Episode Rewind :Dinner Party

My all time favorite episode of the Office is the Season 4 episode “Dinner Party.” This was the long anticipated first episode after the 2007-2008 writer’s strike and boy was it a good one.

The episode begins with Michael tricking Pam and Jim and Angela and Andy into attending a dinner party at the condo he shares with Jan (man I miss her!). Once at the condo Pam and Jim find out that dinner will not be served until much later on in the evening (Is dinner too much to ask for, at a dinner party?)

They occupy their time by taking a tour of the condo, complete with a giant mural of Jan’s face and her candle making room. When Andy and Angela arrive the group participates in a hilarious round of charades.



Jan plays her favorite cd of her old assistant Hunter for the group, which makes for my favorite moment in Office history. Jan sensually dances to her assitant's song while the rest of the group sits awkwardly waiting for it to be over. Jim's face when Jan tries to get him to dance is completely priceless!

Eventually Dwight shows up with his babysitter (don't worry the relationship is purely carnal...) and they finally have dinner. Jan and Michael fight about decor and cleanliness and Jan ends up throwing a Dundy at Michael's plasma screen tv.

This crazy episode ends with a montage of the couples in different locations with Hunter's song playing in the background.

So wrong, so right, all night, all right, oh ya...

Andrew Bernard's Greatest Moments

I love all the characters on the Office but I think my favorite is Andy Bernard. Andy is so ridiculous and funny all the time. Even when terrible things happen to him I can’t help but laugh. Andy first came on the show in Season 3 and he’s definitely added a great and fun dynamic to the show. I made a list of my top 5 favorite Andy Bernard moments and I hope you enjoy!

1. High School Sweetheart
-in the season 3 episode “Product Recall” Jim and Andy attend a local high school after their prom invitations were printed on obscenely marked Dunder Mifflin paper. While there Andy sees his girlfriend and feels violated and angry that she’s lied to him about her age. Poor Andy bums around until Jim finally cheers him up with acapella singing in the car.

2. Nipple Chafing
-in the “Fun Run” episode of season 4 Andy prepares for the race by covering his sensitive nipples. As the race goes on he freaks out when he accidently bumps into Kevin and at the end of the race his yellow shirt is stained from his bleeding nipples. So random, but so funny!

3. The Proposal
-after Jim sets up the perfect proposal in the season 4 finale, “Goodbye Toby,” Andy steals his thunder by inviting his preppy parents to the Office parking lot and proposing to Angela in front of everyone. He gives her a ring that he’s been carrying around for six years. Andy is so excited when she says yes, it’s very cute.

4. The Duel
-after Andy finds out about Angela’s infidelity and decides to duel Dwight for her affections. Although everyone expects Dwight to win because of his superior training Andy outsmarts him with his quiet Prius and hits him with his car. Gotta love the ingenuity!

5. Andy’s Musical Moments
-I think the reason I love Andy the most is because he has a song for everything. From trying to win Angela with “Take a chance on me” or impressing Erin with ‘Take Me Home, Country Roads” (which was completely amazing by the way!) Andy is always singing.

Best Office Quotes

I love this show. It’s so completely random and the things these characters say are off the wall and zany. Some of the quotes make me laugh out loud and I usually integrate them into my day to day conversations. Here are some of my favorite quotes from the past five seasons of the Office.

Ryan:
Did this happen on company property?
Michael Scott:
It was on company property, with company property. So, double jeopardy, we're fine.
Ryan:
I don't think-- I don't think you understand how jeopardy works.
Michael Scott:
Oh, I'm sorry. What is, 'we're fine'?
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Dwight Schrute:
Welcome to the Hotel Hell. Check-in time in now, check-out time is never.
Jim Halpert:
Does my room have cable?
Dwight Schrute:
No. And the sheets are made of fire.
Jim Halpert:
Can I change rooms?
Dwight Schrute:
Sorry we're all booked up. Hell convention in town.
Jim Halpert:
Can I have a late check-out?
Dwight Schrute:
I'll have to talk to the manager.
Jim Halpert:
You're not the manager, even in your own fantasy?
Dwight Schrute:
I'm the owner.. the co-owner. With Satan!
Jim Halpert:
Okay, just so I understand it. In your wildest fantasy, you are in hell and you are co-running a bed and breakfast with the devil.
Dwight Schrute:
But I haven't told you my salary yet.
Jim Halpert:
Go.
Dwight Schrute:
Eighty thousand dollars.
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Toby:
Actually, I didn't think it was appropriate to invite children since it's, uh, you know. There's gambling and alcohol... And it's in our dangerous warehouse. And it's a school night. And, you know, Hooters is catering. You know. Is that- is that enough? Should I keep going?
Michael Scott:
Why are you the way that you are? Honestly, every time I try to do something fun or exciting, you make it not that way. I hate so much about the things that you choose to be.
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Michael Scott:
Man I would love to burn your candles!
Jan:
You burn it you buy it!
Michael Scott:
Oh good! I'll be your first customer!
Jan:
You're hardly my first.
Michael Scott:
THAT'S WHAT SHE SAID!!
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Michael Scott:
[after sipping wine] That is sort of an oaky afterbirth.
Jim Halpert:
What was that?
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Dwight Schrute:
The purse girl hits everything on my checklist: creamy skin, straight teeth, curly hair, amazing breasts. Not for me... for my children. The Schrutes produce very thirsty babies.
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Roy:
Hey, Jimmy, what do you think about the purse girl?
Jim Halpert:
Cute, sure, yeah.
Roy:
Why don't you get on that?
Jim Halpert:
She's not really my type.
Roy:
What are you, gay?
Jim Halpert:
Mmm. I don't think so. No.
Kevin:
Well what is your type?
Jim Halpert:
Moms, primarily. Yep, soccer moms, single moms, NASCAR moms, any type of mom really.
Roy:
That's disgusting.
Kevin:
Stay away from my mom.
Jim Halpert:
Too late, Kev.
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Michael Scott:
Okay, you know what? I will not donate my winnings to Comic Relief. Since, apparently, it doesn't exist, I am going to donate to Afghanistanis with AIDS.
Jim Halpert:
Whoa, I think you mean the Aid to Afghanistan.
Michael Scott:
No, I mean Afghanistanis with AIDS.
Phyllis:
Afghani.
Michael Scott:
What?
Phyllis:
Afghani.
Michael Scott:
That's a dog.
Pam Beesly:
No, that's Afghan.
Michael Scott:
That's a shawl.
Dwight Schrute:
Wait, canine AIDS?
Michael Scott:
No, humans with AIDS.
Creed:
Who has AIDS?
Jim Halpert:
Guys, the Afghanistanannis.
Michael Scott:
Okay, you know what? No, no. AIDS is not funny. Believe me, I have tried.

The evolution of PB&J

With Pam and Jim about to be married (maybe…) I thought I’d take a look back at the evolution of their relationship over the past five seasons.

At the start of the series Pam is engaged to warehouse worker Roy Anderson and Jim and Pam seem to be just friends. Their interactions lead us to believe that Jim definitely wants to be more than friends though. Pam falls asleep on Jim’s shoulder in “Diversity Day” and kisses him (while intoxicated) in the “Dundies” episode.

As Pam and Roy’s wedding gets closer and closer Jim gets more desperate to steal Pam away. This feeling culminates in the Season 2 finale “Casino Night”. Jim reveals his feelings to Pam and kisses her in the Office. We are left for a whole summer wondering what will happen between them.

In Season 3 we find out the Pam chose not to marry Roy, but she’s not dating Jim either because he was transferred to Stamford. At Stamford, Jim meets Karen (yuck!) and dates her for the rest of the season, even when they move back to Scranton. Poor Pam has to watch them interact while her feelings for Jim grow stronger. At the end of the season Jim leaves Karen in New York City alone, obviously to be with Pam. (I can still remember jumping up and down at this point, after crying a little bit…)

In Season 4 Pam and Jim officially come out as a couple, although Michael has a hard time remembering they are together. They do a lot of cute couple things that make me go “awww” like stealing Jan’s cd and listening to it in the car in the Dinner Party episode. We wait throughout the season for Jim’s proposal and when we think it will happen in the finale, Andy steals his thunder. Pam ends up going to New York for the summer to attend art school.

While Pam is in New York, the relationship seems to be a little strained. They have a hard time communicating and even try all day blue-toothing to make it work. Jim can’t wait handle being without her anymore, so he proposes to her at a gas station in the rain (ahhhhh!!!).

Pam eventually comes back to Scranton without a degree because she doesn’t want to be without Jim anymore. Jim buys her a house, complete with clown décor. In the most recent episode Pam and Jim decide they can’t wait to get married so they prepare to go to the nearest courthouse. Ultimately they decide that they want to wait to have a real ceremony.

Will they get married? Will something or someone come in the way? Only time will tell…

Top Five Office Pranks

Throughout all five seasons the co-workers in the office have pulled numerous pranks on each other and I have compiled a list of my top five favorite pranks. Some are ingenious and others are more simplistic but still just as funny.


1. Jello Stapler
-This classic prank from the very first episode never gets old. Jim steals Dwight’s stapler and puts it in a jello mold. The fact that he lies about doing it while eating jello is completely hilarious. Jim does a number of pranks on Dwight throughout the seasons, but the first one is one of the best.

2. Nickels in the Phone
-In the Season 2 episode “Conflict Resolution” Michael reads through a list of all the pranks Jim has pulled on Dwight that Dwight has filed with HR. Although all are funny, the best one is where Jim slowly filled Dwight’s phone with nickels to weigh it down and then one day took them all out, causing Dwight to hit himself in the face.

3. Vampires
-In Season 3 Jim convinces Dwight that he is turning into a vampire after a bat is found in the office. Comedy ensues as Jim pretends to be a vampire for the rest of the episode. Dwight finds this logical since they are in a –sylvania.

4. The Pavlov Experiment
-Jim trains Dwight to ask for a mint every time he hears a bell chime. He does this by offering him an altoid whenever his computer makes a ringing noise. After a while Dwight expects the mint whenever he hears the noise.

And finally the best office prank ever…

5. Rockin’ Robin
-Jim steals Andy’s phone and puts it under the tile in the ceiling. He then proceeds to call it driving Andy mad trying to find it. Andy gets so angry that he punches a hole in the wall and has to leave the office to go to anger management.

Cast Bio: Steve Carrell

Michael Scott is a funny, funny character. But it takes a smart and funny man to deliver the character with perfection. That man is Steve Carell.

Steve got his break in show business in 1999 when he joined the Daily Show with John Stewart as a correspondent. He gained respect in the comedy community with this and several movie roles, most notably as Brick the special weatherman in Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgandy and as Evan Baxter in Bruce Almighty.

When NBC decided to remake the British hit “The Office” there was no one better for the lead role than this funny man. The first season did not have stellar ratings, but after Steve’s movie “The 40-year old Virgin” was so successful, The Office got a big ratings increase.

Steve has continued to make movies in addition to his role on the show. He has been in Little Miss Sunshine, Evan Almighty, Horton Hears a Who, Get Smart, and my personal favorite Dan in Real Life.

Is Steve Just as Crazy as Michael Scott?

Yes and no. This funny man is always funny and cutting up, but he’s serious enough to raise a family. He is married to SNL alum Nancy Walls (who played his realtor and girlfriend on the show) and has two children.

Steve plays hockey on a men’s league in LA where he lives. His talents can be seen on the show in the “Michael’s Birthday” episode of season 2.


Random Trivia

•Steve suffers from hay fever
•He originally wanted to be a lawyer
•He frequently works with Will Ferrell
•He used to deliver mail for the post office
•He owns a general store in Massachusetts with a candy counter

Closeup: Scranton PA

So we've all seen the town on the show, but is that what Scranton is really like?

Scranton is a fairly small town with around 75,000 people located in northeast Pennsylvania. It was first established because of the booming iron and steel industries around the area. It is also known for it’s abundance of anthracite coal, which the show even makes reference to.

Scranton is generally depicted pretty accurately on the show. Some places are made up, but a lot of the names of places on the show are pulled right out of the Scranton yellow pages, including the Steamtown Mall, Poor Richard’s Pub, and Lake Wallenpaupack. The show does not usually use footage from the actual city of Scranton, but pays homage to it through the names.



The opening theme does use images from the actual city of Scranton though. These places of interest were shot by actor John Krasinski who plays Jim on the show with a handycam. The show also uses subtle shout outs to the town with a local radio station’s bumper sticker (Froggy 101) and bobble heads of the local sports teams.

How does the town feel about the show?

For the most part the people of Scranton celebrate the use of their town for the setting of the show. The mayor was hesitant at first when he heard about the show being located there, but they have proven to keep Scranton in the best light and have definitely increased its popularity.

Scranton has hosted “The Office” conventions for fans of the show which include meeting the cast and panel discussions on behind the scenes information. The town also has banners honoring the fictional paper company, Dunder Mifflin, used in the show.



Scranton may not be the coolest town in the continental United States but to fans of the Office it is a Mecca. The quaint town is continuing to grow and prosper, especially with plans for new renovations on the 150 year old city.

I think Michael Scott would agree that there’s no place like Scranton, the Electric City!