Inside Television with Alan Sepinwall

The Morning Round-Up: '30 Rock' & 'The Office'

Liz celebrates Leap Day, while Jim tries to escape a seduction

By Alan Sepinwall Friday, Feb 24, 2012 9:09 AM

Rainn Wilson, Catherine Tate and Dave Koechner in "The Office."

Credit: NBC

Reviews of last night's "30 Rock" and "The Office" coming up just as soon as I write lyrics to the song the cantina band plays in "Star Wars"...

"Leap Day" felt like one of the slighter "30 Rock" outings of the season so far. The idea that Leap Day is actually a major national holiday that only Liz is ignorant of is a clever one, but it felt like the script never took a step beyond figuring out the Leap Day equivalents of all the usual Christmas cliches. (Including Jack having a "Christmas Carol"-esque nightmare about Liddy experimenting with liberalism, and Jim Carrey starring in his own version of "The Santa Clause.") Funny jokes here and there (Liz's nerdiness compared to Thad's, Tracy not thinking Dotcom is real), and I was glad to see John Cullum as the real Leap Day William, but compared to most of what they've done since January, this was forgettable.

"The Office," meanwhile, delivered the best episode of what's been a very disappointing season. (Even if we're not grading on a curve relative to how each show has been this year, I still enjoyed "The Office" more than "30 Rock" last night.) The Tallahassee storyline has the problem that Dwight continues to be way too over the top, whether him fighting through the appendectomy last week or him being a horrible flirt with Nellie last night. But the Jim subplot made excellent use of Dwight's cartoonishness, as Jim kept calling on his old nemesis to rescue him from Kathy's seductive clutches. (I also appreciated that Jim recognized what was going on instantly and that there was never a hint he was going to fall for it; he just wanted this lady out of his room ASAP before she forced a situation he'd have to awkwardly explain to Pam later.)

Keeping the "After Hours" theme going in both Scranton and Tallahassee gave the episode a good focus, allowing for successful little stories involving Erin and Ryan and, especially, Daryl and Val. With the use of five dots, Daryl & Val instantly vaulted ahead of Andy & Erin in the race to be the show's new Jim & Pam. (Not that the show necessarily needs a new Jim & Pam, but if they're determined to force one, these two are more engaging than Andy and Erin have been in a very, very long time, if ever.)

What did everybody else think?

Alan Sepinwall
Sr. Editor, What's Alan Watching

Alan Sepinwall has been reviewing television since the mid-'90s, first for Tony Soprano's hometown paper, The Star-Ledger, and now for HitFix. His new book, "The Revolution Was Televised," about the last 15 years of TV drama, is for sale at Amazon. He can be reached at sepinwall@hitfix.com

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Next 93 Comments

thehova83

I thought the Oscar, Pam, Angela, Andy beginning was very funny. Overall, very solid episode.
February 24, 2012 at 10:18AM EST Reply to Comment
- sepinwall Yes. I'd have called it the best teaser in a while, except that last week's episode had that great Jim prank.
  February 24, 2012 at 10:22AM EST
- Eric11 I thought the opening was actually not really funny at all, rather forced, and obvious.
  
  idk, maybe it was me, it just didn't do much for me..
  February 24, 2012 at 11:00AM EST
- chaosyoshimage I didn't care much for the opening either, I also thought it was really forced. I didn't really care much for the episode as a whole, to each his own of course.
  February 24, 2012 at 11:13AM EST
- kronicfatigue Hated the teaser. Adding Oscar was completely forced, but the only way to get a 2 vs 1 punchlines. Oscar treats his dog like a kid? Oscar has a dog? Why would Angela team up with a dog owner to complain about Pam and her kids?
  
  February 24, 2012 at 5:20PM EST
- Jerry It was made worse by it being shown in multiple commercials during the earlier shows. Lost any surprise factor.
  February 24, 2012 at 5:40PM EST
- sonia KronicFatigue - Because that's how irritated and judgmental Angela gets with Pam. (Remember the episode where they tried to be pregnancy buddies?) Plus, when it comes to the accounting department, Oscar is Angela's only ally in the war for sanity. Makes sense she'd call on him to be her ally here too.
  February 24, 2012 at 8:36PM EST
- Sorare I found the cold opening left me...well, cold this week.
  February 25, 2012 at 10:05AM EST
Adam B.

Absolutely agreed on The Office -- best episode of the season. All four plots working on similar themes, and it finally seems like there's a plan for the show. Well done.

But I liked 30 Rock more than you did, if only because I don't care if an episode is "slight." Was it funny? Yes. The hit:miss ratio on the gags was high enough, and I can't wait to see how many people wear yellow and blue next Wednesday.
February 24, 2012 at 10:18AM EST Reply to Comment
- sepinwall I think I laughed maybe 2 or 3 times, was the problem.
  February 24, 2012 at 10:39AM EST
- Dtaylor I only laughed a couple of times as well, but I thought the concept was great and made it very enjoyable. No complaints.
  Yea, take off the bald cap and not put on the wig.
  February 24, 2012 at 11:24AM EST
- LJA I'm with with you guys, best Office of the season. But 30 Rock was a total miss for me, possibly the episode I liked least of its entire run.
  February 24, 2012 at 1:23PM EST
- LJA p.s. Though I did laugh quite heartily at "golddiggers' message boards" and "the liberal war on Leap day." Good stuff.
  
  February 24, 2012 at 1:27PM EST
- r1pvanw1nkl3 I was laughing for practically the entire episode of 30 Rock. Weird how fans of the show really can't seem to agree on what the best episodes are now a days.
  
  February 24, 2012 at 9:26PM EST
- user @R1PVANW1NKL3
  i was thinking about the same thing. This episode got some really positive reviews and i think season 6 is really good, but peaople simply stopped believe in 30 Rock. Even recent articles about Liz Lemon suggests that everyone wants to have a different 30 Rock and with that kind of expectations (and, let's face it - hate) you simply can't please everyone.
  February 25, 2012 at 7:47AM EST
- user ^^blurgh...some really bad mistakes in my previous post. sorry.
  February 25, 2012 at 7:50AM EST
Steve

Stanley's line to Jim "watch out, it gets easier", or words to that effect, had me in stitches.
February 24, 2012 at 10:18AM EST Reply to Comment
- Joe One of the best lines of the season.
  February 24, 2012 at 11:22AM EST
- Jim Yes. Love seeing Stanley's off duty life. Funny when he walked past Jim's window with the kind of hot woman in tow. Stanley is a player!!!
  February 24, 2012 at 2:01PM EST
Original Ray

I thought they were both pretty funny, and better than Cougar Town, Happy Endings, Suburgatory and Modern Family.
February 24, 2012 at 10:29AM EST Reply to Comment
Paul

After that tag a few weeks ago that teased this Jim subplot, I was interested to see where it would go. Like you, Alan, I'm glad Jim recognized it right away. He's always been the straight guy in this office filled with crazies, and I guess a woman trying to seduce him is just more of the same. Good for the writers. I'll be curious to see if this goes anywhere else.
February 24, 2012 at 10:30AM EST Reply to Comment
Harry

I can't say I'm at all invested in a Darryl-Val relationship because I don't think I could tell you one thing about Val as a character. Well, except for the fact that she doesn't appear to be mentally handicapped, so at least the idea of her and Darryl in a relationship doesn't seem as weird/creepy as Erin and Andy in one. I guess indifference is better than mild revulsion.
February 24, 2012 at 10:31AM EST Reply to Comment
- Blaze Domingo Agreed. I couldn't care less about Darryl and Val, mostly because I couldn't care less about Val. For whatever problems there are with Andy/Erin (and there are a lot), at least they established Erin as a character on the show before going down that road.
  February 27, 2012 at 10:24AM EST
Matt

They already did the Pam/Jim vs. Andy relationship advice with Kevin and it was wilding entertaining with Kevin telling the lady from Vance Refrigeration "Boobs" in the elevator, so I rolled my eyes on that one. Other than that I'd say The Office has had a mini-revival these past couple weeks. I'd have to disagree on 30 Rock it has been poor all season; I feel like the characters have gotten incredibly static and the show is leaning on it's zingers which are becoming more and more forced.
February 24, 2012 at 10:45AM EST Reply to Comment
Streets Ahead

The only weakness with The Office was that I thought the Ryan/Erin storyline was quite flat.
February 24, 2012 at 10:47AM EST Reply to Comment
- Streets Ahead I did like that Dwight has enough integrity not to sleep his way to the top.
  February 24, 2012 at 10:52AM EST
Eric11

completely agree about 30 Rock (their fault for setting the bar so damn high) :)

but disagree about The Office... had it's moments, for sure.. but completely was bored with the Jim and Kathy thing, and didn't laugh out loud once (ok, i guess i did when Ryan quickly said he's in love with Kelly) that was funny.

I think just SOLELY based upon last week's opening prank scene, I actually liked last week's better..

but yes, it's obviously been a very sub-par season, so far..and I don't think anyone sees that changing..
February 24, 2012 at 10:58AM EST Reply to Comment
- x Any correlation between a slight uptick in the quality of Office eps and a significant downtick in screen time for Robert California?
  February 24, 2012 at 2:18PM EST
- Sorare Not for me, my favorite episodes have been Mrs. California, Christmas Wishes, and Pool Party. I liked the last episodes with the split cast because the stories have not been Andy centric. For me the less Andy part of these episodes has been a huge plus. If Andy had been a major character in these eps I would not have liked them as much. Robert could have shown up in the Florida portion and I would have enjoyed seeing him.
  February 25, 2012 at 10:10AM EST
Jenn

I thought that The Office was hilarious last night. Finally Jim just manned up and told Kathy to get out, which he should have done from the beginning. I like Jim and Dwight's bizarro friendship too.

The cold open with Oscar, Pam, and Angela was perfect and hilarious. So realistic, also. That happens in any group, whether it's co-workers or friends.
February 24, 2012 at 11:03AM EST Reply to Comment
- Col Bat Guano Yeah, he manned up and told her to get out...and then she stayed requiring Dwight to save him. Is it really that hard to get a woman out of your hotel room?
  February 24, 2012 at 11:48AM EST
- filaphresh Colonel, I can see Jim having trouble getting her out. He has to work with her for the foreseeable future (which doesn't make sense because shouldn't she have left when Pam got back? But whatever). So I don't see how he could say, "No, you can't come into my room" in the beginning, and then when he did tell her to get out, it made sense that she would say what she said, something along the lines of, "What do you think of me?"
  February 24, 2012 at 1:48PM EST
- Col Bat Guano How about "Hey Kathy, I'm really tired and want to go to sleep." as a way to get her to leave? This isn't rocket science.
  February 24, 2012 at 2:22PM EST
- filaphresh Hmm, maybe Jim is as dumb as me, because I didn't think of that, but you're right.
  February 24, 2012 at 2:40PM EST
Matt Y

I did love the Gabriel Susan Lewis line. Gabe's still an odd character fit, but that was a great moment.
February 24, 2012 at 11:09AM EST Reply to Comment
- Joe Last night was one of the few times I've actually enjoyed Gabe. The switch to Florida seems to be treating most of the characters well.
  February 24, 2012 at 11:26AM EST
- Streets Ahead Loved is not-so-subtle poisoning of Packer.
  February 24, 2012 at 12:58PM EST
chuchundra

I disagree about 30 Rock. I thought this was maybe the best back to back episode pair (along with last week's Batman show) on 30 Rock since I don't know when.

For me, 30 Rock works best when Liz is mostly sane/normal and reacting to explosion of craziness all around her and this episode delivered that in spades.

I loved everything about Leap Day, Leap Day William and especially the movie Leap Dave Williams. I'm not the biggest Jim Carrey fan, but I have to give him major props for diving so deeply into self-parody. Obviously Leap Dave Williams is a nod to The Santa Clause, but it's a much bigger shot at Carrey's own output including Liar Liar, Yes Man, Bruce Almighty and Mr Popper's Penguins.

The only part of the show that didn't work for me was the Benihana bit, although that was saved at least in part by Tracy revealing that he thinks DotCom is his imaginary friend.

February 24, 2012 at 11:32AM EST Reply to Comment
- gladly Jenna's speech to Liz about the coming competition for Thad's virginity was fantastic and vintage 30 Rock: "multi-ethnic bartenders with daddy issues, ballerinas who had to quit because they got boobs. Click, click." That was fantastic.
  February 24, 2012 at 12:22PM EST
- John The casting of Andie McDowell as Carey's wife was a nice node to another holiday classic "Groundhog's Day."
  February 24, 2012 at 2:02PM EST
- I thought it was a classic 30 Rock, I laughed at it more than I have in awhile - very strong.
  February 24, 2012 at 5:02PM EST
- J Yeah, this episode was pure giddy joy from start to finish, a fantastically executed attack on/ode to holiday specials and holidays that aren't holidays. Dense with great stuff, so many throwaways were gold (or maybe blue-and-)... but I suppose every holiday has to have its Grinch.
  February 24, 2012 at 6:59PM EST
troopermsu

I thought '30 Rock' also referenced 'Ground Hog Day' with Andi MacDowell & Carrey's hat thing in the mirror. Also, 'Liar Liar' was referenced as well, I think. I laughed a lot at this one.
February 24, 2012 at 11:41AM EST Reply to Comment
- Lauren Jim Carey's character also jumped off a cliff at one point which reminded me of bill murray and the groundhog going into a ravine.
  February 26, 2012 at 12:47AM EST
Stealth

I think the best thing about last night's Office was that it put Jim out of his comfort zone in a way that we expected Robert California to, based on his interview.
February 24, 2012 at 12:10PM EST Reply to Comment
- Sorare So true, Jim is at his funniest when he is out of his comfort zone. He was great in this episode, Mrs. California, and Pool Party...all episodes I really liked and enjoyed Jim in because of his discomfiture.
  February 25, 2012 at 10:16AM EST
Matt

That Jim story made him interesting for the first time in years. I woiuldn't mind more of her advances and his annoyance with it. It might actually make Pam interesting again as well. Pam could even not believe Jim about it for awhile. Hopefully they continue it for a little while.
February 24, 2012 at 12:19PM EST Reply to Comment
- A Why should she not trust him? I would not like to see that, the jealous woman trope. They've never given any reason to doubt their fidelity.
  February 24, 2012 at 5:47PM EST
- Matt Perhaps I didn't make myself clear enough. I meant something along the lines of
  Jim: I'm telling you, she is coming on to me.
  Pam: Sure she is, buddy, who wouldn't
  
  I meant more of a funny thing than anything serious.
  February 24, 2012 at 6:00PM EST
- A Thanks for clarifying. I could see that.
  February 29, 2012 at 8:30AM EST
Jeremy

This was my favorite 30 Rock in quite some time, actually. I especially enjoyed the Star Wars and Game of Thrones jokes. During the opening credits I caught that it was directed by Steve Buscemi.
February 24, 2012 at 12:29PM EST Reply to Comment
- sepinwall This was actually Buscemi's second time directing an episode (in addition to various appearances as Jack's private detective). He did season 3's "Retreat to Move Forward."
  February 24, 2012 at 1:11PM EST
Erik

30 Rock bugged me because there are already lyrics to the Star Wars Cantina Band song http://youtu.be/RzXKySxPFCI
February 24, 2012 at 1:09PM EST Reply to Comment
- Pregtto That doesn't mean that Liz Lemon can't invent her own.
  February 25, 2012 at 11:58AM EST
CraigH

The more I watch the latest seasons of The Office, the more I'm convinced that none of the writers have ever worked in an office. In the world of the current-day Office, every employee must be involved with every other employee at Dunder-Mifflin or be secretly in love with someone. In 15 years at my office, there has been exactly one relationship. Enough of the romances, please!!!! Put this show out of its misery.
February 24, 2012 at 1:24PM EST Reply to Comment
- snidesnarkley Yeah, but people won't watch an office comedy that includes stapling, filing, collating and writing reports.
  
  The Beatles said it best - all you need is love...love is all you need.
  February 24, 2012 at 2:27PM EST
- Gardenhead That's why no one is writing a TV show about your office. Your office is boring.
  February 25, 2012 at 4:48AM EST
- CraigH It was better when Jim was putting Dwight's stapler in Jello. All I'm saying.
  
  February 25, 2012 at 1:05PM EST
RRMJ

I think The Office episode was one of the best in awhile. I've enjoyed this whole season, actually, but really thought last night was a strong episode for Jim and Dwight. Seeing Jim take the high ground, but having to use Dwight as Enforcer, was great. I think the story could continue, because plenty of the staff saw Kathy in Jim's room and didn't know what happened. I'm sure the rumor mill will be in high gear. Also, good line from Darell at the close of his scene.
February 24, 2012 at 1:27PM EST Reply to Comment
zzk

Was anybody else annoyed that 30 Rock kept saying there's a leap year every 4 years? In fact, its every 4 years except on the 100th and 400th years. Maybe I'm too anal.
February 24, 2012 at 1:52PM EST Reply to Comment
- Jim Yes, yes you are.
  February 24, 2012 at 2:11PM EST
- pythadirus How do you explain the year 2000 being a leap year? That's divisible by 400.
  February 24, 2012 at 2:30PM EST
- filaphresh Pythadirus: If a year was 365.25 days, it would be 365 days and 6 hours, right? But it's really (I had to google this, I'm not quite that nerdy) 365 days 5 hours and 49 minutes. So if you have a leap year every 4 years, you'll be 11 minutes ahead every four years. No big deal, except that in between Julius Caesar (who standardized the 365.25 calendar) and the Renaissance, they were 10 days behind. So that's when they added 10 days to the calendar, and changed so that years that end in '00 are not leap years unless they're divisible by 400. (Hence 2000. ZZK misstated the rule). That this would bother ZZK is weird, but fun, if you ask me.
  February 24, 2012 at 2:51PM EST
- chuchundra The rule is:
  
  If the year is divisible by four, it's a leap year
  
  UNLESS it's also divisible by 100, then it's not
  
  UNLESS it's also divisble by 400, then it is.
  February 24, 2012 at 2:54PM EST
- zzk Yup, I misstated the rule, ironically after complaining about TV getting it wrong. Thanks for the clarifications.
  February 24, 2012 at 3:18PM EST
MaxS

Bill Simmons had a podcast a couple months ago in which at one point they were trying to think of new holidays they wanted added. One of the ideas was have leap day be a kind of anything goes type holiday where whatever happens on leap day, stays on leap day. Looks like one of the writers heard that and decided to go with it.
February 24, 2012 at 2:02PM EST Reply to Comment
- TodMod I can't tell if this is serious. That podcast was a couple of weeks ago, and the episode was clearly already written by then.
  February 25, 2012 at 2:29PM EST
Greg

I think The Office returned decently from hiatus. "Trivia" and "Pool Party" were catastrophic, but the rest were at least solid and had some funny moments. Even so, I hope that the announcement of the spin-off means that the ninth season will be the last. It's time to end this thing (actually, it should have ended with Michael's departure).
February 24, 2012 at 2:04PM EST Reply to Comment
- toby agreed
  February 24, 2012 at 2:31PM EST
- Steve I thought both of those episodes were great! I laughed harder at the guys skinny dipping than anything else this season.
  February 25, 2012 at 10:19AM EST
filaphresh

Val has to break up with her boyfriend, doesn't she? Seems like reading her emails and falsely accusing her of having sex with a coworker in front of the whole office should be unforgivable
February 24, 2012 at 2:39PM EST Reply to Comment
chuchundra

Alan, did you happen to catch Up All Night? Funniest episode of the show so far, I thought.
February 24, 2012 at 2:55PM EST Reply to Comment
ed w

I didn't realize that was the guy from Northern Exposure (Cullum). Good to see he's still getting work.

Agreed that it was a slight outing that was a bit lazy, but at least not nearly as bad as that Real Housewives parody a season or two ago. And I liked seeing a return of Jack's nanny.
February 24, 2012 at 3:21PM EST Reply to Comment
JB

Was I the only person who thought last night's ep. of The Office was oddly reminicent of last year's indy movie "Cedar Rapids"? Which also happened to star the guy who plays Andy? A bunch of folks who work together on a business trip, all vyying for a promotion/prize? All trying to hook up?
February 24, 2012 at 4:36PM EST Reply to Comment
Clarton

Mr Sepinwall, I find I agree with your reviews roughly 93% of the time. This one will have to fall under the remaining 7%. I thought this was the best 30 Rock episode in a few seasons. Forgettable? This to me is about as memorable as Greenzo.

The Office was alright, but every time I watch an episode now I can't help but think "This should not exist".
February 24, 2012 at 4:57PM EST Reply to Comment
Jeremy

Off topic, but did anyone notice Will Arnett's Arrested Development shout out during Up All Night? In the opening tag when he was carrying out the chicken suit he "cuckawed" and did the GOB Bluth chicken clap.
February 24, 2012 at 5:02PM EST Reply to Comment
- john I thought I was the only one!
  February 29, 2012 at 10:34AM EST
A

I was horrified st Rainn Wilson's tweet that made a date rape joke and have not been able to enjoy him since.
February 24, 2012 at 5:37PM EST Reply to Comment
- Senso Ridiculous.
  
  Comedians sometimes make errors and miscalculate. It is not an easy gig. When a comedian makes a remark like this it is not an indication that they are supportive of such a thing, the joke is meant to be in the absurdity of the statement. Wilson made a bad joke, but it is ridiculous to take the joke as a sincere belief. He made a mistake, he apologized. He is guilty of making one stupid joke. Doesn't make him a bad dude, and shouldn't prohibit you from enjoying Dwight Shrute.
  February 24, 2012 at 6:03PM EST
- Joe Besides, date rape jokes can be hilarious.
  February 24, 2012 at 6:54PM EST
- Marcusg123 I actually stopped following Rainn's Tweets a year ago because it was ruining "Dwight" for me." Without a professional writer putting words in his mouth he is not funny, profane, bigoted and boorish. I actually prefer Dwight's psychotic cartoonish personality to Rainn's "real life" Twiiter personae.
  February 26, 2012 at 10:13AM EST
- A Thanks for dismissing my feelings, Senso. You should read up on rape culture.
  
  And Joe, this one wasn't.
  February 29, 2012 at 8:34AM EST
- sepinwall Okay, this discussion has veered way the hell off topic and has also violated Rule #1 on the blog (Talk about the shows, not each other.) It ends now. I start deleting any future comments in this thread.
  February 29, 2012 at 9:44AM EST
Gajic

Erin and Andy. Daryl and Val. Erin and Ryan. Dwight and Nellie. Jim and Kathy.

When did The Office turn into a romantic comedy? Is coupling their only storyline now? I feel like I'm watching a soap sometimes.
February 24, 2012 at 6:09PM EST Reply to Comment

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The Morning Round-Up: '30 Rock' & 'The Office'

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Option 1

Option 2

Option 3

thehova83 I thought the Oscar, Pam, Angela, Andy beginning was very funny. Overall, very solid episode.

sepinwall Yes. I'd have called it the best teaser in a while, except that last week's episode had that great Jim prank.

Eric11 I thought the opening was actually not really funny at all, rather forced, and obvious.idk, maybe it was me, it just didn't do much for me..

chaosyoshimage I didn't care much for the opening either, I also thought it was really forced. I didn't really care much for the episode as a whole, to each his own of course.

kronicfatigue Hated the teaser. Adding Oscar was completely forced, but the only way to get a 2 vs 1 punchlines. Oscar treats his dog like a kid? Oscar has a dog? Why would Angela team up with a dog owner to complain about Pam and her kids?

Jerry It was made worse by it being shown in multiple commercials during the earlier shows. Lost any surprise factor.

Sorare I found the cold opening left me...well, cold this week.

sepinwall I think I laughed maybe 2 or 3 times, was the problem.

Dtaylor I only laughed a couple of times as well, but I thought the concept was great and made it very enjoyable. No complaints.Yea, take off the bald cap and not put on the wig.

LJA I'm with with you guys, best Office of the season. But 30 Rock was a total miss for me, possibly the episode I liked least of its entire run.

LJA p.s. Though I did laugh quite heartily at "golddiggers' message boards" and "the liberal war on Leap day." Good stuff.

r1pvanw1nkl3 I was laughing for practically the entire episode of 30 Rock. Weird how fans of the show really can't seem to agree on what the best episodes are now a days.

user ^^blurgh...some really bad mistakes in my previous post. sorry.

Steve Stanley's line to Jim "watch out, it gets easier", or words to that effect, had me in stitches.

Joe One of the best lines of the season.

Jim Yes. Love seeing Stanley's off duty life. Funny when he walked past Jim's window with the kind of hot woman in tow. Stanley is a player!!!

Original Ray I thought they were both pretty funny, and better than Cougar Town, Happy Endings, Suburgatory and Modern Family.

Blaze Domingo Agreed. I couldn't care less about Darryl and Val, mostly because I couldn't care less about Val. For whatever problems there are with Andy/Erin (and there are a lot), at least they established Erin as a character on the show before going down that road.

Streets Ahead The only weakness with The Office was that I thought the Ryan/Erin storyline was quite flat.

Streets Ahead I did like that Dwight has enough integrity not to sleep his way to the top.

x Any correlation between a slight uptick in the quality of Office eps and a significant downtick in screen time for Robert California?

Col Bat Guano Yeah, he manned up and told her to get out...and then she stayed requiring Dwight to save him. Is it really that hard to get a woman out of your hotel room?

Col Bat Guano How about "Hey Kathy, I'm really tired and want to go to sleep." as a way to get her to leave? This isn't rocket science.

filaphresh Hmm, maybe Jim is as dumb as me, because I didn't think of that, but you're right.

Matt Y I did love the Gabriel Susan Lewis line. Gabe's still an odd character fit, but that was a great moment.

Joe Last night was one of the few times I've actually enjoyed Gabe. The switch to Florida seems to be treating most of the characters well.

Streets Ahead Loved is not-so-subtle poisoning of Packer.

gladly Jenna's speech to Liz about the coming competition for Thad's virginity was fantastic and vintage 30 Rock: "multi-ethnic bartenders with daddy issues, ballerinas who had to quit because they got boobs. Click, click." That was fantastic.

John The casting of Andie McDowell as Carey's wife was a nice node to another holiday classic "Groundhog's Day."

I thought it was a classic 30 Rock, I laughed at it more than I have in awhile - very strong.

J Yeah, this episode was pure giddy joy from start to finish, a fantastically executed attack on/ode to holiday specials and holidays that aren't holidays. Dense with great stuff, so many throwaways were gold (or maybe blue-and-)... but I suppose every holiday has to have its Grinch.

troopermsu I thought '30 Rock' also referenced 'Ground Hog Day' with Andi MacDowell & Carrey's hat thing in the mirror. Also, 'Liar Liar' was referenced as well, I think. I laughed a lot at this one.

Lauren Jim Carey's character also jumped off a cliff at one point which reminded me of bill murray and the groundhog going into a ravine.

Stealth I think the best thing about last night's Office was that it put Jim out of his comfort zone in a way that we expected Robert California to, based on his interview.

Sorare So true, Jim is at his funniest when he is out of his comfort zone. He was great in this episode, Mrs. California, and Pool Party...all episodes I really liked and enjoyed Jim in because of his discomfiture.

Matt That Jim story made him interesting for the first time in years. I woiuldn't mind more of her advances and his annoyance with it. It might actually make Pam interesting again as well. Pam could even not believe Jim about it for awhile. Hopefully they continue it for a little while.

A Why should she not trust him? I would not like to see that, the jealous woman trope. They've never given any reason to doubt their fidelity.

Matt Perhaps I didn't make myself clear enough. I meant something along the lines of Jim: I'm telling you, she is coming on to me. Pam: Sure she is, buddy, who wouldn't I meant more of a funny thing than anything serious.

A Thanks for clarifying. I could see that.

Jeremy This was my favorite 30 Rock in quite some time, actually. I especially enjoyed the Star Wars and Game of Thrones jokes. During the opening credits I caught that it was directed by Steve Buscemi.

sepinwall This was actually Buscemi's second time directing an episode (in addition to various appearances as Jack's private detective). He did season 3's "Retreat to Move Forward."

Erik 30 Rock bugged me because there are already lyrics to the Star Wars Cantina Band song http://youtu.be/RzXKySxPFCI

Pregtto That doesn't mean that Liz Lemon can't invent her own.

snidesnarkley Yeah, but people won't watch an office comedy that includes stapling, filing, collating and writing reports. The Beatles said it best - all you need is love...love is all you need.

Gardenhead That's why no one is writing a TV show about your office. Your office is boring.

CraigH It was better when Jim was putting Dwight's stapler in Jello. All I'm saying.

zzk Was anybody else annoyed that 30 Rock kept saying there's a leap year every 4 years? In fact, its every 4 years except on the 100th and 400th years. Maybe I'm too anal.

Jim Yes, yes you are.

pythadirus How do you explain the year 2000 being a leap year? That's divisible by 400.

chuchundra The rule is:If the year is divisible by four, it's a leap yearUNLESS it's also divisible by 100, then it's not UNLESS it's also divisble by 400, then it is.

zzk Yup, I misstated the rule, ironically after complaining about TV getting it wrong. Thanks for the clarifications.

TodMod I can't tell if this is serious. That podcast was a couple of weeks ago, and the episode was clearly already written by then.

toby agreed

Steve I thought both of those episodes were great! I laughed harder at the guys skinny dipping than anything else this season.

filaphresh Val has to break up with her boyfriend, doesn't she? Seems like reading her emails and falsely accusing her of having sex with a coworker in front of the whole office should be unforgivable

chuchundra Alan, did you happen to catch Up All Night? Funniest episode of the show so far, I thought.

ed w I didn't realize that was the guy from Northern Exposure (Cullum). Good to see he's still getting work.Agreed that it was a slight outing that was a bit lazy, but at least not nearly as bad as that Real Housewives parody a season or two ago. And I liked seeing a return of Jack's nanny.

JB Was I the only person who thought last night's ep. of The Office was oddly reminicent of last year's indy movie "Cedar Rapids"? Which also happened to star the guy who plays Andy? A bunch of folks who work together on a business trip, all vyying for a promotion/prize? All trying to hook up?

Jeremy Off topic, but did anyone notice Will Arnett's Arrested Development shout out during Up All Night? In the opening tag when he was carrying out the chicken suit he "cuckawed" and did the GOB Bluth chicken clap.

john I thought I was the only one!

A I was horrified st Rainn Wilson's tweet that made a date rape joke and have not been able to enjoy him since.

Joe Besides, date rape jokes can be hilarious.

A Thanks for dismissing my feelings, Senso. You should read up on rape culture.And Joe, this one wasn't.

sepinwall Okay, this discussion has veered way the hell off topic and has also violated Rule #1 on the blog (Talk about the shows, not each other.) It ends now. I start deleting any future comments in this thread.

Gajic Erin and Andy. Daryl and Val. Erin and Ryan. Dwight and Nellie. Jim and Kathy. When did The Office turn into a romantic comedy? Is coupling their only storyline now? I feel like I'm watching a soap sometimes.

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thehova83

I thought the Oscar, Pam, Angela, Andy beginning was very funny. Overall, very solid episode.

Eric11 I thought the opening was actually not really funny at all, rather forced, and obvious.

idk, maybe it was me, it just didn't do much for me..

Dtaylor I only laughed a couple of times as well, but I thought the concept was great and made it very enjoyable. No complaints.
Yea, take off the bald cap and not put on the wig.

Steve

Stanley's line to Jim "watch out, it gets easier", or words to that effect, had me in stitches.

Original Ray

I thought they were both pretty funny, and better than Cougar Town, Happy Endings, Suburgatory and Modern Family.

Streets Ahead

The only weakness with The Office was that I thought the Ryan/Erin storyline was quite flat.

Matt Y

I did love the Gabriel Susan Lewis line. Gabe's still an odd character fit, but that was a great moment.

troopermsu

I thought '30 Rock' also referenced 'Ground Hog Day' with Andi MacDowell & Carrey's hat thing in the mirror. Also, 'Liar Liar' was referenced as well, I think. I laughed a lot at this one.

Stealth

I think the best thing about last night's Office was that it put Jim out of his comfort zone in a way that we expected Robert California to, based on his interview.

Matt

That Jim story made him interesting for the first time in years. I woiuldn't mind more of her advances and his annoyance with it. It might actually make Pam interesting again as well. Pam could even not believe Jim about it for awhile. Hopefully they continue it for a little while.

Matt Perhaps I didn't make myself clear enough. I meant something along the lines of
Jim: I'm telling you, she is coming on to me.
Pam: Sure she is, buddy, who wouldn't

I meant more of a funny thing than anything serious.

Jeremy

This was my favorite 30 Rock in quite some time, actually. I especially enjoyed the Star Wars and Game of Thrones jokes. During the opening credits I caught that it was directed by Steve Buscemi.

Erik

30 Rock bugged me because there are already lyrics to the Star Wars Cantina Band song http://youtu.be/RzXKySxPFCI

snidesnarkley Yeah, but people won't watch an office comedy that includes stapling, filing, collating and writing reports.

The Beatles said it best - all you need is love...love is all you need.

zzk

Was anybody else annoyed that 30 Rock kept saying there's a leap year every 4 years? In fact, its every 4 years except on the 100th and 400th years. Maybe I'm too anal.

chuchundra The rule is:

If the year is divisible by four, it's a leap year

UNLESS it's also divisible by 100, then it's not

UNLESS it's also divisble by 400, then it is.

filaphresh

Val has to break up with her boyfriend, doesn't she? Seems like reading her emails and falsely accusing her of having sex with a coworker in front of the whole office should be unforgivable

chuchundra

Alan, did you happen to catch Up All Night? Funniest episode of the show so far, I thought.

ed w

I didn't realize that was the guy from Northern Exposure (Cullum). Good to see he's still getting work.

Agreed that it was a slight outing that was a bit lazy, but at least not nearly as bad as that Real Housewives parody a season or two ago. And I liked seeing a return of Jack's nanny.

JB

Was I the only person who thought last night's ep. of The Office was oddly reminicent of last year's indy movie "Cedar Rapids"? Which also happened to star the guy who plays Andy? A bunch of folks who work together on a business trip, all vyying for a promotion/prize? All trying to hook up?

Jeremy

Off topic, but did anyone notice Will Arnett's Arrested Development shout out during Up All Night? In the opening tag when he was carrying out the chicken suit he "cuckawed" and did the GOB Bluth chicken clap.

A

I was horrified st Rainn Wilson's tweet that made a date rape joke and have not been able to enjoy him since.

A Thanks for dismissing my feelings, Senso. You should read up on rape culture.

And Joe, this one wasn't.

Gajic

Erin and Andy. Daryl and Val. Erin and Ryan. Dwight and Nellie. Jim and Kathy.

When did The Office turn into a romantic comedy? Is coupling their only storyline now? I feel like I'm watching a soap sometimes.

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