The Office: Lotto, 8.03

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The Office: Lotto

Writer: Charlie Grandy, Director: John Krasinski

Summary (NBC): All the warehouse workers win the lottery — after the warehouse guys win the lotto and quit, everyone in the office dreams of what it would be like to win big. Andy and Darryl search for new warehouse employees while Jim, Erin, Dwight, and Kevin get a taste of warehouse life.

The Office Lotto extras

The Office Lotto rating

In a poll conducted October 6-10, 2011, Tallyheads rated this episode: 6.43/10

See all The Office Season 8 ratings.

The Office Lotto quotes

Oscar: I bet this guy didn’t leave his weed in the car.

Kelly: You want to just let him die, you scumbag?

Kevin: When I start dying, I will honk the horn three times. That means, save the dog.

Kelly: Don’t try to get in on it now, Michael Vick.
Darryl: Hey hey hey. Vick did his time.

Andy: The warehouse crew won the lottery yesterday.

Darryl: They won… playing my birthday.

Meredith: We’re looking at at least one suicide and one weird sex thing.
Oscar: At least.

Dwight (imitating Jim): Hey, Pam, let’s buy expensive bathrobes and hug.

Jim: I’d either bike to my job at the kayak shop or I’d kayak to my job at the bike shop.
Pam: And then on the weekends, would you hackysack back to reality and spend time with your wife and kids?
Jim: Woah, saucy, I thought you liked Maine.

Ryan: Soho is mainly lofts, but okay.

Jim: Stop. I’m a barista in your fantasy?
Pam: Well, in your fantasy, we’re Stephen King characters.

Meredith: Get. A. Divorce. Get. A. Divorce.

Kelly: I mean I’m getting paid a dollar a year. Okay you can chill.

Kevin: Good old Kevin. He’ll do anything. Well guess what. I will not do a good job.

Darryl: When did I get so fat?

Darryl: I decided to stay home. Eat a bunch of tacos in my basement.

Darryl: You can’t air out a basement. And taco air is heavy. It settles at the lowest point.

Andy: I don’t know where Darryl is. I suspect, probably our Darryl is inside of Fat Darryl.

Andy: What, no Newhart fans?

Darryl: Madge and a couple of other guys might start a strip club. But on a boat. And Hide is investing in an energy drink for Asian homosexuals.

Dwight: Grunting is scientifically proven to add more power. Ask any female tennis player. Or her husband.

Andy: Are we scaring them straight?
Darryl: I hope so.

Darryl: Who gets a soy allergy at 35? And why is soy in everything?

Ryan: Nice. Right back where I like you.

Ryan: Everybody wants to be rich. But nobody wants to work for it.

Andy: Painfully real, what is happening right now.

Dwight: Theirs is more of a physical intelligence. Like baboons or elephants.

Erin: I like it a lot, but they hate it. So drop it.

Andy: Does anyone get distracted easily by bubble wrap?

Darryl: I don’t want to be here anymore. Fire me.

Andy: I really hope that’s what he and I mean.

Oscar: Dean got fixated on his calves, and his triceps went to hell.

Nate: I just can’t distinguish between everything I’m hearing.

Darryl: Make me manager or fire me.

Nate: I technically don’t have a hearing problem.

Darryl: My future’s not going to be determined by seven little white lotto balls. It’s going to be determined by two big black balls. I control my destiny. I do.

Jim: Señor Loadenstein. That’s stupid.
Kevin: Tell them why it’s called that, Jim.
Jim: Porque es muy rápido.

Phyllis: Yeah. I lost my client.

Creed: I already won the lottery. I was born in the U.S. of A., baby. And as backup, I have a Swiss passport.

Toby: I would spend a lot of time launching my true crime podcast, The Flenderson Files.

Jim: I can fish right from the window of Pam’s pottery studio. And we can chat any time we want.
Pam: Just like now.
Jim: Just like now. Too bad the schools are terrible. But what are you going to do about that.
Pam: What are you going to do.

Icon provided by pessimistreader.

108 comments

  1. So Andy and Darryl search for new warehouse employees… Is it just me or does it look like Andy is the new regional manager of Dunder-Mifflin, Sabre? We do know from earlier teasers that the warehouse wins the lottery and quit, except Darryl, who didn’t get in on the ticket. So, if Darryl’s still running the warehouse from upstairs, and Andy (notice how Andy’s name is listed first) of all people is helping to fill staff positions… Yep, I think it’s Andy!

  2. Wow, the episode summary does appear to be a HUGE pre-S8 premiere spoiler, unless the names of the two guys who are looking for new workers is a feint instead of a giveaway. But I don’t mind, since we’re only six days away from a great new season!

  3. I think it may be that Darryl didn’t get in on the ticket because he has been promoted to manager and Andy is involved because he is Sales Director and the warehouse workers started making sales last year.

  4. So they’re basically telling us it’s either Andy or Darryl? Oh, I really hope it’s Darryl… But then why would Andy be looking for employees too? Or maybe we’re meant to think that it’s Andy, and it’s not going to be him… Especially since his family is coming, too; that seems like it’s going to be his big storyline. But this seems so exciting!

  5. Does this mean that Pam drives Dwight crazy in The Incentive when he’s her confidant, driving him into the arms of also-harried Jim?

  6. Yay! It has to be Andy as the new manager!! If it were Darryl as the new boss, why would Andy be involved? BUT if Andy is the new boss, it makes sense Darryl is involved as he helps run the warehouse from upstairs…

    Ah I’m so excited right now!

  7. I think all those spoilers about Andy’s family being cast definitely means he’s the new manager. And it would be fitting for a The Daily Show alum to replace Carell. I’m a little sad about the warehouse quitting. I’ll miss Madge!

  8. Honestly I’m very excited on how the new episodes are shaping up. Just by reading the summaries.

    It’s looking super good so far, I just can’t wait to see it all unfold!

  9. If you pause the recent spoiler you’ll notice Dwight pumping his fist. Pause that scene, you’ll notice Daryl in his regular attire, not a suit. andy is manager!

  10. Um, this sounds kind of dumb. Like the last season of Roseanne when the Conners won the lottery and all of a sudden became rich.

  11. Isn’t it a bit unrealistic that the entire warehouse would quit over a lottery ticket? Even if they get millions, how would there even be enough to pay for each individual person’s retirement and more? I mean, the staff is pretty big.

    Hopefully that’s cleared up!!

  12. I’m gonna bet that Andy isn’t manager. I think the smart people at nbc are trying to make us feel like he is. If you read more of the spoilers it says there will be more of Andy’s scrotum. Maybe it is severely hurt and his family comes for his support? Do we even know if they’ll hire somebody in the office?

  13. If Andy is manager, then my dreams will come true. My first choice was California, but now that he’s taking over Jo’s spot, I would be happy if the job goes to my second choice; Andy. Darryl’s great, but I just don’t think he’s the right man, and Dwight is too drastic. Andy working under California, and trying to manage the office will be gold. IMHO!! Darryl’s my second, choice but I don’t think he made a good impression in last season’s final. Dwight’s fine where he is and got his chance.

  14. Does anyone remember that ‘fake script’ that went around for a while that was allegedly for Goodbye Michael? This seems very similar in concept to that with the lottery.

  15. Cheezdude! that’s exactly what i was thinking!
    i feel like the office writers wrote the lotto script a while back, and were just saving it for a good opportunity. thank GOD that they didn’t use this idea for Goodbye, Michael!!

  16. I bet the reason why we’ve learned the title/summary of the October 13th episode before the October 6th episode is because October 6th will involve Andy’s family coming to visit/Josh Groban and Andy Bernard sing-off…and is too big of a spoiler to announce JUST yet.

  17. @Officionada, I just noticed that, too! That is crazy exciting for him, and I can’t wait to see it!

  18. Anybody else find it very fitting that only a few episodes after Michael leaves, the warehouse is left completely empty with the bailer 100% unsupervised? ;)

  19. Dear writers of The Office,

    Please just keep Kevin in the warehouse. His stupidity is too ridiculous and ruining the show. Why is Kevin practically getting more lines than Dwight? Have you forgotten what made this show great in the first place? Jim, Dwight, and Pam. Remember?

  20. I agree with theJFKshow. As much as I love the show, Kevin’s stupidity has become ridiculous. They really need to tone it down a bit. I mean, there’s a reason the whole joke with Holly was funny. She thought he was mentally retarded, even though all of us knew he wasn’t. That’s why it was a joke in the first place. NOW it doesn’t even seem to make sense looking back!

  21. Agreed with “theJFKshow” – They have made Kevin an almost unbearable character to me. I used to really like him. And YES, get back to Jim, Dwight and Pam!! And WHERE is Jordan? Overall an okay episode but nothing amazing. I think I only laughed out loud at Kelly’s talking head.

  22. That was an “interesting” episode, I am a little worried I only laughed out loud once, I usually laugh several times per episode. It may be that I just need to re-watch the episode, but I think they brought out more of the “we need to prove Andy is a good boss” material and forgot the funny. The pacing seemed slow, and I still don’t get how Jim and Dwight would not have just grabbed a hand truck or something to fill the delivery truck, these guys have been in the warehouse before (remember that time on lost, when they met the others). I was hoping that 20 minutes of Jim Dwight warehouse interaction would have brought out some hilarious material, but all I got was a slippery floor and predictable buttered Kevin stupidity? It was nice to see some Jim and Pam interaction, what little we got anyway, and I’m glad the talking heads at the end seemed to resolve what I perceived as actual tension between the two. I hope that this is just one of those bad episodes that gets intermixed between the good ones, seems like the last few seasons have been good ep/good ep/bad ep/good ep/etc. I am hoping that that is what is going on because I enjoyed the first two episodes of this season, and am looking forward to 8.04.

  23. Great episode! The confrontation between Darryl and Andy was quite strong; Andy as manager is an idea that has a lot of potential still. I wondered why Darryl just accepted being passed over and now we know – plus we know more about Darryl’s work history. Interesting! The warehouse scenes were not as over-the-top as I feared, although I think Kevin is too much of a caricature. Erin’s scolding of Kevin was awesome and unexpected! Fun episode!

  24. Sorry, very bad episode. Not funny. The whole Darryl business was serious, and a downer and un-funny. This ranks below Phyllis’ Wedding and the Christening episodes. It didn’t even feel like an Office episode to me it was so bad.

  25. I’ve never laughed more at a cold opening.

    Overall, hilarious episode with an interesting Andy/Darryl confrontation.

  26. “Lotto” wasn’t funny in the least. Not my “Office” anymore or my cup of comedy tea.
    Oscar breaks a car window. Kevin acts dumber than ever. Andy acts goofy but not funny. Jim & Dwight uncharacteristically adopt Kevin’s nutty idea & slide paper boxes on oil? Huh?
    And Darryl acts melodramatic…”7 white balls” “2 black balls”. What kind of language is that for a comedy? If I want drama, I’ll watch a soap opera.
    No Robert California? No chance of anything funny.
    And a Jim & Pam silly argument that went nowhere, wasn’t convincing or charming, that ended in their painfully unfunny joint talking head.
    I hit the lottery of sitcoms in Season 2 when I discovered The Office. After watching “Lotto”, I feel just like Darryl did when he lost.

  27. I had really high hopes for this episode, and I’m pleased to say that it DIDNT DISAPPOINT!!

    loved this episode, maybe not quite as much as The Incentive or The List, but as the first Spader-less episode, it was great. they really fleshed out Andy as a manager while still managing to keep some great laughs throughout. and the cold open?! hilarious!

  28. I should just state for the record, after my previous comment, that in terms of this episode as a comedy, I believe it failed. I believe there was too much dramatic material between Andy and Darryl, and not enough comedy. I always felt that the first few seasons were able to balance the love story drama with the actual comedy really well (is there something in your pocket, it’s a chunky), no touching moment was left unscarred by a funny (sometimes disturbingly inappropriate) joke. While I always like and appreciate back story on characters, I still felt like the comedy in this episode was sacrificed to make room for Andy/Darryl dramatic interaction, and that made the episode too slow in pacing.

  29. The only highlights for me was the Ryan and Pam scene (very reminiscent of the Michael Scott Paper Company days) and Dwight’s comment on grunting. Other than that, the episode was dry and it even reminded me of The Seminar, which is not a good thing. Hopefully a better episode next week.

  30. Disappointing episode. Oscar’s actions in the cold open was way out of character. As was Jim’s complete lack of common sense in the warehouse. The stuff with Darryl and Andy was just plain not funny. And Kevin’s stupidity is becoming so absurd that it’s no longer funny.

    I will say, though, that I laughed out loud at Stanley’s reaction to the applicant eating his food. The problem is, this show used to have a lot more moments like that per episode.

  31. Overall I thought this episode was a HUGE disappointment. I mean, lets think about first what the winners won, a little over 100,000? Sure, I’d love to have that handed to me but honestly, it’s enough money for you to quit your job? Start a business? You can’t even put one child through college for that these days. Even where I live where houses are still pretty affordable it would be hard to get much of one for that. They TOTALLY overplayed what the workers won. The first two episodes were dynamite, this was not. Oh and for those that continue looking for Jordan, I read this summer that they were not bringing her back so I’d stop looking for her. I remember reading it because I worried they would use her to mess with Jim and Pam so it was a relief to me that she wasn’t returning.

  32. I thought it was pretty solid. Everything the cast has been saying it right – feels revitalized this year.

  33. AMAZING EPISODE!!
    i don’t understand why all the negativity..?
    i think it was absolutely necessary for the darryl/andy confrontation to happen. There were a lot of people out there wondering why Darryl got snubbed for the job, and yes, real life is not a comedy, there have to be some serious moments. everything Andy said was 100 percent true, and crucial to the storyline.
    And this episode had an abundance of funny moments! JAM moments were cute, way better than some of the season 7 crap we got, cold open was loads better than last week, and we got Jim/Dwight interaction that was legitly funny! they also toned down Dumb Kevin (:
    overall, 8/10!

  34. There we go blackballs!!!
    That’s the kind of comment we are looking for. A positive one.
    I mean come on guys, I feel like you guys should just enjoy the show. It was a great episode for Darryl and Andy. And this warehouse thing might not be over. This could be important.

  35. Overall, I really enjoyed the episode! I thought that the cold open was extremely funny, and I still love how they’re showing Andy’s style as manager. Darryl has never been my favorite character, so I tend to not expect comedy from him anyway. I think it did a good job as the first episode without Robert, and I cannot WAIT until Garden Party next week!

  36. I thought this episode was pretty good. Sure, it wasn’t as funny, but I’m glad it addressed how Darryl really felt about not getting the job. The only thing that I can say I disliked was the whole Jim and Pam fantasy thing. AND Nate is back!

  37. I liked it. I really liked that they put the whole confrontation with Andy and Darryl out there. It had to happen, and I’m glad it did. I feel like the show doesn’t have enough serious moments lately, and that was one that it needed. The black balls line was PERFECTION. Also Dwight’s “FALSE.” brought me back to classic Office days.

    I didn’t like the stupidity in the warehouse. Jim and Dwight aren’t that dumb. It was still pretty funny though.

  38. although i agree kevin’s character is getting more and more ridiculous this episode was not bad by any stretch, in fact i really enjoyed it. there were a lot of funny moments that i recall. my only nitpick is that for some reason some of the characters felt ‘off.’ kevin as mentioned is just way too dumb now, jim didn’t display any of his normal common sense in the warehouse, and oscar did not seem like he would have broken a car window over a dog…

  39. I still miss Jim & Pam moments. Where are they?! The little subplot with them was kind of disappointing. Why is nothing happening in their relationship right now? They’re having another kid, shouldn’t they be talking about that? *sigh* I miss seasons 1-4.

    As far as funny goes, this episode was better than the last one and I loved the grease-sliding-paper thing. Porque muy rapido! I died. Of laughter.

    And the Andy/Darryl thing was kind of weird, I admit. Even if it was ‘necessary’ or whatever, I understand why people think it was too dramatic. It was kind of awkward or something.

    All in all, I give it a 7/10. I think last week’s episode was more like a 6.5/10, and the first was maybe a 8/10. I hope they can pull off a 10/10 for me haha. ALSO, I want Jim/Dwight pranks again. Boo :(

  40. I loved this episode. I really enjoyed the Andy/Darryl scene with them confronting each other. The Jim/Pam lotto scenes were kinda boring, though. But the Dwight/Jim/Kevin/Erin moments in the warehouse, specially the final scene of it (with some español) were awesome. And the cold open was amazing. Poor little dog.

  41. Might be because I was with my friends, or the lack of Spader, but I really enjoyed this episode. Funniest episode of the season so far easily.

  42. Middle of the road for me. I agree, please tone down Kevin. I can’t stand how he is being written. I thought the Darryl thing was too serious also. I enjoyed the Jim and Pam banter. 6/10 for me.

  43. I was really looking forward to watching this episode and being the very supportive fan that i am, I must say that I was mildly disappointed with this episode. It left me this sort of emptiness that I can’t exactly explain, which for me is quite rare. And I do agree with everybody else who stated that Jim, Kevin, and Oscar were out of character. All in all, it was just okay, a bit dull in the comedic approach. Hope things get better! Looking forward to next week!

    Rating:

    7/10

    Nearly a borderline 6/10

  44. I thought this episode was OK at best. In my opinion, there was too much serious andy/darryl in this episode. I would’ve liked it more if they’d have downplayed darryl being upset at not winning/andy trying to comfort him. And it seems like every episode so far has ended with something that andy does to ‘pull the office together at the last minute’. I can understand that the writers feel the need to really incorporate andy into the manager position and try to get everyone to view him as the boss. That makes sense, but I just hope they move away from plotlines like that as the season goes on.
    Also, I noticed that jim and dwight have been a lot friendlier lately. I’m liking it because dwight is still really strange and dwight-like, but it does seem kind of weird at first and I hope they reference their developing friendship somewhere in a future episode.

  45. Gosh…I liked this episode and am so enjoying this season so far. I had reached the point the past two years where I was DVRing it, and watching it when I had a free moment. I stopped going to Office Tally, checking spoilers…I had moved on. I am now back because of the changes. There is a bit of sweetness and some flashes of what really happens in the work world again ( who hasn’t known someone who was passed over for a job who sulked rather than figure out why they didn’t get the job). Love Robert and Andy as boss. Aside from the bizarre changes in Kevin’s character, I think it is going in the right direction and I am intrigued enough that it’s must see TV for me…hope it keeps up!!!!

  46. This is the first episode I really didn’t think was very funny, seemed forced to me. For me Andy is not working out as boss, I love that character and don’t like the new road, and really miss his extreme prep wardrobe. What happened to red critter pants, and yellow ties?

  47. OK episode, but I missed seeing Robert California in this one. Kevin being soooo stupid is getting on my nerves! I much prefer the original Kevin.

  48. I thought this was the best episode of the year so far. And I don’t mind when The Office gets honest – the scene between Darryl and Andy not only needed to happen, they did a fantastic job of it. Craig Robinson was awesome throughout the episode!

  49. Avg salary in Scranton is $38k/yr, so a $100k takeaway is nearly a three year break from work…in a warehouse. Yeah, I’d quit too.

    I like the charm in Jim/Pam’s relationship, and I really liked Andy being able to call it like it is with his former texting buddy.

  50. I’m not sure why, but Darryl’s “taco air” soliloquy was one of the funniest moments in the show’s histroy for me. “You can’t air out a basement. And taco air is thick. It settles at the bottom.” Man, his deadpan delivery was superb. That alone made it a 10 for me.

  51. My general feeling of this episode is “meh”. It was okay, but I don’t know that I liked it as whole. Too much Darryl. Too much weird conference room hiring new warehouse guys scenes. I very much disliked the cold open…Oscar breaking a window with a crowbar? Sorry, no. It left a bad taste in my mouth from the start.

    Enjoyed Andy’s confrontation with Darryl – reminded me of the moments when we’d see the “normal, realistic boss” side of Michael come out.

    Warehouse scenes provided a chuckle, but I agree with others that they are taking Kevin off the deep end. And yes, where is Jordan? Deleted scene maybe?

  52. Last year, Michael told Kevin, “Never be a caricature.” Please writers, take this advice to heart.

    Not as good as I had hoped, and this was a perfect idea for the show. However, $100k each before taxes is only about $65k afterwards. Why not have them win something like $10 million each? Then, you’ve got a reason to quit your job and do whatever.

  53. I enjoyed the episode, especially the last 5 minutes but why did the characters have such a problem with the dog, so much that Oscar broke the window? The sunroof was already open…?

    Also I thought I heard that the warehouse won $950,000. How did 6 of them divide that into $100,000 each?

  54. This was an OK episode that needed to happen. The Andy/Darryl confrontation was one that I believe needed to be dealt with sooner, rather than later. It explains Darryl’s odd behavior the first 2 episodes, and Andy’s explanation made great sense. I am enjoying Andy as Manager. I also wanted Robert California and we now get the best of both worlds. Still waiting for an Andy Anger moment to come out.

    The warehouse portion of the show was a little weak. Remember Boys and Girls where Michael bonded and played on the lift. Jim and Dwight know better, and Kevin has become Homer Simpson, getting stupider by the year and not that funny. Dull part of the show that could have been funnier.

  55. Please stop with the cold opens. They have been all terrible this season. If the sunroof was open then breaking the window was even crazy for the office standards. Kevin used to be a funny character now he is is completely a joke. He’s not funny by being a complete idiot. This episode just felt wrong. No character felt like their usual selves and please stop with the andy/michael comparisons. At this point it feels like they just want to make Andy “Michael 2.0”

  56. I’m guessing that in a future episode, the original warehouse workers will realize that approx $100k is not enough to retire from and come back to work.

  57. @Derek, I hope so, because The Office without Calvin(?), Sea Monster, Hide, and Pudge is not nearly as fun!

    Mainly, I’m very sad to miss out on the future eye candy of Calvin in that jumpsuit. (He is a very attractive V-shaped manly-man!) Wait, IMDB says his name was Lester, and then they changed it to Calvin. Strange.

  58. Lotto is the lowest rated office episode in five years, since Hot Girl I believe. I think that they just need to put more jokes, less serious talk. On second view, I still find it hard to watch. I wish they wouldn’t have such a big deal of out the dog if the sunroof was wide open. And the warehouse scenes had so much comedy potential. Hopefully Garden Party will step it up.

  59. I agree with you #72, the cold opens have been pretty bad. I can’t imagine Oscar breaking a window, let alone Jim thinking it’s funny. They seem to really be going for the OTT laughs. It doesn’t work or needed with this show.

  60. Jim said OVER $100K. Not exactly $100K. $950K split 6 ways would obviously be over $100K.

    And yeah, that’s obviously not enough to quit your job for, but the warehouse doesn’t realize that. I think they’ll all come back in a later episode when they’ve run dry of their lottery winnings.

  61. Why so much hate for this episode? I actually found it hilarious!
    Though I do admit, the cold open was pretty bad. I mean, the dog had enough air in the car with the sun roof. But breaking the window was just stupid.
    I really want some Jim/Dwight antics for cold opens again. But at least they’re going back to having cold opens having nothing to do with the actual plot. Though I laughed out loud when Kevin passed out and honked.
    The episode wasn’t bad. Probably the lowest of the season though.
    Erin was hilarious in this episode! Kevin just needs more common sense. Even if he is a stupid guy now, I love how he is portrayed! BBB does a great job!
    And to everyone who are just getting mixed up- The Warehouse won 950k, not 100k. That was just the estimate Jim thought they said they should be over.
    Overall, I give it a 7.5/10
    Though Kelly and Ryan were great in this eps! Here’s to them getting more screentime -Breaks car light-

  62. Ehh…Liked the stuff with Darryl, but that was kind of it. The cold open set the tone for me. I just couldn’t imagine Oscar breaking someone’s car window and everyone going along with it, and it sort of went down from there. It kind of seemed like a lot of the acting was exaggerated to make up for the meh storyline. Maybe it’s just because the last two episodes were so great, but this one just wasn’t my fave.

  63. I loved the first two episodes, but, I am all over the place with this one.

    Kevin is getting a little too, well, stupid.

    I enjoy Darryl, but it was too much Darryl on that episode.

    I’m a die hard Jim and Dwight fan, so I enjoyed their parts in the episode. I just love when they are together.

  64. I thought the cold open was one of the best.

    Wanted to see more of Jim, Dwight, Erin & Kevin in the warehouse though. But I liked it, even though the Darryl/Andy stuff was more serious, it was for their characters.

  65. $950,000 evenly split between six people rounds out to $158,333.33. Of course, tax laws differ in each state, so I don’t know how much they’d get after taxes.

  66. Did anyone catch Stanley asleep?

    Not the best episode – but there were a few funny bits here and there

  67. Dear writers,

    Can we get more Dwight please? He’s the best thing that ever happened to the show since Steve Carell, it’s better to use him, and please bring back the Jim pranks!

  68. @69 agreed! The Michael Vick comment was offensive. The episode was sub par, but I did enjoy Kevin slipping over.

  69. Oscar always gets riled up at certain things since Angela’s jazz baby poster, so breaking a car window to get a dog out wouldn’t seem out of character (though having the sunroof already open seems illogical). If anyone was out of character, it would be Dwight – he couldn’t drive a forklift (and in a deleted scene a truck). I would’ve expected Kevin to do that, but not Dwight. I’m glad that Nate’s back!

  70. It was pretty bad. I’m all for suspension of belief if the comedic reward is great enough, but pretty much everything fell flat this episode. The cold open in particular was badly written:

    – line about snowboarders and weed (and implied irresponsibility): clearly, this kind of line belongs to Angela, not Oscar

    – Michael Vick line: completely uncalled for, and not funny

    – the car’s sunroof was already open, yet Oscar finds it necessary to smash one of the windows for extra ventilation and the driver-side tail light “for good measure” (the others, absurdly, applaud him for this vandalism) – this part showed much of the group acting out of character, especially Oscar

    – as if that weren’t enough, Jim suggests that Oscar take the dog for his own, despite not having enough information to justify such an action (he doesn’t know the owner, he doesn’t know how long the car has been parked there, etc.)

  71. Very funny episode; I plan to re-watch. The cast seemed to be having a great time and I found it contagious. I wonder if JKras directing made it this way?

  72. My only issue is with the cold open- too out of character moments. Everything else flowed smoothly, I felt. And we had a Creed moment at the end so yep, solid.

  73. I have yet to watch it a second time, but I didn’t find this episode all that funny. I felt uncomfortable watching it, the Darryl stuff was just depressing, the cold open was unbelievable (hey, the sun roof is open, the dog is fine!), oh and loading the truck was drawn out too long and just did not go anywhere funny. 4/10

  74. Tanster – Justin Spitzer didn’t write this episode. Charlie Grandy did. [from tanster: thanks!]

    This episode was not cringefully bad, like Scott’s Tot’s or The Banker. It was just annoyingly bad.

    1. The cold open would have been great without the open sunroof. Where were the charter members of the Coalition for Reason to say, “You know, an open sunroof is better than an open window, since heat rises.”? Oscar? Jim? Anybody?
    2. Would Jim or Dwight not think to call Darryl on his cell phone to find out how to use the hand truck?
    3. Why didn’t Darryl just quit? What was the point in making Andy fire him?

    I know I’m nitpicking. But I’m way too invested in these characters to turn back now.

  75. This episode wasn’t a very funny one for me and I wasn’t sure why until I read some of these other posts. I agree I feel some comments and actions of the characters (Oscar in particular) seemed out of place. Still a big fan of the show though.

    Did anyone get a chance to decipher the blurred out t shirt on the really buff dude that Andy tried to hire?

  76. I thought this was quite a good episode, with several little things that make the Office the great show it is. I am also glad they didn’t go the predictable “they all come back in the end” route. Definitely worth repeated viewings. However, the cold open drops it to 7/10.

  77. Finally got around to watching this episode. I agree with the consensus that the cold open wasn’t all that great. Some out-of-character moments.

    Why are the writers making Kevin so dumb?

    I didn’t mind the Darryl / Andy tension. That’s real life right there and I think Andy handled it well and giving Darryl great reasons as to why he wasn’t given the manager position shows he is growing as manager.

    The warehouse moments were somewhat funny but very unrealistic. I thought Jim would have been more reasonable.

  78. Kevin’s always been this dumb he’s just being used more than one line so it’s more noticeable and less subtle.

  79. #98, Julia: The really buff dude’s T-shirt reads: My (blurred) have biceps… and my biceps have (blurred). Apparently, it’s a gym rat weightlifters’ expression. Probably not a good idea to wear the T-shirt on a job interview, though.

  80. Lackluster episode, although I did laugh at Erin’s awkward scream when Dwight crashed the forklift. It was also nice to see Pam as receptionist again.

  81. I thought this episode was going to be funnier than the previous ones. The cold open was horrible. It wasn’t funny at all and Oscar was not himself. The sun roof was open, so what was all the fuss about? I thought the warehouse scenes were going to be hilarious but they were far from that. Dwight and Jim couldn’t think of a better way to load paper instead of using grease? I can’t believe they ruined boxes just to go along with Kevin’s silly idea. They were both way out of character. I liked the confrontation between Andy and Darryl. Darryl was really annoying me by the time Andy set him straight though. He was acting so unprofessional throughout the whole day when Andy really needed his help. I wish there would have been more scenes with Jim and Dwight. I thought it was funny when Erin screamed and dropped the box of paper. She was great! I enjoyed when Jim and Pam were talking about their fantasies. Ryan and Pam’s scene was great too. I loved Nate! I hope he sticks around. Did anyone catch the extra shot of the bailer? I loved that!

  82. It was pretty good.
    Jim and Dwight were volunteering in the warehouse and didn’t really care about doing a good job. Also, they really did not want to haul those boxes the hard way and were just content to goof off. I don’t get the comments wondering why they didn’t work harder/smarter, I thought it was made pretty clear.
    Also, Erin insisted on using the grease, so they just shrugged and went along with it.

    Oscar is supposed to be sort of smug, so the dog thing makes sense for his character. He felt justified. Him busting the tail light was straight comedy- he was caught up in the moment.

  83. Not a great episode. It’s not The Office that we all know. As simple as that. Jim follows Kevin’s idea is just not right.

  84. I think what everyone is missing regarding Darryl’s behavior is he just RECENTLY reconciled with JUSTINE his daughter’s mother.

    In the beginning of the show, he seemed indifferent to the crew winning the lottery. However, when Justine called at work, she thought he won the lottery, found out that his friend Glenn won instead and then proceeded to ask for his number.

    Of course he was bummed out. That’s what brought his feelings to the surface. That was the needle that broke the camel’s back.

  85. Anyone notice that the door that Dwight ran the forklift into was the door to the room that he and Angela would go to “be alone” all the time? I mean, come on…Of course he would know how to drive a forklift..And another thing, we just found out in the first episode that Angela was pregnant with the senator’s baby. Jealous much, Dwight? =)

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