Counseling (The Office)
Encyclopedia
"Counseling" is the second episode of the seventh season of the American comedy
television series
The Office, and the show's 128th episode overall. Written by B. J. Novak
and directed by Jeffrey Blitz
, the episode aired on NBC
in the United States on September 30, 2010.
In the episode, Michael is forced to have six hours of counseling with Toby after he physically reprimanded Luke, but Michael refuses to make Toby's job easy. Meanwhile, Pam attempts to finagle a promotion to office administrator and Dwight boycotts the Steamtown Mall after a shop owner refuses to serve him. This episode has received mostly positive reviews.
is forced to have six hours of counseling with Toby
after he physically reprimanded Luke, but Michael refuses to make Toby's job easy. One hour in, Michael realizes that if he just sits there and stares at Toby that he will get no credit for being there, so he begins telling ridiculous stories. Toby sneakily suggests they stop the counseling, play some games and "talk" to pass the rest of the 6 hours. Oddly enough, Michael lets his guard down and opens up to Toby about his personal history and relationships with people, and Toby makes an important discovery that Michael needs to be liked. Michael realizes what is happening, ends the counseling session, and yells at Toby. Toby gives up, gives Michael the official form to send to corporate, allowing him to fill it out however he wants. In his haste, Michael accidentally indicates on the form that he is severely depressed and homicidal.
Meanwhile, Pam realizes that although she has her dream job of salesman, a position she fought for a few seasons back, that she just might not be cut out for it after all since she makes few sales and very little money. A chance visit from a vendor gives her an idea to finagle a promotion to office administrator, hopefully for some added income. She informs Gabe of her promotion "from a few months back" and tells him she hasn't been paid accordingly, to which Gabe promises her he'll get the missing wages if she can get all of the department heads to sign off on it. While she's busy convincing everyone that she has become the new administrator, Gabe catches on that she might be lying, and confronts her about it. Using a strategy she learned from watching Poker, she stands her ground against Gabe and becomes 'de facto' Office Administrator.
Dwight has decided to boycott the Steamtown Mall after a shop owner refuses to serve him, going so far as to cancel orders to businesses there. Jim and the rest of the office convince Dwight to get revenge on the shop owner by making Dwight appear to be high-class as Julia Roberts
did in the film Pretty Woman
("Beautiful Girl" according to Dwight). Using tips from the rest of the office to make himself appear more sophisticated, Dwight, with Jim and Andy, return to the shop. It is revealed Dwight came by with beet juice soaked hands, easily confused for human blood, and was refused service on security grounds. The group leaves somewhat embarrassed, but not before Dwight buys what he came here for: a pewter wizard holding a crystal ball.
At the end of the episode, Michael is told that he accidentally indicated he was majorly depressed by Toby. Although he initially blames Toby for the mishap, he turns his ire to Gabe, even making Toby laugh. Michael openly offers to return to the break room with Toby and "bang this out". At the end of the episode, we see them both talking and drawing pictures as Toby returns to his sneaky psych method.
, a producer and screenwriter for the series who also plays Ryan
. It was directed by Jeffrey Blitz
, who had worked on several previous episodes of The Office. "Counseling" features Eric Zuckerman, Vincent Angelo and Michael Schur
in guest appearances as a store teller, a vendor and Mose Schrute, respectively.
.
Joel Keller of TV Squad called it a "vast improvement" from last week's episode.
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
television series
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
The Office, and the show's 128th episode overall. Written by B. J. Novak
B. J. Novak
Benjamin Joseph Manaly “B. J.” Novak is an American actor, stand-up comedian, screenwriter, and director. He is best known for being a writer and co-executive producer for and playing the role of Ryan Howard on the US version of The Office, as well as appearing in Inglourious Basterds...
and directed by Jeffrey Blitz
Jeffrey Blitz
Jeffrey Blitz is an American film director, producer and screenwriter from Ridgewood, New Jersey. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his 2002 documentary, Spellbound and he won the Dramatic Directing Prize at the Sundance Film Festival for his 2007 film, Rocket Science.Blitz won the 2009...
, the episode aired on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
in the United States on September 30, 2010.
In the episode, Michael is forced to have six hours of counseling with Toby after he physically reprimanded Luke, but Michael refuses to make Toby's job easy. Meanwhile, Pam attempts to finagle a promotion to office administrator and Dwight boycotts the Steamtown Mall after a shop owner refuses to serve him. This episode has received mostly positive reviews.
Synopsis
MichaelMichael Scott (The Office)
Michael Gary Scott is a fictional character on NBC's The Office, portrayed by Steve Carell, and based on David Brent from the original British version. Michael, the central character of the series, was the manager of the Scranton branch of paper and printer distribution company Dunder Mifflin Inc...
is forced to have six hours of counseling with Toby
Toby Flenderson
Toby Wyatt Flenderson, M.S.W. born 1971 is a character from the US television series The Office. He is played by Paul Lieberstein. He is an original character and has no equivalent in the British version of the show, The Office.-Overview:...
after he physically reprimanded Luke, but Michael refuses to make Toby's job easy. One hour in, Michael realizes that if he just sits there and stares at Toby that he will get no credit for being there, so he begins telling ridiculous stories. Toby sneakily suggests they stop the counseling, play some games and "talk" to pass the rest of the 6 hours. Oddly enough, Michael lets his guard down and opens up to Toby about his personal history and relationships with people, and Toby makes an important discovery that Michael needs to be liked. Michael realizes what is happening, ends the counseling session, and yells at Toby. Toby gives up, gives Michael the official form to send to corporate, allowing him to fill it out however he wants. In his haste, Michael accidentally indicates on the form that he is severely depressed and homicidal.
Meanwhile, Pam realizes that although she has her dream job of salesman, a position she fought for a few seasons back, that she just might not be cut out for it after all since she makes few sales and very little money. A chance visit from a vendor gives her an idea to finagle a promotion to office administrator, hopefully for some added income. She informs Gabe of her promotion "from a few months back" and tells him she hasn't been paid accordingly, to which Gabe promises her he'll get the missing wages if she can get all of the department heads to sign off on it. While she's busy convincing everyone that she has become the new administrator, Gabe catches on that she might be lying, and confronts her about it. Using a strategy she learned from watching Poker, she stands her ground against Gabe and becomes 'de facto' Office Administrator.
Dwight has decided to boycott the Steamtown Mall after a shop owner refuses to serve him, going so far as to cancel orders to businesses there. Jim and the rest of the office convince Dwight to get revenge on the shop owner by making Dwight appear to be high-class as Julia Roberts
Julia Roberts
Julia Fiona Roberts is an American actress. She became a Hollywood star after headlining the romantic comedy Pretty Woman , which grossed $464 million worldwide...
did in the film Pretty Woman
Pretty Woman
Pretty Woman is a 1990 romantic comedy film set in Los Angeles, California. Written by J.F. Lawton and directed by Garry Marshall, this motion picture features Richard Gere and Julia Roberts, and also Hector Elizondo, Ralph Bellamy, and Jason Alexander in supporting roles. Roberts played the only...
("Beautiful Girl" according to Dwight). Using tips from the rest of the office to make himself appear more sophisticated, Dwight, with Jim and Andy, return to the shop. It is revealed Dwight came by with beet juice soaked hands, easily confused for human blood, and was refused service on security grounds. The group leaves somewhat embarrassed, but not before Dwight buys what he came here for: a pewter wizard holding a crystal ball.
At the end of the episode, Michael is told that he accidentally indicated he was majorly depressed by Toby. Although he initially blames Toby for the mishap, he turns his ire to Gabe, even making Toby laugh. Michael openly offers to return to the break room with Toby and "bang this out". At the end of the episode, we see them both talking and drawing pictures as Toby returns to his sneaky psych method.
Production
"Counseling" was written by B. J. NovakB. J. Novak
Benjamin Joseph Manaly “B. J.” Novak is an American actor, stand-up comedian, screenwriter, and director. He is best known for being a writer and co-executive producer for and playing the role of Ryan Howard on the US version of The Office, as well as appearing in Inglourious Basterds...
, a producer and screenwriter for the series who also plays Ryan
Ryan Howard (The Office)
Ryan Bailey Howard , played by B. J. Novak, is a fictional character on the US television sitcom The Office. He is based upon Ricky Howard from the original version of The Office , but his role is significantly expanded and he is a main character.-Character profile:Little is known about Ryan's...
. It was directed by Jeffrey Blitz
Jeffrey Blitz
Jeffrey Blitz is an American film director, producer and screenwriter from Ridgewood, New Jersey. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his 2002 documentary, Spellbound and he won the Dramatic Directing Prize at the Sundance Film Festival for his 2007 film, Rocket Science.Blitz won the 2009...
, who had worked on several previous episodes of The Office. "Counseling" features Eric Zuckerman, Vincent Angelo and Michael Schur
Michael Schur
Michael Herbert Schur is an American television producer and writer, best known for his work on the NBC comedy series The Office and Parks and Recreation, the latter of which he co-created along with Greg Daniels...
in guest appearances as a store teller, a vendor and Mose Schrute, respectively.
Reception
In its original American broadcast, "Counseling" was viewed by an estimated 7.36 million viewers with a 3.7 rating/10% share among adults between the ages of 18 and 49 decreasing in a million viewers and 14% in the 18–49 demographic from the previous episodeNepotism (The Office)
"Nepotism" is the seventh season premiere of the American comedy television series The Office, and the show's 127th episode overall. Written by Daniel Chun and directed by Jeffrey Blitz, the episode aired on NBC in the United States on September 23, 2010...
.
Joel Keller of TV Squad called it a "vast improvement" from last week's episode.
External links
- "Counseling" at NBC.comNBCThe National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...