When Holly brought out the binder, and Michael set aside his prepared cards, he put them on the table between him and Toby. I halfway expected Toby to pick them up out of curiosity, forcing Michael to grab at them or wrestle them away. Or at the very least, Toby might have eyeballed them, prompting Michael to slip them into his pocket or something.
Y’all have seen Gone Baby Gone, right? Is Amy Ryan now on the short list of actors who can literally Do Anything? She’s done tough blue-collar professional, she’s done skeevy low-life, and now she shows she can do gentle, somewhat absurdist comedy. That’s some amazing range.
Is that the first time we saw Michael stifle “that’s what she said”? That was sweet in its own way.
Mostly a good episode. Having Phyllis call around about an anti-gravity machine crosses the line into being too absurd. Contrast this with the Kevin/special thing which worked so well because they didn’t have him do anything abnormal at all - I could see how his normal way of acting could give life to that prank.
I’m not sure… if you think of “anti-gravity machine” as something that doesn’t exist and could never exist and violates the laws of physics, sure. If you think of it as a vaguely described carnival attraction that might be some combination of a bouncy house and indoor bungee jumping or something, and Phyllis is trusting and credulous…
I took that scene as Michael having a lot on him mind. It could just as easily gone
<HR Girl> Michael, your pants are on fire!
<Michael> Ummm . . . thanks. (walks on getting third degree burns)
Which is probably why they ended up with a bouncy house and a ferris wheel.
Great line:
“I can put you through to someone who provides anti-depressants”
“…okay”
Did anyone notice that that Michael’s “diploma” in the background was a “Certificate of Authenticity” for a “Seyko” watch?
Oh and I think Michael was just clueless and didn’t realize she was giving him an opening to come with her. Realize that he is a social retard.
I didn’t notice this but I’m glad you did, because that makes the scene where Pam bails Michael out of the exit interview with Toby by getting him to give Toby his precious watch even more hilarious.
I think Phyllis will clue Pam in to the fact that Jim paid for the fireworks. Then Pam will realize Jim WAS going to propose, but got interrupted by Andy. Because right now she’s feeling let down. Once she realizes that he’d planned it for during the fireworks, she’ll understand and be happy again.
And I agree…Michael was so distracted by the new information about Jan, and he’s so socially inept anyhow, that he just didn’t realize the opportunity she was handing him.
I really hope Jim’s lack of proposal doesn’t become an issue, because that’s the one hackneyed element of the episode. You’re disappointed Jim didn’t propose, Pam? Really? Even after Andy proposed to Angela in front of everyone? You wanted your special event on the same day as that trainwreck left the station? I don’t really think so.
I’d really, really like to just see Pam and Jim’s relationship progress without being thrown into continual jeopardy. Yeah, there should be tension – it’s a relationship, after all – but I don’t want endless will-they-or-won’t-they-itis to kick in. They should be the Lily and Marshall of this show.
Kevin-is-slow, however, is one of the funniest bits the show’s done in a long time. And I really, really hope Amy Ryan is back next season, even if it’s sporadically like Toby or Ryan.
I thought that was addressed. At one point, Jim is talking to Michael about taking this slow with the new HR person. He mentions that he knows something about office romance (he has to remind Michael that he is talking about Pam). As he’s talking, it dawns on him that they had their first meal together in the break room, their first kiss in the office…it would make perfect sense to propose at work, too!
That’s why he then decides to throw in extra $ for fireworks.
(I still wouldn’t have done it at work, but I do think it’s believable, based on his own logic. I get the impression that he has been looking for the right way to propose, and this seemed like a meaningful time/place. Obviously, both he and Pam are completely oblivious to Toby’s crush on Pam).
Pam may be ignoring it but Jim is clearly aware and finds it unnerving. Like his reaction to Toby rubbing Pam’s knee in a previous episode, it was incredulity and then he seemed to wait for Pam’s cue on how to act. Pam, (as most women) has become so used to being hit on by her co-workers that she’s pretty blase’ about it anymore.
And besides, it seemed like they were sitting a little bit apart from everyone else…Jim’s proposal was going to be just to her, not involving an audience like Andy did. So it really wouldn’t matter that he did it at a company event…it was just between the two of them.
And I don’t think Pam is oblivious to Toby’s crush. I think she finds it sweet, but she’s just not interested. She may not realize he’s leaving because of her, but she knows he likes her. She’s so used to all the guys in the office making these startling revelations from time to time about their willingness to do/not do her.
Sorry. This is the first season I’ve been able to watch it on a 50" plasma HDTV. So now the diploma is pretty much lifesize.
I also liked how Toby’s new watch went off when it was time to leave.
“Toby has been cruisin’ for a bruisin’, and I am his Cruise Director…Captain Bruisin”
That conversation with Michael also triggered Jims call to Ryan.
I finally watched the episode online. Overall, excellent. Really like Amy Ryan as possibly the nicest HR person in the corporate world. Holly seems to bring out the best in Michael; with her he might actually develop into a likeable, functioning adult. (Which I guess would be anti-comedic.)
There would be something comforting about having somebody think I’m mildly retarded (somebody outside of my family, I mean). You could take your time forming a thought, and get praise for dealing with the simplest problems. When was the last time you described your job and got told, “Good for you!”
So, Phyllis caught Dwight and his tiny paramour. What was that about never getting to plan a party again?
