Anyone as happy about TV tonight as i am. Thurs is looking to be a money night this season with Earl and the Office returning tonight and Sunny right after on FX, 3 solid hours of what should be some good SHIT. Anyone have hope, predictions, thoughts on what this season may bring of Dunder Mifflin hillarity. I personally want to see how they move Andy to the spinoff and what will come of Angela and Dwight. Also Michael dealing with a pregnant woman should cause spectacular drama, and some great stories.
1. "I didn't realize Office S5 was starting 'til last night..." In response to Reply # 0
... so it's a pleasant surprise, although I wasn't as geeked by the S4 finale as some people apparently were. I thought it capped a pretty down season overall, which I attributed to the writer's strike interrupting the flow and arc of the season. So I'm definite looking forward to seeing how/if they recover with a complete season.
Here's the synopsis of tonight's premiere:
"For the first time, we see what happens over eight weeks of the summer, as a Dunder Mifflin weight loss initiative causes the branch to diet and become obsessed with their weight. Michael pursues a friendship with his new HR rep, Holly. Jim misses Pam who attends art school in New York. Dwight, Andy and Angela attend to unfinished business. One-hour long."
I'm wondering if this means it picks up right where the finale left off rather than beginning AFTER the summer break?
Felt like a slight return to S2-3 -- less broad comedy than they were leaning toward last season. I'm liking the Holly character and the relationship with Michael. Ryan returning as a disgraced receptionist trying to get back with Kelly is great. The ongoing secretive relationship between Dwight and Angela is surprisingly entertaining, and her being engaged to Andy has actually improved that dynamic, which I didn't expect. And I'm glad they didn't draw out the "Will Jim propose to Pam?" arc through the season, but I do want to see them finally pull the trigger and inject some legitimate tension into their relationship. They teased it subtly through last season, and were piling on the complications of Pam being miles away just before the proposal. Hopefully something'll happen, because they are getting sickeningly sweet. I don't think they need to break them up, but we've never seen Jim mad or frustrated or irritated, and he's becoming a one-dimensional character. I mean, we've seen more sides of fucking Dwight and Stanley than we have of Jim.
All that said, there were a ton of funny small moments tonight -- the picture of young Stanley (and the black power fist at the end), the whole thing with the goatees, Michael falling down the stairs -- but none got to me as much as Dwight's quick head nod to the camera after he and Angela's first secret liaison. PIMP!
48. "True, but I think it needs to extend into his relationship" In response to Reply # 43
The character is largely defined in relation to Pam now. They just need to shake up that relationship, and I think they will (and I think they might have last season had the writer's strike not interfered), and grinning, jokey, charming Jim is getting stale in terms of his dynamic with Pam. We can all ahgree it was better when there was angst thrown in the mix.
2. lmao at dwight making phyllis do exercise. "that's why i took your purse"....and..."i wonder what people like about me.......probably my jugs!"
3. i liked the jim proposal.
4. ryan was killing it. the "i hadnt full processed 9/11" line was the single funniest line of the episode
5. it was cool to see a Mad Men alum pop up in something so out of character.
6. michael: a) the goatee b) michael klump! c) ripping up the couting crows tickets.
7. i also loved jim surprised reaction when michael blamed society for who he has become. brilliant. we were all thinking "wow, michael, that was a pretty insightful response"
The Good: - clever getting Ryan back as a receptionist. - glad they returned the stupid and funny Michael, instead of the ignorant and rude Michael from S4. him tearing up Holly's tickets was great. - Kelly! perfect episode for her and she delivered. - Andy! single best addition to the cast. the Rihanna...lol, fuck.
The Bad: - Jim kinda gets on my nerves now, lol. him and Pam are one of those always happy couples that you want to see break up. and since he's not getting shut down anymore, his sarcasm seems more bitter because you don't feel sorry for him. - I'm a bit worried about all these branching storylines. Jim and Pam, Michael and Holly, Jan's pregnancy, Angela and Dwight, Angela and Andy, Toby in Costa Rica, etc.
40. "I just want to once again express my undying love for" In response to Reply # 0
Mindy "Kelly" Kaling
Anyway, the episode overall was good and finished up strong, but there was some meandering in the first half hour...
And despite my adoration for all things Kelly Kapoor, I'm not so sure I'm looking forward to yet another season of her and Ryan doing their little dance...
Also, my irritation with Jim and Pam is reaching nuclear levels... it's the most cornball coupling on TV (and yes, that's counting Meredith and Derek)... I hope that there will be some creative curveballs thrown in there this season, because I really don't want to see "conflict" derived from Pam being away from Jim and also being tempted by a new friend (the dude from Mad Men)... unless they figure out a way to bring Rashida back into the mix...
I *am* very intrigued by the Dwight/Angela/Andy triangle, if only because all three are such inspired characters that it will be interesting to see how this plays out...
And what kind of sad-ass tag was that with Toby? Was that supposed to be funny?
Oh, and lastly
CREED! ________________________________________________________________________ "I want to be done playing this lady Nov. 5..." - Tina Fey
41. "I was hoping there'd be more Jim-Pam tension about her going to NY..." In response to Reply # 40
I was thinking last season that something would happen where Jim would get promoted at the branch -- I predicted Ryan would end up firing Michael at or near the end of the season, since that's the one storyline from the original series they haven't incorporated yet, and we'd get to see what life would be for Michael without Dunder-Mifflin -- and want to stay in Scranton for that reason, while Pam would want to move to New York and pursue her dream of becoming an artist, which would be an interesting rift considering how Roy always tried to suppress her and Jim seemed to be the kind of guy who would let her do her thing. But then she just moves at the beginning of the episode, and when they start teasing tension, Jim proposes and nullifies what could have been their first on-screen conflict. I'm assuming we're going to have a curveball thrown in at some point, because I trust the writers are smart enough to know that the series can't continue with Jim and Pam married, or with Jim and Pam continuing as this seemingly perfect couple that never fights. I mean, in storyline terms, they've been dating for a year and, up until this season, working together, and we've never seen anything other than minor tension between them?
I don't hate them as a couple as much as some, so I wouldn't advocate breaking them up, but they need some legit drama to make them interesting characters again.
willydynamite Member since Oct 18th 2004 24205 posts
Fri Sep-26-08 03:52 PM
44. "hey office fans, can we make an agreement now?" In response to Reply # 0
we absolutely cannot have a single season post. we need a post per episode because there's always so much to talk about. a season-long post would end up being like 500 replies deep by episode four.
JungleSouljah Member since Sep 24th 2002 14987 posts
Sat Sep-27-08 10:37 AM
49. "I'd love to see a poll of married vs. unmarried folks re: Jim and Pam" In response to Reply # 0
I thought that was a great proposal. As someone who was in a similar situation (knowing that the proposal was coming but just trying to find the right time and place). Maybe a little hasty given the circumstances, but he was genuinely happy after it and she seemed genuinely thrilled also. Plus, if the writers hadn't pulled the brilliant Andy proposal on us, Jim would have proposed at the end of last season anyway... so it's not that out of the blue.
Really solid episode last season. Hopefully this is a sign of a return to form.
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