Toby Flenderson
Encyclopedia
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
.
representative for the Scranton
branch of paper distributor Dunder Mifflin/Sabre. Toby is soft-spoken and generally of good disposition, although he can be somewhat mournful about his life choices (he basically fell into the field of Human Resources after leaving his training at seminary
in order to pursue the woman he'd later marry and painfully divorce). He likes his fellow colleagues, although he is sometimes exasperated by the excessively chatty Kelly Kapoor
, with whom he shares the Annex. He also has a long-standing crush on Pam Halpert, which he almost reveals at the end of Season 4 when he resigns from his position to move to Costa Rica
. Toby was intensely despised by branch manager Michael Scott
, largely because Michael had no authority over him as Toby reports to corporate headquarters, and because Toby frequently tried to dissuade Michael from many of his ill-conceived and impulsive ideas. Michael sums up his feelings for Toby in the episode "Casino Night", asking, "Why are you the way that you are? Every time I try to do something fun or exciting, you make it not that way. I hate so much about the things that you choose to be". For Toby's going away party Michael gives him as a gift a rock with a note attached reading "Suck on This". Almost immediately after arriving in Costa Rica, Toby suffers a zip-line
accident and midway through season 5, he returns to his old job at Dunder Mifflin, much to Michael's fury.
and is a Temple University alumnus. In the episode "Casual Friday
", a diploma at his cubicle reveals Toby also has a B.S. in Psychology from California Coastal College. Toby was in a seminary for a year but dropped out because he wanted to have sex with a girl. He followed her back to Scranton, married her, had a young daughter named Sasha, who adores Michael, and is divorce
d (a fact which Michael constantly and unkindly mentions). Toby loves his daughter and went the extra mile in "Moroccan Christmas
" to buy her one of Dwight's Princess Unicorn dolls, noting that his ex-wife "will be so pissed" and that "for once, Daddy's going to be a hero." He went to Amsterdam
for a week (or a month) after his divorce.
Toby claims to have no "passion for HR." He was hired at Dunder Mifflin as it was the first job he could find. He joins the others occasionally to conduct business, such as reviewing the company's sexual harassment
policy and mediating conflict between employees. Toby prefers to let angry employees vent to him, after which they feel better and the conflict eventually settles down and solves itself. This strategy worked virtually trouble-free for years until Michael Scott
publicly reads off all listed complaints.
Toby is in the unfortunate position of needing to try (but usually failing) to enforce corporate policies and rules when Michael disregards them, typified by an incident in which he quashes Michael's plan to invite Boy Scouts
to a Casino Night party:
Toby avoids office activities whenever possible and, like most of the staff, only tolerates Michael. He has offered help to Michael several times despite Michael's continued abuse. However, he gets along with the rest of the staff and even attends Jim's barbecue party, playing video games while Michael sings karaoke
. When Dwight approached Michael about missing a gift bag during "A Benihana Christmas
", Michael immediately suggested stealing it from Toby, much to Toby's later chagrin, as all the office staff had new robes except for him (Pam later gave her robe to Toby, and this increased Toby's unrequited crush on her). In addition, whenever someone says they are having problems at the Scranton branch, Michael immediately asks if the problem is Toby's fault, and the answer has always been "no". In many cases, that person will continue on, saying that Toby was in fact kind and helpful.
He seems to have plain bad luck in many instances in his life. It seems to be a recurring theme that some sort of tragedy befalls him frequently, if only in a minor sense. He sadly accepts his misfortunes, seeming to accept this way of life as inescapable, which may be the cause of his sad disposition. On some occasions Toby enjoys some rewards and good fortune, much to his satisfaction.
Toby's favorite movies are Say Anything, The Shining
, Annie Hall
, and Toy Story 2
. He also likes short stories, mystery novels, and "old hard-boiled detective" movies. One of his favorite TV shows is Damages
.
He once lived in Honolulu for a year and stated in "Branch Closing
" that he would take severance from the closing, sell his house, and move to Costa Rica
. In "Local Ad
", it is revealed that he worked in advertising for three years before coming to Dunder Mifflin. Also, according to a deleted scene from the episode "Launch Party
", it is stated while Toby is taking a driver's test that he is colorblind. Toby is also allergic to mushrooms ("Survivor Man
").
Toby has an ongoing concern about the air quality at the office that borders on an obsession. He worked a recommendation that the air be tested into his goodbye toast in a deleted scene from "Goodbye, Toby
"; he ignored the two factions that wanted to use an unexpected surplus for new chairs or a new copier and said the money should go to air testing (which he called the "silent killer", leading to Michael saying "You are the silent killer. Go back to the annex."); and he put together a meeting to discuss the radon testing kits he was dispersing in "The Chump
". In the last meeting, the office seemed to go along with Michael's abusive and insulting treatment of Toby, which is traditionally not how the staffers have reacted to Michael's hatred of the HR rep.
, which technically means he works for corporate, so he's really not a part of our family. Also, he's divorced, so he's really not a part of his family." Michael once said that "Toby Flenderson is everything that is wrong with the paper industry." He also stated "I hate so much about the things that you choose to be" (Immediately following the above quote from Toby regarding the Casino Night). He has also referred to him as "the worst human being ever," a "convicted rapist," "evil snail," "animal rapist," "Satan
," and "the Antichrist
." Michael frequently threatened to fire Toby, which he could not do because Toby is not considered a local branch employee, having been hired by the Corporate office and then assigned to Scranton. Some of Michael's techniques that are questionable brings Toby by his own obligation to confront Michael about how corporate would like him to do his job. Ultimately Toby and Michael represent the conflict between employees and upper management.
Toby seems to want Michael's friendship, but is too shy to talk to him about it. In "The Lover" Michael opens up to Toby asking him to keep Pam under control, by giving Toby a hug and calling him a "good guy". Toby says that he is delighted and "Michael would like me once he got to know me", but as soon as Toby fails to keep Pam under control, Michael starts to hate him again. Michael, though, ended up being appreciative of Toby's efforts to actually help him during their Sabre-mandated counseling sessions (even if he spent much of the time hurling harsh statements at the HR rep), to the point where he decided to talk to Toby instead of simply signing off on a few corrected forms at the sessions' end.
In "Goodbye, Michael
", when Michael wants to give everyone in the office a proper goodbye, he somewhat makes up for all the times he has berated and insulted Toby by listening to him without insulting him once. However, his face betrays both his difficulty in doing so and his horror when an appreciative Toby suggests that Michael look up Toby's brother Rory in Boulder once he's settled himself in Colorado.
In deleted scenes from The Fire and Take Your Daughter to Work Day it's implied that Toby and Jim are friends and Jim babysits Toby's daughter on occasion. When Jim becomes Co-Regional Manager with Michael in season six, however, Jim almost begins to mirror Michael's treatment of Toby. In "The Lover
", when Toby casually says "Hi", a stressed Jim snaps "Not now Toby! My God!" leaving Toby bewildered and hurt. In "Survivor Man
", Jim also says about Toby "He's great, but sometimes he can be a little bit much." Once Jim and Pam start dating, however, Jim begins to resent Toby due to his lingering crush on Pam.
constant talking, moving out of the cubicle, albeit only to a desk adjacent to it. Toby later wonders if Michael intentionally moved Ryan to his former area in order to torture him via Ryan and Kelly's endless fighting, commenting that "If he did... genius." Kelly stated in a deleted scene from Goodbye, Toby
that she was attracted to Toby but could not stand "his stupid kid" and was visibly downcast when he announced his plans to leave the office and move to Costa Rica.
is told that Michael has sent Toby home to prevent him from interfering with the hiring of a stripper, Darryl refers to Toby ("that red-haired guy with the sad eyes") as a cool guy. While on a trip to the Corporate offices with Darryl and Michael in "The Negotiation
," Darryl also offers to let Toby crash for the night at a relative's house in New York, denying Michael the same opportunity. He also had a nickname for Toby ("T-dog") at one point, though their relationship soured when Dwight's plan to expose Darryl's workers compensation fraud led to embarrassment for all of them.
," in which he jokes about sitting in an Indian Circle (to which everyone else laughs). Michael, having told many more offensive jokes, is offended by Toby's joke and tells him that "This is an environment of welcoming, and you should just get the hell out of here." Toby does so and the staff suddenly goes very quiet. This is the first instance in the relationship between the two, Toby trying to be responsible, and Michael trying to demean and undermine him as much as possible. In "Hot Girl," Toby is introduced by Michael to Katy the purse saleswoman; after Toby and Katy begin talking happily about their high school days, Michael deliberately humiliates Toby by mentioning his divorce and how he once briefly had to live in his car. He also notices the picture of Toby's daughter on his desk, and refers to her as "cute"; however, this is probably a further attempt to portray Toby, a divorced father, as undesirable.
One of Toby's major appearances was in "Sexual Harassment
," where he holds a Sexual Harassment Meeting for the staff, only to be interrupted by Michael and a blow-up doll. Michael then states that everyone is still "generally quite happy," which he thinks is because Toby has not yet had the meeting. In fact, Toby did have the meeting and everyone clapped after he was done, leaving them in a good mood.
In a deleted scene of "Halloween
," Toby tries to persuade Michael to make a decision as to which employee he must fire. When Michael chooses Toby, Toby replies that he does not report to Michael. When Michael then tries to get Toby to quit, Toby replies that someone else will just take his place. Michael then claims that if he had the authority, he would immediately fire Toby, to which Toby calmly replies, "I know, Michael."
In "Booze Cruise
," Toby is late arriving at the dock for a company cruise. When Michael orders the ship to leave without him, Toby grins broadly, implying he had planned things in order to miss the event.
In "Take Your Daughter to Work Day," Toby's daughter, Sasha, distracts Michael; the two actually get along, showing Michael's friendly side. Toby and Michael have a good conversation about Michael's desire to have a family: Michael wants to have a biological child, and Toby hints that he should seek out alternatives. When Michael asks if Sasha already has a godfather, Toby quickly replies, "Yes."
"Conflict Resolution
" is by far Toby's biggest role in the season. Toby shows that he handles inter-office complaints calmly and efficiently, only to see his work undone by Michael's stupidity. When Dwight threatens to quit unless Michael fires Jim (because of Jim's history of pranks against Dwight), Michael attempts to resolve the conflict by making vague promises of future action, an approach similar to one Toby had used successfully in the past. Toby covertly shows that he files Dwight's complaints against Jim in a trash box, and that he puts the huge number of complaints against Michael in unmarked boxes that are filed into the vast space of the warehouse.
In "Casino Night
," Toby tries to convince Michael not to invite Boy Scouts to a company Casino Night. Michael's response is to demean him in front of everybody. Toby just lets him finish. That night, however, Toby viciously beats Michael at no-limit Texas Hold 'Em, to Michael's visible irritation. Later, Toby says to the camera, "I'm not gonna lie—it felt good to take money from Michael. I'm gonna chase that feeling."
," after finding out that Pam is no longer engaged, Toby makes a couple of attempts to ask her out, but does not actually get the words out. Michael trashes Toby to Jim and eagerly asks Jim if the HR rep is the reason he left for Stamford. Michael is visibly stung when Jim says no.
In "The Convict
," Michael jokingly refers to Toby as a rapist, much to the dismay of those present. Later, Toby convinces Michael to release the office employees from the conference room, whom he had locked in there as punishment for unfavorably comparing Dunder Mifflin to a prison.
In "A Benihana Christmas
," Michael has Dwight take Toby's gift bag present of an expensive robe when they run out of enough of them for everyone. Pam later comes over and kindly gives her robe to Toby.
In "Back from Vacation
," Toby asks Michael about the "Jamaica Jan Sun Princess" photo. Michael tries to accuse Toby of stealing the file from him, but Toby says "nine different people sent it to me, including my ex-wife, and we, well, we don't talk." Michael then insults Toby's divorce again and calls him a perv, but does state for the record that he and Jan do not have a relationship.
In "Phyllis' Wedding
" Toby is seen with a beautiful woman whom he says he met in the gym, although everyone believes she is a paid escort. Toby says, "We met at the gym, why is that so hard for everyone to believe?" When Phyllis tosses her bouquet, it is Toby's date that catches it, and then excitedly runs back to Toby and the two share a brief embrace and kiss. Toby is then shown in a talking head as very ecstatic towards the outcome. The woman has not been seen since.
In "Business School" he tells Pam he cannot make it to her art show because his daughter has a play. He then offers to miss his daughter's play because "what they do is not art."
In "Cocktails" Toby spends the whole evening trying to win Pam a duck from a claw machine after she comments on how cute it is. When he finally wins it, Pam suggests that he give it to his daughter instead.
In "The Negotiation
," Toby is forced to listen to Ryan and Kelly bickering nonstop when Michael moves Ryan back to the annex. Toby wonders if Michael did this to punish Toby, and that if he did, it was a genius move. Toby goes with Michael and Darryl to New York after Jan says she will not do the contract negotiation unless Toby is there. When Michael repeatedly mentions his and Jan's relationship at that point, Toby takes notes and Michael insults him, but Toby just says he's "preparing for the deposition" that he thinks will inevitably occur because Michael threatened to withhold sex from a female superior in order to get a modest, scheduled raise, commenting, "It will be a groundbreaking case when it inevitably goes to trial." Additionally, when Darryl says he will stay in New York for the night, he offers Toby to stay at a relative's house and then refuses the same offer to Michael.
In "Women's Appreciation
," Toby is out of the office at a parent-teacher conference when Phyllis is flashed. When he returns, Michael scoffs at his alibi and seriously asks to see his penis to rule him out as a suspect. Toby turns towards Michael and looks like he's about to get angry; Michael then seems to catch himself and admits what he said to Toby was wrong.
In "Beach Games
," Michael bans Toby from attending the beach event because he wants it to be fun and says it will not be if Toby is there. Toby is visibly upset that he will not get to see Pam in a bikini and is seen despondently doing paper work in a deleted scene from the episode.
On the Season 3 DVD, Toby gives a series of wraparound interviews. Among other things:
In "Fun Run
" Toby goes against Michael's theory of an office curse by mentioning he won a drawing at a local pizza place, but Michael insults him and later ignores his statement that you cannot ask employees about their religions. Before the race, Dwight puts Imodium in Toby's drink instead of Ex-Lax and Michael pulls Toby's shorts down right before the starting gun is fired. Toby later wins the race to cure rabies, beating Michael and accomplishing something noteworthy; however, no one notices his win, and Kelly does not even bother looking up when he crosses the finish line. Toby then wonders why the 5K course was a straight line instead of a circle that would have returned everyone to the Dunder Mifflin building.
In "Dunder Mifflin Infinity
" after Toby sees Pam kiss Jim he sends out a memo about Public Display of Affection. When Michael accosts Toby about the memo (thinking it's about him and Jan having sex in the office), Toby tells him, in front of everyone, that it is about Jim and Pam. When they confirm that they are dating everyone is happy, except Toby. Later Pam and Jim visit him to see if they have to sign a "Love Contract," but he tells them to wait and see. In a scene that was added to the episode's repeat airing on NBC, Toby comes into work with a woman he says is his girlfriend and makes out with her right in front of the reception desk and Pam.
In "Money
" Toby shows that he uses very good grammar when he corrects Michael and clears up a confusion between the usages of the words "whoever" and "whomever" (who is used as a subject
, while whom is used as an object
). Michael responds by telling Toby to shove a letter opener in his skull.
In a deleted scene of "Local Ad
," Toby pitches an idea of having a stop motion ad that Michael, of course, puts down although the rest of the office seems to like the idea. When the local ad is being played at the bar, you will notice that Toby was in the ad, but only briefly. While Michael was shooting the scene of the paper airplane flying out of the hand of Creed towards the conference room window, you see Toby in the conference room packing up whatever work he was finishing. Michael did not want Toby in the video; however, for a fleeting moment, Toby had managed to unintentionally get a part in the ad.
Toby's distaste for Pam's relationship with Jim is again brought up in "Branch Wars
" when Jim is allowed to join "The Finer Things Club," an exclusive organization built up by Pam, Toby, and Oscar, dedicated to discussing civilized culture. During the episode's final scene, after Jim contributes his ideas on the book being discussed, Toby scrutinizes him very bitterly, hinting again at his disdain for Jim's success with Pam. His irritation is attributed to the fact that Jim did not read the book. Also in this episode Michael attempts to send Toby to the Utica branch but is foiled when he cannot recommend Toby on his "salesperson" skills.
In the episode "Survivor Man
," Toby ends up getting on Jim's nerves. When Jim is named Acting Manager while Michael is off on his "wilderness adventure" and starts altering the office's birthday schedule, Toby asks Jim if he can have a birthday celebration, explaining that Michael deliberately held a party for Toby at 4:58PM on a Friday so no one would attend. Jim agrees, but comments that he likes Toby but that the guy is really annoying him. Jim's dismissive, disgusted attitude toward Toby (whom he has always gotten along with before) very closely mirrors how Michael treats Toby. It is not clear whether Jim is genuinely fed up with Toby or whether this interplay showed that Jim was beginning to act like Michael. It is also possible that Jim was not annoyed at Toby specifically, but at the general reaction to his plan.
Michael's hatred for Toby is brought up again in "The Deposition" when Michael says he does not want Toby in the deposition and nastily asks if the HR rep is there "to renew your divorce vows" (Toby is also sitting a conspicuous distance from Michael in the uncrowded room being used for the proceedings). When the two happen to sit next to each other at lunch, Toby kindly tells Michael that he can relate to Michael's situation, of Toby's parents' divorce. While Toby is talking, Michael pushes Toby's lunch tray on the floor, then gets up and leaves. Later in the episode, Toby begins to laugh at Michael after learning Michael thinks Ryan is "hot." Also, after Jan's attorney brings out Michael's diary, and the head of the deposition says "Okay, we'll need ten copies of that diary," to which Toby says, "Make that eleven." In a deleted scene, Michael asks Toby if he will tell Meredith that the car accident from Fun Run
was Michael's fault, and Toby nods.
In the episode "Night Out," he puts his hand on Pam's leg and caresses it for a long, awkward moment, which everyone standing around seems to notice, making this the first time the employees see Toby's possible crush on Pam. Immediately thereafter, realizing what he had just done, he abruptly announces that he is moving to Costa Rica
, runs outside to the security fence, scales it, and disappears into the night. This scene was done by a stunt double, as Lieberstein wanted to do it himself but it was decided for insurance reasons to let the stuntman do his work.
In "Did I Stutter?
," Toby and Ryan together (who both have a problem with Jim; Toby dislikes him for dating Pam and Ryan dislikes him for going over his head) warn Jim on his job performance, citing specifically his indifference toward his job and use of time (namely "goofing off with Dwight" and "time spent at Reception" with Pam). Toby then says to the camera that Jim's time spent with Pam "has finally caught up to him," but he repeats Pam's name several times when unnecessary. Toby later says, though, that he agrees that Jim has good numbers but Ryan thinks they are not good enough. In the same episode, Toby convinces Michael he needs to deal with Stanley
for his open insubordination
during a staff meeting, though Michael goes about it a different way because Toby's method "did not work because it was stupid." Michael also says Toby does not have any friends, but Michael does so in the context of stating that Stanley is Michael's friend, which is later shown to be completely inaccurate. It is also shown that Dwight thinks Toby may be Jewish, as Dwight's org chart shows a blue Star of David
with a question mark next to Toby's name; Toby did not say what (if any) religion he practiced when Michael prodded the staffers to talk about their religious practices in Fun Run
. As Toby spent time in a seminary (as revealed in season five episode "Casual Friday
,") he is most likely a Roman Catholic.
In "Goodbye, Toby
", he follows through on his earlier plans and quits his job as HR representative to move to Costa Rica. Michael is overjoyed at his departure and plans to throw a lavish goodbye party that reflects this. Both Kelly and Pam say they are sorry he is leaving, with Pam saying in an interview that she thinks he's kind of cute. Toby faces a cruel exit interview from Michael but the tables are turned when the new HR rep, Holly, and Pam join the interview. Michael is unable to berate Toby at length, but does threaten to kill him if he honestly answers the question "How can Dunder Mifflin be improved?," so Toby gives a "things are OK as they are" answer. Toby gets revenge when Michael's insulting farewell gift to him is exposed and Pam gets Michael to give up his watch to Toby. Toby's main concern on his last day is getting pictures of himself alone with Pam, which he finally does as his party is ending. Michael gets a last dig in by having Hank the security guard escort Toby out of the office as he leaves for his new life in Costa Rica. In a deleted scene at his farewell party, Toby refers to an undefined incident involving his sister; this marks the first time Toby has mentioned having any siblings, although late in season 7 he reveals also having a brother Rory.
accident on his third day in Costa Rica. He explains that he has yet to see the beach, but expresses some happiness with the camera crew for visiting. He also implies in an earlier talk with Oscar that he is attracted to a woman who is visiting a nearby resort with her husband, thus continuing his tendency to fall for unavailable women à la Pam. In a deleted scene from Baby Shower, Toby can be heard on the speakerphone with Holly
, noting that he enjoys his stay at the hospital more than his treatment from Michael at the office.
In "Frame Toby
" it is revealed that Toby had returned to the office for a week without Michael noticing. When the staff tells Michael that Toby is back, Michael thinks it's a joke until he sees Toby and screams "No God! Please No! No!" Michael asks David Wallace to get rid of Toby but the CFO says he can not fire Toby without cause. Michael then attempts to get Toby fired by giving Pam a fake letter to give to Toby, asking him to hug and kiss her no matter how much she resisted, and taunting the HR rep into punching him, but both plans fail. Michael then tries out Dwight's idea of planting drugs in Toby's desk (unknowingly buying basil
from a caprese salad from warehouse workers who he thinks sold him marijuana). However, he does feel guilty about what he has done and, when the police are investigating the "drugs," Michael tells the police that it's a mistake and tries to stop them from arresting Toby. This suggests that, while Michael does hate Toby, there are limits to his hatred. Then again, Toby's reaction to the setup—that it wasted the cops' time that could have been used to deal with law enforcement—inspires more shock and disgust from Michael.
He is seen on occasion in the background in the "Annex" of the office. When Michael gives his two weeks notice, Toby shows he's not as resentful towards Michael as Michael is to him in a talking head, referring to him as a movie on an airplane, which is nothing special but something to watch. He was seen breaking up a jam session in the lunch room up between Dwight and Andy who were attempting to impress the new receptionist with guitar and banjo to the song "Take Me Home, Country Roads
" by John Denver
. Toby simply says, "You have to stop."
He is also involved in the episode "Casual Friday
" where he has a talking head about his beginnings at Dunder Mifflin. He used to be in seminary, but he left because he wanted to have sex with a girl named Kathy and took the HR job at Dunder Mifflin so he could be with her. Kathy is revealed to be the name of his ex-wife, and he does not appear to have a passion for HR. In the same episode, he has to deal with complaints about a too relaxed dress code by Oscar and Meredith. For the first time, he is stern with his employees and enforces HR policy by canceling Casual Fridays at the office.
In the episode "Gossip
" Michael spreads rumors about various people throughout the Office, including that Toby is a virgin, even though he has a daughter.
In the episode "The Meeting
", Dwight and Toby investigate a dishonest workman's compensation claim filed by Darryl, an event which results in Dwight and Darryl filing complaints against each other, leaving Toby to "drown in a sea of paperwork." During the episode, Toby ends up bonding with Dwight when they share an interest in trains, and finds that Dwight is restoring a life size one in his slaughterhouse.
Although he does not appear, directly, in the episode The Promotion
, Michael and Jim put baked beans on pictures of the employees as a way to decide the raises. Jim then sees a drawn picture of what looks to be a clown and asks Michael who it is, Michael answers, saying it is Toby. Jim reminds Michael that Toby is not part of this and Michael answers "I just wanted to draw a picture of him".
In the episode "Niagara
", Toby seems to at least have some feelings left for Pam, as he seems to be happy when reacting to a possibility of Jim and Pam's wedding being called off. When the wedding does go on, he is not seen dancing with the others or cheering Jim and Pam on as they walk down the aisle at the ceremony's end. In the following episode, "Mafia
", Oscar comments that with Jim and Pam off on their honeymoon and Toby having "mentally checked out in June" he is the only person left to counter insane antics with rational thinking. When hearing of Oscar's comments Toby casually agrees with him.
In the episode "The Lover
", Toby is yelled at by both Michael and Jim when he walks in on them just after Michael has told Jim he's dating Pam's mom. Later, after Pam blew up at Michael in the conference during an office meeting, Michael comes to Toby desperate to make Pam happy about his relationship with her mother. Toby offers to talk to Pam for Michael and Michael even goes as far as hugging Toby and calls him a good good-guy. Toby is extremely happy at the hope that things will finally change between them that he says "you know I always knew that if Michael just took the time to get to know me, we would be friends." But once Toby is unable to smooth things over, Michael dismisses Toby as a jackass and goes right back to hating him.
In the episode "Double Date
", Toby talks to Pam to make sure she plans on hitting Michael off grounds. He then gives Pam some tips on how to punch harder, even going through motions with her on how to do it as Michael watches on from his office, visibly afraid.
In the episode "Secret Santa
', Toby is called "Antichrist
" for calling Michael's Jesus costume inappropriate. In "The Banker
", Toby is interviewed by an investment banker as he evaluates the branch. Michael tries to have Toby distracted while Dwight impersonates him but Toby appears and makes Dwight leave. Despite knowing of several questionable incidents that have taken place in the office, he does not say anything to the banker. He expresses his torn feelings about this in a talking head.
In "Whistleblower
", Toby is revealed to have written a few chapters of a mystery novel and receives advice on the plot from Jo Bennett to which he replies in an interview, "Write your own damn novel!"
", as a punishment for physically injuring an employee, Michael is sent to a 6-hour counseling with Toby. In a deleted scene, Toby tells the camera crew that he finished writing his book over the summer and got four sales out of his self-publishing, but is being sued for plagiarism.
In "Counseling
", Toby does counseling for Michael. They briefly become friends as Michael talks to Toby about his life, but when Michael realizes that Toby is in fact counseling him, Michael yells at him. At the end of the episode, however, he seems to be communicating with Toby civilly, as most of his anger is fixed on Gabe Lewis.
In "Costume Contest
", Toby dresses up as a hobo. In a deleted scene, while using a Ouija board
at the office halloween party, he mumbles that "being dead is going to be so relaxing", disturbing his co-workers.
In "Christening
", Toby has trouble entering the church where Jim and Pam's baby is being christened. After many false starts, he finally enters the chapel and can be seen in front of the altar asking "Why do you have to be so mean to me?"
In a deleted scene from WUPHF.com
, he's talking with his daughter via web chat, where he finds out through her that his ex-wife has a new boyfriend. Michael shuts off Toby's laptop and then proceeds to talk with him about the situation he's in with Ryan. Toby tries to offer the best advice he can, but as usual, Michael brushes off what he says and then pokes fun at the fact that someone else is banging his wife.
In "Classy Christmas
" Toby has to go on leave so he can report for jury duty. The case turns out to be that of the Scranton Strangler, a fact Toby lets slip out despite his not supposed to be talking about the case. He later says to the camera crew he likes the attention.
Toby has a minor role in Michael Scott's film "Threat Level Midnight
" as a hostage. When the villain Goldenface (played by Jim), decides to show the hero (played by Micheal Scott) how serious he is, he decides to kill a hostage, naturally picking Toby. When Goldface shoots Toby's character, his head explodes in an overly dramatic fashion. However, Michael tells Goldenface that the joke is on him, saying that Toby was a "wanted animal rapist".
Toby returns in "Michael's Last Dundies
", where he appears to have lost a considerable amount of weight. In the beginning of the episode, Michael eggs his house in the morning and drives away. Toby is later seen at the Dundies sitting with Jim and Pam. Michael awards Toby with the "Extreme Repulsiveness" award (with Deangelo commenting how mean that is). Toby refuses to accept it, but is told he has to by the other employees because Michael is leaving. Toby then reluctantly accepts it, but tells Michael he finds the award hateful. He then goes on to say that he's taking advantage of being up on the platform, and lets everyone know that the jury found The Scranton Strangler guilty and that he is being put to death. However, Toby is now having doubts about the verdict, saying he thinks the Strangler might be innocent, but is interrupted by an "Oh Yeah" sound effect from Dwight's synthesizer
.
In "Goodbye, Michael
", Michael is seen saying goodbye to Toby without insulting him, possibly indicating that he will miss Toby on some level. However, Michael is visibly disdained when he learns that Toby has a brother, Rory (played by Paul Lieberstein's real-life brother Warren), who lives in Boulder, Colorado
as well. Later, Toby is seen talking to Rory via a laptop, and tells him he thinks his brother and Michael would "hit it off in an odd way". Rory suggests that he could bring Michael a welcome basket, and asks Toby if Michael likes Jams, but Toby informs him that Michael hates them.
In the beginning of "The Inner Circle
", Deangelo informs Toby that he is getting a new chair, but Deangelo, trying to be confusing so the staff won't "figure him out", tells Toby he doesn't care if he likes it. Toby is still grateful though.
In "Dwight K. Schrute, (Acting) Manager
", he gets to fill out the gun violence accident form, much to his excitement. After Jo demotes Dwight upon learning of his gun accident, she appoints Toby as one of the search committee members who would be in charge of interviewing candidates for the manager position (along with Jim and Gabe).
In "The List
", new CEO Robert California
makes a list of the people in the office, dividing them between perceived "winners" and "losers"; he takes the winners out to lunch. Although Toby is on the list of "winners", he concludes that it must be a mistake, and excuses himself in the middle of lunch.
In "Lotto
", Toby says in a talking-head interview that if he won the lottery, he wouldn't change his life at all, except for quitting his job, moving away, and maybe re-entering the dating world. He also says he would spend a lot of time launching his true-crime podcast, "The Flenderson Files".
In "Garden Party
", Toby arrives at "Schrute Farms" and asks Dwight's cousin, Mose, where to park. Mose states that he is the valet, and that Toby has to give him his car. Reluctantly, and after much pressure, Toby lets Mose park his car. It proves to be a bad choice, however, as Mose drives his car straight into a cornfield (though it isn't damaged, and becomes the first of many cars parked there in odd, Mose-chosen order).
In "Spooked
", Dwight and Robert California's son Bert hearken back to the days when Toby was continously mistreated by Michael, when they "prank" Toby by telling him he's fired. Toby finds Bert's treatment of him hurtful--especially Bert saying he can have Toby fired because he's the CEO's kid--and Dwight finds the whole bit hilarious.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
television series The Office
The Office (US TV series)
The Office is an American comedy television series broadcast by NBC. An adaptation of the original BBC series of the same name, it depicts the everyday lives of office employees in the Scranton, Pennsylvania, branch of the fictional Dunder Mifflin Paper Company...
. He is played by Paul Lieberstein
Paul Lieberstein
Paul Bevan Lieberstein is an American screenwriter, actor and television producer. An Emmy Award winner, he is most widely known as a writer, producer, and as supporting cast member Toby Flenderson on the U.S...
. He is an original character and has no equivalent in the British version of the show, The Office
The Office (UK TV series)
The Office is a British sitcom television series that was first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC Two on 9 July 2001. Created, written, and directed by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, the programme is about the day-to-day lives of office employees in the Slough branch of the fictitious...
.
Overview
Toby Flenderson is the human resourcesHuman resources
Human resources is a term used to describe the individuals who make up the workforce of an organization, although it is also applied in labor economics to, for example, business sectors or even whole nations...
representative for the Scranton
Scranton, Pennsylvania
Scranton is a city in the northeastern part of Pennsylvania, United States. It is the county seat of Lackawanna County and the largest principal city in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre metropolitan area. Scranton had a population of 76,089 in 2010, according to the U.S...
branch of paper distributor Dunder Mifflin/Sabre. Toby is soft-spoken and generally of good disposition, although he can be somewhat mournful about his life choices (he basically fell into the field of Human Resources after leaving his training at seminary
Seminary
A seminary, theological college, or divinity school is an institution of secondary or post-secondary education for educating students in theology, generally to prepare them for ordination as clergy or for other ministry...
in order to pursue the woman he'd later marry and painfully divorce). He likes his fellow colleagues, although he is sometimes exasperated by the excessively chatty Kelly Kapoor
Kelly Kapoor
Kelly Rajnigandha Kapoor , is a fictional character from the US television series, The Office. She is played by Mindy Kaling, who is also a writer and producer for the show....
, with whom he shares the Annex. He also has a long-standing crush on Pam Halpert, which he almost reveals at the end of Season 4 when he resigns from his position to move to Costa Rica
Costa Rica
Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....
. Toby was intensely despised by branch manager Michael Scott
Michael 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...
, largely because Michael had no authority over him as Toby reports to corporate headquarters, and because Toby frequently tried to dissuade Michael from many of his ill-conceived and impulsive ideas. Michael sums up his feelings for Toby in the episode "Casino Night", asking, "Why are you the way that you are? Every time I try to do something fun or exciting, you make it not that way. I hate so much about the things that you choose to be". For Toby's going away party Michael gives him as a gift a rock with a note attached reading "Suck on This". Almost immediately after arriving in Costa Rica, Toby suffers a zip-line
Zip-line
A zip-line consists of a pulley suspended on a cable mounted on an incline...
accident and midway through season 5, he returns to his old job at Dunder Mifflin, much to Michael's fury.
Biography
In his childhood, Toby was forced to testify against both of his parents when the two got divorced. He attended Bishop O'Hara High SchoolBishop O'Hara High School
Bishop O'Hara High School was a high school located in Dunmore, Pennsylvania. It opened in 1964 with the name Dunmore Central Catholic. It closed in June 2007 and merged with Bishop Hannan High School to form Holy Cross High School....
and is a Temple University alumnus. In the episode "Casual Friday
Casual Friday (The Office)
"Casual Friday" is the twenty-sixth episode of the fifth season of the television series The Office, and the 98th overall episode of the series. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on April 30, 2009...
", a diploma at his cubicle reveals Toby also has a B.S. in Psychology from California Coastal College. Toby was in a seminary for a year but dropped out because he wanted to have sex with a girl. He followed her back to Scranton, married her, had a young daughter named Sasha, who adores Michael, and is divorce
Divorce
Divorce is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties...
d (a fact which Michael constantly and unkindly mentions). Toby loves his daughter and went the extra mile in "Moroccan Christmas
Moroccan Christmas
"Moroccan Christmas" is the eleventh episode of the fifth season of the television series The Office, and the show's eighty-third episode overall...
" to buy her one of Dwight's Princess Unicorn dolls, noting that his ex-wife "will be so pissed" and that "for once, Daddy's going to be a hero." He went to Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
for a week (or a month) after his divorce.
Toby claims to have no "passion for HR." He was hired at Dunder Mifflin as it was the first job he could find. He joins the others occasionally to conduct business, such as reviewing the company's sexual harassment
Sexual harassment
Sexual harassment, is intimidation, bullying or coercion of a sexual nature, or the unwelcome or inappropriate promise of rewards in exchange for sexual favors. In some contexts or circumstances, sexual harassment is illegal. It includes a range of behavior from seemingly mild transgressions and...
policy and mediating conflict between employees. Toby prefers to let angry employees vent to him, after which they feel better and the conflict eventually settles down and solves itself. This strategy worked virtually trouble-free for years until Michael Scott
Michael 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...
publicly reads off all listed complaints.
Toby is in the unfortunate position of needing to try (but usually failing) to enforce corporate policies and rules when Michael disregards them, typified by an incident in which he quashes Michael's plan to invite Boy Scouts
Boy Scouts of America
The Boy Scouts of America is one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with over 4.5 million youth members in its age-related divisions...
to a Casino Night party:
Toby avoids office activities whenever possible and, like most of the staff, only tolerates Michael. He has offered help to Michael several times despite Michael's continued abuse. However, he gets along with the rest of the staff and even attends Jim's barbecue party, playing video games while Michael sings karaoke
Karaoke
is a form of interactive entertainment or video game in which amateur singers sing along with recorded music using a microphone and public address system. The music is typically a well-known pop song minus the lead vocal. Lyrics are usually displayed on a video screen, along with a moving symbol,...
. When Dwight approached Michael about missing a gift bag during "A Benihana Christmas
A Benihana Christmas
"A Benihana Christmas" is the tenth and eleventh episode of the third season of the American comedy television series The Office, and the thirty-eighth episode overall. It was written by Jennifer Celotta and directed by Harold Ramis...
", Michael immediately suggested stealing it from Toby, much to Toby's later chagrin, as all the office staff had new robes except for him (Pam later gave her robe to Toby, and this increased Toby's unrequited crush on her). In addition, whenever someone says they are having problems at the Scranton branch, Michael immediately asks if the problem is Toby's fault, and the answer has always been "no". In many cases, that person will continue on, saying that Toby was in fact kind and helpful.
He seems to have plain bad luck in many instances in his life. It seems to be a recurring theme that some sort of tragedy befalls him frequently, if only in a minor sense. He sadly accepts his misfortunes, seeming to accept this way of life as inescapable, which may be the cause of his sad disposition. On some occasions Toby enjoys some rewards and good fortune, much to his satisfaction.
Toby's favorite movies are Say Anything, The Shining
The Shining (film)
The Shining is a 1980 psychological horror film produced and directed by Stanley Kubrick, co-written with novelist Diane Johnson, and starring Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, and Danny Lloyd. The film is based on the novel of the same name by Stephen King. A writer, Jack Torrance, takes a job as an...
, Annie Hall
Annie Hall
Annie Hall is a 1977 American romantic comedy directed by Woody Allen from a screenplay co-written with Marshall Brickman and co-starring Diane Keaton. One of Allen's most popular and most honored films, it won four Academy Awards including Best Picture...
, and Toy Story 2
Toy Story 2
Toy Story 2 is a 1999 American computer animated film directed by John Lasseter and co-directed by Lee Unkrich and Ash Brannon. It is the sequel to the 1995 film Toy Story, released by Walt Disney Pictures and the third film to be produced by Pixar...
. He also likes short stories, mystery novels, and "old hard-boiled detective" movies. One of his favorite TV shows is Damages
Damages (TV series)
Damages is an American television drama series created by the writing and production trio of Daniel Zelman and brothers Glenn and Todd A. Kessler . It is broadcast in the United States on the DirecTV channel Audience Network after originally airing on FX and is produced by the creators' own...
.
He once lived in Honolulu for a year and stated in "Branch Closing
Branch Closing
"Branch Closing" is the seventh episode of the third season of The Office . It was first aired on November 9, 2006 on NBC. It was written by Michael Schur and directed by Tucker Gates. It is the first episode to have a "Producer's Cut" on NBC.com, with deleted scenes edited into the full episode...
" that he would take severance from the closing, sell his house, and move to Costa Rica
Costa Rica
Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....
. In "Local Ad
Local Ad
"Local Ad" is the ninth episode of the fourth season of the American comedy television series The Office, and the show's sixty-second episode overall. The episode was written by B. J. Novak, who also acts in the show as Ryan Howard, and directed by Jason Reitman...
", it is revealed that he worked in advertising for three years before coming to Dunder Mifflin. Also, according to a deleted scene from the episode "Launch Party
Launch Party
"Launch Party" is the fifth episode of the fourth season of the American comedy television series The Office, and the show's fifty-eighth episode overall. The episode was written by Jennifer Celotta and directed by Ken Whittingham...
", it is stated while Toby is taking a driver's test that he is colorblind. Toby is also allergic to mushrooms ("Survivor Man
Survivor Man
"Survivor Man" is the seventh episode of the fourth season of the American comedy television series The Office—the show's sixty-fourth episode overall. Written by Steve Carell, who also acts on the show as Regional Manager Michael Scott, and directed by Paul Feig, it originally aired on NBC on...
").
Toby has an ongoing concern about the air quality at the office that borders on an obsession. He worked a recommendation that the air be tested into his goodbye toast in a deleted scene from "Goodbye, Toby
Goodbye, Toby
"Goodbye, Toby" is the fourth season hour-long finale of the American comedy television series The Office, and the show's seventy-first episode overall...
"; he ignored the two factions that wanted to use an unexpected surplus for new chairs or a new copier and said the money should go to air testing (which he called the "silent killer", leading to Michael saying "You are the silent killer. Go back to the annex."); and he put together a meeting to discuss the radon testing kits he was dispersing in "The Chump
The Chump (The Office)
"The Chump" is the 25th episode of the sixth season of the U.S. comedy series The Office and the show's 125th episode overall. It aired on May 13, 2010 on NBC. In the episode, Michael is surprisingly cheerful after learning some bad news about Donna. The new parents, Pam and Jim, have trouble...
". In the last meeting, the office seemed to go along with Michael's abusive and insulting treatment of Toby, which is traditionally not how the staffers have reacted to Michael's hatred of the HR rep.
Relationships
Toby is seen as an awkward and quiet guy in the office. Nobody ever stands up for Toby when Michael makes fun of him, but he is generally liked in the office. Toby is generally a friend of everyone around the office except Michael, though the two have had their amicable moments. The others treat Toby with respect. For example, after Toby conducts a brief sexual harassment seminar, the staff is left in a good mood and laughing, until Michael comes in and takes over. He is considered one of the few intelligent people in the office, being in the "Finer Things Club" with Pam and Oscar.Michael
Michael hated Toby because, according to Michael, his job was to "Make the office fun, while [Toby's] job is to make the office lame". Michael viewed Toby as his sworn enemy and took every opportunity to demean him. As Michael sneers, "Toby is in HRHuman resources
Human resources is a term used to describe the individuals who make up the workforce of an organization, although it is also applied in labor economics to, for example, business sectors or even whole nations...
, which technically means he works for corporate, so he's really not a part of our family. Also, he's divorced, so he's really not a part of his family." Michael once said that "Toby Flenderson is everything that is wrong with the paper industry." He also stated "I hate so much about the things that you choose to be" (Immediately following the above quote from Toby regarding the Casino Night). He has also referred to him as "the worst human being ever," a "convicted rapist," "evil snail," "animal rapist," "Satan
Satan
Satan , "the opposer", is the title of various entities, both human and divine, who challenge the faith of humans in the Hebrew Bible...
," and "the Antichrist
Antichrist
The term or title antichrist, in Christian theology, refers to a leader who fulfills Biblical prophecies concerning an adversary of Christ, while resembling him in a deceptive manner...
." Michael frequently threatened to fire Toby, which he could not do because Toby is not considered a local branch employee, having been hired by the Corporate office and then assigned to Scranton. Some of Michael's techniques that are questionable brings Toby by his own obligation to confront Michael about how corporate would like him to do his job. Ultimately Toby and Michael represent the conflict between employees and upper management.
Toby seems to want Michael's friendship, but is too shy to talk to him about it. In "The Lover" Michael opens up to Toby asking him to keep Pam under control, by giving Toby a hug and calling him a "good guy". Toby says that he is delighted and "Michael would like me once he got to know me", but as soon as Toby fails to keep Pam under control, Michael starts to hate him again. Michael, though, ended up being appreciative of Toby's efforts to actually help him during their Sabre-mandated counseling sessions (even if he spent much of the time hurling harsh statements at the HR rep), to the point where he decided to talk to Toby instead of simply signing off on a few corrected forms at the sessions' end.
In "Goodbye, Michael
Goodbye, Michael
"Goodbye, Michael" is the twenty-second episode of the seventh season of the American comedy series The Office and the show's 148th episode overall. The episode was written by series developer and executive producer Greg Daniels and was directed by Paul Feig. The episode originally aired on April...
", when Michael wants to give everyone in the office a proper goodbye, he somewhat makes up for all the times he has berated and insulted Toby by listening to him without insulting him once. However, his face betrays both his difficulty in doing so and his horror when an appreciative Toby suggests that Michael look up Toby's brother Rory in Boulder once he's settled himself in Colorado.
Pam
Toby has had a crush on Pam ever since she called off her wedding with Roy and Jim went to Stamford, but he is too shy to tell her his real feelings. In "Cocktails" Toby spends his whole evening trying to win a stuffed animal duck at a claw machine for her, but when he finally wins, Pam gives back the stuffed animal and says "Don't you have a daughter?" In "Dunder Mifflin Infinity" Toby is the first to find out about Jim and Pam's relationship, by seeing them kiss in the break room. Upset about Pam's new relationship, he sends out a memo asking for no "PDA" in the office. In the episode "Business School," Pam asks Toby to come to her Art Show, and he says he can't make it because of his daughters play. He then gets really upset and yells, "Damn It!" and questions if maybe he doesn't have to go to see his daughter's play and instead could go see Pam's Art Show. In "Night Out," Pam thinks that a joke that Toby told was funny, and he gets really excited and touches her awkwardly on the leg. After there was an awkward silence, Toby immediately announces his move to Costa Rica. In "Goodbye Toby" Pam gives to Toby an office picture of the staff that excludes her (because she took the picture herself) for when he leaves for Costa Rica. Toby, unsatisfied by the lack of her presence, shouts at the office staff asking for a camera (possibly the loudest he's ever spoken). When no one responds, he runs off for an extended amount of time just to find a camera to have a picture of her and him together. In "Niagara" Toby appears to still have feelings for Pam, and is happy when they run out on their wedding. He is later disappointed when the wedding is called back on, but is seen smiling and clapping after they're married and run down the aisle.Jim
Jim mentions that when he first started working at Dunder Mifflin, he shared a cubicle with Toby and that the two of them got along well. Michael moved them apart because he thought that the two talked too much.In deleted scenes from The Fire and Take Your Daughter to Work Day it's implied that Toby and Jim are friends and Jim babysits Toby's daughter on occasion. When Jim becomes Co-Regional Manager with Michael in season six, however, Jim almost begins to mirror Michael's treatment of Toby. In "The Lover
The Lover (The Office)
"The Lover" is the 7th episode of the sixth season of the U.S. comedy series The Office and the show's 107th episode overall. It was written by Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky and directed by Lee Eisenberg. It originally aired on October 22, 2009 on NBC....
", when Toby casually says "Hi", a stressed Jim snaps "Not now Toby! My God!" leaving Toby bewildered and hurt. In "Survivor Man
Survivor Man
"Survivor Man" is the seventh episode of the fourth season of the American comedy television series The Office—the show's sixty-fourth episode overall. Written by Steve Carell, who also acts on the show as Regional Manager Michael Scott, and directed by Paul Feig, it originally aired on NBC on...
", Jim also says about Toby "He's great, but sometimes he can be a little bit much." Once Jim and Pam start dating, however, Jim begins to resent Toby due to his lingering crush on Pam.
Kelly and Ryan
Toby shares the Annex with Kelly, and he is exasperated at being in the close proximity of Kelly and Ryan's juvenile romantic escapades. Using the excuse that he was allergic to his desk, Toby moved locations to escape Kelly'sKelly Kapoor
Kelly Rajnigandha Kapoor , is a fictional character from the US television series, The Office. She is played by Mindy Kaling, who is also a writer and producer for the show....
constant talking, moving out of the cubicle, albeit only to a desk adjacent to it. Toby later wonders if Michael intentionally moved Ryan to his former area in order to torture him via Ryan and Kelly's endless fighting, commenting that "If he did... genius." Kelly stated in a deleted scene from Goodbye, Toby
Goodbye, Toby
"Goodbye, Toby" is the fourth season hour-long finale of the American comedy television series The Office, and the show's seventy-first episode overall...
that she was attracted to Toby but could not stand "his stupid kid" and was visibly downcast when he announced his plans to leave the office and move to Costa Rica.
Darryl
In a deleted scene from "Ben Franklin," when warehouse foreman Darryl PhilbinDarryl Philbin
Darryl Mathias Philbin is a fictional character from the US television series The Office. He is played by Craig Robinson.-Overview:Darryl Philbin is the foreman of the warehouse of the Scranton branch of fictitious paper distributor Dunder Mifflin....
is told that Michael has sent Toby home to prevent him from interfering with the hiring of a stripper, Darryl refers to Toby ("that red-haired guy with the sad eyes") as a cool guy. While on a trip to the Corporate offices with Darryl and Michael in "The Negotiation
The Negotiation
"The Negotiation" is the nineteenth episode of the third season of the U.S. version of The Office, aired on April 5, 2007 on NBC...
," Darryl also offers to let Toby crash for the night at a relative's house in New York, denying Michael the same opportunity. He also had a nickname for Toby ("T-dog") at one point, though their relationship soured when Dwight's plan to expose Darryl's workers compensation fraud led to embarrassment for all of them.
Seasons 1–2
Toby only appears in a few episodes, showing up first in a scene in "Diversity DayDiversity Day
"Diversity Day" is the second episode of the first season of the American version of The Office. Written by B. J. Novak and directed by Ken Kwapis, it first aired in the United States on March 29, 2005, on NBC. The episode guest stars Office consulting producer Larry Wilmore as Mr...
," in which he jokes about sitting in an Indian Circle (to which everyone else laughs). Michael, having told many more offensive jokes, is offended by Toby's joke and tells him that "This is an environment of welcoming, and you should just get the hell out of here." Toby does so and the staff suddenly goes very quiet. This is the first instance in the relationship between the two, Toby trying to be responsible, and Michael trying to demean and undermine him as much as possible. In "Hot Girl," Toby is introduced by Michael to Katy the purse saleswoman; after Toby and Katy begin talking happily about their high school days, Michael deliberately humiliates Toby by mentioning his divorce and how he once briefly had to live in his car. He also notices the picture of Toby's daughter on his desk, and refers to her as "cute"; however, this is probably a further attempt to portray Toby, a divorced father, as undesirable.
One of Toby's major appearances was in "Sexual Harassment
Sexual Harassment (The Office episode)
"Sexual Harassment" is the second episode of the second season of the American comedy television series The Office, and the show's eighth episode overall. Written by B. J...
," where he holds a Sexual Harassment Meeting for the staff, only to be interrupted by Michael and a blow-up doll. Michael then states that everyone is still "generally quite happy," which he thinks is because Toby has not yet had the meeting. In fact, Toby did have the meeting and everyone clapped after he was done, leaving them in a good mood.
In a deleted scene of "Halloween
Halloween (The Office episode)
"Halloween" is the fifth episode of the second season of the American comedy television series The Office, and the show's eleventh episode overall. It was written by executive producer and show runner Greg Daniels and was directed by Paul Feig. The episode first aired in the United States on...
," Toby tries to persuade Michael to make a decision as to which employee he must fire. When Michael chooses Toby, Toby replies that he does not report to Michael. When Michael then tries to get Toby to quit, Toby replies that someone else will just take his place. Michael then claims that if he had the authority, he would immediately fire Toby, to which Toby calmly replies, "I know, Michael."
In "Booze Cruise
Booze Cruise (The Office episode)
"Booze Cruise" is the eleventh episode of the second season of the American comedy television series The Office—the show's seventeenth episode overall. Written by Greg Daniels and directed by Ken Kwapis, the episode first aired in the United States on January 5, 2006 on NBC...
," Toby is late arriving at the dock for a company cruise. When Michael orders the ship to leave without him, Toby grins broadly, implying he had planned things in order to miss the event.
In "Take Your Daughter to Work Day," Toby's daughter, Sasha, distracts Michael; the two actually get along, showing Michael's friendly side. Toby and Michael have a good conversation about Michael's desire to have a family: Michael wants to have a biological child, and Toby hints that he should seek out alternatives. When Michael asks if Sasha already has a godfather, Toby quickly replies, "Yes."
"Conflict Resolution
Conflict Resolution (The Office episode)
"Conflict Resolution" is the twenty-first and penultimate episode of the second season of the American comedy television series The Office, the show's twenty-seventh episode overall. Written by executive producer and show runner Greg Daniels and directed by Charles McDougall, "Conflict Resolution"...
" is by far Toby's biggest role in the season. Toby shows that he handles inter-office complaints calmly and efficiently, only to see his work undone by Michael's stupidity. When Dwight threatens to quit unless Michael fires Jim (because of Jim's history of pranks against Dwight), Michael attempts to resolve the conflict by making vague promises of future action, an approach similar to one Toby had used successfully in the past. Toby covertly shows that he files Dwight's complaints against Jim in a trash box, and that he puts the huge number of complaints against Michael in unmarked boxes that are filed into the vast space of the warehouse.
In "Casino Night
Casino Night (The Office episode)
"Casino Night" is the second season finale of the American comedy television series The Office, and the twenty-eighth episode overall. Written by Steve Carell, who also acts in the show as Michael Scott, and directed by Ken Kwapis, the episode originally aired in the United States on May 11, 2006...
," Toby tries to convince Michael not to invite Boy Scouts to a company Casino Night. Michael's response is to demean him in front of everybody. Toby just lets him finish. That night, however, Toby viciously beats Michael at no-limit Texas Hold 'Em, to Michael's visible irritation. Later, Toby says to the camera, "I'm not gonna lie—it felt good to take money from Michael. I'm gonna chase that feeling."
Seasons 3–4
In "The ConventionThe Convention (The Office episode)
"The Convention" is the second episode of the third season of the American comedy television series The Office, and the show's thirtieth episode overall...
," after finding out that Pam is no longer engaged, Toby makes a couple of attempts to ask her out, but does not actually get the words out. Michael trashes Toby to Jim and eagerly asks Jim if the HR rep is the reason he left for Stamford. Michael is visibly stung when Jim says no.
In "The Convict
The Convict
"The Convict" is ninth episode of the third season of The Office . It aired on November 30, 2006 on NBC. It was written by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant specifically for the U.S. series...
," Michael jokingly refers to Toby as a rapist, much to the dismay of those present. Later, Toby convinces Michael to release the office employees from the conference room, whom he had locked in there as punishment for unfavorably comparing Dunder Mifflin to a prison.
In "A Benihana Christmas
A Benihana Christmas
"A Benihana Christmas" is the tenth and eleventh episode of the third season of the American comedy television series The Office, and the thirty-eighth episode overall. It was written by Jennifer Celotta and directed by Harold Ramis...
," Michael has Dwight take Toby's gift bag present of an expensive robe when they run out of enough of them for everyone. Pam later comes over and kindly gives her robe to Toby.
In "Back from Vacation
Back from Vacation
"Back from Vacation" is the twelfth episode of the third season of the US version of The Office. It aired on January 4, 2007 on NBC and was the first episode to air after the winter hiatus. It was written by Justin Spitzer and directed by Julian Farino....
," Toby asks Michael about the "Jamaica Jan Sun Princess" photo. Michael tries to accuse Toby of stealing the file from him, but Toby says "nine different people sent it to me, including my ex-wife, and we, well, we don't talk." Michael then insults Toby's divorce again and calls him a perv, but does state for the record that he and Jan do not have a relationship.
In "Phyllis' Wedding
Phyllis' Wedding
"Phyllis's Wedding" is the sixteenth episode of the third season of the U.S. version of The Office. It aired on February 8, 2007 on NBC.It was written by Caroline Williams and directed by Ken Whittingham....
" Toby is seen with a beautiful woman whom he says he met in the gym, although everyone believes she is a paid escort. Toby says, "We met at the gym, why is that so hard for everyone to believe?" When Phyllis tosses her bouquet, it is Toby's date that catches it, and then excitedly runs back to Toby and the two share a brief embrace and kiss. Toby is then shown in a talking head as very ecstatic towards the outcome. The woman has not been seen since.
In "Business School" he tells Pam he cannot make it to her art show because his daughter has a play. He then offers to miss his daughter's play because "what they do is not art."
In "Cocktails" Toby spends the whole evening trying to win Pam a duck from a claw machine after she comments on how cute it is. When he finally wins it, Pam suggests that he give it to his daughter instead.
In "The Negotiation
The Negotiation
"The Negotiation" is the nineteenth episode of the third season of the U.S. version of The Office, aired on April 5, 2007 on NBC...
," Toby is forced to listen to Ryan and Kelly bickering nonstop when Michael moves Ryan back to the annex. Toby wonders if Michael did this to punish Toby, and that if he did, it was a genius move. Toby goes with Michael and Darryl to New York after Jan says she will not do the contract negotiation unless Toby is there. When Michael repeatedly mentions his and Jan's relationship at that point, Toby takes notes and Michael insults him, but Toby just says he's "preparing for the deposition" that he thinks will inevitably occur because Michael threatened to withhold sex from a female superior in order to get a modest, scheduled raise, commenting, "It will be a groundbreaking case when it inevitably goes to trial." Additionally, when Darryl says he will stay in New York for the night, he offers Toby to stay at a relative's house and then refuses the same offer to Michael.
In "Women's Appreciation
Women's Appreciation
"Women's Appreciation" is the twenty-second episode of the third season of the US version of The Office, and the third supersized episode of the season...
," Toby is out of the office at a parent-teacher conference when Phyllis is flashed. When he returns, Michael scoffs at his alibi and seriously asks to see his penis to rule him out as a suspect. Toby turns towards Michael and looks like he's about to get angry; Michael then seems to catch himself and admits what he said to Toby was wrong.
In "Beach Games
Beach Games
"Beach Games" is the twenty-third episode of the third season of the US version of The Office, and is the 51st episode aired of the show. It was written by Jennifer Celotta and Greg Daniels and directed by film director Harold Ramis, who previously directed the episodes "A Benihana Christmas" and...
," Michael bans Toby from attending the beach event because he wants it to be fun and says it will not be if Toby is there. Toby is visibly upset that he will not get to see Pam in a bikini and is seen despondently doing paper work in a deleted scene from the episode.
On the Season 3 DVD, Toby gives a series of wraparound interviews. Among other things:
- He lists the various insulting nicknames Michael has for him.
- He describes Michael's "invention" of a safe George Foreman Grill after he burned his foot, which involved putting the Grill inside a bunny cage.
- He says that his job is not a nightmare because you wake up from nightmares; it's more like an unrelenting "daymare."
- He lists what he would do if he had one day to live, including wanting to "Burn this place (The Office) to the ground" this makes the interviewer react with horror and/or disbelief which Toby responds to with a confused "What?".
- He says, "HR isn't just a job, it's a way of life. (Pause) But I wish it was just a job."
In "Fun Run
Fun Run
"Fun Run" is the fourth season premiere of the American comedy television series The Office, and the show's fifty-fourth episode overall...
" Toby goes against Michael's theory of an office curse by mentioning he won a drawing at a local pizza place, but Michael insults him and later ignores his statement that you cannot ask employees about their religions. Before the race, Dwight puts Imodium in Toby's drink instead of Ex-Lax and Michael pulls Toby's shorts down right before the starting gun is fired. Toby later wins the race to cure rabies, beating Michael and accomplishing something noteworthy; however, no one notices his win, and Kelly does not even bother looking up when he crosses the finish line. Toby then wonders why the 5K course was a straight line instead of a circle that would have returned everyone to the Dunder Mifflin building.
In "Dunder Mifflin Infinity
Dunder Mifflin Infinity
"Dunder Mifflin Infinity" is the third episode of the fourth season of the American comedy television series The Office, and the show's fifty-sixth episode overall. The episode was written by Michael Schur, who also acts in the show, and directed by Craig Zisk...
" after Toby sees Pam kiss Jim he sends out a memo about Public Display of Affection. When Michael accosts Toby about the memo (thinking it's about him and Jan having sex in the office), Toby tells him, in front of everyone, that it is about Jim and Pam. When they confirm that they are dating everyone is happy, except Toby. Later Pam and Jim visit him to see if they have to sign a "Love Contract," but he tells them to wait and see. In a scene that was added to the episode's repeat airing on NBC, Toby comes into work with a woman he says is his girlfriend and makes out with her right in front of the reception desk and Pam.
In "Money
Money (The Office)
"Money" is the seventh episode of the fourth season of the American comedy television series The Office, and the show's sixtieth episode overall. It first aired on October 18, 2007, on NBC, and was the last of four consecutive hour long episodes that opened the fourth season...
" Toby shows that he uses very good grammar when he corrects Michael and clears up a confusion between the usages of the words "whoever" and "whomever" (who is used as a subject
Subject (grammar)
The subject is one of the two main constituents of a clause, according to a tradition that can be tracked back to Aristotle and that is associated with phrase structure grammars; the other constituent is the predicate. According to another tradition, i.e...
, while whom is used as an object
Object (grammar)
An object in grammar is part of a sentence, and often part of the predicate. It denotes somebody or something involved in the subject's "performance" of the verb. Basically, it is what or whom the verb is acting upon...
). Michael responds by telling Toby to shove a letter opener in his skull.
In a deleted scene of "Local Ad
Local Ad
"Local Ad" is the ninth episode of the fourth season of the American comedy television series The Office, and the show's sixty-second episode overall. The episode was written by B. J. Novak, who also acts in the show as Ryan Howard, and directed by Jason Reitman...
," Toby pitches an idea of having a stop motion ad that Michael, of course, puts down although the rest of the office seems to like the idea. When the local ad is being played at the bar, you will notice that Toby was in the ad, but only briefly. While Michael was shooting the scene of the paper airplane flying out of the hand of Creed towards the conference room window, you see Toby in the conference room packing up whatever work he was finishing. Michael did not want Toby in the video; however, for a fleeting moment, Toby had managed to unintentionally get a part in the ad.
Toby's distaste for Pam's relationship with Jim is again brought up in "Branch Wars
Branch Wars
"Branch Wars" is the tenth episode of the fourth season of the American comedy television series The Office—the show's sixty-third episode overall. Written by Mindy Kaling and directed by Joss Whedon, the episode originally aired in the United States on November 1, 2007 on NBC...
" when Jim is allowed to join "The Finer Things Club," an exclusive organization built up by Pam, Toby, and Oscar, dedicated to discussing civilized culture. During the episode's final scene, after Jim contributes his ideas on the book being discussed, Toby scrutinizes him very bitterly, hinting again at his disdain for Jim's success with Pam. His irritation is attributed to the fact that Jim did not read the book. Also in this episode Michael attempts to send Toby to the Utica branch but is foiled when he cannot recommend Toby on his "salesperson" skills.
In the episode "Survivor Man
Survivor Man
"Survivor Man" is the seventh episode of the fourth season of the American comedy television series The Office—the show's sixty-fourth episode overall. Written by Steve Carell, who also acts on the show as Regional Manager Michael Scott, and directed by Paul Feig, it originally aired on NBC on...
," Toby ends up getting on Jim's nerves. When Jim is named Acting Manager while Michael is off on his "wilderness adventure" and starts altering the office's birthday schedule, Toby asks Jim if he can have a birthday celebration, explaining that Michael deliberately held a party for Toby at 4:58PM on a Friday so no one would attend. Jim agrees, but comments that he likes Toby but that the guy is really annoying him. Jim's dismissive, disgusted attitude toward Toby (whom he has always gotten along with before) very closely mirrors how Michael treats Toby. It is not clear whether Jim is genuinely fed up with Toby or whether this interplay showed that Jim was beginning to act like Michael. It is also possible that Jim was not annoyed at Toby specifically, but at the general reaction to his plan.
Michael's hatred for Toby is brought up again in "The Deposition" when Michael says he does not want Toby in the deposition and nastily asks if the HR rep is there "to renew your divorce vows" (Toby is also sitting a conspicuous distance from Michael in the uncrowded room being used for the proceedings). When the two happen to sit next to each other at lunch, Toby kindly tells Michael that he can relate to Michael's situation, of Toby's parents' divorce. While Toby is talking, Michael pushes Toby's lunch tray on the floor, then gets up and leaves. Later in the episode, Toby begins to laugh at Michael after learning Michael thinks Ryan is "hot." Also, after Jan's attorney brings out Michael's diary, and the head of the deposition says "Okay, we'll need ten copies of that diary," to which Toby says, "Make that eleven." In a deleted scene, Michael asks Toby if he will tell Meredith that the car accident from Fun Run
Fun Run
"Fun Run" is the fourth season premiere of the American comedy television series The Office, and the show's fifty-fourth episode overall...
was Michael's fault, and Toby nods.
In the episode "Night Out," he puts his hand on Pam's leg and caresses it for a long, awkward moment, which everyone standing around seems to notice, making this the first time the employees see Toby's possible crush on Pam. Immediately thereafter, realizing what he had just done, he abruptly announces that he is moving to Costa Rica
Costa Rica
Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....
, runs outside to the security fence, scales it, and disappears into the night. This scene was done by a stunt double, as Lieberstein wanted to do it himself but it was decided for insurance reasons to let the stuntman do his work.
In "Did I Stutter?
Did I Stutter?
"Did I Stutter?" is the sixteenth episode of the fourth season of the American comedy television series The Office, and the show's sixty-ninth episode overall...
," Toby and Ryan together (who both have a problem with Jim; Toby dislikes him for dating Pam and Ryan dislikes him for going over his head) warn Jim on his job performance, citing specifically his indifference toward his job and use of time (namely "goofing off with Dwight" and "time spent at Reception" with Pam). Toby then says to the camera that Jim's time spent with Pam "has finally caught up to him," but he repeats Pam's name several times when unnecessary. Toby later says, though, that he agrees that Jim has good numbers but Ryan thinks they are not good enough. In the same episode, Toby convinces Michael he needs to deal with Stanley
Stanley Hudson
Stanley James Hudson is a fictional character from the US television series The Office. He is played by Leslie David Baker. Stanley's counterpart in the UK series is Malcolm.-Overview:...
for his open insubordination
Insubordination
Insubordination is the act of willfully disobeying an authority. Refusing to perform an action that is unethical or illegal is not insubordination; neither is refusing to perform an action that is not within the scope of authority of the person issuing the order.Insubordination is typically a...
during a staff meeting, though Michael goes about it a different way because Toby's method "did not work because it was stupid." Michael also says Toby does not have any friends, but Michael does so in the context of stating that Stanley is Michael's friend, which is later shown to be completely inaccurate. It is also shown that Dwight thinks Toby may be Jewish, as Dwight's org chart shows a blue Star of David
Star of David
The Star of David, known in Hebrew as the Shield of David or Magen David is a generally recognized symbol of Jewish identity and Judaism.Its shape is that of a hexagram, the compound of two equilateral triangles...
with a question mark next to Toby's name; Toby did not say what (if any) religion he practiced when Michael prodded the staffers to talk about their religious practices in Fun Run
Fun Run
"Fun Run" is the fourth season premiere of the American comedy television series The Office, and the show's fifty-fourth episode overall...
. As Toby spent time in a seminary (as revealed in season five episode "Casual Friday
Casual Friday (The Office)
"Casual Friday" is the twenty-sixth episode of the fifth season of the television series The Office, and the 98th overall episode of the series. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on April 30, 2009...
,") he is most likely a Roman Catholic.
In "Goodbye, Toby
Goodbye, Toby
"Goodbye, Toby" is the fourth season hour-long finale of the American comedy television series The Office, and the show's seventy-first episode overall...
", he follows through on his earlier plans and quits his job as HR representative to move to Costa Rica. Michael is overjoyed at his departure and plans to throw a lavish goodbye party that reflects this. Both Kelly and Pam say they are sorry he is leaving, with Pam saying in an interview that she thinks he's kind of cute. Toby faces a cruel exit interview from Michael but the tables are turned when the new HR rep, Holly, and Pam join the interview. Michael is unable to berate Toby at length, but does threaten to kill him if he honestly answers the question "How can Dunder Mifflin be improved?," so Toby gives a "things are OK as they are" answer. Toby gets revenge when Michael's insulting farewell gift to him is exposed and Pam gets Michael to give up his watch to Toby. Toby's main concern on his last day is getting pictures of himself alone with Pam, which he finally does as his party is ending. Michael gets a last dig in by having Hank the security guard escort Toby out of the office as he leaves for his new life in Costa Rica. In a deleted scene at his farewell party, Toby refers to an undefined incident involving his sister; this marks the first time Toby has mentioned having any siblings, although late in season 7 he reveals also having a brother Rory.
Seasons 5–6
In season five, Toby is revealed to be in traction in a Costa Rican hospital, with a broken neck, after a zip-lineZip-line
A zip-line consists of a pulley suspended on a cable mounted on an incline...
accident on his third day in Costa Rica. He explains that he has yet to see the beach, but expresses some happiness with the camera crew for visiting. He also implies in an earlier talk with Oscar that he is attracted to a woman who is visiting a nearby resort with her husband, thus continuing his tendency to fall for unavailable women à la Pam. In a deleted scene from Baby Shower, Toby can be heard on the speakerphone with Holly
Holly Flax
Hollis "Holly" Partridge Flax is a fictional character from the US television series The Office played by Amy Ryan. She was an original character, and not based on a character from the British version of the show...
, noting that he enjoys his stay at the hospital more than his treatment from Michael at the office.
In "Frame Toby
Frame Toby
"Frame Toby" is the ninth episode of the fifth season of the television series The Office, and the show's eighty-first episode overall. The episode aired in the United States on November 20, 2008 on NBC....
" it is revealed that Toby had returned to the office for a week without Michael noticing. When the staff tells Michael that Toby is back, Michael thinks it's a joke until he sees Toby and screams "No God! Please No! No!" Michael asks David Wallace to get rid of Toby but the CFO says he can not fire Toby without cause. Michael then attempts to get Toby fired by giving Pam a fake letter to give to Toby, asking him to hug and kiss her no matter how much she resisted, and taunting the HR rep into punching him, but both plans fail. Michael then tries out Dwight's idea of planting drugs in Toby's desk (unknowingly buying basil
Basil
Basil, or Sweet Basil, is a common name for the culinary herb Ocimum basilicum , of the family Lamiaceae , sometimes known as Saint Joseph's Wort in some English-speaking countries....
from a caprese salad from warehouse workers who he thinks sold him marijuana). However, he does feel guilty about what he has done and, when the police are investigating the "drugs," Michael tells the police that it's a mistake and tries to stop them from arresting Toby. This suggests that, while Michael does hate Toby, there are limits to his hatred. Then again, Toby's reaction to the setup—that it wasted the cops' time that could have been used to deal with law enforcement—inspires more shock and disgust from Michael.
He is seen on occasion in the background in the "Annex" of the office. When Michael gives his two weeks notice, Toby shows he's not as resentful towards Michael as Michael is to him in a talking head, referring to him as a movie on an airplane, which is nothing special but something to watch. He was seen breaking up a jam session in the lunch room up between Dwight and Andy who were attempting to impress the new receptionist with guitar and banjo to the song "Take Me Home, Country Roads
Take Me Home, Country Roads
"Take Me Home, Country Roads" is a song written by John Denver, Taffy Nivert, and Bill Danoff and initially recorded by John Denver. It was included on his 1971 breakout album Poems, Prayers and Promises; the single went to #2 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100...
" by John Denver
John Denver
Henry John Deutschendorf, Jr. , known professionally as John Denver, was an American singer/songwriter, activist, and humanitarian. After growing up in numerous locations with his military family, Denver began his music career in folk music groups in the late 1960s. His greatest commercial success...
. Toby simply says, "You have to stop."
He is also involved in the episode "Casual Friday
Casual Friday (The Office)
"Casual Friday" is the twenty-sixth episode of the fifth season of the television series The Office, and the 98th overall episode of the series. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on April 30, 2009...
" where he has a talking head about his beginnings at Dunder Mifflin. He used to be in seminary, but he left because he wanted to have sex with a girl named Kathy and took the HR job at Dunder Mifflin so he could be with her. Kathy is revealed to be the name of his ex-wife, and he does not appear to have a passion for HR. In the same episode, he has to deal with complaints about a too relaxed dress code by Oscar and Meredith. For the first time, he is stern with his employees and enforces HR policy by canceling Casual Fridays at the office.
In the episode "Gossip
Gossip (The Office)
"Gossip" is the sixth season premiere of the American comedy television series The Office, and the 101st overall episode of the series. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on September 17, 2009....
" Michael spreads rumors about various people throughout the Office, including that Toby is a virgin, even though he has a daughter.
In the episode "The Meeting
The Meeting (The Office)
"The Meeting" is the second episode of the sixth season of the American comedy television series The Office, and the 102nd overall episode of the series. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on September 24, 2009....
", Dwight and Toby investigate a dishonest workman's compensation claim filed by Darryl, an event which results in Dwight and Darryl filing complaints against each other, leaving Toby to "drown in a sea of paperwork." During the episode, Toby ends up bonding with Dwight when they share an interest in trains, and finds that Dwight is restoring a life size one in his slaughterhouse.
Although he does not appear, directly, in the episode The Promotion
The Promotion (The Office)
"The Promotion" is the 3rd episode of the sixth season of the U.S. comedy series The Office and the show's 103rd episode overall. It was written and directed by Jennifer Celotta and originally aired in the United States on NBC on October 1, 2009....
, Michael and Jim put baked beans on pictures of the employees as a way to decide the raises. Jim then sees a drawn picture of what looks to be a clown and asks Michael who it is, Michael answers, saying it is Toby. Jim reminds Michael that Toby is not part of this and Michael answers "I just wanted to draw a picture of him".
In the episode "Niagara
Niagara (The Office)
"Niagara" is an hour-long episode of the sixth season of the U.S. comedy series The Office. It is the 4th and 5th episodes in the season's episode count and the 104th and 105th episode of the series overall. The episode was written by executive producer Greg Daniels and Mindy Kaling, and was...
", Toby seems to at least have some feelings left for Pam, as he seems to be happy when reacting to a possibility of Jim and Pam's wedding being called off. When the wedding does go on, he is not seen dancing with the others or cheering Jim and Pam on as they walk down the aisle at the ceremony's end. In the following episode, "Mafia
Mafia (The Office)
"Mafia" is the 6th episode of the sixth season of the U.S. comedy series The Office and the show's 106th episode overall and originally aired on October 15, 2009 on NBC....
", Oscar comments that with Jim and Pam off on their honeymoon and Toby having "mentally checked out in June" he is the only person left to counter insane antics with rational thinking. When hearing of Oscar's comments Toby casually agrees with him.
In the episode "The Lover
The Lover (The Office)
"The Lover" is the 7th episode of the sixth season of the U.S. comedy series The Office and the show's 107th episode overall. It was written by Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky and directed by Lee Eisenberg. It originally aired on October 22, 2009 on NBC....
", Toby is yelled at by both Michael and Jim when he walks in on them just after Michael has told Jim he's dating Pam's mom. Later, after Pam blew up at Michael in the conference during an office meeting, Michael comes to Toby desperate to make Pam happy about his relationship with her mother. Toby offers to talk to Pam for Michael and Michael even goes as far as hugging Toby and calls him a good good-guy. Toby is extremely happy at the hope that things will finally change between them that he says "you know I always knew that if Michael just took the time to get to know me, we would be friends." But once Toby is unable to smooth things over, Michael dismisses Toby as a jackass and goes right back to hating him.
In the episode "Double Date
Double Date (The Office)
"Double Date" is the 9th episode of the sixth season of the U.S. comedy series The Office and the show's 109th episode overall. It was written by Charlie Grandy and directed by Seth Gordon...
", Toby talks to Pam to make sure she plans on hitting Michael off grounds. He then gives Pam some tips on how to punch harder, even going through motions with her on how to do it as Michael watches on from his office, visibly afraid.
In the episode "Secret Santa
Secret Santa (The Office)
"Secret Santa" is the 13th episode of the sixth season of the U.S. comedy series The Office and the show's 113th episode overall. It was written by Mindy Kaling and directed by Randall Einhorn...
', Toby is called "Antichrist
Antichrist
The term or title antichrist, in Christian theology, refers to a leader who fulfills Biblical prophecies concerning an adversary of Christ, while resembling him in a deceptive manner...
" for calling Michael's Jesus costume inappropriate. In "The Banker
The Banker (The Office)
"The Banker" is the 14th episode of the sixth season of the U.S. comedy series The Office and the show's 114th episode overall. It was written by Jason Kessler and directed by Jeffrey Blitz....
", Toby is interviewed by an investment banker as he evaluates the branch. Michael tries to have Toby distracted while Dwight impersonates him but Toby appears and makes Dwight leave. Despite knowing of several questionable incidents that have taken place in the office, he does not say anything to the banker. He expresses his torn feelings about this in a talking head.
In "Whistleblower
Whistleblower (The Office)
"Whistleblower" is the 26th episode and season finale of the sixth season of the U.S. comedy series The Office and the show's 126th episode overall...
", Toby is revealed to have written a few chapters of a mystery novel and receives advice on the plot from Jo Bennett to which he replies in an interview, "Write your own damn novel!"
Seasons 7-8
In "NepotismNepotism (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...
", as a punishment for physically injuring an employee, Michael is sent to a 6-hour counseling with Toby. In a deleted scene, Toby tells the camera crew that he finished writing his book over the summer and got four sales out of his self-publishing, but is being sued for plagiarism.
In "Counseling
Counseling (The Office)
"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...
", Toby does counseling for Michael. They briefly become friends as Michael talks to Toby about his life, but when Michael realizes that Toby is in fact counseling him, Michael yells at him. At the end of the episode, however, he seems to be communicating with Toby civilly, as most of his anger is fixed on Gabe Lewis.
In "Costume Contest
Costume Contest
"Costume Contest" is the sixth episode of the seventh season of the American comedy television series The Office, and the show's 132nd episode overall. Written by Justin Spitzer and directed by Dean Holland, the episode aired on NBC in the United States on October 28, 2010...
", Toby dresses up as a hobo. In a deleted scene, while using a Ouija board
Ouija Board
Ouija Board is a Thoroughbred mare racehorse owned by Edward Stanley, 19th Earl of Derby and trained by Ed Dunlop. In a career spanning four seasons, she won 10 of her 22 races, 7 of them Group 1s, including the Epsom Oaks in 2004 and the Hong Kong Vase in 2005...
at the office halloween party, he mumbles that "being dead is going to be so relaxing", disturbing his co-workers.
In "Christening
Christening (The Office)
"Christening" is the seventh episode of the seventh season of the American version of the comedy television series The Office and the show's 133rd episode overall...
", Toby has trouble entering the church where Jim and Pam's baby is being christened. After many false starts, he finally enters the chapel and can be seen in front of the altar asking "Why do you have to be so mean to me?"
In a deleted scene from WUPHF.com
WUPHF.com
"WUPHF.com" is the ninth episode of seventh season of the American comedy television series The Office, and the show's 135th episode overall. Written by Aaron Shure and directed by Danny Leiner, the episode aired on NBC in the United States on November 18, 2010...
, he's talking with his daughter via web chat, where he finds out through her that his ex-wife has a new boyfriend. Michael shuts off Toby's laptop and then proceeds to talk with him about the situation he's in with Ryan. Toby tries to offer the best advice he can, but as usual, Michael brushes off what he says and then pokes fun at the fact that someone else is banging his wife.
In "Classy Christmas
Classy Christmas
"Classy Christmas" is the eleventh and twelfth episodes of the seventh season of the American comedy television series The Office, and the show's 137th and 138th episodes overall...
" Toby has to go on leave so he can report for jury duty. The case turns out to be that of the Scranton Strangler, a fact Toby lets slip out despite his not supposed to be talking about the case. He later says to the camera crew he likes the attention.
Toby has a minor role in Michael Scott's film "Threat Level Midnight
Threat Level Midnight
-Production:This episode was written by executive producer B. J. Novak, who also portrays Ryan Howard on the show. It was directed by Tucker Gates, his fourth directing credit of the series...
" as a hostage. When the villain Goldenface (played by Jim), decides to show the hero (played by Micheal Scott) how serious he is, he decides to kill a hostage, naturally picking Toby. When Goldface shoots Toby's character, his head explodes in an overly dramatic fashion. However, Michael tells Goldenface that the joke is on him, saying that Toby was a "wanted animal rapist".
Toby returns in "Michael's Last Dundies
Michael's Last Dundies
"Michael's Last Dundies" is the twenty-first episode of the seventh season of the American comedy television series The Office and the show's 147th episode overall. Written and directed by Mindy Kaling, the episode aired on April 21, 2011, on NBC. The episode revolves around Michael training his...
", where he appears to have lost a considerable amount of weight. In the beginning of the episode, Michael eggs his house in the morning and drives away. Toby is later seen at the Dundies sitting with Jim and Pam. Michael awards Toby with the "Extreme Repulsiveness" award (with Deangelo commenting how mean that is). Toby refuses to accept it, but is told he has to by the other employees because Michael is leaving. Toby then reluctantly accepts it, but tells Michael he finds the award hateful. He then goes on to say that he's taking advantage of being up on the platform, and lets everyone know that the jury found The Scranton Strangler guilty and that he is being put to death. However, Toby is now having doubts about the verdict, saying he thinks the Strangler might be innocent, but is interrupted by an "Oh Yeah" sound effect from Dwight's synthesizer
Synthesizer
A synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
.
In "Goodbye, Michael
Goodbye, Michael
"Goodbye, Michael" is the twenty-second episode of the seventh season of the American comedy series The Office and the show's 148th episode overall. The episode was written by series developer and executive producer Greg Daniels and was directed by Paul Feig. The episode originally aired on April...
", Michael is seen saying goodbye to Toby without insulting him, possibly indicating that he will miss Toby on some level. However, Michael is visibly disdained when he learns that Toby has a brother, Rory (played by Paul Lieberstein's real-life brother Warren), who lives in Boulder, Colorado
Boulder, Colorado
Boulder is the county seat and most populous city of Boulder County and the 11th most populous city in the U.S. state of Colorado. Boulder is located at the base of the foothills of the Rocky Mountains at an elevation of...
as well. Later, Toby is seen talking to Rory via a laptop, and tells him he thinks his brother and Michael would "hit it off in an odd way". Rory suggests that he could bring Michael a welcome basket, and asks Toby if Michael likes Jams, but Toby informs him that Michael hates them.
In the beginning of "The Inner Circle
The Inner Circle (The Office)
"The Inner Circle" is the twenty-third episode of the seventh season of the American comedy television series The Office and the show's 149th episode overall. The episode originally aired on May 5, 2011, on NBC...
", Deangelo informs Toby that he is getting a new chair, but Deangelo, trying to be confusing so the staff won't "figure him out", tells Toby he doesn't care if he likes it. Toby is still grateful though.
In "Dwight K. Schrute, (Acting) Manager
Dwight K. Schrute, (Acting) Manager
"Dwight K. Schrute, Manager" is the 24th episode of the seventh season of the American comedy television series The Office and the show's 150th episode overall. The episode was written by Justin Spitzer and directed by Troy Miller. It originally aired in the United States on May 12, 2011...
", he gets to fill out the gun violence accident form, much to his excitement. After Jo demotes Dwight upon learning of his gun accident, she appoints Toby as one of the search committee members who would be in charge of interviewing candidates for the manager position (along with Jim and Gabe).
In "The List
The List (The Office)
"The List" is the eighth season premiere of the American comedy television series The Office, and the show's 153rd episode overall. The episode original aired on NBC in the United States on September 22, 2011. It was written and directed by executive producer B. J. Novak...
", new CEO Robert California
Robert California
Robert California is a fictional character on The Office, played by James Spader. He has no counterpart on the original British version of the series.- Season 7 :...
makes a list of the people in the office, dividing them between perceived "winners" and "losers"; he takes the winners out to lunch. Although Toby is on the list of "winners", he concludes that it must be a mistake, and excuses himself in the middle of lunch.
In "Lotto
Lotto (The Office)
"Lotto" is the third episode of the eighth season of the American comedy television series The Office, and the show's 155th episode overall. It was written by Charlie Grandy and directed by cast member John Krasinski...
", Toby says in a talking-head interview that if he won the lottery, he wouldn't change his life at all, except for quitting his job, moving away, and maybe re-entering the dating world. He also says he would spend a lot of time launching his true-crime podcast, "The Flenderson Files".
In "Garden Party
Garden Party (The Office)
"Garden Party" is the fourth episode of the eighth season of the American comedy television series The Office, and the show's 156th episode overall. The episode originally aired on NBC in the United States on October 13, 2011. It was written by co-executive producer Justin Spitzer and was directed...
", Toby arrives at "Schrute Farms" and asks Dwight's cousin, Mose, where to park. Mose states that he is the valet, and that Toby has to give him his car. Reluctantly, and after much pressure, Toby lets Mose park his car. It proves to be a bad choice, however, as Mose drives his car straight into a cornfield (though it isn't damaged, and becomes the first of many cars parked there in odd, Mose-chosen order).
In "Spooked
Spooked (The Office)
"Spooked" is the fifth episode of the eighth season of the American comedy television series The Office, and the show's 157th episode overall. The episode originally aired on NBC in the United States on October 27, 2011. It was written by Carrie Kemper and directed by Randall Einhorn...
", Dwight and Robert California's son Bert hearken back to the days when Toby was continously mistreated by Michael, when they "prank" Toby by telling him he's fired. Toby finds Bert's treatment of him hurtful--especially Bert saying he can have Toby fired because he's the CEO's kid--and Dwight finds the whole bit hilarious.