• The Writers – Jennifer Celotta and Greg Daniels
• Director – Harold Ramis
• A brief synopsis – Michael is taking the group to the beach as a “going away” gift as he prepares to go take a corporate position.  After leaving Toby home, he conducts a bunch of beach games to see who would replace him.  Jim reveals he is going to apply for the corporate position as well.  Pam decides to tell everyone how she really feels about a lot of things.  Okay, well, her art show and Jim.
• The best line – Michael: Jim Halpert. Pros: smart, cool, good-looking. Remind you of anybody you know? Cons: not a hard worker. I can spend all day on a project, and he will finish the same project in a half an hour. So that should tell you something.
• The best moment – Pam telling everyone how she feels.
• The best storyline – Changes are afoot for Dunder Mifflin.  What is about to happen will be big.
• Notable guest appearance – The 8th largest body of water in the U.S.
• Grade – A-

A very sweet episode in seeing Pam break out of her shell and becoming a more complete person.  Big things are brewing and masterfully placed in the background while Andy, Dwight and Stanley (yay) get a chance to steal the show.  It is one of the more believable efforts in showing how unified that the group actually is.

• The Writers – Gene Stupnitsky & Lee Eisenberg
• Director – Tucker Gates
• A brief synopsis – Phyllis has been flashed, and as you could guess, 2 things happen.  Michael goes overboard making fun of it, and Dwight goes overboard “protecting” the women in the office.  Michael turns it into a Women’s Appreciation day, which turns into a trip to the mall, where he talks himself into breaking up with Jan, with the help of the women.  The men of the office, meanwhile, take advantage of the opportunity to explore the women’s bathroom.
• The best line - Angela: Sometimes, the clothes at GapKids are just too flashy. So I’m forced to go to the American Girl store and order clothes for large colonial dolls.
• The best moment – Meredith driving to the mall, and then trying to park at the mall.
• The best storyline – The exploration of the women’s bathroom is a revelation many men wonder about.  They do have it better.
• Notable guest appearance – The women’s bathroom.
• Would Michael have been reprimanded? – Oh yes.  He would have been fired for pretending to impersonate the stripper as soon as that finger went out the zipper.
• Grade - B

This show was hard to process from the moment that Michael crossed over the line.  That the employees and the HR rep tolerate this behavior is to imply that they all find Michael ignorant and harmless.  That would take a perfect amount of understanding that would be hard to find in 2 people, much less a large group.  Then he takes them to Victoria’s secret.  This tact throws off the rest of the episode’s good points: Angela at the mall, Creed doing number 2 in the women’s room, Andy and Dwight’s burgeoning partnership, Michael trying to change a tire, and Pam’s image of the “pervert.”  All of these are muted by the ridiculously absurd moments.

• The Writer – Justin Spitzer & Brent Forrester
• Director - Randall Einhorn
• A brief synopsis – A disgruntled employee sent out paper with an obscene watermark and Michael reacts with “Cri-Man-Squa. F and C, doubletime.”  He sends Jim to a school with Andy to apologize.  At the school, Andy runs into his girlfriend.  Creed, meanwhile, is actually working.  His mission: get someone else to take the blame.
• The best line – Creed: Yes, hello. Creed Bratton, Quality Assurance, Dunder Mifflin Scranton. I was supposed to meet with one of your floor managers last week for a quality inspection, and he or she wasn’t there. And I’m trying to remember who it was. Mm-hmm. Who wasn’t there last week? Debbie Brown. And which day was that? Wednesday, the eleventh. Perfect.
  Creed: The only difference between me and a homeless man is this job. I will do whatever it takes to survive. Like I did… when I was a homeless man.

• The best moment – The cold open, where Jim comes in as Dwight.
• The best storyline- Creed is out to get someone else fired to save his job.
• Notable guest appearance – Some high school girl and an unhappy customer who won’t be swayed by 25 reams of paper.
• Would Michael have been reprimanded? – Two words: corporate lawyers.  Michael would not been allowed to handle this in any way.
• Grade – A-

This episode had some of the greatest moments in show history.  Angela doing customer service.  Customer service! Dwight experiencing “identity theft” at the hands of Jim.  Creed, showing how Creed survives.  The only thing keeping this from being perfect is Michael’s handling of their most valued customer and Andy’s reaction to the principal.

• The Writer - B.J. Novak
• Director – Harold Ramis
• A brief synopsis – Michael causes Daryl to get injured, thereby creating a need for safety reviews in the warehouse and the office.  Not one to feel one-upped by the warehouse staff, Michael decides to fake a suicide that turns out quite odd.  Everyone starts taking bets because Kevin is hung over from March Madness.  Andrew is back, as Drew, until he realizes that no one is going to call him that…and that Dwight has decided to shun him.
• The best line - Dwight: Jim, could you please inform Andy Bernard that he is being shunned.
  Jim: Andy, Dwight says welcome back, and he could use a hug.
  Dwight: Ok, tell him that’s not true.
  Jim: Dwight says that he actually doesn’t know one single fact about bear attacks.
  Andy: You guys…
  Dwight: Ok, no. Jim, tell him that bears can climb faster than they can run. Jim! Tell him!
  Jim: [half-heartedly] Andy! Nah, that’s too far.
  Dwight: Damn you.
• The best moment – The look on Stanley’s face when he sees the watermelon that exploded on his car.
• 2nd best moment – Kelly explains to Ryan how Netflix works.
• The best storyline – Andrew is back and being shunned by Dwight.  Delicious.
• Notable guest appearance – Having Andy back feels like a gift.
• Would Michael have been reprimanded? – Um, let me count the ways…injuring Daryl, the watermelon, the suicide stunt…
• Grade – B

Michael gone amok kind of shatters all the good stuff going on in the episode.  Plenty of betting action with all the staff is great fun.  Dwight and Andy begin a long and successful career of feeding off of each other.

• The Writer - Michael Schur
• Director - Jeffrey Blitz
• A brief synopsis – After Roy is fired for attempting to attack Jim in the office, Dwight is the hero and Daryl is looking for a raise to make up for the loss of his employee.  Michael uses Wikipedia to try to talk him out of it and is summarily convinced not just to give Daryl a raise but go to New York to get one himself.
• The best line – Karen: When I heard Jim and Pam had kissed, my reaction was to have lots of long talks with Jim about our feelings. Roy just attacked him. I’m not sure which one Jim hated more.
• The best moment – Dwight taking Roy, and everyone else, out like a champ.  Like he said, he’d been waiting for the moment to arrive for 8 years.
• The best storyline – It is really nice to see a storyline that features Daryl.  Get ready to see more of these in the future.
• Notable guest appearance – Jan’s new assistant, Hunter.
• Would Michael have been reprimanded? – After finding out he hasn’t had a raise in 14 years…I think even the worst employee would get a little something.
• Grade – A-

Dwight gets his chance to shine, and handles it perfectly.  Angela gets her chance to enjoy a hero, and boy does she enjoy it.    Best though, is bringing Daryl to the forefront, and taking advantage of Craig Robinson’s perfect comic timing.  Pam and Roy have the clean ending that is only fair after their time together.

• The Writer – Paul Leiberstein
• Director - J.J. Abrams
• A brief synopsis – Michael, Jim, Dwight and Karen are going to David’s house for a cocktail party.  Jan wants to blow it off, Michael wants to arrive early to announce his love for Jan.  Back at the office, everyone leaves early to go to Poor Richard’s for drinks themselves.  A new, assertive Pam is no longer taking guff off of Roy or anyone.  In her quest to set things right for their next time as a couple, she clears the air with Roy about her and Jim.  It does not go as expected.
• The best line – Michael: Ready? Come on guys. Early worm gets the worm.
  Jim: Another worm? Like, are they friends?
  Dwight: It’s early bird gets the worm.
• The best moment – Roy finds out about Jim and Pam.  Acts like Roy would.
• The best storyline – Pam, Jim, Roy, Karen.  A date with destiny.
• Notable guest appearance – David and his wife.  Poor Richard’s makes an appearance.
• Would Michael have been reprimanded? – I am thinking both he and Jan would be canned.
• Grade – B+

A good episode that takes two sets of destinies and brings them together while they are many miles apart.  Great episode for Jim, Dwight, Toby and Pam.  The stuff with Jan and Michael stretches believability, though.  In true J.J. Abrams fashion, though, a cliffhanger ending that makes one anxious for resolution.

• The Writer - Brent Forrester
• Director – Joss Whedon
• A brief synopsis – Michael is a guest speaker at Ryan’s class in Business School.  Dwight finds a bat in the office and creates a panic.  Jim takes advantage of this by pretending to be bitten and indicating that he might be becoming a vampire.  Pam is trying to get people to come to her art show.
• The best line - Angela: Poop is raining from the ceilings. Poop!
• The best moment - Michael shows up at Pam’s show and is genuinely impressed.
• The best storyline – Pam’s art show shows the lonely road artists must travel when others choose to act like they care…and don’t.
• Notable guest appearance – An actual bat makes a show.  And a bunch of real college students.
• Would Michael have been reprimanded? – Not here, although, the speech at the school would have never happened in life.
• Grade – B-

Another good episode nearly ruined by Michael unleashed on a crowd.  They should know by now that the shtick isn’t working and concentrate on toning it down or just making it better.  Like the scene where Michael truly inspires a Pam who is desperately in need of inspiration.  The scenes in the office, with the bat are just swell, especially Jim, Creed, Angela, Dwight and Meredith.

• The Writer - Caroline Williams
• Director – Ken Whittingham
• A brief synopsis – Phyllis is becoming Mrs. Bob Vance from Vance Electronics.  Michael is sent into overdrive and makes everyone miserable.  Jim convinces Dwight to look out for Wedding Crashers.  Pam, taking inventory of all the ideas that Phyllis lifted from her wedding, eventually goes home with Roy.
• The best line – Dwight: I saw Wedding Crashers accidentally. I bought a ticket for Grizzly Man and went into the wrong theatre. After an hour, I figured I was in the wrong theatre, but I kept waiting. That’s the thing about bear attacks, they come when you least expect it.
• The best moment – Ryan knocking the flowers tossed by Phyllis cleanly out of Kelly’s hands.
• The best storyline – Jim, Karen, Pam, Roy going backwards.
• Notable guest appearance – Toby had a date to the wedding.  He met her at the Jim.
• Would Michael have been reprimanded? – Not sure how he got Phyllis six weeks of vacation, but I am pretty sure that Bob Vance and some of his boys would have cleaned him out of the Wedding during the ceremony.
• Grade – C-

Phyllis deserved better.  This episode would have been great had they been able to reel in the character of Michael Scott.  My Lord, was he annoying.  The only bit that works is when he finds Uncle Al and Phyllis gives him a kiss.  All other parts work, for the most part.  Loved Jim’s Pavlovian exercise with Dwight.  The ceremonial vows even had Bob Vance from Vance Electronics.  Kelly does look good in white, too.

• The Writer – Mindy Kaling
• Director - Randall Einhorn
• A brief synopsis – Phyllis’ wedding is fast approaching and since the women are holding a shower for her, Bob Packer convinces Michael to hire “separate but equal” strippers.  Dwight hires the woman stripper and Jim hires a real educational historical impersonator of Ben Franklin.  Michael gets spooked by his stripper and eventually, after consulting Ben Franklin and the stripper, confides to Jan.  Pam and Karen exchange some awkward words about Pam and Jim’s history.  Ben Franklin, who is just as perplexed as the women, thinks Pam is hitting on him and hits back.  Jim hears this and teases Pam, then she tells Ryan she is ready to go on a blind date with one of his business woman friends.
• The best line – Michael: Hello everyone! As you know, we are six days away from Phyllis’ wedding. [Applause] So get your suits to the dry cleaner and get your hair did. And Karen, um, you might want to invest in a dress or a skirt of some kind if you don’t already have one. This may be Phyllis’ only wedding ever. It is my job to ensure that none of you look like ragamuffins. So I am instituting prima nocta.
  Jim: Prima nocta, I believe from the movie Braveheart, and confirmed on wikipedia, is when the king got to deflower every new bride on her wedding night. So…
  Michael:
  I’m sorry. I had a very different understanding as to what prima nocta meant.
• The best moment – Jim hiring Ben Franklin provided many moments.
• The best storyline - Going to go with Ben Franklin again here.
• Notable guest appearance – Packer! Ben Franklin and the stripper.
• Would Michael have been reprimanded? – I am pretty sure that he would have been fired.
• Grade – B-

Kaling’s only weak episode to date.  Pushes forward the Pam and Jim train wreck and shows Jim in his prime.  Ben Franklin actually convincing Dwight he is the real historical person is one thing.  Actually getting a stripper to the premises without corporate firing Michael is beyond the limit.  Extra points for Packer.  Always extra for Packer.  Love Bob Packer.  And I am not queer.

• The Writers – Michael Schur, Lee Eisenberg, and Gene Stupnitsky
• Director – Greg Daniels
• A brief synopsis – Oscar is back, and Michael is going out of his way to not make anything about his sexuality.  After a few rough patches, he actually finds some solace (misplaced though it may be) in Angela.  Dwight is gone (to Staples) and Andy has taken his place, along with an annoying new office persona.  Constantly hounding Michael, he is wearing out his welcome and actually makes Jim miss Dwight.  After trying to get Karen and then Ryan to play a prank on Andy, he finally asks Pam, who, to Karen’s dismay, is more than happy to do so.
• The best line - Jim: Hey, Ryan?
  Ryan: What?
  Jim: You wanna pull a prank on Andy?
  Ryan: Not right now, but ask me again ten years ago.
  Jim: I liked you better when you were the temp.
  Ryan: Yeah, me too.
• Second best line - Dwight (to a woman interviewer in a pink-laden office): How would I describe myself? Three words. Hard-working, Alpha male, Jackhammer, Merciless, Insatiable.
• The best moment – Dwight takes the broom from Oscar, and when Kevin tries to cover his eyes, says, “I won’t be needing that” and proceeds to beat apart every Piñata in the office.
• The best storyline – The Nard dog flips out.  Who didn’t see that one coming…well, actually, I don’t think anyone saw him pounding through the wall with his fist.
• Notable guest appearance – All those people at Staples.  So normal.
• Would Michael have been reprimanded? – I actually think he might have been fired for saying anything to Oscar about his sexuality at this point.
• Grade – A

Great to have Dwight back and Andy goes out with a bang, literally.  Oscar’s situation is handled way better than Gay Witch Hunt, and thankfully they did not dwell on it.  The train wreck hits with a small scene in the third act.  Expecting more drawn out pain, in little slices.