“Business Trip” opens with Michael conducting a meeting about proper conduct during an international business trip. Because David Wallace is sending him to the foreign land of Canada.
Oscar and Andy are brought along, and both Michael and Oscar fall victim to Andy playing matchmaker.
“I don’t care if you’re gay, straight, engaged, whatever. A guy needs intercourse.”
Andy tries to hook Oscar up with two straight men at a bar, while he successfully manages to bring Michael closer to the concierge –Marie (Reno 911’s Wendi McLendon-Covey)– from their hotel.
“The concierge is the Winnepeg equivalent of a geisha.”
Marie takes Michael back to her apartment, but he’s seen being kicked out soon afterwards.
Meanwhile, Oscar coerces Andy to call Angela to ask “What’s wrong with her?” Andy drunkenly asks why she won’t have sex with him. The next morning, he’s shocked to find out that the phone call was not a dream, and Angela has set their relationship back to first base: forehead kissing.
Back in the office, Jim has been counting down the days until Pam returns to Scranton.
“Everyone’s been really happy for me…and involved, and intrusive, and…weird.”
Pam calls later to tell him she’s failed a class and has to stay three more months in NYC to retake it. Jim encourages her to stay so that she comes back “the right way,” but they both end the conversation on the brink of tears.
In an odd choice of story development, Ryan impresses Kelly with a poor set of push-ups and they wind up making out on her desk. He takes her phone and types up a break up text for her to send to Darryl. Much to Ryan’s surprise, Darryl responds that “It’s cool,” and Ryan is clearly distressed at the ease of the break up.
“It was a bad trip.”
At the airport, Michael calls David to complain about the overall “suckiness” of the trip and–in that heartbroken voice only Steve Carrell can conjure–Michael asks why Holly had to be sent away. In an emotionally forced voiceover, Michael says that he’s stayed at Dunder-Mifflin so long because they they respect him.
“Even if you just told off your boss and they haven’t fired you…that’s respect.”
“I’m coming back the wrong way.”
Pam is in the parking lot waiting for Jim at the end of the day, insisting that he is not the sole reason for her return. He welcomes her back with a long kiss, Dwight welcomes her back with a request for five copies of a document.
Not quite on par with “Customer Survey,” but “Business Trip” resolves the distance between Pam and Jim well. Each time that I’ve felt like they’re pulling another ambiguous, cliche development between those two, they pull it back and surprise with an immediate and simple resolution. It was fun to see Oscar and Andy together, and Michael’s plight is increasingly depressing. I did find it odd for the writers to revisit Ryan and Kelly’s relationship.
There are whispers of B.J. Novak’s future departure from the show (in an acting capacity at least), and I suppose Kelly would be one of the better reasons for writing Ryan Howard off. Not the best of the season, but most certainly not the worst.
Mike Trevino is a rabid fan of House and The Office and blogs out of San Antonio, TX.
