Talk:Jim Halpert

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article is maintained by WikiProject The Office (US), which is building a comprehensive, informative, and interesting guide about the TV show The Office, on Wikipedia. Please, edit this article to improve it! All are welcome to join our project and we invite you to do so! For general discussion on this topic, feel free to go to the Water Cooler.
Start This article has been rated as Start-Class on the assessment scale.

This article has no comments yet. If appropriate, please review the article and leave comments here to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the article and what work it needs.

Contents

[edit] Revert

I like the page better when it wasn't edited by BabuBhatt. The prank section is fine, but the info on Jim is too little. The information here before wasn't overdone, and it was on par with Dwight and Michael's pages, which have not been edited and have no complaints.

Also, calling the characters by their last names (Beesly, Schrute) doesn't connect to the reader because their names are rarely used as much on the show. People know Dwight as Dwight

Oodus

I believe this page to be way too long. Generally, TV character pages are supposed to be broad overviews of the characters, not episode by episode detailings of their every move. That is what fan forums and wikis are for. This page should be cut at least in half, if not more. Squeemu (talk) 18:40, 6 May 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Bloated pranks section

I submit that the following, while funny, are not pranks.

   * Befriended Kevin's fiancee's daughter Abby to laugh at Schrute periodically.
   
   * Inadvertently embarassed Schrute by releasing a screen play written by Michael, containing an embarassing character based on Schrute.
   * Rummaged through Schrute's wastebasket along with Pam to reveal a sign to the camera that read "Dwight Schrute Privates" (Deleted Scene).
   * Forced Schrute to change passwords two times consecutively, after guessing the Lord of the Rings characters on which they were based on correctly (Deleted Scene).
   * Convinced Schrute to purchase a purse from a vendor, and then makes fun of him for having it.

BabuBhatt 23:57, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

I did some cleanup on the section and left a note to only include notable moments. Jtrost (T | C | #) 12:37, 12 May 2006 (UTC)

I submit that these are not pranks:

   * Slammed on the brakes in his car, causing Dwight's head to hit the seat in front of him.
   * Slapped Dwight across the face

-- Raymondc0 04:53, 17 January 2007 (UTC)

Removed. Those are not pranks, so no need to discuss. Thanks. Wavy G 00:47, 18 January 2007 (UTC)

I submit that these are not pranks:

   * Locked Dwight inside his own "work space". ("Health Care")
   * Popped Dwight's fitness orb. ("Performance Review")
   * Stared at Dwight's forehead, causing Dwight to think something was on his forehead. ("The Merger")

The first two are simply inconveniences and don't offer the element of deception, while the third is less a full-on prank and more like a small lie. It didn't even cause Dwight to behave strangely based on the misinformation, or to seem foolish to anyone but Jim. It lasted 5 seconds. -- Viewdrix 20:34, 25 February 2007 (UTC)

Why does it suggest the list of pranks should be written in prose? It seems much more organized as a list, and easier to read.

Simply put, lists and trivia sections are unencyclopedic. -- Viewdrix 01:49, 15 April 2007 (UTC)
Should we move the non-encyclopedic stuff to dunderpedia? -- Raymondc0 07:03, 15 April 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Deleted Scenes?

What's the consensus on including information from deleted scenes? I think it's a fine idea. KDevaney 04:03, 4 December 2006 (UTC)

I think it's okay as long as the information is identified as coming from a deleted scene. Deleted scenes can inform an understanding of a character, but a show is free to contradict a deleted scene since it "didn't really happen". -- Raymondc0 06:07, 19 January 2007 (UTC)
In the case of The Office, deleted scenes are said to be part of the continuity of the show. However, simply because the list is to be converted into prose, I suggest removing deleted pranks simply for spacial concerns. My thoughts are that including all of these pranks would create an even more bloated and disjointed prose section, so we need to whittle them down to select highlights. None of the pranks only in deleted scenes show Jim to be any more mischievous than in the show, so if any are to be taken from the section, it makes sense that what remains focuses on what's been broadcast. -- Viewdrix 20:34, 25 February 2007 (UTC)
Show runner Greg Daniels claiming deleted scenes are part of the continuity. -- Viewdrix 20:35, 25 February 2007 (UTC)

[edit] PSP

Just wondering, when did we ever see a PSP on his desk? Is it always there?- JustPhil 01:07, 17 February 2007 (UTC)

[edit] PSP

Should we separate the "history" section into a "work" and "romance/personal life" section? --Cupcakeforyou 08:30, 29 March 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Pranks Page

Do you think we should start another page for a list of Jim's pranks? Or just shortned it down to the ones we actually saw not mentioned? Nocarsgo 02:30, 14 April 2007 (UTC)

I once tried shortening it to what we saw/what's notable and removing ones from deleted scenes, but someone refused to allow it. Such a page wouldn't be notable enough to stand on its own; for now, the best idea would be to focus on transforming an overly long list into prose as the warning recommends (which is why I tried to cut it down in the first place: not all of this will or should get into prose). -- Viewdrix 01:46, 15 April 2007 (UTC)

A lot of the pranks that are bolded have nothing to do with the plot. For example: popping the exercise ball had nothing to do with any of the performance reviews, putting Dwight's desk in the bathroom had nothing to do with the fight between Michael and Dwight, and putting Dwight's items in the vending machine had nothing to do with the Booze Cruise. If the prank has nothing to do with the 2 or 3 plot lines in th episode, they should not be bolded.

I agree. Many of the pranks in bold are just the short scenes before the opening credits and have nothing to do with the rest of the episode. In fact, you could switch them all around to different episodes and it wouldn't make any difference. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 220.178.4.196 (talk) 15:13, 21 May 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Best salesman

When was it suggested during the series that "Jim would have been the top salesman in the company if it hadn't been for deskmate Dwight Schrute stealing his biggest client"? I don't remember that. I suspect that it's just speculation. Though it certainly could be right. -- Shaheenjim 15:38, 12 May 2007 (UTC)

I agree that it's speculation. Jim lost his biggest sale to Dwight in "Diversity Day", and Dwight won the sales competition in "Dwight's Speech", but we have no evidence that Jim's sale is what pushed Dwight over the top. I'll pull it. -- Raymondc0 16:21, 12 May 2007 (UTC)

The connection between Dwight stealing Jim's client and winning best salesman was very interesting, so I readded it. But I rephrased it so that it doesn't make any unverifiable claims. -- Shaheenjim 16:41, 12 May 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Dunder Mifflin

I am going through several articles and changing instances of "Dunder-Mifflin" to "Dunder Mifflin" (no hyphen) as it is the proper "spelling" of the company name (see Talk page at Dunder Mifflin). Just leaving a note to say that I've gone through this page. :) Fieryrogue 19:38, 21 May 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Assistant Regional Manager??

Is that a real title? I think some people have said they caught glimpses of that title on a nametag. I was just wondering if such a title actually existed. (as opposed to assistant to the regional manager). When Jim was being called the "#2," I sometimes thought it would be a new creation, like "Deputy Regional Manager" or "Regional Vice Manager." There's tons of quirky titles corporations give to their officers. To be very quirky, Jim could theoretically be Regional Director in Charge of Operations (similar to Andy Bernard's Regional Director in Charge of Sales) and that might explain why everyone calls it #2, since the formal title would be a mouthful at 13 syllables.

I don't know what Jim's official title is, but I do know that the title of Assistant Regional Manager does exist in the show. At the start of the show Dwight was called the Assistant to the Regional Manager. He always referred to himself as the Assistant Regional Manager, and when he did, people always corrected him. Then later Michael promoted Dwight from "Assistant to the Regional Manager" to "Assistant Regional Manager." Though that might have changed after Jim got the number 2 job. - Shaheenjim 20:39, 27 May 2007 (UTC)
In "The Job", Dwight holds auditions for "Assistant Regional Manager" while stating he's going to demote Jim Halpert. Seems to confirm it. -- Viewdrix 20:42, 27 May 2007 (UTC)
There a few glimpses of his name plate on his desk in Stamford that reads "Jim Halpert, Assistant Regional Manager", notably in the episode "Diwali". I don't know why there would be a difference between that and "#2". It is debatable that Regional Manager is theoretically "#1", as it is the highest position in the branch, so the asst. regional manager, is #2. The titles are exactly the same.
And also, ever since "The Merger", when Michael leaves the office, Jim is usually left in charge ("Survivor Man"), while prior to this it was usually Dwight who would be in charge. - 99.237.9.80 (talk) 03:01, 6 January 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Prank formattting

While I understand the purpose I kind of dislike the "bold the important pranks" approach. Just aesthetically, it looks badly formatted to me. Has the notion of wlinking the pranks (only) for episodes where the prank was an important plot point been discussed? I think that would look better and would serve the same purpose in terms of emphasis. The link could lead to the article about the episode in question. Cheers. Dina 18:47, 19 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Drives a maroon Toyota ? ....

The information on his cars is trivia, isn't it? Unlike with Michael and Dwight, Jim's car never is featured as being important to the plot or to Jim's personality. Acsenray (talk) 18:34, 9 January 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Jim's nicknames

The character profile included "Fat Halpert" and "Big Haircut" in the Nicknames field. While these nicknames are correct, Andy only calls Jim "Big Haircut" in one episode (Season 3's The Job), and Michael only calls Jim "Fat Halpert" in one episode (season 2's The Dundies). Because these names are so infrequently used, I felt the need to remove them from a field that would suggest a recurring nickname for Jim in the series. Angel caboodle (talk) 03:27, 22 January 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Does Jim play the guitar?

In The Secret (S02E14), when Jim is showing Pam his room, you can see an acoustic guitar by Jim's bed. In this article, it says Jim's Second Life avatar plays the guitar while he does not, but Jim never actually says he does or doesn't play in real life. Couldn't we assume that he plays the guitar if he has one in his room, just like we assumed his avatar does because he's wearing one? [[ 514YR ]] (talk) 19:10, 30 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Did Jim start working at Dunder Mifflin before Pam?

There seems to be a contradiction in the shows narrative arc. In one episode, Jim recounts his first meeting with Pam, where she introduced him to Dwight, implying that Pam's employment predates Jim's. And yet in Season 2, The Secret, Jim explains that he had a crush on Pam "back when [she] first started here." Any thoughts?

[edit] Added listcruft tag to "Pranks" section

There's absolutely no reason why this article should include bullet point mentions of Jim holding Dwight's bobblehead for ransom in a promo or Jim gluing Dwight's desk drawers together in a deleted scene. I'd actually support removing this section entirely, only mentioning major pranks in the character history. "Major" meaning contributing seriously to the development of his character or relationship with other characters. Listing every single one is overkill. Pele Merengue (talk) 21:29, 18 April 2008 (UTC)

Except the thing is, Jim's pranks are a big reason why fans love the show. I know it's true for me, and for a lot of my friends that watch the show. Jim is infamous for playing pranks on Dwight. That's a big part of his character, so it's important to show that. Normally, lists are bad ideas, but in this case I think it's an exception, so I'm removing the tag. Anakinjmt (talk) 13:38, 4 May 2008 (UTC)
Wikipedia is not a fan site. The criterion for inclusion is notability, not "why people watch the show." This information can easily be recorded on an Office fan site such as Dunderpedia. Restoring the listcruft tag. -- Raymondc0 (talk) 03:47, 6 May 2008 (UTC)