The Office – Episode 5-27 Review

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“Normally I don’t condone leaving early, but I have an appointment with a horse doctor. How that horse became a doctor, I don’t know. I’m kidding. He’s just a regular doctor who shoots your horse in the head when his leg is broken.”

Season finale “Company Picnic” sees Michael and Holly reunited at last, though Michael fully intends to express his feelings with her boyfriend present. Meanwhile, Jim and Pam join the rest of the office in a volleyball tournament against another branches.

The volleyball game is a success for Scranton, who advance to the final round against corporate.

David Wallace has allowed Michael and Holly to put on a presentation about the history of Dunder Mifflin. Michael’s plan to wing the presentation backfires as he and Holly’s brainstorming only leads to rehashes of classic films. The end product is “SlumDunder Mifflinaire”, complete with torture scenes.

“I usually don’t enjoy the theater, but this is delightful.”

The “SlumDunder Mifflinaire” skit takes a terrible turn as Holly posits to Michael:

“The economic downturn has been difficult lately, forcing the closing of Canden and Yonkers, followed soon by what other branch…?”

The Buffalo branch finds out that they will soon be out of jobs, which David Wallace confirms as Michael and Holly take a bow.

While David consoles the families of the soon-to-be unemployeed, Scranton branch decides to continue the volleyball tournament against corporate regardless. Dwight reasons that “if [they] don’t play, the other team wins…”

Pam, Scranton’s best player, is injured during the game and David and Charles insist that she get her leg checked out as it is technically a “company injury”. Dwight decides to stall the game so that Jim can drive Pam to a nearby hospital and back before the tournament is over.

Michael and Holly share a tender moment when they review their own performances, but Michael abstains from opening up to Holly telling her instead that he looks forward to next year’s presentation. He bids Holly and A.J. goodbye and confides to the camera that he is in no rush and is confident that they will end up together eventually.

Charles and David pressure Dwight to put in the substitute players when the game has been delayed for too long but he continues to stall. Pam and Jim appear to receive the okay from a doctor to return to the game, but when Jim leaves the room he tells Dwight to send in the subs.

An episode that cleans up the mediocre mess of “Cafe Disco”, “Company Picnic” is a decent end to a season that held more surprises than laughs of any previous season. Regardless of a bumpy first half, The Office proved that it’s still got it with the epic Michael Scott Paper Company storyline and served as an excellent showcase for Michael’s belated maturity in his relationship with Holly Flax. Pam and Jim were put on hold for a few episodes, but, unless the wedding takes place over the summer, season six will likely see them back at the forefront planning and/or having a wedding. Here’s to Pam walking down the aisle in a cast.