Just Another Day At The Office 05.16.08: Goodbye Toby Review

Posted by Seth Roy on 05.17.2008

Toby Flenderson goes bye-bye, an old character makes a triumphant return, a long-awaited proposal finally happens, Kevin is slow and Phyllis sees something she doesn't want to see.

Hello, and welcome to the season finale edition of Just Another Day at the Office! Beginning next week: Just Another Day at The Office (Retro Edition), beginning at the first episode of the series. We'll take a look at each of the episodes, and maybe a revisit will remind us of where we've been, and provide some enlightenment as to how we got here.

Enough with the future! Onto the recent past:

Cast:
Steve Carell ... Michael Scott
Rainn Wilson ... Dwight Schrute
John Krasinski ... Jim Halpert
Jenna Fischer ... Pam Beesly
B.J. Novak ... Ryan Howard
Brian Baumgartner ... Kevin Malone
Angela Kinsey ... Angela Martin
Phyllis Smith ... Phyllis Vance
Leslie David Baker ... Stanley Hudson
Kate Flannery ... Meredith Palmer
Paul Lieberstein ... Toby Flenderson
Mindy Kaling ... Kelly Kapoor
Creed Bratton ... Creed
Oscar Nuñez ... Oscar Martinez
Ed Helms ... Andy Bernard
Amy Ryan (for now?) ... Holly Flax

We open up with a classic Jim/Dwight interaction. Dwight's cell phone rings, and he answers it. But his phone doesn't work...until Jim answers it with his headset, and starts taking an order. Dwight yells that it is an imposter. Jim explains the prank: "Dwight left his cell phone on his desk, so, naturally, I paired it to my headset." Next, Pam calls the phone. Dwight notices that Pam thinks she is talking to him, and yells at her that she is talking to Jim. Pam gets confused because she thinks she's talking to Dwight on the phone (Obviously, she's in on the joke.) Dwight tells Jim to disconnect the head set, then tries to rip it off Jim's ear. Dwight reprograms his phone to go to his office phone. Then we find out that Jim forwarded Dwight's office phone to his own phone, as well. (This hearkens back to the early episodes of the show, when Jim constantly pulls pranks on Dwight. Also, this is the second time he's caused Dwight to destroy his cell phone.)

Cue intro. (Oy: This is going to be a long article! Hour-long episode. Ready for the ride?)

Back from the intro, we learn that today is Toby's last day, from Michael. Michael shows up early to work, and is in a good mood. "There's certain days that you know you will remember for the rest of your life, and I just have a feeling that today is one of those days." Michael sets his watch alarm as Toby walks in to work, so his alarm will go off when Toby's day is over. Toby walks to his workspace, where Kelly cries about it being his last day.

Conference room: Michael talks with Angela, Phyllis and Pam about Toby's going-away party. Angela describes her modest, reasonable plans (Including a slideshow of Toby with two pictures), which Michael quickly shoots down. Michael wants to give Toby a New Orleans-style parade (funeral procession). Michael: "If the devil were to explode, and evil were gone forever, what sort of party would you have?" Angela gets fired up, and tells Michael there is no money for a big party. So, he gets into the stash he has kept in his shoe for who knows how long...(Could that be a nod to Steve Carell's turn in Get Smart? Maybe, maybe not.) We find out that Michael's sweet, sweet grandmother sends him $50 for every birthday, and recently she's been sending nine or 10 a year. He wanted to save it for a special occasion: To by a motorcycle. So he put the money in his shoe and forgot about it. Until now. Michael tells the party committee that he wants a party where he feels like he is "flying through the air." He wants an anti-gravity machine. Pam plays along, but Angela freaks out and tells him she doesn't want his foot money. So, Michael looks to Phyllis to plan the party. She says yes. (Boy, that was long!)

Now we get to the best part of the episode: Amy Ryan as Holly Flax. She gets to be trained by Toby for the day. He shows her the filing cabinets. She says she loves the view from the desk. (sarcastically).

Pam sees something exciting on her computer, and looks to Jim's chair, but Jim is not there. So, she goes to the break room — where Jim is — kisses him on the cheek and OBVIOUSLY has something exciting to tell him. She just found out she got into the Pratt School of Design in NYC. Jim is excited for her. She forgot to check when she leaves, but she will be gone for three months. This saddens them a bit, but things are going well and it will work out, they say. Pam says the timing is perfect, because things are going well, and they aren't quite starting a family yet. (Okay: I'm going to write some sidenotes as to what I was thinking here: So, they're going with the Pam-going-to-New-York-to-cause-disruption-in-the-relationship card next season)

Next, Toby is introducing Holly to the office. Michael instantly hates her because Toby thinks she will be great. Dwight hates her too. Because she stinks with her ways and her head. Michael tells Dwight to think for himself, then agrees that Holly's head is weird. Michael says they need to haze Holly to initiate her to Dunder-Mifflin. Dwight gets excited.

Phyllis is in the conference room trying to plan the party. She calls information and asks, seriously, for any companies who make anti-gravity machines. The operator is confused. Phyllis tells her that they make people feel lighter. The operator says, "Anti-depressants?" Phyllis says okay.

In Michaels office, Toby enters to introduce Holly. Michael doesn't want to meet her. She walks in, and he calls her a female Toby, and insults her. He says, "My job is to make the office fun. Your job is to make the office lame. And we have an eternal struggle, you and I. And one of us is going to be the winner. Spoiler alert: I'm gonna win." Holly's reply: "Man, someone doesn't like HR. (To Toby) What did you do to him?" Michael: "He tortured me with his awfulness." Holly: "Yeah, I know what you mean. I nearly fell asleep when he gave me a tour of the files." Instantly, he is smitten. Michael blames Toby for hating HR, but thinks Holly could be the office's E.T., or at least an awesome woman from this planet.

Next, Holly meets Creed. She asks Creed exactly what he does here, to which he freaks out. Behind the fridge, he says what he does there is nobody's business, and then he can't remember. (Quality assurance? Right?) Also, if you will remember, Creed recently said he'd finished his work months ago. (What DOES Creed do with his time, aside from looking like the Jigsaw Killer and being extremely funny.)

Next, Dwight is showing Holly around now. He asks if she's met Kevin yet, and she says no. (I am going to try to embed a video below this paragraph of this interaction with Kevin. It had me laughing for a couple minutes.) Dwight tells Holly that Kevin is slow in his brain, to which she is impressed that Dunder-Mifflin hired him. In a talking head, Dwight defines hazing as "a fun way to show a new employee that she is not welcome or liked." Then he introduces Holly to the accounting department, including Angela, Oscar and Kevin. Holly goes straight to Kevin and smiles like you would smile at a small child. She asks him what he does. Kevin: "I do the numbers." Holly: "Oh, good for you." Kevin, innocently: "Do you want an M&M?" She declines. Kevin: "I keep them here at my desk so that everybody doesn't take them." This is SO funny.



Michael walks over and makes a joke about hanging Holly from the ceiling and kissing under her...Michael asks her if she is a Holly-gram, to which she laughs a little. Michael asks about her commute, then offers to mix a CD for her. Akwaaaaard.

Next, We see Pam's gift to Toby: A picture of everybody in the office. He is sad that it doesn't have her in it. He wants a picture of the two of them, too. He doesn't have a camera with him, so he yells at the office to see if anyone has a camera. No one does. Toby runs out of the office to get one. (My thought: Oh no! Toby is going to do something crazy to drive a wedge between Pam and Jim.)

Jim is on the phone telling Ryan that he got the fax that closed the sale, presumably from the week before. Ryan is short with him, telling Jim congratulations for doing his job. Ryan reminds Jim to log the sale in the Web site. Then he hangs up.

Michael is making his mixed CD, with a Dave Matthews Band song, where the first words we hear are "hike up the skirt." He calls Jim in for advice about making a CD that says both "Welcome to Scranton" and "I love you." Jim tries to tell Michael that he doesn't love Holly. (Michael also thinks U2 was from Scranton). Michael says it was love at first "see with my ears." Michael says Jim isn't a romantic, to which Jim says he is, reminding Michael that he has a little experience with office romance. (Michael always claims to forget/not believe Jim and Pam are still dating.) Jim tells Michael that he took it slow with Pam, then recounts the ways he got to know her at work, and all the great memories they have together in the office. Jim gets a look on his face like, "hmmmmmmm..."

He rushes into the conference room and tells Phyllis he is going to pay for fireworks at Toby's party. He says he's going to miss Toby. Jim tells the camera he is going to propose tonight. (My thoughts of the moment: They're going through with it! Jim proposes to Pam, and THAT is the cliffhanger. Or. Wait a minute. Toby might still do something shady.)

Next, Kevin is in the break room trying to decide what to get. Holly walks in, thinking he needs help. She deliberately counts his money, telling him he can get anything up in the top row. Kevin looks at the camera, then we are in a talking head. Kevin: "I am totally gonna bang Holly. She's cute, and helpful. And she really seems into me." (Times like this are when I love Kevin, and this little subplot, while seemingly meaningless, is SO funny. The only downfall is that Kevin is likely to get his heart broken again.)

Jim is in the hallway talking to Ryan's voicemail. He tells Ryan that he won't be pushed around anymore. He shuts the phone and takes a breath.

Back in the office, Michael goes to find Holly, who is sitting on the floor next to a non-put-together chair. He tells her she could get a chair that's already put together. She says she was trying to fix it, and it broke. And now, it's completely apart. Holly tells him the story of the woman who ended up on the floor, and Michael tried to make a joke about her standing at the desk and working. She gives him a pity smile. Michael gets on the ground and says he doesn't know how she sits like she sits. She says, "Yoga." He does a Yoda impression. She looks weirded out, to which Michael laughs and says, "Yo-da." Holly then does her own Yoda impression. Michael asks her if she'll be in town this weekend...because, he won't be. Holly: "Oh? So you can't make my orgy?" Michael is surprised by this. She says she is kidding, then they go on an "acting" shouting match. (Wow, is this woman perfect for Michael.)

Michael goes to tell Jim that he is taking it slow with Holly.

Phyllis goes to Angela to ask for vendor contacts, to which Angela tells her she shredded the list. Phyllis feels scorned. She pushes Angela's books off her desk.

Next, Toby walks in on Michael and Holly fixing the chair. Toby: "What did you guys do?" Michael tells Toby to go home and come back for the party. Toby reminds Michael about the exit interview, to which Michael gets excited. Michael thinks it will just be the two of them in the conference room, and is dismayed when Holly and Pam walk in. Michael's initial questions are accusatory. Then he goes by the binder and threatens Toby's life if Toby says anything bad. Toby relents, and says it just isn't worth it to fight back anymore, because he is leaving. Pam suggests that Toby opens his present from Michael, which Michael objects to. It is a big rock with a Post-It note that says "Suck on this" attached. Michael tries to blame it on Dwight, who wrapped the "gift." Michael says the gift is a psyche, then Pam suggests that Michael's watch is the real gift. Toby likes his new watch. Toby sets it to Costa Rica time.

Just then, there is a disturbance in the office, and I think Creed says, "It's the kid. It's the temp." And Jim is on YouTube, which shows Ryan getting arrested for his massive drug...Wait, wait. No. He is arrested for his Web site scam, which made it appear that the company was doubling its actual sales. Oscar says it is fraud, but adds that the real crime was Ryan's beard...(Get it? Oscar's gay...)

Michael is just saying, "Oh my God, Ryan, Oh my God." Kelly fantasizes about visiting Ryan in prison, and dressing up sexy to make Ryan jealous and the other prisoners make fun of him for dumping her. Jim asks Pam to connect him to Ryan. He gets the voicemail. Jim tells Ryan disregard his last message because he has his hands tied. (My thoughts at this moment in time: Could it really happen? Jim proposes to Pam at the end of this episode, and eventually gets Ryan's job, meaning they can move in together in New York?)

Michael is in his office crying. Holly goes in to comfort him. Michael thinks she is sweet and simple.

Everyone walks out into the parking lot, which is filled with a bounce house and a ferris wheel. (Not quite Michael's anti-gravity machine, but close...) Kevin runs toward the bounce house and says, "Cool, a bouncy house!" Phyllis reminds him to take off his shoes first. Darryl's band is playing.

Pam comments on the coolness of the parking lot, then notices the fireworks. She asks the camera people if Jim is going to propose tonight. (My thoughts: Doubt creeps in. What is Toby going to do to mess this up?)

Michael and Holly are riding the ferris wheel, and we find out a little about her previous company. Holly: "It was easy to get in, but impossible to rise up." Michael: "That's what she s... a lot of places are like that." Holly: "I think it's really cool you hired Kevin." Michael: "Thanks."

Dwight and Meredith are messing around with a car. We learn that it is Holly's car, and then Mose puts a raccoon in it. Michael and Holly see this, and Michael yells at Dwight for it. Michael tells everybody to look at Holly. He says she is the best thing that's happened to Dunder-Mifflin since WWII. She is touched by what he said. And she touches him on the arm. Slightly awkward moment. Then they walk away from each other. He tells the camera that when a girl touches him, he gets really excited. Jan, apparently, wasn't a fan of PDA. (My thoughts: Holly is so perfect for Michael. And Michael is being mature. Hmmm, what could go wrong here?)

The party is out of barbecue sauce. Phyllis sends Kevin to buy some. Holly is impressed that he can drive.

Next, Michael sings a song to Toby. He says it is the best party they've ever had, to which Angela glares at him. Michael's voice actually isn't too bad...Pam interview: "I'm going to miss Toby. He has a nice, calming presence in the office. Don't tell him I said this, but I always thought he was kind of cute." (Nooooooooooo! And, does anyone else think it is weird that Toby is sitting next to Jim? Shouldn't Jim have some sort of problem with him?)

Holly is impressed with Michael's singing, and wants to hear "Beers in Heaven." He says it is too soon for them because it is very sexual. His phone rings, and it is Kevin: "Michael, I'm at Gerrity's. You need to come down here." Michael: "Just pay for it, and we'll reimburse you when you get back." Kevin: "I brought my money. Michael, there's something that you need to see. Just hurry." Holly is worried that Kevin drove and is in trouble. Michael tells her not to move a muscle (while she has a drink to her mouth), then laughs and tells her she can finish her drink. She looks after him, then smiles and kind of blushes at the camera.

Michael gets to the supermarket and JAN walks out with Kevin. Michael is a bit dismayed, as he apparently doesn't want to see Jan. (Hey, I wouldn't either.) Kevin, ominously, says, "I think you kids have a lot to catch up on." Then he walks away and reveals Jan's plump stomach. Yes. She is pregnant. Uh-oh.

Michael and Jan talk at a table, and he is actually excited that Jan is pregnant. Michael knows it happened when they were together...but Jan drops the bombshell. It's not Michael's. But, she didn't cheat on him, either. She went to a sperm bank. She didn't want to take her chances on Michael's DNA for what might be her only shot at a baby. Michael, obviously, is hurt. "You'd rather have somebody else's sperm than my sperm?" Jan invites Michael to her lamazze (sp? I don't care) class the next day. Michael says he will think about it. Michael: "My whole life, I have known two things. I love sex, and I want to have kids. I always thought that those two things would go hand-in-hand, but now I think it might be one or the other." (My thoughts: Please, Michael, don't go back to Jan. Have some dignity. Oh, screw it, I know you're going back.)

Back at the party, the fireworks are going off, and Jim gets the ring out of his pocket, preparing to ask Pam to marry him. The timing couldn't be better. Then, Andy gets the attention of everyone and proposes to Angela. Angela tells him not to at first, and then says yes (mostly because she didn't want to humiliate him, I think.) We find out that Andy bought the ring six years ago in case the right moment ever came up. This causes two other things to happen: Jim puts his ring back in his pocket, and Dwight is sad. (The background characters, namely Kelly and Dwight, are great here.) Dwight, sadly: "Well, it's my own fault."

Jim and Pam are walking along, and Jim gets mauled by Andy, who is excited about his engagement. Andy: "Mr. Andrew Bernard. That's got a nice ring to it." Ha!

Toby approaches Pam, and gets Meredith to take a picture of them. Pam isn't quite smiling well. Pam (talking head): "I don't know, I just, I really thought Jim was going to propose tonight." (My thoughts: Well, I was wrong about Toby messing it up. And, Pam, even if Jim was going to propose, there's no way it would have meant is much for the sole reason that Andy did his thing. You know, I've grown to not mind, and even sometimes like, Andy. And it's not his fault this happened, but still. Also, the whole situation reminded me of the first time Jim was going to tell Pam he liked her on the Booze Cruise, only to have Roy confirm their wedding day.)

Michael makes it back to the party, and he is distant. Holly asks where to get dessert. Michael directs her somewhere, clearly not paying attention to her hint. Kevin jumps in. Because he likes piiiiiiiiiiie. Michael and Holly look over their backs at each other, while the other one has his/her back turned. (Yes. There is a better way to write that. Oh well. You get the picture, right?)

Holly: "Yeah, it was a good day. First days are always the hardest. I should go. I've gotta buckle him in (pointing to Kevin, in her car.)"

Toby is in his desk chair, looking at the pictures of him and Pam. Michael walks over with the security guard to escort Toby out of the office, in case he steals anything. Toby's new watch's alarm goes off. (Remember that Michael set it for the end of the day, then Toby changed the time zone to Costa Rica?)

Michael calls Jan to tell her he will go to the lamazze class, but wants her to tell him what that is. He says that if he has to choose between having sex and having kids, he chooses kids. Michael: "I am going to be...kind of a daddy."

In the closing tag (i.e.: The big cliffhanger): Phyllis is walking back into the office for a minute. She is happy about her party-planning. She hears something from inside. She opens the door to see a man's bare back, doing things with a woman. Angela looks up and sees Phyllis enter. She slaps the man, who turns around. Dwight has a surprised look on his face. We hear Phyllis drop her groceries and gasp.

Cue credits, and end of season four.

Thoughts:
Wow. What an episode! I might put off/anger someone by scoring this as a 10.0, but what the heck? I thoroughly enjoyed this show, more than any previous post-strike episode. And, you have to wonder if this would have been the original season finale, or if the order would have been the same...I guess we'll never know, maybe.

I'm going to look, in short, at this episode by itself, then at implications for the future.

First: I loved the Holly Flax character, and seriously hope she is a regular next year. Her interactions with Michael were both funny and genuine, and I hope they are given a chance at some point. Her interactions with Kevin were the funniest thing I've seen in a long time.

I was glad to see a semi-conclusion to Ryan's weird behavior. Though, are they getting rid of all the writer/actors? Hmmmm. Maybe Ryan will have the spin-off next year. (For the record: I still think Jim could end up in Ryan's position, with Pam at school in NYC and them living together. Some day.)

The Pam/Jim relationship finally hit its first minor-to-major snag. It is minor right now, but depending on what happens during the summer, and depending on Pam's NYC move, it could develop into something major. Up until Andy ruined it, the Pam/Jim interactions were great. Hopefully the eventual payoff of the proposal will still be good.

After Andy's proposal, Dwight's reaction was perfect and real. (I have to say. I feel very bad for Andy, but he IS a little obtuse.)

Jan's reintroduction was great, and it will be interesting to see where it goes.

Phyllis finally gaining control over Angela was nice to see.

And, Goodbye Toby. I liked him a lot during the first 3 1/2 seasons, or so. And think he's evil now. Okay, not really, but he was messing with Jim/Pam.

Onto the unanswered questions/open situations headed into the offseason:
When does Andy find out about Dwight and Angela?
How long does Michael stick with Jan? Will Holly and Michael ever have a shot with each other?
Who gets Ryan's position? (My money's on Jim.)
Is this the last we hear from Ryan and Toby?
What happens to Pam and Jim next? He won't propose over the summer...I mean...They HAVE to televise it, right?

And, I know there are plenty of other questions that need answered. But those are a good start. Tune in next week for my retro reviews!

The 411: Great episode. Toby's replacement is great, and I hope she becomes a regular. There are a lot of unanswered questions, and there were plenty of surprises here. There was some good continuity, and echoes of previous episodes. I'm sure some won't like it nearly as much as I did, but, really, this episode made me laugh, and made me cry (Well, not cry...but still), astonished me, surprised me and made me want more. A perfect season finale.

Final Score:  10.0   [ Virtually Perfect ]