SkimIt
As everyone prepares for Andy’s (Ed Helms) return, several staffers pair off into fake couples to take advantage of a Valentine’s Day discount at a mini-mall. Pete (Jake Lacy) has his doubts when Erin (Ellie Kemper) tells him that she’s going to break things off with Andy. The entire office is caught off guard when Andy returns to work a day early following his three-month hiatus. Elsewhere, Jim (John Krasinski) and Pam (Jenna Fischer) grab lunch with Brian (Chris Diamantopoulos), the documentary’s soundman.
The Office starring Rainn Wilson, John Krasinski and Jenna Fischer airs on NBC Thursdays at 9:00 pm ET.
Faux Couples
Erin intends on having one more day of fun before Andy returns to the office so she asks Pete to play hooky with her. She assures her new beau that she will break up with Andy so they can be together, but Pete has his doubts.
Not a single staff member was looking forward to Andy’s return; especially Dwight, who more or less appointed himself boss of the Scranton branch when the Nard dog took off.
Phyllis suggests everyone have fun while they can and pair up to take advantage of the couple discounts at the local mini-mall. Things get downright hilarious when everyone goes to the nail salon. When the nail techs tell Nellie that her boyfriend looks like a girl, Clark tells them Nellie isn’t his girlfriend and forfeits the discount. Oscar and Daryl are denied the discount because they are two men. Darryl stands up for their faux relationship and vows to take their business elsewhere.
Andy Returns Early
Pam makes lunch reservations for her and Jim with sound guy, Brian and his girlfriend Alyssa - who the couple has grown close to over the years. They arrive to the restaurant to find Brian alone. Brian tells them that he and Alyssa realized their relationship was over when they stopped fighting. He then tells Pam that they need to stop meeting each other visibly upset. As it turns out, Pam never told Jim that Brian consoled her after their fight.
Andy takes everyone by surprise when he returns to the office. Not only is he a day early, but he’s channeling Michael Scott when he came back from Jamaica with braids and a drum. That’s right; the Nard dog is now Rasta Andy.
Dwight drops a bomb when he tells Andy that CEO David Wallace will be arriving shortly. It’s quickly revealed that David Wallace has no idea that Andy has been gone for the last three months.
CEO David Wallace Visits
The staff secretly meets behind Andy’s back to work through their anger and resentment towards him. Everyone wrestles with whether or not they should tell David Wallace, but ultimately decide to let Andy be his own downfall.
Andy asks the staff for a crash course on what has happened over the last three months, just in case David Wallace asks. Although they initially agreed to let Andy be his own downfall, the staff feed Andy a number of lies. Fortunately for Andy, or so it seemed at the time, he was able to cover for himself.
One Couple Fights While Another Breaks Up
Pam and Jim return from lunch angry with one another. Jim believes Pam intentionally left out an intimate moment with Brian. Pam tells Jim she didn’t want to stress him out. At the end of the day, Jim tells Pam that they should cancel their Valentine’s Day plans and asks to be dropped off at the bus station. He doesn’t want to fight anymore. Pam asks him to stay and fight. Could this be Pam’s way of saying she doesn’t feel like their marriage is alive when they aren’t fighting?
Erin finally gets the courage to tell Andy that she doesn’t love him anymore, but Andy refuses to let her go. Feeling defeated, Erin tells Pete that she tried, but she couldn’t pull the trigger. Pete tells her that he just wants her to be happy. At which point Erin kisses him and marches back into the office where she not only broke up with Andy, but accidently revealed to David Wallace that he had been gone for the past three months.
What did you think of tonight’s episode of The Office? Will Andy get fired? And if so, who would you like to see as the new boss? Can Pam and Jim’s marriage be saved? Share your thoughts below.
Best Lines
“Unless he comes back as pretend Dwight. In which case, we are in for an epic, confusing, showdown.” – Dwight
“You’re back, and you’re disgusting.” – Dwight
“We started selling balloons.” – Phyllis
