The Office (US) S2 E1 - 'The Dundies' Mini-Review

Fun-Raiser.

Michael attempts to raise spirits in the workplace by hosting the Dundie Awards - an annual car-crash of an awards show in which Michael makes offensive jokes and hands out inappropriate awards in an attempt to boost morale. It's a hilarious watch and proves that the showrunners have rearranged their priorities coming into season 2 and are heading in a different and much improved direction. Jim and Pam's relationship also received a much needed jolt in this opening episode as the couple shared a drunken kiss for the first time. Hopefully this changes the dynamic between the pair as they navigate their feelings for one another. Packed with brilliant one-liners and a new emphasis on camerawork to create comedy, 'The Dundies' is a statement of intent.

BEST MOMENTS

• “Neighbour’s hanged himself”
• “Kelly if you tell me, you’ll be punished less”
• The Tsunami Fun-raiser
• “We’ll see you next year!” – wow Roy is not a good dude sometimes
• Michael snapping at Dwight was great
• Seeing Stanley smile was so strange!
• “Devon”
• “Like a kid’s birthday party” – so, so accurate
• “you may hit a bump and spill the drink”
• “It’s this person whose hand I’m holding Michael”
• “Like an AIDS test?”
• “BUSHIEST BEAVER” hahahahah
• Ping was unbelievable, especially that shot of the poor Asian girl in the background
• “Because she has a great caboose” – WOW
• The Spicy Curry award – cannot believe they got away with this
• Felt so sorry for Michael when those guys at the bar bullied him
• “But at least I didn’t get Smelliest Bowel Movement like Kevin”
• Pam and Jim have kissed!!
• “Which for me, has ruined them for life”
• “People are trying to eat”
• “She is not welcome at this restaurant chain ever again” – the SASS on that!
• What was Pam going to ask?! I’m sure we can all guess...

DID YOU KNOW?!*

• Greg Daniels has said that The 40 Year-Old Virgin (2005) was a huge part of the process where the show went from being promising but very erratic in Season 1 to a huge hit that would win the Best Comedy Series Emmy in 2006 and run for seven seasons after that. The reason for this is that Steve Carell's performance in Judd Apatow's film gave them a guide for how to make Carell's Michael Scott into a more nuanced and likable character (even as Michael was not intended to be, and wasn't, as nice or good a person as his Andy character from the film). One of the major problems with Season 1 was that Michael Scott was often mean or menacing, and keying into Carell's other work helped re-calibrate Michael Scott into more of a well-meaning person who was still often ridiculous and/or incompetent.
• Chili's public relations department was unhappy that Pam was shown getting drunk at their restaurant and wanted the producers to remove the Chili's name from the episode. To assuage them, the writers added a line from an actor playing a Chili's employee, saying that Pam had violated their rules by taking drinks off other tables and was now banned from the franchise
• Greg Daniels previously considered using the plot from this episode for the pilot, but decided it was a "very risky thing to do" and decided to make the pilot a direct adaption of the first episode of the British version
• Jenna Fischer revealed during an episode of the Office Ladies podcast that the original script had her vomiting on the bar, when she's drunk and sitting next to Jim. The Chili's personnel who were overseeing the production (as the episode took place at a Chili's location, albeit fictional) were concerned as to what repercussions that might have on their brand and filming shut down as Greg Daniels and Mindy Kaling scrambled to find an alternative to that scene - which ended up being Pam falling off the stool, and subsequently being banned from Chili's due to her disorderly behavior
• In "The Dundies" and "The Client," some characters go to Chili's for various things. Michael says it is just a few blocks down the road, but the closest Chili's to Scranton is actually 15 miles away
• The end of this episode includes a Chili's employee announcing that Pam (Jenna Fischer) had been banned by the franchise for her drunken antics. In 2017, Fischer tweeted a photo of herself outside a Chili's, asking if she should go in. Chili's later sent out a mock press release, saying: Effective immediately, Chili's® Grill & Bar has removed the longstanding ban on a Scranton, Pennsylvania woman who allegedly caused a disturbance during a company awards party held at a Chili's near the Pennsylvania town of Scranton. "After reviewing the good conduct of Pam, I have decided to lift the now 11-year ban," said Kelli Valade, President of Chili's. "Pam is an inspiration to many and we welcome her with open arms."

RATING: 8.2/10









*Trivia from IMDB