The Office (US) S1 E3 - 'Health Care' Mini-Review


The Lion.

Dwight is tasked with deciding the workers' health care plans whilst Michael scrambles desperately to improve morale. Dwight is given chance to shine in this episode and embraces it, with some hilarious savagery on his part. Michael is also on top of his game this week, as he stumbles from failure to failure in an attempt to sort out a surprise for his employees. Unfortunately, he falls flat in his endeavours, leading to an ending which feels reminiscent of The Office (UK)'s trademark bleakness. It's another decent, if unspectacular entry in this first season.

 BEST MOMENTS

  • "I thought you said you were inventing new diseases. That's spontaneous dental hydroplosion"
  • "Right now, this is a job. If I advance any higher in this company, then this would be my career. And, uh... Well, if this were my career, I'd have to throw myself in front of a train"
  • Stanley is extra-sassy towards Michael in this episode and it is just so, so funny to watch
DID YOU KNOW?!*
  • The coal mine employee Michael speaks with over the phone is the voice of Creed
  • When Michael is trying to plan a surprise event for his employees he is seen inquiring about the Coal Mine tour thinking it's a thrill ride. It's not, as the Coal Mine tour guide points out. This is a real tour at McDade Park in Scranton and at some point almost every grade school student goes there for a field day
  • The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) does state that existing employees must not be required to disclose medical information unless the inquiry is related to functions of the employee's job. Therefore Dwight's questioning would indeed be illegal
  • When Michael mentions Drew Carey and Ryan Stiles, he is referring to the improv show, "Whose Line Is It Anyway?"
RATING: 7.7/10





*Trivia from IMDB

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Office (US) S3 E6 - 'Diwali' Mini-Review

Image
The Festival of Lights. Michael's inappropriate jokes were in full swing this episode as the office attended Kelly's family's Diwali celebrations. Ryan was grilled ruthlessly by Kelly's parents in a number of brilliant scenes, whilst Michael proposed, unsuccessfully, to Carol in a cringe-inducing moment. The irritating boss went on to sink even lower by attempting to kiss Pam. It's certainly the lowest we've seen Michael this season, and it will be interesting to see how he brings himself back from this. Karen and Jim meanwhile earned my approval, proving their chemistry is undeniable. Also, it's Rashida freakin' Jones, so WHY is he not leaving the Pam thing behind him and getting with Ann Perkins!! Either way, a solid and gag-filled episode, one of the strongest so far. BEST MOMENTS "One of our most ethnic coworkers" "Pam wishes" "I wish some of us still had our shoes on" "At lezst I'm not dressed as a...
Read more

The Office (UK) S1 E1 - 'Downsize' Review

Image
Investment in People. The first ever episode of The Office (UK)  sets up an entertaining and relatable workplace, although a number of jokes fall flat. 'Downsize' is light on story and heavy on exposition as it aims t o establish the characters and relationships within the fictional offices of  Wernham Hogg, whilst encouraging the viewer to sympathise with these characters and plot threads. As such, the best way to address this episode would be to view it as a character study. Here is what I got from the characters: David Brent (Ricky Gervais) - The protagonist, loveable idiot boss David Brent drives the show forward and his cringe-inducing gags and interactions form the core of the humour in the show. He clearly wants to do good, but is misguided and inappropriate, resulting in awkward office interactions which many viewers would likely associate with. Despite his rudeness and poor sense of humour, I instantly rooted for Brent and his passion for his colleagues. Ti...
Read more

Arrow S1 E16 - 'Dead to Rights' Review

Image
So... Who Needs Two Bullets in the Chest? 'Dead to Rights' is a solid episode in Arrow 's first season. The episode chooses to refocus upon the Undertaking and the overall running arc of the series, and it is all the better for it. We see fractures in the List organisation, as Moira and Frank turn on Malcolm. Similarly, we see Malcolm struggling to maintain the lie of his identity from his son Tommy, and this conflict plays out well across the 42 minute run time. He kills in front of Tommy and almost reveals his Dark Archer outfit to his son, before Lawton interrupts by shooting Malcolm. Lawton's reintroduction as Deadshot is another excellent move by the showrunners. Deadshot, now missing an eye thanks to his last encounter with the Hood, is a great foe and I'm glad he's back in action and likely to return in the future of the Arrowverse. His new robotic eye is bad-ass, as was the fight scenes between Oliver, the Triad and China White. In the past, little...
Read more