# Office 12/11 **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 12, 2008, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-12-11/476830 "2008-12-12T03:35:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-12-11/476830/41 "2008-12-12T21:41:21Z")
> [@shy\_guy](#): > > I doubt Phyllis will pull him aside (she didn’t care enough about Andy to let his well-being override her desire to be head of the party-planning committee), but Jim and Pam certainly would. Phyllis’s party planning days are over. She now has no hold over Angela at all. As nasty as Angela was to her, Phyllis pushed Angela too far. She could have planned every party from here on out if she simply didn’t treat Angela like a slave. Ironically, Phyllis’s parties were way better than Angela’s. Dwight could have tried to uphold the honor of the woman that he loves by denying everything. Instead he was proud and smug. “Why are you guys so surprised?” ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-12-11/476830/42 "2008-12-12T21:53:44Z")
I have a feeling that we won’t see Andy finding out. I bet the next episode (BTW, does anyone when the new one is?) will start with Andy already knowing. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-12-11/476830/43 "2008-12-12T21:59:36Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > Dwight could have tried to uphold the honor of the woman that he loves by denying everything. Instead he was proud and smug. “Why are you guys so surprised?” Dwight doesn’t consider it dishonorable to have succumbed to the masculine power of himself. ---
**Author:** ![Neidhart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Neidhart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neidhart)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-12-11/476830/44 "2008-12-12T22:04:02Z")
In other news, Christmas carols sound like absolute _ass_ when played on a . . . was that a sitar? ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-12-11/476830/45 "2008-12-12T22:07:17Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > Dwight could have tried to uphold the honor of the woman that he loves by denying everything. Instead he was proud and smug. “Why are you guys so surprised?” Dwight and Angela have been ducking away from the office together for sweaty warehouse sex all season. I’m surprised no one else figured it out too. ---
**Author:** ![MyFootsZZZ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/myfootszzz/32/12580_2.png) [@MyFootsZZZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MyFootsZZZ)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-12-11/476830/46 "2008-12-12T22:08:54Z")
> [@Frostillicus](#): > > I think you mean Meredith. “I’d like to make a deposit.” > > Speaking of Meredith, if I never see her jiggling belly again, I am OK with that. Oops. I still mix the two up from time to time. They both look like a “Meredith” or “Phyllis” to me. :smack: > [@shy\_guy](#): > > Why is Jim even pranking Dwight, still? Dwight may suck (and I agree with DudleyGarrett that his reaction in the face of the big reveal made him considerably worse than he had been), but Jim came to the conclusion that pranking Dwight was a bit of sad immaturity on his part a couple seasons ago. That was before he moved to Stamford. There was sometime after that, (not sure if it was in the episode: “The Convention” where I THINK he was about to prank Dwight, went into his room and thought that he caught him with a prostitute, or after “The Merger”), where he said he finds it childish until Dwight opens his mouth. > [@shy\_guy](#): > > It seems minor, I suppose, but it’s been something of a struggle to not see Jim as a giant tool for a while now. He and Pam are a few episodes away from being the A-Holes from SNL. Jim is a bit of a tool, he’s also a great guy too. I thought he was a dick asking Andy if he took any requests, then asked him to stop. > [@shy\_guy](#): > > Phylis is a bitch, but I’m glad she blew the lid off Angela and Dwight’s little tryst. Frankly, I won’t mind if this undoes Andy’s anger management training and he kicks Dwight’s ass. Phylis went about it all wrong. She didn’t think about the innocent bystander, Andy. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-12-11/476830/47 "2008-12-12T22:18:18Z")
> [@Neidhart](#): > > In other news, Christmas carols sound like absolute _ass_ when played on a . . . was that a sitar? The strange thing for me was that right before I turned on “The Office”, I was watching a show about the Monterey Pop Festival and had just finished seeing Ravi Shankar playing the sitar. It was like “Night of a Thousand Sitars” last night! Agreed, though. Christmas music should not be played on a sitar. ---
**Author:** ![shy\_guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a6a055/32.png) [@shy\_guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shy_guy)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-12-11/476830/48 "2008-12-12T22:28:24Z")
> [@MyFootsZZZ](#): > > Phylis went about it all wrong. She didn’t think about the innocent bystander, Andy. Oh, well, no denying that. Phyllis couldn’t have cared less about Andy; from the beginning she saw what she knew about Angela and Dwight solely in terms of how it could benefit her. I agree with enalzi that we’ll probably start out the next new episode with Andy already having found out. In regard to Jim… he’s not horrible or anything, but the guy is a douche. I definitely wouldn’t like him if he worked in my office. His shtick was easier to handle when he was emotionally crippled by his crush on Pam, but at this point I just keep thinking that he needs to grow up. Unfortunately for him, he’s probably going to grow up to be Michael. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-12-11/476830/49 "2008-12-12T22:40:03Z")
I think Jim is a fairly realistic character in that he’s mostly a likeable and funny guy who you would want for a friend, but who also has a dickish streak that can be annoying sometimes and go too far. It maks him believable as a character that he’s not perfect and that the same quality that can make him fun to be around (the humor, the smart-assery, the mild anarchic bent) can also make him a tool. He sometimes goes too far and can be a little too mean, but he never goes _way_ too far or becomes _unforgiveably_ cruel, and he usually knows himself when he’s pushed things too far. I think he’s realistically flawed, but never becomes irredemably unlikeable. ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-12-11/476830/50 "2008-12-12T22:50:52Z")
> [@MyFootsZZZ](#): > > Phylis went about it all wrong. She didn’t think about the innocent bystander, Andy. I don’t think she was really thinking at all. Phyllis pushed Angela too far, and then Angela pushed Phyllis too far. If Phyllis had been more considerate she’d have gone directly to Andy and if she’d been more of a schemer she’d have given Angela the chance to stop her, but as things were she just blurted it out. > [@shy\_guy](#): > > Oh, well, no denying that. Phyllis couldn’t have cared less about Andy; from the beginning she saw what she knew about Angela and Dwight solely in terms of how it could benefit her. That’s not totally fair – it’s true she doesn’t seem to care about Andy, but she did seem to be genuinely concerned about Dwight and told him not to put up with Angela yanking him around. If Dwight had taken her advice and moved on when Angela refused to break up with Andy, Phyllis would have lost much of her hold over Angela. ---
**Author:** ![MyFootsZZZ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/myfootszzz/32/12580_2.png) [@MyFootsZZZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MyFootsZZZ)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-12-11/476830/51 "2008-12-12T23:00:58Z")
Dwight must be beyond annoying to sit next to. Independent of Jim’s baiting him, he’s always argumentative with Jim. He always tries to ‘best’ Jim, (like when he was trying to brag about how little time it would take to ‘unwrap’ his desk). He would steal Jim’s biggest client. There are measures Dwight could take to stop the pranks. He’s not at all a friendly person. Jim’s still a jerk for doing it. I enjoy the (few) episodes where things blow up in Jim’s face. But Jim also helped out Dwight when his heart was broken, and gave Dwight a good amount of credit for being right about Kelly. ---
**Author:** ![Waffle\_Decider](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/77aa72/32.png) [@Waffle\_Decider](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Waffle_Decider)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2008, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-12-11/476830/52 "2008-12-13T00:51:46Z")
Creed seems to be having a good time with the hookah. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Oslo\_Ostragoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/a9a28c/32.png) [@Oslo\_Ostragoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oslo_Ostragoth)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2008, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-12-11/476830/53 "2008-12-13T04:43:55Z")
Meredith cashes in. Litigation value this week: [$1,000,000.](http://employmentlawpost.com/thatswhatshesaid/2008/12/12/booz-porn-addition-and-interventions-what-a-holiday-party/#more-353) ---
**Author:** ![Max\_the\_Immortal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6de8d8/32.png) [@Max\_the\_Immortal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_the_Immortal)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2008, 9:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-12-11/476830/54 "2008-12-13T09:25:36Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > Check this out: [http://www.princessunicorndoll.com/](http://www.princessunicorndoll.com/) Hilarious! I especially like the picture of the little girl sleeping and hugging the doll, with the horn jabbing her forehead. ---
**Author:** ![KSO](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f07891/32.png) [@KSO](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KSO)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2008, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-12-11/476830/55 "2008-12-13T13:55:23Z")
> [@Max\_the\_Immortal](#): > > Hilarious! I especially like the picture of the little girl sleeping and hugging the doll, with the horn jabbing her forehead. I like the picture at the end: “Collect them both!” ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2008, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-12-11/476830/56 "2008-12-13T14:24:08Z")
I’d kind of like to work in an office where it’s even _remotely_ possible you’d be allowed to smoke a hookah. Man, I didn’t think Phillis would pull the trigger. Neither she nor Angela are exactly nice people. ETA: In the Testimonials section of [http://www.princessunicorndoll.com](http://www.princessunicorndoll.com), we find: “The people from Toys-for-Tots were very excited to get it.” – Toby F. ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2008, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-12-11/476830/57 "2008-12-13T18:48:27Z")
Well, I thought this was easily the best episode of the season. I’ve been waiting for years for Meredith’s alcoholism to hit the fan. Finally we get that _and_ Phyllis dropping the bomb. Where the hell did Andy get the sitar? And why was there a sitar anyway, rather than an oud? That was exactly as clueless as Michael’s comment to Kelly about India. And no one’s mentioned the best line of the show: “I did it for Jan.” (The “controlled burn” exchange was pretty hilarious, too.) ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2008, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-12-11/476830/58 "2008-12-13T18:52:29Z")
The tone of the show has taken quite a turn this season. It’s taken me the whole season to get used to it, but I like it. On repeated viewings, each episode from this season gets better. ---
**Author:** ![Quercus\_alba](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quercus_alba/32/4061_2.png) [@Quercus\_alba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quercus_alba)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2008, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-12-11/476830/59 "2008-12-13T21:07:59Z")
> [@Max\_the\_Immortal](#): > > Hilarious! I especially like the picture of the little girl sleeping and hugging the doll, with the horn jabbing her forehead. I was wishing the next picture would have had her holding the doll, smiling, and sporting a “Princess Unicorn” band-aid on her head! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Lakai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9de0a6/32.png) [@Lakai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lakai)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2008, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-12-11/476830/60 "2008-12-13T22:30:08Z")
I loved how Phyllis got the best of Angela. I fully expected her to back down but then she crushes Angela. Phyllis then ends up feeling bad about it, but Angela fully deserved it. Andy is insanely annoying, but he doesn’t deserve Angela. Phyllis did him a favor. I think that Phyllis wanted to tell everyone because she knew what Angela was doing was wrong. Since she lost whatever benefits she gained from keeping it a secret, she was free to do what she felt was right. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-12-11/476830.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-12-11/476830.md?page=4)