that you haven’t touched the new software your boss got you set up to use.
- Declaring bankruptcy does nothing.
- Neither does moonwalking past accounting.
(Photos courtesy NBC Universal)
This entry was posted
on Friday, October 19th, 2007 at 12:22 am by Brian Howard.
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Brian, thanks so much for another awesome play-by-play analysis. I've come to look forward to them almost as much as I look forward to watching the actual show.
Thanks Beth! These great episodes make them fun and easy to write. You should also check out the episode posts at OfficeTally.com and the forums at NorthernAttack.com. Lots of very cool people with amazing insights into the show.