The season opens as Dwight clips his fingernails at his desk (disgusting) and blows them onto the adjacent desk (even more disgusting). But it turns out to be Ryan’s desk, not Jim’s. After Pam rejected him, Jim left to take a promotion at another branch. The opening shot was classic. “The Office” doesn’t just tell you Jim is gone, they tell you via Dwight’s fingernail clippings (and Ryan’s 10-year reunion) that he’s gone.
So Jim is gone…and Pam is single.
That’s right. Indecisive Pam actually decided not to marry the neanderthalish Roy after all. They still see each other at lunchtime when Roy brings up a plate of fish and a plate of chicken. After a sigh, Pam chooses the chicken. She called off the wedding, but they still had to pay the caterer, so the former couple decided to freeze the food and eat it for lunch over the next five weeks.
Man, I love Pam.
Roy is upset about the breakup and hit a low point when he got a DUI – how great was that mug shot? He is bound and determined to win Pam back, and seems genuinely upset about losing her.
He won’t have a chance if/when Jim finds out, but it’s not clear if Jim knows about Pam’s decision. I’m guessing by his actions he doesn’t, but how could he not?
Dwight’s interview to close the opening bit was priceless. He wails and screams that he misses Jim and then says, “False! I dont’ miss him at all.”
I also loved the interview with the brunette from the other office, who said that Jim seems all right, but he’s always looking at the camera and shrugging.
It’s good to see Steve Carrell throw Ed Helms some work. He played the guy that calls Jim “Big Tuna.” Helms and Carrell worked on “The Daily Show” together.
The rest of the episode was dedicated to Oscar’s undesired outing at work. Michael was over the top for most of the episode, and I hope they don’t lean on that too much this season. Michael is at his funniest when he’s subtlety offensive – his comments about Phyllis’ engagement were hilarious. “Congratulations. That’s great…and pretty unbelievable.” There were a few good moments in the conference room where Pam looked to Ryan to share a laugh at something Michael said or did, but he just didn’t get the joke. It’s clear she misses Jim, but what is she going to do about it?
And how would a Jim/Pam relationship affect the show? In the past, that kind of leap has caused many a show to jump the shark. My guess is that they’ll get the band back together within a few episodes, but they’ll drag the Jim/Pam thing out a while.
