The Office (U.S. season 2)

The Office season 2

Season 2 DVD cover
Country of origin United States
No. of episodes 22
Broadcast
Original channel NBC
Original run September 20, 2005 (2005-09-20) – May 11, 2006 (2006-05-11)
Home video release
DVD release
Region 1 September 12, 2006 (2006-09-12)
Region 2 January 28, 2008 (2008-01-28)
Season chronology
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Season 3
List of The Office episodes

The second season of the American situation comedy television series, The Office, premiered in the United States on NBC on September 20, 2005, and ended on May 11, 2006. The season had 22 episodes, including its first 40-minute "super-sized" episode. The Office is an American adaptation of the British TV series of the same name, and is presented in a mockumentary format, documenting the daily lives of office employees in the Scranton, Pennsylvania branch of the fictitious Dunder Mifflin Paper Company.

Season two of The Office aired on Tuesdays in the United States at 9:30 p.m. from September 20, 2005 to December 6, 2005.[1] The timeslot changed to Thursdays at 9:30 p.m. from January 5, 2006 to May 11, 2006.[2] The second season was released in a four-disc DVD boxset in Region 1 on September 12, 2006,[3] and in Region 2 on January 28, 2008. The DVD set contained all 22 episodes, as well as commentaries from creators, writers, actors, and directors on some of the episodes, while also containing deleted scenes from all of the episodes. It was released by Universal Studios Home Entertainment.

Contents

Production

The second season of the show was produced by Reveille Productions and Deedle-Dee Productions, both in association with NBC Universal Television Studios. The show is based on the British series created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, who are executive producers on the show.[4] The Office is produced by Greg Daniels,[4] who is also executive producer and show runner. Returning writers from last season include Daniels, Larry Wilmore, Michael Schur, Mindy Kaling, Paul Lieberstein, and B. J. Novak. Joining the writing staff for the second season are Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky, who also served as story editors, and Jennifer Celotta, who was a consulting producer. Some of the actors also received promotions: Kaling was promoted to story editor, Novak became a co-producer, and Lieberstein became a co-executive producer. Series star, Steve Carell, wrote his first Office episode, the season finale, "Casino Night".

Season two featured episodes directed by eight different directors, each of whom aside from Bryan Gordon directed multiple episodes. The Office has a "team of directors" as well as several freelance directors. Gordon, Ken Kwapis, Ken Whittingham, and Daniels had all previously directed episodes during season one, while Dennie Gordon, Paul Feig, Victor Nelli, Jr., and Charles McDougall each made their directorial debut for the show. While The Office was mainly filmed on a studio set at Valley Center Studios in Van Nuys, California,[5] the city of Scranton, Pennsylvania, where the show is set, was also used for shots of the opening theme.[6]

Despite low ratings from the first season of the show, NBC renewed The Office a second season. The season was originally set for a run of six episodes,[7] but NBC later ordered seven more episodes, bringing the total number of episodes in the second season to thirteen.[8] In early November, NBC again ordered additional episodes, this time three, for The Office, bringing the season total to sixteen,[9] and NBC later ordered a full season, 22 episodes, for The Office.[10]

Cast

See also: List of The Office (U.S. TV series) cast members

The Office employs an ensemble cast. All of the main characters, and some minor ones, are based on characters from the British version of The Office. While these characters normally have the same attitudes and perceptions as their British counterparts, the roles have been redesigned to better fit the American show. The show is known for its large cast size, many of whom are known particularly for their improvisational work. Steve Carell stars as Michael Scott, Regional Manager of the Dunder Mifflin Scranton Branch.[11] Loosely based on David Brent, Gervais' character in the British version,[12] Scott is a dim-witted and lonely man, who attempts to win friends as the office comedian, usually making himself look bad in the process. Rainn Wilson portrays Dwight Schrute, who, based upon Gareth Keenan, is the Assistant to the Regional Manager, although the character frequently fails to include "to the" in his title.[13] John Krasinski portrays Jim Halpert, a sales representative and prankster, who is based upon Tim Canterbury, and is in love with Pam Beesly, the receptionist.[14] Pam, who is based on Dawn Tinsley, is shy, but is often a cohort with Jim in his pranks on Dwight.[15] B. J. Novak portrays Ryan Howard, who is a temporary worker.[16]

Halfway through the season, eight of the show's recurring guest stars are promoted to series regulars and credited just after the main titles and before the writers and producers. They include Jan Levenson, Michael's main love interest and Vice-President of Regional Sales, who is portrayed by Melora Hardin; Roy Anderson, a warehouse worker and Pam's fiance played by David Denman; Angela Martin, Oscar Martinez, and Kevin Malone the office's accountants, portrayed by Angela Kinsey, Oscar Nunez, and Brian Baumgartner, respectively; Phyllis Lapin (portrayed by Phyllis Smith), and Stanley Hudson (portrayed by Leslie David Baker), who, along with Schrute and Halpert compose the sales division of Dunder Mifflin Scranton; and Meredith Palmer, played by Kate Flannery, the promiscuous Supplier Relations Representative.

Also recurring in season two are writer-actress Mindy Kaling as Kelly Kapoor, the pop culture-obsessed Customer Service Representative; writer-actor Paul Lieberstein as Toby Flenderson, the sad-eyed Human Resources Representative; Creed Bratton, who plays a fictionalized version of himself as the office's Quality Assurance Officer; and Warehouse Supervisor Darryl Philbin, played by Craig Robinson. These four would also be promoted to series regulars over the course of the next two seasons.

Reception

As the second season started, the success of Carell's hit summer movie The 40-Year-Old Virgin and online sales of episodes at iTunes helped the show to garner viewers.[17] By early January, episodes from The Office occupied ten of the twenty slots in the iTunes list of most popular downloads.[18] The increase in viewership led NBC to move the series to the "Must See TV" Thursday night in January 2006, where ratings continued to grow. By the end of the 2005–2006 season, it placed 67th (tied with 20/20). It averaged eight million viewers, and scored a 4.0/10 in the Nielsen ratings, meaning that on average four percent of households were tuned in at any given moment and ten percent of all televisions in use at the time were tuned into the program. The show received dramatic gains in viewers from the previous year, up forty percent in total viewers and up sixty percent in viewers ages 18–49.[19] The season featured the show's first forty minute long episode, the season finale "Casino Night".[20] Josh Wolk, an Entertainment Weekly television critic, said that the show has "...perfecting workaday moments so hilariously and relatably awkward that it makes viewers both laugh and cringe...".[21] In 2006, the DVD set of the second season was the 17th highest selling DVD on Amazon.[22]

Honors

The second season of The Office received five Primetime Emmy Awards nominations at the 58th Primetime Emmy Awards, and won the award for Outstanding Comedy Series. Other nominations included Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for Carell, for his portrayal of Michael Scott, Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series for Michael Schur, for the episode "Christmas Party", and Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing For A Comedy Series for both "Christmas Party", edited by David Rogers, and "Booze Cruise", edited by Dean Holland.[23] Carell also received the Television Critic's Award for Best Individual Achievement in Comedy, and the show received the Television Critic's Award for Outstanding Achievement in Comedy.[24] For the episode "Michael's Birthday", Ken Whittingham won the award for Outstanding Director in Comedy Series at the NAACP Image Awards.[25] At the 2007 Writers Guild of America Awards, Office received the award for Best Comedy Series, and Carell won the award for Episodic Comedic Writing for the episode "Casino Night".[26] The Office was also honored as a recipient of a Peabody Award in 2006, honoring the show for excellence in radio and/or television broadcasting.[27] The episode "Casino Night" received a nomination at the American Cinema Editors Awards 2007 for Best Edited Half-Hour Series for Television, which it won.[28] For writing "Casino Night", Carell was nominated for and won a 2007 Writers Guild of America award for an Episodic Comedy of any length.[29]

Episodes

In the following table, "№" refers to the episode's number within the entire series, whereas "#" indicates the episode's number within that particular season. "U.S. viewers (million)" refers to the number of Americans who viewed the episode on the night of broadcast. Episodes are listed by the order in which they aired, and may not necessarily correspond to their production codes. † denotes a longer 40-minute episode (with advertisements; actual runtime around 28 minutes).

№ # Title Directed by Written by U.S. viewers
(million)		 Original air date Production
code
7 1 "The Dundies" Greg Daniels Mindy Kaling 9.0[30] September 20, 2005 (2005-09-20) 203
It's that time of year--awards season!-- and everyone is placing their bets that this year's "dundies" will be the worst yet with Michael as the bumbling emcee. 
8 2 "Sexual Harassment" Ken Kwapis B. J. Novak
N/A
 September 27, 2005 (2005-09-27) 202
Corporate headquarters orders Toby to conduct a review at the Scranton branch of the company's sexual harassment policies. The company also sends a lawyer to Scranton. Michael fears that this will stop his ability to keep an "easy-going office", but later realizes that the lawyer that was sent was to protect him. 
9 3 "Office Olympics" Paul Feig Michael Schur 8.3[30] October 4, 2005 (2005-10-04) 204
Michael and Dwight leave to close a deal on Michael's new condominium. Michael meets with his Realtor Carol, but becomes stressed when he realizes how long he will be paying for his condo. Boredom leads Pam and Jim to invent the office olympics, in which their co-workers compete in various games using office supplies. Michael and Dwight's return stops the event, but Jim gives the gold medal to Michael, for closing the purchase of his condominium. 
10 4 "The Fire" Ken Kwapis B. J. Novak 7.6[30] October 11, 2005 (2005-10-11) 201
A fire in the office leads the employees to evacuate the building. To pass the time, the employees play games and learn more about each other. Michael tries to make himself a mentor to Ryan, but discovers that Ryan is more educated than he is. Dwight becomes jealous of the attention that Michael is giving Ryan. At the end of the day, it is determined that Ryan accidentally caused the fire. 
11 5 "Halloween" Paul Feig Greg Daniels 8.0[30] October 18, 2005 (2005-10-18) 206
Downsizing leads corporate headquarters to order Michael to fire somebody by the end of October. Michael procrastinates until Halloween, when he still has not decided who to fire. When he decides to fire Creed, Creed manages to convince Michael to fire Devon. 
12 6 "The Fight" Ken Kwapis Gene Stupnitsky & Lee Eisenberg 7.9[30] November 1, 2005 (2005-11-01) 207
Michael and Dwight get in an argument about which of them could beat the other in a fight. They decide to settle this by having a showdown at a local dojo. Michael finally emerges victorious. The two are cold to each other throughout the day until, as a show of good faith, Michael promotes Dwight to Assistant Regional Manager. 
13 7 "The Client" Greg Daniels Paul Lieberstein 7.5[30] November 8, 2005 (2005-11-08) 205
Jan and Michael meet an important client. Michael angers Jan with his antics and refusal to talk business, but later, Michael and the client create a bond, and Michael closes the deal. Jan is impressed, she and Michael end up spending the night together. Back at the office, the employees find a screenplay written by Michael. 
14 8 "Performance Review" Paul Feig Larry Wilmore 8.0[30] November 15, 2005 (2005-11-15) 209
Michael conferences with the employees during their annual performance reviews, while he worries about his own upcoming performance review with Jan. He takes tips from the suggestion box on ways to better himself, but the attempt ends in disaster when Jan discovers that Michael has told his employees about their romantic encounter. 
15 9 "E-mail Surveillance" Paul Feig Jennifer Celotta 8.1[30] November 22, 2005 (2005-11-22) 208
Jim is hosting a party, but has not invited Michael. Michael learns of this when he begins spying on his employees' e-mail. Pam begins to notice Dwight and Angela engaging in odd interactions, and suspects that they are in a relationship, but dismisses the idea. Michael, unable to distract himself with an improv class, crashes Jim's party. 
16 10 "Christmas Party" Charles McDougall Michael Schur 9.7[30] December 6, 2005 (2005-12-06) 210
The office Christmas party turns into a disaster when Michael decides to give all of the employees the ability to steal each other's gifts. While Michael attempts to procure a better gift, the rest of the members of the office all attempt to win the iPod that Michael originally bought for Ryan. Seeing that his idea has ruined the party, Michael buys alcohol for everyone. 
17 11 "Booze Cruise" Ken Kwapis Greg Daniels 8.7[30] January 5, 2006 (2006-01-05) 213
Michael rents a boat for the annual motivational cruise, where he angers the captain with his antics. A drunken Roy publicly sets a wedding date without consulting Pam. Jim realizes that he is still in love with Pam and breaks up with his date Katy. Jim reveals to Michael that he is in love with Pam. 
18 12 "The Injury" Bryan Gordon Mindy Kaling
N/A
 January 12, 2006 (2006-01-12) 211
Michael burns his foot on a George Foreman Grill while at his own home. He requests that one of the employees of the office come to his house to pick him up. Dwight volunteers, but crashes his car. Dwight suffers a concussion, but it brings out a good-natured Dwight, who is kind and helpful to the other employees. Michael and Dwight are later taken to the hospital. 
19 13 "The Secret" Dennie Gordon Lee Eisenberg & Gene Stupnitsky
N/A
 January 19, 2006 (2006-01-19) 214
Jim becomes nervous when Michael almost reveals that Jim is in love with Pam. He asks Michael not to tell anyone, but Michael ends up revealing the secret anyway. Jim tells Pam that he had a crush on her years ago, but that it ended when he found out she was engaged. Meanwhile, Oscar calls in sick, prompting Dwight to spy on him to determine whether or not he was telling the truth. Oscar is revealed to be gay, although Dwight does not realize it. 
20 14 "The Carpet" Victor Nelli, Jr. Paul Lieberstein
N/A
 January 26, 2006 (2006-01-26) 212
Michael discovers someone has defecated in his office. He suspects that one of his employees did it out of hate, leading him to begin resenting them. He later realizes that it was his "best friend" Todd Packer who did it, and instantly finds the humor in the action. 
21 15 "Boys and Girls" Dennie Gordon B. J. Novak
N/A
 February 2, 2006 (2006-02-02) 215
Jan comes to Scranton to lead a seminar for the women in the office. Michael becomes upset for being left out, and decides to host his own seminar for the men. When he tries to rally the staff to unionize, Jan's threat of a lawsuit ends the attempt. Later, after Jan recommends to Pam that she should enter a graphic design course, Roy persuades her not to go through with it. 
22 16 "Valentine's Day" Greg Daniels Michael Schur
N/A
 February 9, 2006 (2006-02-09) 217
On Valentine's Day, Michael leaves for New York City for a meeting between branch managers and the company's new CFO, David Wallace. Michael tells the other branch managers that he and Jan are in a relationship, and a disgruntled manager later tells David. Michael is able to save both Jan's and his jobs when he tells David that he was joking. At the office, Phyllis' boyfriend sends her multiple gifts, and Dwight and Angela secretly exchange gifts. 
23 17 "Dwight's Speech" Charles McDougall Paul Lieberstein 8.4[30] March 2, 2006 (2006-03-02) 216
Dwight is named Dunder-Mifflin's top salesman, and is given the honor of speaking at a salesman's convention. He becomes nervous, and Jim, seeing this, "helps" by giving Dwight lines from speeches by figures such as Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini. At the convention, Dwight becomes nervous, but after a failed attempt by Michael to entertain the crowd, Dwight goes to the stand and delivers a rousing speech. 
24 18 "Take Your Daughter to Work Day" Victor Nelli, Jr. Mindy Kaling 8.8[30] March 16, 2006 (2006-03-16) 218
The employees bring in their daughters for the annual "Take Your Daughter to Work Day". Michael finds enjoyment in talking with the children, especially Toby's daughter Sasha. Stanley's teenage daughter Melissa develops a crush on Ryan, leading Stanley to reprimand Ryan for it after Kelly misleads Stanley about their conversation. 
25 19 "Michael's Birthday" Ken Whittingham Gene Stupnitsky & Lee Eisenberg 7.8[30] March 30, 2006 (2006-03-30) 219
Michael is excited about his birthday, but the rest of the office is instead focused on Kevin, who is awaiting the results from a skin cancer test. Jim and Pam leave to purchase items to comfort Kevin, and later in the day the entire staff leaves for a day at the ice rink. Michael meets Carol, and makes a good impression when he entertains her kids. Kevin's test results come back negative for cancer. 
26 20 "Drug Testing" Greg Daniels Jennifer Celotta 7.8[30] April 27, 2006 (2006-04-27) 222
Dwight finds a leftover joint in the parking lot, and begins an investigation to find the owner. After no one confesses, he schedules a drug test. Michael, worried that he will not pass, pressures Dwight for a cup of clean urine. Dwight is conflicted, but after resigning from his position as a volunteer sheriff's deputy, gives in to Michael's demands. 
27 21 "Conflict Resolution" Charles McDougall Greg Daniels 7.4[30] May 4, 2006 (2006-05-04) 220
Michael learns that Toby keeps files detailing all of the complaints employees have had against each other. Angry that the disputes have not been resolved, Michael reads them out loud, which brings up old conflicts and leaves the employees bitter and angry. Dwight, furious over Jim's pranks, tells Michael that he will quit if Jim is not fired. Jim learns of an opening sales position at a different branch, and decides to interview for the job. Pam learns that Jim has complained about her making wedding plans at work. 
28 22 "Casino Night"† Ken Kwapis Steve Carell 7.7[30] May 11, 2006 (2006-05-11) 221
Michael organizes a casino night for charity, but inadvertently invites two dates, his boss Jan, and Carol. He ends up beginning a relationship with Carol. Jan reacts calmly, but later she leaves early with an overnight bag, revealing that she had intended to stay with Michael. Jim reveals to Pam that he is in love with her, and they share a kiss. 

References

  1. ^ Comedic gold worth digging for on NBC San Francisco Chronicle, retrieved June 23, 2008
  2. ^ The Office reports strong future expansion USA Today, retrieved June 23, 2008
  3. ^ Goldman, Eric (2006-09-13). "The Office - Season Two (US/2005)". IGN. http://www.sirlinksalotshop.net/news/july06/article071906.html. Retrieved 2008-04-13. 
  4. ^ a b American Office gets green light The Guardian, retrieved June 22, 2008
  5. ^ "The Dundies" [Commentary track], The Office Season Two (US/NBC Version) [DVD], 2006, Los Angeles, CA: Universal.
  6. ^ Marchese, John. Scranton Embraces The Office’' Infamy The New York Times, retrieved April 16, 2008
  7. ^ NBC giving The Office another shot Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, retrieved June 23, 2008
  8. ^ NBC Gives Bonus to The Office Zap2It, retrieved June 23, 2008
  9. ^ NBC May Make More Office Space Zap2It, retrieved June 23, 2008
  10. ^ NBC Renews The Office for 22 More Episodes Celebrity Spider, retrieved June 23, 2008
  11. ^ Taking Office lessons from the world's greatest (inept) boss USA Today, retrieved April 13, 2008
  12. ^ Jolly Good Show Or Was It?; On TV, Attitude Is More Important Than the Way the Vowels Sound The New York Times, retrieved April 13, 2008
  13. ^ The Man Behind The Office's Favorite Suck-Up, Dwight Schrute ABC News, retrieved April 13, 2008
  14. ^ The Office Transfers to a New Cubicle The New York Times, retrieved April 13, 2008
  15. ^ An American-Style Office With a Boss From Heck The New York Times, retrieved April 13, 2008
  16. ^ Hawaii, The Office & Lost in Space Castings Variety, retrieved April 13, 2008
  17. ^ Ryan, Maureen (2006-02-23). "Office promotions pay off in a big way". Chicago Tribune. http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/entertainment_tv/2006/02/office_workers_.html. Retrieved 2008-03-20. "'Because of the relationship we have with [the feature-film division of NBC Universal], within the company we knew that Steve had been identified as a big star and we'd be crazy to let him go,' said Angela Bromstad, president of NBC Universal Television Studio, the production company behind The Office. Hence the second-season pickup of the show.'" 
  18. ^ The Office hits top spot in US download charts The Independent, retrieved June 23, 2008
  19. ^ "2005–06 primetime wrap". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on June 22, 2008. http://web.archive.org/web/20080622122614rn_1/www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/search/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1002576393. Retrieved 2008-04-12. 
  20. ^ NBC (April 20, 2006) NBC Announces Super-sized episode. retrieved May 12, 2008
  21. ^ Take This Job and Love ItEntertainment Weekly, retrieved April 14, 2008
  22. ^ "The Customers' Favorites: Top 100 DVD Bestsellers," Amazon. Retrieved on June 22, 2008.
  23. ^ The 58th Primetime Emmy Awards and Creative Arts Emmys Nominations The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, retrieved June 22, 2008
  24. ^ Steve Carell wins TV Critic's AwardJam Showbiz, retrieved April 14, 2008
  25. ^ "38th NAACP Image Awards Winners Release (page 8)" (Press release). NAACP Image Awards. 2007-03-02. http://www.naacpimageawards.net/PDFs/38th_NAACP_Image_Awards_Winners_Release.pdf. Retrieved 2008-06-16. 
  26. ^ "Writers Guild Awards". Writers Guild of America, West. http://www.wga.org/awards/awardssub.aspx?id=1517. Retrieved 2008-06-16. 
  27. ^ "George Foster Peabody Award Winners Book (page 83)". University of Georgia. http://www.peabody.uga.edu/winners/PeabodyWinnersBook.pdf. Retrieved 2008-06-16. 
  28. ^ American Cinema Editors, USA: 2007 IMDB, retrieved May 11, 2008
  29. ^ Writers Guild Awards WGA, retrieved May 12, 2008
  30. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p "The Office Nielsen Ratings, Season 2". OfficeTally. October 10, 2008. http://www.officetally.com/the-office-nielsen-ratings/3. Retrieved April 25, 2010. 

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