What Happened, Yo!:
-In the midst of his divorce, Robert is planning to sell his mansion, which he had bought with the intention of making it a playboy mansion-esque place before he got married and his wife took over. Kevin convinces him to throw a pool party for the office and Robert agrees, but he uses the term get together instead of party.
-Andy brings Jessica, who met his parents recently and was such a big hit with them, they gave Andy the family ring. Andy is unsure if he wants to use it though, but he keeps it in his pocket. Unfortunately, the ring is misplaced and Kelly finds it. In an attempt to get it back without revealing that it's his ring, Andy convinces Kelly that the ring brings bad luck since it must come from a failed marriage and tries to take it, but Kelly and Phyllis decide to destroy it by having a viking funeral for it.
-Meanwhile, Erin learns from Meredith that Andy had followed her home during Christmas Wishes. Deciding to make Andy jealous again, she starts trying to flirt with Dwight, who goes along with it because he assumes he was chosen for his manliness. Andy is so distracted by the search for his ring, he doesn't notice, so they start a bunch of chicken fights hoping to get Andy and Jessica involved. It's a while until that happens though, and Erin's efforts to win cause Dwight to pass out in the water. Later, Dwight tests Andy to see if he's truly over Erin and when Andy indicates he is, Dwight calls him an idiot. Erin finds Andy's ring in the pool, and recognizing his family crest returns it to him. Andy tells Erin he's really confused right now and Erin accepts it.
-Meanwhile Jim attempts to make a strong impression and leave early, but winds up trapped on a tour of Robert's mansion where Robert laments how his mansion never became what he wanted it to be thanks to his marriage. They go through all the rooms, consuming fancy wine as they do. When they get back to the pool though, Robert looks at the party before him and realizes that instead of lamenting the nights that never were, he should have been partaking in the night that was happening before him. He declares his get together a party, strips naked, and dives into the pool. Gabe and Ryan who have been brown nosing all night follow suit, and this event is enough to cause Jim to finally bolt from the party.
-And in a minor subplot that is still a continuation of an ongoing storyline, Daryl bonds with Val a bit, but becomes self-conscious when she goes into the pool and his upper flab hasn't gone away. He resists but eventually he jumps in the pool and joins in the fun.
I Liked This: I found Pool Party to be another strong episode of The Office Season 8. Robert California continues to be an outrageous, yet human character and I enjoyed both his tour through his home and his revelation at the end. I'd like to think that after this experience, he'll be closer with the Dunder Mifflin staff. I also enjoyed Gabe and Ryan's brown nosing, and Toby faking being a wine expert to impress Oscar. As for the other plots, Daryl's slow courtship of Val continues to be entertaining and a storyline worth investing my time in. I enjoyed Erin's attempts to get Andy jealous by flirting with Dwight, which turned out to be a funny combination. Andy and Erin's long-term relationship storyline has been pretty inconsistent ever since it began back in season 6, but I've been enjoying it more and more this season. I just hope we get a major development in this story, sooner rather than later.
But...: Jessica still just exists as a generic girlfriend character, so it's hard to view her as anything more than an obstacle at this point in the game. And much of the stuff with Andy's ring didn't do that much for me.
The Bottom Line: Pool Party was a strong, enjoyable episode of The Office with lots of good moments with the characters we (or at least I) have grown to love.
Grade: Totally Awesome! (Great)
Memorable Moments
-The cold open with Jim using meatballs for his pranks on Dwight to make Stanley laugh, started out funny and got even funnier when it was revealed that Dwight and Stanley were running a con to get free meatballs.
-Dwight: "We'll never have to buy meatballs again!"
-Andy: "I haven't proposed to anyone in years".
-Robert: "The ultimate insult? They're calling my speakeasy lounge a rumpus room".
-Robert: "The 1% are suffering too, people!"
-Val: "Does Daryl not swim?" Kevin: "That's racist!"
-Erin: "Andy's confused. That's not what I was hoping for, but it's not so bad either. I can live with confused. I get confused. I totally get confused."
-Oscar: "I am Bacchus, God of Wine!" Toby: "And I am Bacchus' friend!"
-Robert: "It's not a party if you don't do something that scares you".
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