The thing I love most is when Jim and Pam pull pranks on Dwight, and they didn't let me down in this episode. And Michael with the kid, absolutely hysterical.

Best episode of the season so far by a long shot. It had me laughing out loud throughout the hour.

Definitely enjoyed this episode. Honestly, I think my favorite part was when Darrell and Kelly were flirting, haha.

With Ryan getting cockier and cockier each episode, its starting to seem obvious that the writers want you to develop a slight hatred for the new him... perhaps setting things up for some type of showdown or severe reality-check in the near future.

The opening bit with the DVD screensaver cube was damn funny. I could watch that scene over and over again.

OH! How did I forget about that!? That was awesome... I loved how they all just walked out when it finally hit the corner. hahaha

I wonder how many takes they had to do in order to actually get Michael's monologue timed in sync with the cube hitting the corner.

I loved this episode. Plenty to keep you watching. I loved how Stanley, Oscar and Kevin were trying to figure out what crimes Michael had committed. And just the sheer insanity of Michael kidnapping the pizza guy as a way perhaps of manifesting his anger and frustration with Ryan! Normally his over the top antics bug me, like the car in the lake incident last week, but this one was funny, mainly because of the kids fuck you attitude about it. The part where the kid tells the camera that Dwight grows crappy weed was hilarious. And the DVD screensaver cube, especially Pam's reaction when she found out Jim didn't believe her when she said she had seen it hit the corner once.

I find myself rather sad that Jim and Pam are finally together, despite wanting it for so long. The forbidden chemistry of friends and more is gone....and it's like, now what? Oh well....I was worried as I thought the season premiere was rather weak, but it seems to be picking up!

Nobody has mentioned Andy's awesome rendition of ABBA's "Take A Chance On Me".

I loved it Captainobvious. It was hilarious. Angelas reaction was great too.

Another great moment that I noticed is when Jim and Pam are on the roof, after Pam tells Jim the moment that she knew Jim liked her, Jim asks if she would change it, and she says no and smiles the most beautiful smile at Jim. It's a tiny moment, but just the kind of moment that makes this show and the actors so special...

Me too. Couldn't have punctuated the atmosphere better... they're paying so little attention to him and care so little, that the second the box hits the corner, they're all just *done*. lol

This is an excerpt from a post I'd made on another forum, and just felt like posting it here. I was originally defending the show against a barrage of negativity from some "fans" who were unfairly critical, (I felt) of season four to this point.

but after 3 seasons of waiting, it's nice to just enjoy it a little.

FYI, Karen is supposed to be returning in a few episodes, so that will stir stuff up

Thursday's episode was definitely the best of the season so far, even though it's still not on par with season 2. I like how they toned down Michael a little bit (the episode still had him being overly stupid, but when he realized that he had really kidnapped the kid and went emotionally unstable it was more realistic). I actually laughed a bit during this episode, but nothing like in season 1+2 and the season 3 premiere. Still too many unrealistic jokes like the computer talking to Dwight.

Overall it gives me hope that the series will go back towards season 2 quality.

BTW I agree with the JAM comments...but I disagree on the reasoning. The magic isn't gone because they're together, the magic is gone because their scenes simply aren't written well or funny.

You realize it was Pam and Jim, writing from Pam's computer, right?

I think the unrealistic part was that Dwight was believing a computer was smarter than him! CIA agent? that's believable, but a super computer ? no.

Dwight did type, "How do I know this isn't Jim?"... which I thought addressed that issue quite nicely.

If Dwight wasn't as gullible as he is, I doubt 80% of Jim's pranks would work. The Mussolini speech, Jim's telekinetic powers, the faxes from "future Dwight", etc... would any normal person fall for those?

Absolutely. Dwight's bizarre world-view is Jim's way in to myriad pranks.

It was sad, though, poor unshaven Dwight's desperate attempts to earn Angela's attention. I wonder how deep he'll sink.

Finally got around to seeing episode 3 on tv-links. Man, I was definitely relieved.
Episodes 1 and 2 tried too hard, and this one is right back on track.
I found the evil computer prank funny, and Dwight is absolutely the type to believe in such things. (remember the episode when Jim asks Dwight if he thinks humans and robots can coexist peacefully? Dwight starts answering the question seriously).
I'm glad I didn't see episode 3 before, because now I only have to wait 2 days before episode 4. :D
Hopefully it'll follow the "improvement" pattern and be even better than episode 3.

Ah, what a relief to see the show go back to 30 minute episodes. I think it's safe to say The Office we've all grown to love is back on track now.

not sure what you mean. I liked the first 2 episodes, was pretty "meh" about the 3rd, and thought last night's was just okay

Did anyone else catch the subtle cracks appearing in Jim and Pam's relationship? I applaud the writers for going there and It'll be interesting to chart their progress across the season.

Also, I'm enjoying Andy's character more and more each episode. His pompous and opportunistic baffoon is masterful.

What cracks are you talking about?

1.) Jim being evasive and overly defensive about his 2nd Life avatar.

2.) Pam staying late and forgetting that she was supposed to give Jim a ride home. His annoyance was unmistakable.

These incidents were small and quickly resolved, but I think the writers are laying the groundwork for a quietly escalating story arc.

especially when Karen comes back, which should be in a few episodes

Well, I guess it makes sense that you don't agree, because I thought the first 2 episodes dragged and the 3rd one was the best out of the 1 hour episodes.

The more I think about last night's episode, the more I think it's my favorite of the season so far, even if there were quite a few characters who didn't even make an appearance. Those who were in the episode some great one-liners...

Michael (over the walkie-talkie to Jim): "Aaaah... Jim!! Find Karen... make love to her..."

Andy: "The Finer Things Club is the most exclusive club in the office... and that's where I need to be."

Oscar: "Besides having sex with men, I'd say The Finer Things Club is probably the gayest thing about me."

I almost laughed myself off the couch when this part happened. I teared up. Funniest part of the entire season so far. :thumbsup:

I liked that when Michael was pinned by the fax machine he told Jim to get right on top of her. And he told Jim that if he didn't make it, he was to host the Dundies next year.

Nearly pissed my pants, I laughed so hard.

And you just know that Toby is only there because he's got a thing for Pam.

Did anyone else think that tonight's show (Michael in the wilderness) was blah, and quite possibly the worst episode of the whole series? A few laughs here and there, but overall it just stunk to me. Hopefully next week's will be way better, as it's the last one for now 'cause of the strike...

i didn't think it was so bad...got in a few laughs at survivorman, and explored the idea of jim-as-boss. i particularly enjoyed the last few minutes when you could feel jim doing one of those 'this is my life' moments. i thought it was nice to humanize michael a little bit; he's so often such a caricature. i think the whole bit with getting michael out of the office was crafted to deliver that moment. but i guess we'll see...at some point.

I loved the look of horror on Jim's face when he said he wouldn't be there in ten years and Micheal replied "that's what I said." I also liked Jim's failed idea of consolidating the birthday celebrations and the negative reaction to that. But other than that I think this episode fell flat.

Dwight made this episode funny. Especially his little caches of weapons around the office.
And following Michael around in the woods. The safety is... on.

The only part I laughed at was the montage of Michael's "Happy Birthday" surprises. Definitely the worst episode in a long time.

I don't know, I sort of liked Dwight protecting Michael in the wilderness--both of them still in their business suits. Michael didn't even last until the end of the business day, you notice? And the last scene with Michael and Jim was a total winner.

I thought it was a great show.

There are more shows already taped. About 2 or 3 left before the strike happened.

Check tv.com. They'll give you the synopsis as well.

it wasn't brilliant, but this show served its purpose. it was a 'reset' episode, reestablishing the order of the office (michael is the boss, jim isn't ready, etc.). the forest stuff wasn't that funny (outside of dwight and his eggs) but the last 2 minutes was genius

As you can see... I've tented my pants.

I didn't get the other reference until I watched it a second time. It was magic.

The responses to this episode seem to be either liked it or hated it. I am in the liked it quite a bit camp. I thought there were quite a few funny moments, and I thought the B story was good too. There was a whole lot packed into that tag at the end of the episode. Could be some serious foreshadowing as to the plotline with Jim. I liked Creed doing the birthday dance, and Michael cutting his pants off and duct taping them back on. And lots of other stuff. It was a good episode.

Season 4, by the way, is exceeding all my expectations. I have liked every episode so far. I think it is shaping up extremely well, and I am very disappointed to know that as of right now there is only one (1) more episode left before the reruns. I truly hope the writers strike gets resolved if for no other reason then to keep the momentum of this great season rolling...