The Client is one of my low key favorite episodes, because it's one of the rare episodes that shows that while Michael is a bit of an idiot in most things, he's actually quite competent as a salesman. It's always nice to see them give you glimpses of why/how he reached his position, instead of him just being an inept doofus all the time.
The Client is a masterpiece. And Tim Meadows is underrated in the title role, treading the line between just a regular dude who they're trying to sell to with a relatable outlook on local life, but also someone who would go for Michael's jokes :) Jan's look at his "THIS IS MY BLOOD" speech is great haha. I forgot that cute scene with Michael and Jim was at the end of The Client too. Relatable! Even if they both need to grow up a little.
@@Serryy I mean, in the show's world, it also somehow all works, so it can't be too bad! In the real world those antics would be way below mediocre, yeah :) My theory on the office workers (maybe this does apply to real world too sometimes) is ultimately, they are a competent bunch and really just don't need much management, so the business survives Michael's reign.
Oh the best story on the episode 8 cold open was they had so many of those balls and when Jim hit it with scissors it just hissed slowly and Dwight just slowly lowers out of the screen. Well the did all the takes and there was one ball left and they said screw it let’s just do it one more time. That one time he hit the seam perfectly and it just exploded and that was the take they used. All the expressions in the background were real because that was not supposed to happen.
In regards to Jim vs Dwight, its all a matter of effort. Zero effort on Jim's behalf is Dwight doing something funny to himself. Its like getting a kick out of your friend stepping in dogshit. But if you are going to get up early to come into work because you have masterminded a gag of moving a desk. Then I'm left to wonder what are you doing with your life.
His ppl skills flex and wane like having Bi polar disorder or some shit lmao. His ppl skills are either negative 5 or at 100 and there's zero inbetween
Jim is objectively a bully. He targets the easiest person to get to. It's not because he's a great guy who only targets 'bad guys' who deserve it. It's because he's a jerk.
I do feel similar about Jim and Dwight but the example you gave i have a different opinion on. The desk thing is a practical joke, the wrong day thing actually affects his job. I think that one is the worse one.
Good point about PB&J being annoying by just not being together already. Ultimately, while Jim could be more direct or mature about it: It is Pam's problem. She's with Roy. She's directly signaled she will continue to be with Roy. And Jim is waiting a long time hoping she'll realize she doesn't want that. (Speaking just about where we are now, nothing about future.) Interesting Jim is a more prominent character and Pam more secondary in some ways, when "why is she marrying Roy?" is really what all the rest revolves around. I guess that's the realism of the show - sometimes it's as simple as, she's been with Roy a long time, it's good enough, and change is hard.
Michael is the best salesman afterall!!! And people always say he is a bad manager but he isnt. You will see in a later ark that while beimg chaotic he knows his people and has them under control, because they all are crazy. So you need a crazy person to manage. Besides the scranton branch is the best in the company and michael definitely has a part in that.
You are totally right about some of Jim's pranks being straight gross, there is an inconsistency where the characters will go from overly immature and comically ignorant to suddenly deep and relatable and once you go there there the previous type of asshole pranks feel different, now they're more unlikable. I guess that makes the characters more interesting, Jim's not a perfect guy, he's obsessed with an engaged woman and goes to long lengths to mess with dwight all the time. But to be fair Dwight stole his big case in season one and is very annoying and kind of Machiavellian with him trying to get people fired and trying to get close to Michael so he can move up in his career.
I've seen some other people feel bad for dwight so you're definitely not alone. Having worked with some people like him though i never really had any sympathy for him. Ya gotta remember jim had worked there with dwight for like 5 years at that point so hes over the whole "maybe if im nice to him he'll be nice to me" phase. Some people just deserve to be bullied
It happens at different times for everyone, but this is where the Michael face turn starts for me. He turns from an absolute asshole to just a big dumb kid with a big dumb heart who also has an insanely good instinct for sales because he genuinely loves people. Now your mileage may vary with regards to his actions versus intentions, but it’s a change that makes the whole show a lot more enjoyable.
The show does sometimes acknowledge/question Jim's antics, so IMO it's not a bad thing dramatically for Jim to routinely go over the line with Dwight. It does reflect poorly on him; he is a bully, and he invests a comedically large amount of time on pranks. But the show ALSO makes him a little too sympathetic when it's NOT intentionally calling attention to the behavior, in a way that hasn't aged well. It's a little too down to earth to get away with "it's a sitcom, don't treat everyone's feelings like they're normal people" with anyone but Michael. But occasionally you get a reminder why Dwight is genuinely not well liked and not just by Jim; he's rude, sometimes mistreats others, and all around unreasonable. It's an interesting asymmetrical relationship: Jim is written to be relatable and essentially an agreeable person (in fact one of his worst qualities in the long run is his middle-of-the-road nature when it comes to anything other than amusing himself), whereas Dwight is odd, hard to work with and completely lacking self-awareness. So, Jim is inherently more likeable, and Dwight does not invite kind treatment. BUT, a mostly self-aware person picking on someone who's not just because he's annoyed, is cruel. "Who's right" goes back and forth. We could break down individual pranks but it's always gonna be subjective. I thought stabbing the ball, while great slapstick, was unusually blunt in its meanness, like "wow Jim must be in a bad mood". It's not totally clear but I think the backstory of their conflict arose from that: "Dwight's doing something annoying. I think it'll drive me crazy, so I'll just directly attack it so he'll stop." And that evolved into the more elaborate stuff he does now because he realized it's just entertaining, and makes Pam laugh. A lot of people like the really elaborate and creative ones the most, but those are also usually ones that take a huge amount of time, which makes you think "this guy's life balance is not okay" if you look at it with a realistic eye. So it probably depends on which way you're feeling between the pure comedic vs down to earth vibes. Moving the desk, while it had a fun punchline with the super casual phone call and Dwight going straight back to business mode from the bathroom, was time consuming AND not all that clever. The Friday bit isn't even really a prank, just a bed Dwight made for himself that Jim is happy to encourage :) While some of the pranks are just impressive in their own right, the ones that could only work on Dwight because of the way he behaves always feel a little more justified.
Took me about 3 re-watches of every episode before I started hating Jim. I feel like there's a snobbery behind the bullying at times, he's punching down, belittling his character. It's really mean-spirited and ugly. And he only gets worse.
The Client is one of my low key favorite episodes, because it's one of the rare episodes that shows that while Michael is a bit of an idiot in most things, he's actually quite competent as a salesman. It's always nice to see them give you glimpses of why/how he reached his position, instead of him just being an inept doofus all the time.
The Client is a masterpiece. And Tim Meadows is underrated in the title role, treading the line between just a regular dude who they're trying to sell to with a relatable outlook on local life, but also someone who would go for Michael's jokes :) Jan's look at his "THIS IS MY BLOOD" speech is great haha.
I forgot that cute scene with Michael and Jim was at the end of The Client too. Relatable! Even if they both need to grow up a little.
I can't wait until you get to The Dinner Party in Season 4. 🤣
🤣🤣🤣🤣 I can’t wait for his reaction and response to that episode
Michael is a mediocre manager at best but a truly excellent salesperson, I think that we tend to forget that.
Mediocre is veeeeeeery generous
Still hilarious
@@Serryy I mean, in the show's world, it also somehow all works, so it can't be too bad! In the real world those antics would be way below mediocre, yeah :)
My theory on the office workers (maybe this does apply to real world too sometimes) is ultimately, they are a competent bunch and really just don't need much management, so the business survives Michael's reign.
@@jerodast Yeah, I'm under the impression that the branch "thrives" despite Michael.
It's wild how good he is at it when it comes to paper.
Loving these, Jimmy. Glad they’re finally going up on TH-cam.
I love seeing the little glimpses of Michael’s strengths that the writers weave in & how they pleasantly subvert your expectations of him.
Yeah we’re a four eps ahead on Patreon but I’m gonna keep going with four a week here.
Oh the best story on the episode 8 cold open was they had so many of those balls and when Jim hit it with scissors it just hissed slowly and Dwight just slowly lowers out of the screen. Well the did all the takes and there was one ball left and they said screw it let’s just do it one more time. That one time he hit the seam perfectly and it just exploded and that was the take they used. All the expressions in the background were real because that was not supposed to happen.
Possibly Michael's best moment ever, when he closed that deal. Even Jan's look was "How did I EVER under estimate you?"
11:37 I felt that "oh Michael..." in my bones 😂
"Mike does have a use, which is he can communicate with idiots" 😂
In regards to Jim vs Dwight, its all a matter of effort. Zero effort on Jim's behalf is Dwight doing something funny to himself. Its like getting a kick out of your friend stepping in dogshit. But if you are going to get up early to come into work because you have masterminded a gag of moving a desk. Then I'm left to wonder what are you doing with your life.
I think expecting greatness or even adequacy from Michael an entire episode is expecting too much tbh lol he tries his best at times
His ppl skills flex and wane like having Bi polar disorder or some shit lmao. His ppl skills are either negative 5 or at 100 and there's zero inbetween
With Jim & Pam. Jim knows what he wants and so does Pam. But Pam self esteem is low due to Roy and herself. But that’s how it is in real life
Jim pranks Dwight because Dwight is an a**hole. You notice Jim doesn’t prank anyone else. I think everything Jim does to Dwight, he deserves.
Jim is objectively a bully. He targets the easiest person to get to. It's not because he's a great guy who only targets 'bad guys' who deserve it. It's because he's a jerk.
Let's not forget Dwight stole Jim's biggest client in episode 2. He deserves what he gets imo
Season 2 of the Office really hit it's especially half way through the season. 2 - 6 wehead and shoulders above seasons 1, 7 - 9.
I do feel similar about Jim and Dwight but the example you gave i have a different opinion on. The desk thing is a practical joke, the wrong day thing actually affects his job. I think that one is the worse one.
Good point about PB&J being annoying by just not being together already. Ultimately, while Jim could be more direct or mature about it: It is Pam's problem. She's with Roy. She's directly signaled she will continue to be with Roy. And Jim is waiting a long time hoping she'll realize she doesn't want that. (Speaking just about where we are now, nothing about future.) Interesting Jim is a more prominent character and Pam more secondary in some ways, when "why is she marrying Roy?" is really what all the rest revolves around. I guess that's the realism of the show - sometimes it's as simple as, she's been with Roy a long time, it's good enough, and change is hard.
😂 loving these reactions.👏🏽
goddamn daz a good brother that you will never see again
Michael is the best salesman afterall!!! And people always say he is a bad manager but he isnt. You will see in a later ark that while beimg chaotic he knows his people and has them under control, because they all are crazy. So you need a crazy person to manage. Besides the scranton branch is the best in the company and michael definitely has a part in that.
tim meadows should have a cameo in every show and movie
You are totally right about some of Jim's pranks being straight gross, there is an inconsistency where the characters will go from overly immature and comically ignorant to suddenly deep and relatable and once you go there there the previous type of asshole pranks feel different, now they're more unlikable. I guess that makes the characters more interesting, Jim's not a perfect guy, he's obsessed with an engaged woman and goes to long lengths to mess with dwight all the time. But to be fair Dwight stole his big case in season one and is very annoying and kind of Machiavellian with him trying to get people fired and trying to get close to Michael so he can move up in his career.
I've seen some other people feel bad for dwight so you're definitely not alone. Having worked with some people like him though i never really had any sympathy for him. Ya gotta remember jim had worked there with dwight for like 5 years at that point so hes over the whole "maybe if im nice to him he'll be nice to me" phase. Some people just deserve to be bullied
It happens at different times for everyone, but this is where the Michael face turn starts for me. He turns from an absolute asshole to just a big dumb kid with a big dumb heart who also has an insanely good instinct for sales because he genuinely loves people. Now your mileage may vary with regards to his actions versus intentions, but it’s a change that makes the whole show a lot more enjoyable.
I agree. Most Jim "pranks" are assaults or other crimes.
The show does sometimes acknowledge/question Jim's antics, so IMO it's not a bad thing dramatically for Jim to routinely go over the line with Dwight. It does reflect poorly on him; he is a bully, and he invests a comedically large amount of time on pranks. But the show ALSO makes him a little too sympathetic when it's NOT intentionally calling attention to the behavior, in a way that hasn't aged well. It's a little too down to earth to get away with "it's a sitcom, don't treat everyone's feelings like they're normal people" with anyone but Michael.
But occasionally you get a reminder why Dwight is genuinely not well liked and not just by Jim; he's rude, sometimes mistreats others, and all around unreasonable. It's an interesting asymmetrical relationship: Jim is written to be relatable and essentially an agreeable person (in fact one of his worst qualities in the long run is his middle-of-the-road nature when it comes to anything other than amusing himself), whereas Dwight is odd, hard to work with and completely lacking self-awareness. So, Jim is inherently more likeable, and Dwight does not invite kind treatment. BUT, a mostly self-aware person picking on someone who's not just because he's annoyed, is cruel. "Who's right" goes back and forth.
We could break down individual pranks but it's always gonna be subjective. I thought stabbing the ball, while great slapstick, was unusually blunt in its meanness, like "wow Jim must be in a bad mood". It's not totally clear but I think the backstory of their conflict arose from that: "Dwight's doing something annoying. I think it'll drive me crazy, so I'll just directly attack it so he'll stop." And that evolved into the more elaborate stuff he does now because he realized it's just entertaining, and makes Pam laugh.
A lot of people like the really elaborate and creative ones the most, but those are also usually ones that take a huge amount of time, which makes you think "this guy's life balance is not okay" if you look at it with a realistic eye. So it probably depends on which way you're feeling between the pure comedic vs down to earth vibes. Moving the desk, while it had a fun punchline with the super casual phone call and Dwight going straight back to business mode from the bathroom, was time consuming AND not all that clever.
The Friday bit isn't even really a prank, just a bed Dwight made for himself that Jim is happy to encourage :) While some of the pranks are just impressive in their own right, the ones that could only work on Dwight because of the way he behaves always feel a little more justified.
More nonsense to come.
Took me about 3 re-watches of every episode before I started hating Jim. I feel like there's a snobbery behind the bullying at times, he's punching down, belittling his character. It's really mean-spirited and ugly.
And he only gets worse.
Jimmy comes off as such a bullshitter lmao