# The Office - 5/9/2013 - A.A.R.M. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 10, 2013, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-5-9-2013-a-a-r-m/657987 "2013-05-10T12:59:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![What\_the](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f4b2a3/32.png) [@What\_the](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_the)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2013, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-5-9-2013-a-a-r-m/657987/21 "2013-05-11T12:48:02Z")
> [@Raskolnikov](#): > > this episode was absolutely terrible. > > the amount of commercial breaks was ridiculous, they should’ve made it a half hour, one commercial break was only 1.5 mins. At one point there were 4 mins. of show and then more commercials. Just greed by NBC. Maybe it’s my fault for watching it live and not just recording it, but I’ll be recording the final for sure next week. I guess I’m a glass half-full guy…anything more than a half hour is a bonus. Plus I’m not inclined to see corporate greed hanging around every corner. 😃 The ep was a few steps backward from last week but a giant leap forward re the earlier eps this season. ---
**Author:** ![Rushgeekgirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rushgeekgirl/32/3715_2.png) [@Rushgeekgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rushgeekgirl)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2013, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-5-9-2013-a-a-r-m/657987/22 "2013-05-12T14:23:35Z")
> [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > Beesley is so pissing me off. She needs to tell Jim to take the three months and do the Athlead thing then come back to her. > > So it looks like the finale is 6 months after this penultimate episode. I wonder if Jim and Pam will sit together being divorced and all. > > Who wanted Andy to hook up with the chick in line? \ And what was that thing by Mark McGrath about a mole? That never went anywhere. Is this Jim and Pam thing a spoiler or just speculation? ---
**Author:** ![Zjestika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/8edcca/32.png) [@Zjestika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zjestika)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2013, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-5-9-2013-a-a-r-m/657987/23 "2013-05-13T02:30:15Z")
> [@pancakes3](#): > > I think they really fumbled the athlead storyline. There’s no saving it. Either it’ll be depressing that Jim passed, or it’ll be unsatisfyingly revealed in expositional dialogue that Pam came around after all. Lose-lose-lose. Ugh, I totally agree. I was really bummed to learn that next week’s is going to be a 6-months-future episode. The most interesting thing about this season has been Jim and Pam’s problems and it’s seemed so clear to me that Pam was in the wrong. Next week it’ll probably turn out that she allowed him to go, he made a ton of money and everything is all happy. I disagree with Jim, that one woman would make it all worth it. Having a job that is absurd and unfulfilling when you had the opportunity of a lifetime but the one woman who didn’t want you to go because of her low self-esteem makes the crappy job worth it? Then why did he bother with Athlead at all? ---
**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:** [May 13, 2013, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-5-9-2013-a-a-r-m/657987/24 "2013-05-13T14:23:12Z")
I wonder what happened to Val. They made a big deal about getting them back together, but never resolved it. At least not in front of the cameras. ---
**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:** [May 14, 2013, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-5-9-2013-a-a-r-m/657987/25 "2013-05-14T00:35:42Z")
Jim still has some ownership in the company so he’ll do well if it sells. He hasn’t totally quit or they wouldn’t be continuing to try to get him to go on the sales trip. Given that the final episode is six months in the future, the doc has aired in its entirety and I imagine that Jim has gone on his three month trip with his best bud Darryl. They’ll either allow him to work remotely from Scranton or Pam will have learned to _love_ Philly. ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-5-9-2013-a-a-r-m/657987/26 "2013-05-14T15:55:52Z")
> [@Raskolnikov](#): > > the amount of commercial breaks was ridiculous, they should’ve made it a half hour, one commercial break was only 1.5 mins. At one point there were 4 mins. of show and then more commercials. Just greed by NBC. Maybe it’s my fault for watching it live and not just recording it, but I’ll be recording the final for sure next week. I just caught up with this episode online, and it was the normal length for an hour long show minus commercials – 44 minutes. I don’t know how the actual number of commercial _breaks_ worked out in the broadcast, but the amount of time devoted to commercials was the same as for any hour long show. I thought this episode was pretty good, although the _American Idol_ knockoff stuff with Andy seemed like a total waste of time. But maybe there will be a payoff in the finale where, six months later, he’s married to the woman he met in line or something. As for the Jim and Pam storyline, while it’s possible they’ll reveal in the finale that Pam insisted Jim go on the road trip with Darryl, my takeaway from this episode was that Jim sincerely did not want to leave Pam and the kids for that long and that he was being honest in telling Pam he really didn’t want to go. ---
**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:** [May 14, 2013, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-5-9-2013-a-a-r-m/657987/27 "2013-05-14T16:21:11Z")
> [@Lamia](#): > > As for the Jim and Pam storyline, while it’s possible they’ll reveal in the finale that Pam insisted Jim go on the road trip with Darryl, my takeaway from this episode was that Jim sincerely did not want to leave Pam and the kids for that long and that he was being honest in telling Pam he really didn’t want to go. I agree but I think that she’ll convince him to go anyway. ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-5-9-2013-a-a-r-m/657987/28 "2013-05-14T16:25:37Z")
> [@Lamia](#): > > I just caught up with this episode online, and it was the normal length for an hour long show minus commercials – 44 minutes. I don’t know how the actual number of commercial _breaks_ worked out in the broadcast, but the amount of time devoted to commercials was the same as for any hour long show. > > I thought this episode was pretty good, although the _American Idol_ knockoff stuff with Andy seemed like a total waste of time. But maybe there will be a payoff in the finale where, six months later, he’s married to the woman he met in line or something. > > As for the Jim and Pam storyline, while it’s possible they’ll reveal in the finale that Pam insisted Jim go on the road trip with Darryl, my takeaway from this episode was that Jim sincerely did not want to leave Pam and the kids for that long and that he was being honest in telling Pam he really didn’t want to go. Jim didn’t want to lose Pam. He gladly gave up on the trip because it was costing him Pam, but if it wasn’t for her he would be a lot happier with Athlead than being second fiddle to Dwight for who knows how many more years. If Pam had been supportive from the start there is no way in hell Jim would ever consider staying at Dundler-Miffin. ---
**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:** [May 14, 2013, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-5-9-2013-a-a-r-m/657987/29 "2013-05-14T17:03:43Z")
The idea that this was "costing him Pam " doesn’t speak well of Pam. ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-5-9-2013-a-a-r-m/657987/30 "2013-05-14T17:05:24Z")
I took from it that Jim is sincerely happy in Scranton at Dunder-Mifflin for the first time in his life, and that he’s going to be just fine there from here on out. He doesn’t need Athlead to feel happy or fulfilled or whatever. He genuinely is getting along well with Dwight and realized that all that little goofy stuff they do in the office every day is what he really wants out of life, and that all of that, and being with Pam and his children, is way more meaningful than the sports marketing stuff he thought he had always dreamed of doing. But maybe I’m wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Rushgeekgirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rushgeekgirl/32/3715_2.png) [@Rushgeekgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rushgeekgirl)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-5-9-2013-a-a-r-m/657987/31 "2013-05-14T17:17:39Z")
> [@drewtwo99](#): > > I took from it that Jim is sincerely happy in Scranton at Dunder-Mifflin for the first time in his life, and that he’s going to be just fine there from here on out. He doesn’t need Athlead to feel happy or fulfilled or whatever. He genuinely is getting along well with Dwight and realized that all that little goofy stuff they do in the office every day is what he really wants out of life, and that all of that, and being with Pam and his children, is way more meaningful than the sports marketing stuff he thought he had always dreamed of doing. > > But maybe I’m wrong. This was my take as well. He seemed genuinely happy for the first time since he was falling in love with Pam. ---
**Author:** ![Lightnin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightnin/32/180_2.png) [@Lightnin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightnin)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-5-9-2013-a-a-r-m/657987/32 "2013-05-14T17:26:15Z")
The infantilization of Kevin has gone beyond ridiculous. It’s a good thing the show only has one more episode, 'cause if it went on any longer he’d lose the power of speech and would need to start wearing a diaper. ---
**Author:** ![drastic\_quench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e36b37/32.png) [@drastic\_quench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drastic_quench)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-5-9-2013-a-a-r-m/657987/33 "2013-05-14T17:29:59Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > The idea that this was "costing him Pam " doesn’t speak well of Pam. Yes! This. There’s virtually no cons in the Jim/Athlead column. It’s not even a risky venture at this point. This season has shown us the worst of Pam. She hasn’t been so wrong and off-putting since Roy. ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-5-9-2013-a-a-r-m/657987/34 "2013-05-14T17:39:09Z")
> [@Lightnin](#): > > The infantilization of Kevin has gone beyond ridiculous. It’s a good thing the show only has one more episode, 'cause if it went on any longer he’d lose the power of speech and would need to start wearing a diaper. I agree but I did enjoy the little meta-nod to this with Oscar talking about how long ago the documentary started being filmed… so long ago that he was still sleeping with women, as was Kevin. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-5-9-2013-a-a-r-m/657987/35 "2013-05-14T18:12:36Z")
> [@drewtwo99](#): > > I took from it that Jim is sincerely happy in Scranton at Dunder-Mifflin for the first time in his life, and that he’s going to be just fine there from here on out. He doesn’t need Athlead to feel happy or fulfilled or whatever. He genuinely is getting along well with Dwight and realized that all that little goofy stuff they do in the office every day is what he really wants out of life, and that all of that, and being with Pam and his children, is way more meaningful than the sports marketing stuff he thought he had always dreamed of doing. > > But maybe I’m wrong. I don’t agree. He’s still selling paper for Dunder Mifflin and playing pranks on Dwight, just as he has for the past decade. He may be happy, but he’s not moving forward. I think Pam recognized this. ---
**Author:** ![RandMcnally](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@RandMcnally](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandMcnally)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-5-9-2013-a-a-r-m/657987/36 "2013-05-14T18:31:46Z")
> [@Lightnin](#): > > The infantilization of Kevin has gone beyond ridiculous. It’s a good thing the show only has one more episode, 'cause if it went on any longer he’d lose the power of speech and would need to start wearing a diaper. Someone on the board said years ago that they hope it comes out that Kevin had a brain tumor, which explains why he’s been degrading over the years, and he then gets mad at his coworkers for not saying anything. ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-5-9-2013-a-a-r-m/657987/37 "2013-05-14T19:38:28Z")
Wait… you guys keep referring to Kevin and others as “characters”… YOU MEAN THESE WEREN’T REAL PEOPLE IN AN OFFICE??? I feel cheated and lied to! All these years ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-5-9-2013-a-a-r-m/657987/38 "2013-05-14T20:19:06Z")
> [@DigitalC](#): > > Jim didn’t want to lose Pam. He gladly gave up on the trip because it was costing him Pam, but if it wasn’t for her he would be a lot happier with Athlead than being second fiddle to Dwight for who knows how many more years. If Pam had been supportive from the start there is no way in hell Jim would ever consider staying at Dundler-Miffin. If Pam did not exist then being at Athlead would probably be preferable to being at Dunder-Mifflin, but it seemed to me that the whole point of the Jim/Pam plot in this episode – one pretty explicitly spelled out by Jim in his conversation with Dwight – was that Jim would sincerely rather be with Pam than do anything else even when doing something else would seem like the more logical choice. > [@Acsenray](#): > > The idea that this was "costing him Pam " doesn’t speak well of Pam. It wasn’t going to cost him Pam. The trip would, however, mean that Jim would have to spend several months on the road without seeing Pam or their kids in person. That would be true even if Pam were really excited about this opportunity for him and was urging him to go. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-5-9-2013-a-a-r-m/657987/39 "2013-05-14T21:27:20Z")
I have a hard time understanding Jim’s apparent decision to abandon Athlead but then again I knew a guy in real life who said he regretted every business trip because it meant not seeing his toddler daughter, saying that in particular at that age, every day you see something new in the child. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-office-5-9-2013-a-a-r-m/657987.md?page=1)