“Totally your call, babe…”

April 10, 2008

“Dinner Party”

Five months. Five whole months I waited for a new episode of “The Office,” and I have to say, it did not disappoint. Not only were “the twins” out in full force (I have a thing for Jan’s boob job), but the entire episode had a distinct second season feel, only with a different kind of Jim/Pam tension. It was light, funny, and refreshing, geared more toward entertainment and less focused on character development.

As an obsessive “Office” watcher, I tend to think every episode contains genius, witty writing and ridiculously comedic acting. I kind of had the feeling after five months of trying to satisfy myself with reruns and replacements, tonight’s episode would be full on orgasm without something to temper my lust for the best comedy on television. So, I watched this episode with a few friends, some of whom rarely watch the show (Bee and Jay), and one who had never seen it (The Jester). Bee warned The Jester that for some people, this show was an acquired taste, and sometimes it takes a few times watching to really enjoy it. Fair warning, but two minutes in, when Dwight started crying, the giggling had already started, and when Jan explained she relieved her stress by going upstairs and SMELLING all her candles, The Jester was on the floor laughing. So, I feel pretty safe in saying it was a good episode.

This episode was written by Gene Stupnitsky and Lee Eisenberg, two of my favorite writers for this show as they almost always include a healthy dose of tit jokes and cleavage. (I’m almost positive they had a hand in Jan’s wardrobe decisions.) It began with Michael not-so-subtly tricking Jim and Pam into finally going to his “casa” for some “dinner, drinks, and dancing,” along with Jan, Andy, and Angela. The night just got better and better from there, starting with Jan’s mystery tour of the condo, heating up with the revelation that dinner wouldn’t be served for three hours, and damn near exploding when Dwight showed up unannounced with his “date” (his OLD baby-sitter…see the forum for some speculation on this). I think Pam spoke for everyone watching when he appeared at the door and she whispers, “Awesome.” We’ve known for a while the Jan/Michael dynamic is full of comedic value, and I was thrilled an entire episode focused on the crazy that is Jan and Michael. That relationship has deserved its own episode for a long time. As Jim said, “Michael and Jan seem to be playing their own separate game. And it’s called ‘let’s see how uncomfortable we can make our guests.’ And they’re both winning.” And speaking of uncomfortable relationships, who didn’t die laughing when Angela smashed her ice cream cone into the door of Andy’s car?

One of the reasons I love this show are the little “in-jokes” and seeming shout-outs to other fabulous shows. We finally got to hear Hunter’s band. Angela apparently hates beet salad. “That’s what she said!” And, did anyone else notice the awesome hand chairs in the garage? You know they stole them from the set of “Arrested Development.” (By the way, who would love to see a Tony Hale guest appearance on “The Office”???) It’s so thoroughly good, you have to watch multiple times just to catch all the jokes and references, something you don’t see in many sitcoms. It’s so much easier to go for the broad, easy jokes.

Just so it doesn’t sound like I’m verbally sucking off Gene and Lee, let’s talk about the bad parts of the episode. Umm…there was no tag at the end. Yeah, that’s pretty much it. Gene and Lee, you make me feel dirty.

Next week’s episode is called “Chair Model,” and I hear something BIG happens with Jim and Pam. Seeing as how Jim made it obvious tonight he would see Pam at home later, I’m pretty sure we all know they are f***ing. Does this mean wedding bells and babies are in the future? Then again, he did almost abandon her with Michael and Jan, so they could go all Ross and Rachel on us and break up and get back together and break up and get back together and…Ahem.

I’m off to go plug in my St. Pauli beer neon sign and burn a James Bond Fire-scented candle, but before I go, I’ll leave you with the best line of the night:

Angela: “The thought of popping one of your beets in my mouth makes me want to vomit.”