The Office – Episode 6-07 Review

Shows, Top Story

On this week’s episode, the newlyweds return to news of Michael’s new love interest: Pam’s mom.

Dwight unexpectedly offers Jim a duck figurine as a peace offering. Jim soon finds that it is wired with a microphone.

Michael plans on inviting Pam to dinner with he and her mother, Helena, to announce their relationship. Jim warns Michael that he should never tell Pam, but she gets curious when she overhears his fancy dinner plans. Michael inevitably blabs the secret to Pam while trying to conceal it. Pam does not take this well at all and takes some time to herself to scream in the parking lot.

“Dwight picked the wrong day to put a wooden mallard in my office.”

Pam calls her mother to express her disapproval and tries to involve Jim by telling him that she’s now his mother too. After a call from Helena about Pam being upset, Michael finds the opportunity to announce the news again…this time to the entire office during a meeting. To spite each other, both Pam and Michael refuse to leave the office before the other.

Jim puts the wooden mallard at Kelly’s desk, which Ryan offers to sell back to Dwight. When Jim notices it back at his desk, he whispers to it “Dwight, I see you’ve brought the mallard back.” Dwight responds aloud to Jim from his desk and accepts Jim’s punishment for spying.

After failing to get Pam to leave by conning Toby into talking to her, Michael confronts her again. He asks Pam to consider his own happiness, but Pam “couldn’t give a s@&* about his happiness.”

“You know what? I’m going to start dating her even harder.”

Jim shows Pam that Dwight offered to wash their car in the parking lot to lighten her horrible day (actually his punishment for the mallard). She cheers up, but admits that she won’t be alright with Michael Scott sleeping with her mother. The episode ends with Dwight revealing to the camera the cleverly hidden microphone that had been on Jim’s desk all day.

“The Lover” is a nice return to form after last week’s self-contained episode. Pam actually having a moment with Erin (finally!) was nice. Hopefully Pam’s disapproval of Erin’s receptionist style is something that’ll be addressed again later. Michael and Toby’s 10 minute friendship and most of the office deciding that Pam’s mom is old enough to date who she wants (Phyllis wishing the best for Michael, Oscar trying to rationalize) were nice touches as well. Let’s hope to see some of Helena and Michael next week.