The Office "The Merger" (2006)

With members of the Stamford branch joining the staff of the Scranton branch, Jim, Karen, Andy and three red shirts join our ensemble under Michael Scott's command. PB & J are reunited and all is right with the world, or so we would hope. It's funny how just having new members of the group serves to highlight just how dysfunctional the Scranton branch is. By now we are all accustomed to the hijinks of our favorite Dunder Mifflin branch, but simply injecting new characters into the mix provides a refreshing twist and we wonder just how long some of these new employees will last. I'm pretty sure we'll be seeing the quick exit of the three red shirts as we, I don't think, have seen them around the Stamford branch before the merger, so they're not likely to stick around for too long I'd wager. Michael sees these new employees as a new group of people to prove and ingratiate himself with and of course makes things much worse for the wear and leads one employee to call it quits before the end of the first day.

The infusion of new characters also gives a chance for some new dynamics to the office politics we have already seen since the very beginning and brings new comedic possibilities as rivalries are already starting to spring up before everyone has even settled at their desks. The biggest hilarity factor is likely to come from the Andy/Dwight rivalry as they both aspire to be Michael's right hand man. Regarding this I had an issue. When Josh was going to head up the merger, Jan was appointing Jim as his number two. When Josh left, Jan shifted the merger under Michael and offered Jim the same position which Jim later said he would accept. So why is this an issue who Michael picks as his second in command? Hasn't it already been decided? Don't get me wrong, I loved how both sycophants continually tried to one up each other but at the back of my mind all I could think was "Neither of them can have it! Jim is the first officer of this office".

Of the two red shirts who remain at the end of the episode I'm happy to see that one of them is Other Walter from a few episodes of Seinfeld who worked with Elaine at the J. Peterman catalogue. As for Hannah (Ursula Burton), she's already turning into someone I can't tolerate. How can you get mad at someone for staring at you when you are pumping breast milk at your desk at work? Wouldn't you feel more comfortable with some privacy in the bathroom? She seems like someone who's going to be a bit of a pain and maybe working at the Scranton branch will take her down a peg or two.

Yay, we got a truly awkward Michael in this episode and not lonely, pathetic Michael. I like seeing that vulnerable side, but let's not relish in it every episode. Here he was doing his best to bring his two teams together as a whole, but unfortunately for Michael all he ever succeeds in doing is alienating his two teams into a whole. So he was somewhat successful and is even aware that's how it turned out but he's fine with it. Now that they've been unified in their dislike for him, he can try and win them over. The thing about Michael is he does always have the best intentions at heart and makes these plans because ideally in his mind they would work. I couldn't believe he let the air out of everyone's tires, except his own (which I knew would be the giveaway) and the hateful note that the perpetrators left behind. Of course he always goes one step too far and eventually he has to fire Anthony (Mike Bruner), after he quits due to the hostile work environment.

I danced around it enough because I was saving the best for last but PB & J are together again! Unfortunately Jim is acting a tad distant now that he's back in the Electric City and seems to snub Pam every chance she takes to talk with him. I feel so bad for Pam as she is genuinely happy that Jim is returning and he looks like he couldn't care less that he is back. I realize again that he is hurting from the rejection and is probably justified in wanting to keep his distance, but it's impossible to hate Jenna Fischer especially in her expressions of shock and disappointment as Jim gets closer with Karen. It's funny because I was solidly behind Jim in season two in his pursuit of Pam and now this season I am more sympathetic with Pam as she seeks to reconcile the rift with Jim. You never hate or even dislike the other party though as both john Krasinski and Fischer play characters with a warmth and emotional transparency that always resonates with the audience. I like Jim and Karen as a couple but I would love it if he could still find a way to be friends with Pam as well.

Favorite moment: Michael's greeting to Karen. It probably wasn't the funniest bit in the episode but it is one that I loved as soon as I heard it. After trying to figure out if Michael is pretending to be a robot or a Martian, Michael comments that Karen is very exotic looking and inquires whether her father was a G.I. Karen's offended reaction is probably the first of many I'm sure will flash across her face during her tenure in Scranton and was a great introduction to life at her new branch.