Goodbye, Toby
Has it really been a whole year since the last season finale, when Michael, Jim and Karen all competed for the corporate job in New York City? So much has changed, and yet so much remains the same: Michael and Jan might be getting back together (again), Jim and Pam are still a couple and are unengaged, and Toby's love for our favorite secretary will go forever unrequited.
On the other hand, Ryan's gone from the big time to doin' time, which is clearly a huge change. I thought this episode was hysterical, but if I do have one criticism it's that a lot is still left up in the air by the end. It's tough to blame the writers for this: the shortened season caused by the writer's strike no doubt forced them to alter some of their plans and end this year on a more ambiguous note than they had originally planned. Given the choice, I'd definitely rather let
The Office play out its storylines in full next year than rush everything to fit inside a single one-hour finale.
For example, we got introduced to Holly, the new HR rep played by
Amy Ryan (who apparently cleans up real nice I didn't realize at first that it was the same actress who played a coked-up mom in
Gone Baby Gone). Could she be a new love interest for Michael? She's still under the impression that Kevin is mentally challenged, but what's nice about her is that she's able to finally draw out a more mature side of Michael, one who's able to almost make small talk about Yoda and refrain from saying "that's what she said!" for I believe the first time in the show's history. And there's a really small moment where he takes the microphone at the carnival/going away party for Toby and thanks Phyllis for organizing everything and Darryl for performing with his band. The old Michael would have never thought to acknowledge someone else's contributions, much less thank them publicly. Maybe it is possible for Michael to grow into a better man. Too bad he backslides and is willing to go crawling back to Jan by the end and act as a father to her child (points to all the readers who saw their reconciliation coming a mile away).
It does seem weird, though, that the episode barely touches on Ryan's arrest. While Kelly fantasizes about tormenting him in prison, I think it's more likely than a big chunk of next season will revolve about his trial. Just think of the laughs the writers could get by having the entire staff of
The Office take the witness stand. By the time Michael and Dwight get done testifying, Ryan could be facing charges for drug possession as well.
And does this mean the corporate job at NYC is open again? I'm sure I'm not alone in having my expectations completely messed with. I thought the ending would have Jim and Pam getting engaged and moving to the Big Apple so she could go to art school while Jim works an upper-level job. Of course, the show also planted subtle hints that Jim could be getting fired due to Ryan's meddling, or even worse, that Jim and Pam might be growing apart due to her three months away.
Instead, the third plot twist of the show involves Andy hogging the spotlight and proposing to Angela. After she refuses to join him on stage, Andy follows her to her seat (but not before ripping the mic out of Darryl's keyboard, natch) and gets her to agree by muttering, "Okay." Poor Andy he actually makes Michael look wise and self-aware by comparison.
For that matter, why doesn't Angela have the courage to tell Andy no and admit that she doesn't love him, or even really like him? And why wasn't she able to say it before now? It's not like the woman lacks a cruelty streak: she spends the episode trying to take down Phyllis simply for handling the planning for Toby's party (and doing a ridiculously good job of it). And at the very end, we get confirmation of whom her heart truly belongs to when Phyllis walks in on her and Dwight sans clothes. What's wrong with using Dwight's beet farm? It's very romantic..
There's still so much to discuss, so I'm going to have to use the Dundies to cover it all:
Best Prank by Jim: Tonight we got the long awaited return of Jim punking Dwight, this time by rigging Dwight's cellphone to go straight to his earpiece. I especially loved Pam's involvement in the prank, and her "I'm confused!" when Dwight tries to set the record straight. And have you noticed how she's becoming more like Jim in general? When Michael insists he wants an anti-gravity machine at the party, Pam just plays along exactly like Jim would have.
Best Creed is Insane Moment: His sudden moment of panic when Holly asks him what does in the office.
Best Michael Seduction Technique: Making Holly a mix CD full of Dave Matthews. I think that only works getting a girl into bed if she's a college freshman and it's still the late nineties.
Best Almost Goof: Did you notice
Brian Baumgartner (the actor who plays Kevin) suppressing a laugh when Holly picks through the change in his hand and notices, "this is a button!"
Best (and last!) Michael/Toby Confrontation: Michael explaining that Toby has been cruising for a bruising, and he's the cruise director for the job. And when Toby's gift is revealed to be a rock with a note that says "Suck on this!" Michael tries to blame it on Dwight ("You made me wrap it!").
Best Sad Jan Moment: Her reasoning for visiting a sperm bank rather than having Michael's child "I need to make this one count."
Best Overall Moment: I know this is going to generate some controversy, but I loved Oscar explaining that Ryan was being arrested for fraud. "But the real crime, I think, was the beard." You said it, man.
Okay, so we didn't get the big Jim/Pam engagement, but it's got to be coming first thing next season. At least I hope so. Until then, life goes on for our Dunder-Mifflin crew. Will Holly ever realize that Kevin is of average (or just slightly below average) intelligence? Will Michael finally be a (sort of) daddy? Will Toby find true love in Costa Rica?
Let me know how much you're going to miss these guys, and since I won't be posting for a little while, have a great summer everybody.
Update: As a number of readers have pointed out to me, the reason why Holly treats Kevin like a child is because Dwight told her he's slow. Sorry for not catching that the first time around (I need TiVo badly).
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