The Office: The Surplus

Filed under: Recaps & Reviews

The Scranton office has a $4,300 surplus that needs to be spent by the end of today or else it will be deducted from next year's budget. Michael asks Oscar to explain it to him like he's five years old. Oscar uses a lemonade stand analogy, and I thank him, for it makes much more sense to me now too.

Michael announces to the office at large that Christmas has come early and he'll be spending the surplus on a copier. No one's excited, so he wonders if they have a better idea. Oscar doesn't think Michael should have asked that. Pam wants new chairs, and says that Meredith, Stanley, and Jim are all on her side. Jim: "Actually... I'd go with the copier." And thus begins the great Dunder Mifflin Copier/Chair Feud of 2008.

You see, Jim makes his own copies now because he feels weird asking his girlfriend to do it for him. And, he says, that copier sucks. Pam passive-aggressively threatens Jim in the lunch room. He's all, "Are you threatening me?" and she's like, "Jim. I am not threatening you. I love you," as she kisses him lightly but menacingly. Jim shudders in an interview.

Oscar invites Michael out to lunch to romance him into a new copier, and when Jim overhears, he invites himself along too. Pam declares this thing on. The guys return from lunch an hour later just about rolling on the floor in laughter, high-fiving all over the place. Jim brought Pam, who's rocking some serious lipstick, a slice of tiramisu. She acts all touched and impressed and then dumps it in the garbage can. Jim: "You look really pretty." Pam: *hair toss*. She heads into Michael's office to sweet-talk him.

Later, Pam tries to copy something and fails miserably. Jim invites her onto their team, but she's satisfied with her crooked, ripped copies. Meanwhile, Kevin buys Michael a hot chocolate and everyone is all over Michael today.

Since they're at an impasse, Michael calls in Hank the security guard to make the final decision on this "iss-you." Michael gives him the rundown on the situation (he tries to use the lemonade example, but Hank cuts him off -- he knows what a surplus is. Honestly.), and Hank muses over the copier and the chairs for awhile before Michael gets frustrated with his waffling and dismisses him.

Michael, choking on the leftover tiramisu's chocolate powder (BEEN THERE), calls David Wallace to ask him to make the decision for him so he doesn't have to be the bad guy. David tells him that he'd just return the surplus and take the bonus -- 15% of the savings, or $645. Michael interviews that he would really love to visit Burlington Coat Factory with that money.

He exits his office and announces that they don't need a new copier, and they don't need new chairs, and they are spoiled, and there are starving children in Africa, and... Why don't you send them the surplus then, Michael? Or even your precious fur coat money?

Oscar calls Michael on his scheme by asking what 15% of 4,300 is. Michael immediately announces it's 645 dollars. Kevin thinks Michael's a genius and keeps asking him hard math questions. Michael interviews that he wants to find out a way to keep this money without everyone hating him.

The staff as a whole pounces on Michael in his office and says he needs to make a decision. He gets so frustrated he says he's leaving and they have to stay in his office until they can come to a unanimous decision, or he's taking the bonus. Moments later, Oscar and Pam find Michael in the lunch room and say they're going with the chairs. Oscar figured he'd rather have new chairs than nothing at all. Michael: "Motherf--"

In the B-plot, Dwight continues helping Andy and Angela with their Schrute Farms wedding. They head out to the farm in the middle of a workday and Dwight continues to be very creepy. Blah blah weirdo wedding discussions, who cares. Andy steps in cow poo a lot.

Dwight makes Andy and Angela try out the wedding in the marriage barn or whatever it's called, with Andy playing Angela's dad and Dwight playing Andy. Dwight's got some German-speaking Mennonite preacher named Conrad there to perform the imaginary ceremony. They go through the whole thing, and Dwight-as-Andy and Angela-as-Angela both say their I-dos.

Outside, Mose and Andy are playing basketball off to the side while Angela tells Dwight the whole fake ceremony felt right and that she made a mistake choosing Andy. Dwight knows, which is why the fake ceremony was real, and they're now officially married. Angela freaks and runs away, and Mose throws the basketball at Andy's head.

When they're back at the office, Angela marches up to Andy, plops herself on his lap, and makes out with him. In the middle of Cubicle Land. She says she needs to take care of a legal matter and strides off.

And as the episode ends, Michael, wearing a giant fur coat, interviews that you should always make sure you have the money for sure before you put a fur coat on your credit card. As the camera pans out, we see the midsection of the coat is covered in red... something. He continues that also, apparently some people think it's funny to throw buckets of fake blood on you when you come out of Burlington Coat Factory.

Tags: the office u.s., the office, office, office u.s., michael scott

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Original Comments Posted (4)

ladyjbug says...

I am so happy you mentioned the way Michael said “iss-you". It was a weird episode. I'm not sure I like the new, overly assertive Pam.

Dec 5, 2008 11:14am

Ariana says...

I do like her, but yeah, it was a weird episode. LESS SCHRUTE FARMS. Always less Schrute Farms.

Dec 7, 2008 1:33am

metal2000 says...

More Schrute Farms! More Mose playing catch with Andy! More Andy in general!

Dec 7, 2008 7:02am

sarahm says...

I agree this was kind of a weird episode all around... the only part I liked was when Mose threw the ball at Andy's head. Awesome.

Dec 11, 2008 12:20pm

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