I don’t think Pam is upset about the hook-up because she dislikes Michael. I think she’s more upset at the possibility of her mother turning into another Jan.
A woman who seemed to have her act together gets divorced, hooks up with Michael out of desperation, and then goes completely off the deep end.
It doesn’t bother me since they don’t lean too heavy on it or even mention it (that it’s a documentary film crew) anymore. It seems to have fallen into a filming style where you get the viewpoint of a silent observer in the office who all the coworkers confide in with their confessions. Works for me.
This bothers me, too. As has been mentioned, the number of eps in the UK version was decided from the very beginning (which appears to me to be an acceptable(?) format for UK TV) so it worked, but that paradigm doesn’t look to be catching on in the US, where the SOP is to ride any gravytrain till the wheels fall off.
The rules of documentary format have been stretched from the begining (available audio where it would be unlikely if not impossible, too maany camera angles, unrealistic access), but it’s more bothersome now because it is, to me, unnecessary sacrifice. The only thing the documentary format gives us that a fourth-wall set up wouldn’t is the talking heads, which are admittedly responsible for some great moments in early epiosiodes, the benefit of which seems unnecessary or at least outweighed by the sillines of the idea that a film crew has followed them for five years, sending crews to locations (like Costa Rica) to follow minor characters.
I too thought this episode was very funny - particularily the sceense involving Jim and Michael and the gift scene in Michael’s office.
“It’s a-ll goooood”
Emotionally. It hurts her emotionally. You’re no dummy. If you request further explanation, I will have to assume you’re being willfully obtuse.
It goes well beyond that
I agree. It’s like you’re a secret character in the show. I really don’t care if they go the whole show not explaining the purpose of the crew, unless it has to do with the final season/episodes. Until then, I just see it as a way to tell the story.
About Pam… hormones. I like my boss, and would freak if my mom wanted to date him. So I just think Pam felt out of control over the whole thing and just went nuts. I think Jenna Fischer was great this episode.
I don’t see how it hurts her emotionally. I don’t see how it’s any of her business at all.
And never mind Michael’s happiness, what about her mom’s happiness? I don’t like this snotty, superior attitude of hers that Michael is beneath her family. Who the fuck is she? She’s a receptionist who flunked out of art school. Michael is more successful than she is. Who the hell is she to be so judgemental? She’s acting like a high school cheerleader. She was talking about “Boundaries?” She’s fucking her boss. Who is she to talk about boundaries?
And isn’t Jim supposed to be running the office? He did a pretty shitty job of it in this episode.
I think Pam’s reaction was because she’s not fully adjusted to the idea of her parents being divorced. Plus, as others said, Michael is basically insufferable, and she can’t imagine him with her mother (let alone having sex with her). And there’s the nightmare scenario of him as her stepfather. She would have to deal with him all the time.
That’s all too bad for her. She still had no right to act that way, or to decide who either Michael or her mom is allowed to date. She’s a victim of nothing. She’s just being a snob. She doesn’t want her mom to date the nerd from her job. Wahh, poor baby.
Yes, whe thinks she’s better than Michael. Seriously, this is news? Pam and Jim are the “normal” ones with whom we’re to identify. The others are, to varying degrees, caricatures.
Just curious, have you ever been the child of a remarried parent? What about a later-in-life marriage? I speak from experience. There are some eff’ed up dynamics and weird emotions. As an adult, you try to concentrate on placing your parent’s interest above you emotional issues. I’m not saying her feelings are justified, just that they are perfectly normal.
Moreover, have you not watched the show long? Michael has shown the capacity to be an absolutely terrible person. He’s incredibly selfish. He’s petty. He’s dishonest. Pam knows this firsthand. Her mother (who, has anyone else noticed, is played by a different actress than in season two?) does not know Michael nearly as well and might not know any of these things. Can you really not understand why someone might not want someone they cared about getting involved with Michael?
No worse than a universe where people make lame jokes at each other’s expenses then have to pause to allow the studio audience to laugh, right?
I liked the ep a lot. The bit with the mallard was funny, then I started thinking why Dwight would do such a lousy job of conceiling the bug. Of course because it was a decoy (pun intended).
Now we have to wonder what he’s going to hear in Jim’s office. It may be funny if they spend a day with Dwight just listening to Jim talk paper for an episode and not actually find any “dirt.”
My parents divorced when I was an adult. I’ve never been the slightest bit bothered by it, or by subsequent relationships. None of my business.
Michael has never mistreated women (though he was mistreated by Jan), and he’s not malicious or cruel. He’s clueless, inept and lonely, but I disagree that he’s a bad person.
There are some other theories floating around the aether. Maybe the documentary only airs in some obscure foreign country. Or that the “documentary” is actually just a film course at a local college and never intended for actual broadcast.
Simple solution… you are watching the results of the weekly Documentary show… The Office. You only mistake it for a Sit Com. It was actually filmed several years ago and finally being released after heavy editing and a great deal of litigation by Dunder Mifflin.
Pam was over the top, but justified at being pissed. Michael has gone out of his way to insert himself into her life beyond the workplace and this is one more way.
Notice during the meeting he has no problem bringing up the phone call from Pam’s mother. He has no boundries and Pam does. He’s crossed many times and this is the most blatant and personal.
She knows what type of person Michael is, and as stated before, how loose lipped about intimate details of his relationships. Who wants that in their life, especially she has little escape from him (aside from quitting…)
Plus give her a break she’s pregnant Harmones will make minor irritations into huge emotional blow outs
Hmmm… remember the blind date where Michael went out of his way to dismiss and be generally hurtful to the woman who was older than what he wanted. That was cruel and it could not be dismissed as merely clueless.
He has shown himself to be quite deliberatley cruel and has gone out of his way to be hurtful when he feels crossed. For example what the hell has Toby done to deserve such venom?
I really have no problem with DtC being very critical of how Pam handled the news, but I find it puzzling for him to think it was somehow made the show bad. Is it untenable that Pam can have a irrational, kneejerk, bitchy, mean reaction to something?
What was interesting was how much more respect Erin gives Michael as her boss than Pam did.
I like to think the documentary is being filmed by a UK company and broadcast only on the BBC network. The characters would never see an episode unless they were over in England.
Then your mileage varies. If I knew my mom was dating someone with Michael’s character flaws, I would be uspet. Guess I’m petty and self-centered.
False. Michael has been incredibly mean and insensitive to Phyllis (damn near ruined her wedding). How is making fun of someone’s weight and appearance not mistreatment? He doesn’t seem to show any remorse for this. Moreover, he was a freaking creep with Carol (the ski vacation picture) and a little too crazy with Jan. Michael is completely self-centered. I can see why you might want to steer a friend clear of him.
Michael dating her mom is not inserting himself in her life and is none of her business.
Pam has boundaries? She’s fucking her boss.
I agree with you here. I still think Pam’s character reacted occordingly. The whole thing became a turf war after Michael told Pam to appologize to her mother. Both brought it into the work place, almost equally. It’s not as if they don’t love each other, (Pam and Michael), they do… but I think Pam would rather love Michael AS IF he’s family.
You interpret this stuff a lot differntly than I do. Michael has never mistreated any of the women he’s dated (or really any woman at all except by clueless tactlessness), and the bottom line is that it’s still not Pam’s call to make on who her mom is allowed to date.
I thought Pam’s feelings were completely, 100% justified. But I admit, that could be because I’m living a similar scenario (albeit my mom is seeing somebody MUCH worse than Michael Scott). I even had the exact same conversation with my husband as Jim and Pam had at the end. I think her reaction and emotions rang very true for that sort of reveal, including the bit where she calms down but is still pretty horrified.
Actually this episode was difficult for me to watch. My mom is a lot like Michael and the various “I just want to be happy” speeches were pretty much word for word with shit she’s said. I laughed through the whole episode and thought it was great, but a part of me was cringing too. If I had to live out something from a television show, why couldn’t it be a show where good things happen to people?