"The Office" Conference Room - Marathon #2

[Updated
6/29
2:45PM]

Another Thursday and another sampling of our favorite show. Even in repeats! It was pure Office Genius!

This week we got: Booze Cruise, Office Olympics and The Secret!

GOOD TIMES HAD BY ALL!!

This week we ask our panel of Office Site Owners:

Top 3 All-Time Dwight/Angela Moments!!

Everyone in the Conference Room... NOW!

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Name: KP
Office Site: TheTwoCents.com
Booze Cruise Review: I loved this episode. It's what the first two seasons were all about... will Jim tell her!?!? There's that, now famous, 40+ seconds of silence on the top of that boat and the entire world held its breath when it first aired, and I almost did again watching it a second time. One of my favorite moments wasn't even in the broadcast. The deleted scene of Creed rocking the guitar with the band was phenominal! Meredith coming out of her 'shell' with Captain Jack! Jim dumping Katie, Coporate Spies, I loved it all!
Favorite Moment: The 40+ Seconds of Silence
Favorite Quote: Jim: That's... great. You know, to tell the truth, I used to have a big thing for Pam, so...
Michael: Really? You're kidding me. You and Pam? Wow. I would have never have put you two together. You really hid it well. God! I usually have a radar for stuff like that. You know, I made out with Jan...
Jim: Yeah, I know.
Michael: Yeah? Yep. Well, Pam is cute.
Jim: Yeah. She's really funny, and she's warm. And she's just... well, anyway.
Michael: Well, if you like her so much, don't give up.
Jim: She's engaged.
Michael: BFD. Engaged ain't married.
Jim: Huh.
Michael: Never, ever, ever give up.
Overall Episode Grade: A

Office Olympics
Favorite Moment: Michaels face as the doves fly by.
Favorite Quote: Dwight: I have been Michael's #2 guy for about 5 years. And we make a great team. We're like one of those classic famous teams. He's like Mozart, and I'm like Mozart's friend. No. I'm like Butch Cassidy, and Michael is like Mozart. You try and hurt Mozart; you're going to get a bullet in your head courtesy of Butch Cassidy.

Overall Episode Grade: B+

The Secret
Favorite Moment: Michael doing his hair like Jim.
Favorite Quote: Dwight: Otherwise, it's just malfeasance for malfeasanceses-ses sake.
Overall Episode Grade: B

Top 3 All-Time Dwight/Angela Moments:
- Parking Lot at Phyllis' Wedding.
- No Cookie!
- Angela watching Dwight make his speech.

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Name: Fancy New Beesly
Office Site: Fancy New Beesly on MySpace
Booze Cruise Review: If I had to make a list of my top 10 all-time favorite episodes of The Office Booze Cruise would be in it. From Jim's bet that Michael would yell "I'm the king of the world!!!" within the first hour to Dwight looking at Angela from behind the fake wheel saying,"Do you want us to run aground woman?" Aside from Beach Games I think this is the best episode was that was ever taken outside of the office. Michael's superiority battle against Captain Jack was so great. The way Jim broke up with Katy "No. Let's break up." was hilarious but completely heartbreaking because I think that was the point when the audience realized that Jim was basically hopelessly in love with Pam. The high point..the very best...was in the end when the writers do one of the things that makes The Office such a WONDERFUL show...they had the characters achieve what they wanted to do most but in a way that they would never expect & was so natural to their character. The motivational speech that Michael gives to Jim "Never, ever, ever give up." should have earned Carell the best actor in a comedy Emmy that year.
Favorite Moment: Dwight being given the fake wheel....
Favorite Quote: Katy: Do you think we'll ever be like that? Jim: No. Katy: What is WRONG with you? Why did you even bring me here? Jim: I don't know. We should break up.
Overall Episode Grade: A

Office Olympics
Favorite Moment: The real estate guy thinking that Michael & Dwight are gay.
Favorite Quote: Kevin: The candle smells like cookies. Jim: Yes, it does my friend. Indeed, it does.
Overall Episode Grade: A

The Secret
Favorite Moment: When everyone (Kelly & Angela especially) find out that Jim has a crush on Pam.
Favorite Quote: "And I plan on keeping that secret...for...as long as I possibly can."-Michael
Overall Episode Grade: A

Top 3 All-Time Dwight/Angela Moments:
*Phyllis' Wedding: Dwight-You look like the Queen of England.
*Dwight telling Angela that she can be in charge of the women when they plot to overthrow Michael
*In The Injury when Dwight walks up behind Angela & says,"You're sweeter than candy" & then spanks her.

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Name: Ken_TOC
Office Site: theofficechat.com
Booze Cruise Review: We begin with a particularly strong cold-open with a classic prank on Dwight: Jim has managed, with a little aiding and abetting from his vending machine tech buddy Steve, to replace every snack selection in the machine with an item from Dwight's desk. After Pam enters the break room and purchases Dwight's pencil cup for the very reasonable price of $1, Dwight attempts to buy back his things only to discover that his wallet is one of the many fine selections of Schrute property trapped behind the impenetrable plexiglass of the vending machine. A very David Blaine-like feat by Jim...who hands Dwight a bag of nickels to liberate his possessions. Cut to the opening credits. Brilliance.

The major plotline of the episode is Michael Scott's first-quarter camaraderie event aboard the sub-luxurious yet functionally seaworthy "ship", the Lake Wallenpaupack Princess. At night. In January. In Pennsylvania . And it will be a booze cruise....to Meredith's delight and AA's chagrin. As we see the employees and their guests board the vessel, Michael makes Gilligan's Island references about all of them...with Kelly as the native, Dwight as Gilligan, and Stanley as one of the Globetrotters...classic Michael. We also see Katy, Jim's girlfriend, introduced to us in the "Hot Girl" episode of season 1, played by the amazing Amy Adams (Don't believe me? Rent "Junebug". Told ya.) As the guests are boarding, we see a brief power struggle between Captain Jack (the actual captain of the ship, deftly portrayed by Rob Riggle of SNL and Daily Show fame) and Captain Mike (captain of the "Dunder Mifflin is a ship" analogy). This theme will continue throughout the episode. Shortly after the ship has sailed, a limbo competition is followed by the dance competition...a perfect opportunity to see some fantastic Steve Carrell physical comedy. I couldn't help but be reminded of David Brent's awesome display of charity inspired rug-cutting in the BBC version.

Booze cruise is "JAM" packed with JAM action. The dynamic between the two of them is put to severe tests. When Pam, Roy, Jim, and Katy are sitting together at the cool kids' table, we see how painfully mismatched both couples are: the sensitive guy and the cheerleader on one side and the ex-high school jock and the art student on the other. Anyone for a Yankee swap? After Roy has done a shot of liquor out of a snorkel, Pam has had her fill of fratboy hijinks and heads out to the deck, followed closely by Jim. She reveals to Jim that she sometimes doesn't get Roy . They share an intense gaze into each other's eyes for about five seconds, and then Pam awkwardly breaks it off and using the cold as an excuse to go back inside. After a drunken episode of soul-searching brought on by Captain Jack's military tales, Roy decides to seize the moment and set a wedding date with Pam, announcing it on the band's PA system. Roy 's announcement serves as a catalyst for Jim to finally dump the empty-headed, purse-peddling Katy. Trapped on the ship, he has to endure her "woman scorned" glare for the rest of the outing. Once the wedding announcement celebration has subsided, Michael finally gets to give his oft-interrupted motivational speech, only to have his "ship is sinking" analogy taken literally by the non-Dunder Mifflin guests, causing one of them to dive overboard (which could have easily been prevented by Kevin if it didn't involve him getting out of his seat). Oops. This results in many things: a wet booze cruiser, an angry Captain Jack, a topless-in-public Meredith (again), and Michael restrained with hardware store zip ties. At the end of the episode, Michael does finally deliver a motivational speech...not about Dunder Mifflin; about love. Once informed of Jim's true feelings for Pam, Michael tells him to never give up...to do whatever it takes to get his girl. Overall, a solid episode with many key plot moments and great Dwight and Michael shenanigans.
Favorite Moment: When Michael and Jim have just had a serious man-to-man, heart-to-heart conversation and Dwight nerds up the vibe by telling them that he's steering the ship back to shore....with the pretend steering wheel mounted on the deck for children to play with. Michael informs Dwight of his navigational impotence - "It's a fake wheel, dummy!"
Favorite Quote: Michael: "Now on this 'ship' that is the office...what is the sales department? Anyone?"
Darryl: "How 'bout the sales department is the sails?"
Michael (patronizing tone): "Yes, Darryl...the sales department makes sales. Good."
Overall Episode Grade: B

Office Olympics
Favorite Moment: Ryan napping in his car after unwittingly delivering Michael's carb-friendly breakfast two hours before work under the misapprehension that he needed to be there early for....work. Silly temp.
Favorite Quote: Jim: "I really love the...uhhh....paper triangle flicking and hitting things game"
Oscar: "Yeah."
Kevin: "We call it Hateball."
Jim: "Why?"
Kevin: "Because of how much Angela hates it." (Angela gives Kevin a baneful scowl through the glass cubicle partition)
Overall Episode Grade: A-

The Secret
Favorite Moment: At Jim's excruciating Hooters lunch with Michael, when Michael uses the lame "I will have the chicken breast, hold the chicken" line on Hooters girl Dana only to shrivel and order the gourmet hot dog when she challenges him.
Favorite Quote: Dwight: "Guess what I found out about Oscar tonight....he was lying about being sick! Should I have reported his malfeasance? Hmmm...probably. But now I know something he doesn't want me to know, so I can use his malfeasance to establish leverage. Otherwise, it’s just malfeasance for malfeasance's...'s......sake."
Overall Episode Grade: B+

Top 3 All-Time Dwight/Angela Moments:
1. Angela keeping up appearances at Casino Night by slapping Dwight for his celebratory kiss after throwing a winning 8 at craps. Her sly little smile caught by the camera crew reveals her closet penchant for sexy discipline.
2. Angela's precious expressions when she makes her co-workers recount Dwight's moment of heroism when he pepper sprayed Roy , saving Jim's pretty face from utter mutilation in "The Negotiation".
3. Angela taking the slow train to Philly to make sure that Dwight has plenty of "monkey cookie" when he's not networking at the Northeastern Mid-Market Office Supply Convention in "The Convention", only to be caught in bed and mistaken for a hooker by Jim.

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Name: Lauren
Office Site: Flonkerton
Booze Cruise Review: I dare say for me this is the definitive episode of Season 2, or at least it's a close second to "Casino Night." The episode is a series of classic moments: Jim's vendor machine prank on Dwight, the great ensemble banter in the conference room, Capt. Jack's special assignment for Dwight, Michael being "The Boss of Dancing", the 27-seconds of Silence, Roy's surprise announcement, Michael's poorly worded motivational presentation that earns him a spot in "The Brig", and of course Jim's unexpected heart-to-heart with Michael. Speaking of that "27 seconds of silence", I'm sure Greg Daniels got a few looks when he proposed having the romantic leads (of a comedy, no less) stare at each other with no dialog for half a minute. It wouldn't work on most shows, but thank God The Office isn't "most shows." It's simple, beautiful, and really just a perfect scene. It's also a bittersweet as I feel this is when Jim and Pam lose their "innocence" in a way. Up until this point they mostly bantered and plotted and innocently flirted as they both seemed relatively content with their "friends" status. However it's clear on the deck we're not dealing with simple friendship, not even a crush or an infatuation. Jim loves Pam deeply, he knows Roy is wrong for her, but he also knows even suggesting that Pam leaves the only man she's ever been with would scare her. Jim is at a crossroads at the end of this episode; he can continue to play Pam's best friend while hoping maybe someday it will become more, he can avoid her and date other women and hope the feelings will just fade, or he can risk a broken heart and speak the words he so desperately wanted to say during those 27 seconds. After Michael offers some Winston Churchill-esque advice, Jim smiles slightly and we're left with a feeling that there might be a some fight left in Jim after all. Favorite Moment: The 27 Seconds of Silence, followed closely by
Michael being "The Boss of Dancing"
Favorite Quote: Jim: "You know what? I would save the receptionist. I just wanted to clear that up."
Overall Episode Grade: A+

Office Olympics
Favorite Moment: Michael freaking out over the length of his mortgage. And of course, the invention of "Flonkerton" ;)
Favorite Quote: Dwight: "A thirty year mortgage at Michael's age essentially means that he's buying a coffin. If I were buying my coffin, I would get one with thicker walls so you couldn't hear the other dead people."
Overall Episode Grade: B+

The Secret
Favorite Moment: Michael crying as he begs Jim to still be his friend even after he told everyone of Jim's crush on Pam.
Favorite Quote:
Michael: What do you like best about Pam?
Jim: Uh, I really don't want to talk about it.
Michael: Is it her boobs, or...
Jim: Um, she's easy to talk to I guess and she's got a really good
sense of humor.
Michael: Really?
Jim: Uh-huh.
Michael: Never gets any of my jokes.
Jim: [glance to the camera] What about you?
Michael: Her boobs, definitely.
Jim: Wow, that's not what I meant.
Overall Episode Grade: A-

Top 3 All-Time Dwight/Angela Moments:
3. Angela slapping Dwight on Casino Night followed by that weirdly kinky look on her face.
2. Stealing away to dance together at Phyllis' Wedding
1. Making out on Angela's desk (and Jim catching them)

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