WEBVTT 00:00:49.216 --> 00:01:01.831 Thank you, welcome to a very special not a very special blossom, but a very special episode of Jaded HR where we are looking, taking a look at HR through the eyes of pop culture. 00:01:01.831 --> 00:01:02.993 That's probably not what I want to say. 00:01:02.993 --> 00:01:07.010 Well, we're taking a look at pop culture through the eyes of HR. 00:01:07.010 --> 00:01:10.344 Yeah, we're taking a look. 00:01:10.344 --> 00:01:19.112 Most of the episodes are going to be focused around the Office, and today we're starting with Season 1, episode 1 of the Office here. 00:01:19.112 --> 00:01:24.105 So, yeah, this is a new segment CeCe came up with. 00:01:24.105 --> 00:01:37.611 I love the idea that we're just various pop culture shows, movies, things like that, that invoke HR, and there's nothing that raises more HR nightmares in my mind than the Office. 00:01:38.393 --> 00:01:39.034 Absolutely. 00:01:41.359 --> 00:01:49.933 And rewatching season one to episode one, I'm like how many fireball offenses could I find in this episode? 00:01:50.093 --> 00:01:51.375 So many and things like that. 00:01:53.248 --> 00:01:58.269 Yeah, it's crazy, it's an HR nightmare, but it could also end up being a master class in HR. 00:01:58.269 --> 00:02:01.546 Who knows what direction this will take with us? 00:02:01.606 --> 00:02:04.424 So yeah, I love it Kick us off. 00:02:04.424 --> 00:02:15.985 Yeah, so I like to say that I've learned everything I know about working in corporate America, and also working in human resources, from the office. 00:02:15.985 --> 00:02:17.530 Yeah, and I don't know. 00:02:17.530 --> 00:02:29.728 I don't know, dear listener, if you are living under a rock and maybe have never watched the Office before, but we're going to take you on this little journey with us and you can watch along, because we'll let you know what we're covering next. 00:02:30.210 --> 00:02:32.425 We'll say, living under a rock. 00:02:32.425 --> 00:02:37.572 I'm one of those people who I don't watch the hit shows until they're gone. 00:02:37.572 --> 00:02:44.733 I'd never heard of the Office until like four or five years ago, oh my gosh. 00:02:44.733 --> 00:02:50.985 And then I started watching it, watching it okay, I just started watching Modern Family last week. 00:02:50.985 --> 00:02:55.114 I'm like so far behind everything and stuff like that, so I do. 00:02:55.114 --> 00:02:57.913 You know, I have seen every episode of the Office many, many times. 00:02:57.913 --> 00:03:01.326 Is that ended up being one of those background shows that, if right, doing the dishes or anything, you can always find it being on somewhere? 00:03:01.347 --> 00:03:03.132 and you just put it on the background and you're doing the dishes or anything. 00:03:03.132 --> 00:03:12.009 You can always find it being on somewhere and you just put it on in the background and you're doing whatever else and watching it halfway and things like that. 00:03:12.009 --> 00:03:15.389 So I've definitely seen every episode multiple times. 00:03:15.389 --> 00:03:16.986 But yeah, I was living under a rock. 00:03:16.986 --> 00:03:18.947 That Big Bang Theory was that way. 00:03:19.127 --> 00:03:19.688 Oh, that was one. 00:03:19.800 --> 00:03:22.907 I didn't start watching until it was like almost at the end of it. 00:03:22.907 --> 00:03:26.342 I can probably name a dozen other shows like that that I didn't. 00:03:26.985 --> 00:03:37.614 I was late to the party scrubs, scrubs was that way for me okay, I was late to scrubs back then so then I don't know and we're derailing the conversation already I love scrubs. 00:03:37.659 --> 00:03:40.263 It's one of my favorite tv shows of all times. 00:03:40.263 --> 00:04:04.007 I didn't realize until about like five, six years ago that the music is different on the streaming services than it is on how it originally aired, because I guess there was no licensing agreement for streaming, so they had to go in and like change a lot of the music, but the show was known for the music. 00:04:04.007 --> 00:04:08.524 In and like change a lot of the music, but the show was known for the music. 00:04:08.524 --> 00:04:16.625 So I told this to my husband and I got, like last christmas, the entire box set on dvd with all the original like music as it's intended to be. 00:04:16.625 --> 00:04:31.528 It's amazing and it's also like really weird to put me, like you know, use dvds again, but anyway, fun fact I don't know if I have a dvd player anymore yeah xbox that's what it is. 00:04:31.548 --> 00:04:47.711 That's what we use I think, yeah, I guess I would be have to, I'd have to use so I do want to say, like, this show did premiere 20 years ago and, as we recap some of this stuff, some things might be spoilers if you've never watched it before. 00:04:47.711 --> 00:04:53.790 However, it's been out for 20 years, so if you haven't watched it by now, you can't be mad at us. 00:04:53.790 --> 00:04:56.889 So the Titanic, the ship, you know the ship goes down at the end. 00:04:56.889 --> 00:04:58.665 So there's a spoiler for you too. 00:04:58.665 --> 00:05:08.509 So, yeah, so for those who haven't really watched the Office or again, aren't familiar with it, I just wanted to give a little bit of background for those who didn't know. 00:05:08.509 --> 00:05:12.451 So it did premiere in 2005. 00:05:12.451 --> 00:05:14.086 So that's 20 years ago. 00:05:14.086 --> 00:05:24.408 It was an adaptation of an original British show under the same name and it was created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant and it did have a very rocky start. 00:05:24.408 --> 00:05:27.129 So the show was not popular to begin with. 00:05:27.129 --> 00:05:30.370 It was kind of always being threatened to be canceled. 00:05:30.370 --> 00:05:47.112 And it really popped in popularity, probably around like the end of season one, kind of season two, and it really soared in popularity during the pandemic and Netflix and all that kind of stuff, because people were just binge watching it, binge watching it, binge watching it. 00:05:47.814 --> 00:05:54.735 It's known for its mockumentary style, its cringe humor and how it's very relatable. 00:05:54.735 --> 00:05:59.745 Everyone kind of finds something relatable because it's basically a mirror of everyday life. 00:05:59.745 --> 00:06:03.713 So why has it been so popular? 00:06:03.713 --> 00:06:04.704 This is one of my things. 00:06:04.704 --> 00:06:05.607 I love it. 00:06:05.607 --> 00:06:06.101 Again. 00:06:06.101 --> 00:06:07.827 I quote it at least once a day. 00:06:07.827 --> 00:06:09.646 It's just part of my vernacular. 00:06:09.646 --> 00:06:11.887 So basically, it's a very relatable show. 00:06:11.887 --> 00:06:27.101 A lot of the characters and the situations of the show are reflective of the American workplace Things like inept managers or bad team meetings or like the various interpersonal dynamics you might have with someone in the workplace. 00:06:27.101 --> 00:06:31.894 A lot of it is extremely, extremely relatable. 00:06:31.894 --> 00:06:38.548 There's a lot of timeless themes in there work-life balance, the monotony of the nine to five. 00:06:38.548 --> 00:06:44.028 It does use humor as a huge coping mechanism, which I love about the show. 00:06:44.028 --> 00:06:51.521 There's a lot of things that happen in the show that are very like serious when you're looking at it, especially from an HR perspective. 00:06:51.521 --> 00:06:53.867 But honestly, again, it's just. 00:06:53.867 --> 00:06:55.992 You know, if you can't cry, you laugh. 00:06:56.901 --> 00:06:58.884 That's because this is a podcast you can't see. 00:06:58.884 --> 00:07:06.312 Behind Christina on her wall, along with their SHRM certification, is a Michael Scott quote. 00:07:06.312 --> 00:07:10.485 I think it's the Michael Jordan quote and then a Dwight Schrute pillow. 00:07:11.329 --> 00:07:11.750 Yes. 00:07:12.019 --> 00:07:14.108 I seem to remember something else I don't see. 00:07:14.108 --> 00:07:19.213 I thought you had more Office than that in other episodes that I can't see. 00:07:20.021 --> 00:07:30.355 I do have the complete history of the Office as written by oh the guy that plays, oh my gosh, I'm like Kevin Brian Barmerger or whatever Ron Gardner, yeah. 00:07:30.355 --> 00:07:33.826 So I have the complete oral history of the Office back there. 00:07:34.887 --> 00:07:44.148 Wow, wow, so yeah, so you are like a super fan of the Office and you talked about its beginning. 00:07:44.148 --> 00:07:47.824 They I did listen for a long time to office ladies. 00:07:47.824 --> 00:07:50.149 I don't listen to it as much anymore. 00:07:50.149 --> 00:08:01.384 I sort of fell out of love with that podcast, but I remember that you know them saying like I think one of them was working in a dentist's office, the other was like waiting table. 00:08:01.384 --> 00:08:05.293 No, kensey was working in a call center for a dental place. 00:08:05.293 --> 00:08:07.685 Yes, jenna was waiting tables. 00:08:07.685 --> 00:08:20.365 Neither of them quit their job for until like the second year, because they were always under threat of losing losing their job, which is a theme of episode one a theme of episode one. 00:08:21.125 --> 00:08:28.665 So, and just to let you know the that quote that's behind me, the michael scott scott quote, it's actually I got. 00:08:28.665 --> 00:08:31.612 I gotta like just make sure I read it right or else I'm gonna ruin it. 00:08:31.612 --> 00:08:40.784 Uh oh, hr is a breeding ground for monsters, but what I fail to recognize is that not all monsters are bad. 00:08:40.985 --> 00:08:41.485 That's what it is. 00:08:41.485 --> 00:08:43.188 Okay, I can't see. 00:08:43.188 --> 00:08:43.710 I thought it was. 00:08:43.710 --> 00:08:50.115 Every time I see something like that with michael scott I think it's the uh, when he's quoting michael jordan quoting him. 00:08:50.115 --> 00:08:58.303 He's yeah, you, you miss a hundred percent of the shots you don't take wayne gretzky michael scott michael scott. 00:08:58.303 --> 00:09:00.471 Yeah, he, anyways, that's that's. 00:09:00.471 --> 00:09:01.173 That's funny. 00:09:01.173 --> 00:09:04.442 So where do you want to start with this episode? 00:09:04.945 --> 00:09:06.370 so we can start at the beginning. 00:09:06.370 --> 00:09:10.051 So here's a couple things at the very beginning. 00:09:10.051 --> 00:09:23.807 First of all, it starts cold open, basically, with a meeting between Michael and Jim and Michael kind of breaking of the fourth wall and something to describe for people who've never seen it. 00:09:23.807 --> 00:09:28.760 But the cameramen, or the cameras, are actually a character as well, because they're filming a mockumentary. 00:09:28.760 --> 00:09:39.389 So michael is very aware that the cameras are there and he's like a ham and he's just like, oh you know, yes, jim, why did you want to see me? 00:09:39.389 --> 00:09:42.903 And like jim kind of calls him out like no, you, you asked to see me. 00:09:42.903 --> 00:09:48.044 And then Michael has to kind of like flex his muscles and help Jim close a deal. 00:09:48.044 --> 00:09:50.049 So he gets on the phone and he does it. 00:09:50.650 --> 00:10:00.462 But what I want to point out here again, as the ultimate connoisseur of the office, is that Michael is good at something and I'm going to refer to this time and time again. 00:10:00.462 --> 00:10:15.432 Michael is a competent salesman and that is why he got promoted into the regional manager and he loves I think he just loves his management position. 00:10:15.432 --> 00:10:34.091 So he goes in and he introduces himself, but essentially, like he thinks very highly of himself, he doesn't have a lot of self-awareness, as you'll find out, and he was one of those individuals who was promoted into a management position because they were good at their job. 00:10:35.794 --> 00:10:40.892 Yes, and that's HR mistake numero uno so many times. 00:10:40.892 --> 00:10:43.503 Oh, they're good at their role, let's promote them. 00:10:43.503 --> 00:11:08.994 And even though they don't have any managerial skills, as as michael scott, so, and, and, yeah, I, and, okay, I, I was talking about terminal offenses in that meeting with jim that he called you know that jim needed help, for you know it ends and tell me if I'm stomping on anything of yours with him saying, sir, you're a gentleman and a scholar. 00:11:08.994 --> 00:11:11.589 And then it's like, oh, that was a woman. 00:11:11.589 --> 00:11:20.322 She has a very deep voice, she must smoke a lot or whatever it is, she must be a smoker, she must be a smoker and it's just. 00:11:20.322 --> 00:11:22.027 I don't know. 00:11:22.027 --> 00:11:23.652 I can see that customer complaint coming in. 00:11:23.652 --> 00:11:26.168 Your dude just called me a dude. 00:11:26.168 --> 00:11:30.707 You know, maybe that's not terminable, but that's definitely worth a. 00:11:30.707 --> 00:11:32.030 We need to talk. 00:11:32.873 --> 00:11:33.092 Yeah. 00:11:34.020 --> 00:11:35.063 Take a situation. 00:11:36.229 --> 00:11:37.724 Yeah, and he? 00:11:37.724 --> 00:11:47.495 What is it he loves to talk about how oh, I've asked so many people about how everyone says I'm a great boss and how funny I am, and blah, blah, blah. 00:11:47.495 --> 00:11:54.730 And I even bought this mug from Spencer's Gifts and it was like, the joke being that he bought his own world's best boss mug. 00:11:55.630 --> 00:12:09.594 Yes, yeah, I didn't pick up on that until I watched it today that he bought it himself, yeah, so yeah, well, I guess what's the next best scene? 00:12:09.594 --> 00:12:11.960 Well, okay, harassment. 00:12:11.960 --> 00:12:13.563 Let's talk about harassment. 00:12:13.563 --> 00:12:24.427 Okay, there's multiple instances of sexual harassment and unfortunately, I guess pam the, the receptionist office manager, is the. 00:12:24.427 --> 00:12:27.072 He says something. 00:12:27.072 --> 00:12:27.975 You think she's hot? 00:12:27.975 --> 00:12:29.985 I'm butchering this quote. 00:12:29.985 --> 00:12:30.884 You think she's hot? 00:12:30.884 --> 00:12:31.085 Now? 00:12:31.085 --> 00:12:32.806 You should have seen her 10 years ago. 00:12:33.167 --> 00:12:33.668 Yes. 00:12:34.774 --> 00:12:41.273 Excuse me, talk about the double whammy on that Gosh. 00:12:41.273 --> 00:12:49.361 Once again we're getting closer to terminable offenses, but hey, we're not there quite yet. 00:12:49.361 --> 00:12:50.845 But I mean, we're all. 00:12:50.845 --> 00:12:53.308 We're only in the first five minutes of the episode. 00:12:53.669 --> 00:12:59.625 So far I I do love his like little gag of oh where are my faxes? 00:12:59.625 --> 00:13:06.754 And or pam pam gives him faxes and he's like oh, I told you, this goes in a special spot in the trash. 00:13:06.754 --> 00:13:07.541 Can Like? 00:13:07.541 --> 00:13:13.389 Ha, ha, ha, ha, like just the way he's just so cringy with all these like really bad dad jokes. 00:13:14.331 --> 00:13:15.453 Yeah, yeah. 00:13:15.453 --> 00:13:26.567 And well, that takes us to the sort of the next scene, where Jan the I don't know what her title is she's like a corporate person, she's the VP. 00:13:26.567 --> 00:13:34.005 Yeah, comes in and drops the news on them that there's going to be some downsizing. 00:13:34.807 --> 00:13:35.529 Oh my gosh. 00:13:36.873 --> 00:13:36.993 Oh. 00:13:37.259 --> 00:13:38.466 Oh, I was going to say go ahead. 00:13:39.639 --> 00:13:48.010 Oh well, you know, and Michael swears the secrecy and everything like that, but I guess you can imagine how long that secret is kept. 00:13:49.020 --> 00:13:50.125 He can't keep a secret. 00:13:50.125 --> 00:13:57.147 He cannot keep a secret Like yes, terms are coming, you got to shut your mouth about it. 00:14:00.282 --> 00:14:07.794 And then comes the I'm trying to Carol what's his name plays him, who is? 00:14:08.179 --> 00:14:12.250 Oh, are you talking about Packer, packer, packer, that was good. 00:14:12.350 --> 00:14:24.611 Yeah, then comes, while he's in this important meeting about downsizing with the vice president, his number one sales rep, packer, calls, who was. 00:14:24.611 --> 00:14:28.917 If you go further down the episode, they're buddies and they were both coming up as salespeople together. 00:14:28.917 --> 00:14:34.370 Michael Scott, like man, crushes on him very hard, I guess. 00:14:34.431 --> 00:15:09.796 Very hard puts on the speakerphone and he is so grossly, overtly inappropriate asking if the vice president's carpet matches the drapes, yep, and all this other like stuff, with the vice president right there on speakerphone listening to it and packard is like and the thing is, I've had to work with people maybe not quite as overt as Packard, but still people are just that dumb. 00:15:09.796 --> 00:15:27.350 Maybe it's not an essential harassment, but they're just going to do it and he makes me feel you know, we've discussed this multiple times on the podcast yeah, do your number one salespeople get away with more because you don't want to lose them? 00:15:27.350 --> 00:15:33.311 Yes, and is that the only thing that's keeping Packard there? 00:15:33.311 --> 00:15:36.870 Is it because he's a great salesperson? 00:15:38.341 --> 00:15:50.352 That is such a good point Because remember spoiler alert a few episodes in, at some point he takes a shit in Michael's office as a prank. 00:15:50.352 --> 00:16:06.389 And it's such a good point that Packer must be an excellent salesperson, because how is it that he could say that on the phone and take a shit like all this stuff and he still has a job. 00:16:09.899 --> 00:16:10.803 Yeah, and that's only the tip of the iceberg. 00:16:10.803 --> 00:16:12.971 He mentioned other very inappropriate that he called her what? 00:16:12.971 --> 00:16:28.313 Hillary, hillary, rodham, godzilla, or something like yes, or something like that, and you know, just going on and on, so, but this really sets up the, the, the context of, you know, michael, and of Michael's not doing the values. 00:16:28.313 --> 00:16:31.765 Oh, okay, okay, and then I guess he just sort of hung up on him. 00:16:31.866 --> 00:16:33.331 Yeah, yeah. 00:16:33.331 --> 00:16:37.030 At first he's like singing his praises like, oh, this is Packer, he's a great guy. 00:16:37.030 --> 00:16:40.169 And then he hangs up his phone like idiot he's an idiot. 00:16:42.100 --> 00:16:42.804 Oh my gosh. 00:16:42.804 --> 00:16:45.964 So where do we go next? 00:16:46.203 --> 00:16:49.770 So, after this love, okay, so I'm gonna. 00:16:49.770 --> 00:16:51.113 I might jump a little bit. 00:16:51.113 --> 00:17:00.894 So so ryan, the temp is introduced, he walks in for his first day, um, and he's played by, uh, bj novak. 00:17:00.894 --> 00:17:02.140 I love bj novak. 00:17:02.140 --> 00:17:04.403 Fun fact, he's also one of the writers on the show. 00:17:04.403 --> 00:17:05.345 But anyway. 00:17:05.345 --> 00:17:24.588 So Ryan comes in and he kind of like he just does such stupid, stupid jokes to like welcome him so cringy and he talks about how he loves comedy and then he starts doing like, like, just for shits and giggles. 00:17:24.588 --> 00:17:30.782 Takes the placard off of Pam's desk just for gigs, shits and giggles. 00:17:30.782 --> 00:17:35.140 Takes the placard off of pam's desk, puts it against his face like a mustache and then does like the hitler march across the office as if it's like a really funny joke. 00:17:35.140 --> 00:17:37.263 And it's just so awkward. 00:17:37.263 --> 00:17:43.541 Everyone's just staring at him, no one's laughing at all and he's just like lighten up. 00:17:43.882 --> 00:17:46.388 Ah, we're, we have fun here, we have Like. 00:17:46.388 --> 00:17:48.173 That was like the whole tone of it I'm Hitler. 00:17:49.080 --> 00:17:50.105 I just don't get it. 00:17:50.105 --> 00:17:55.530 And he doesn't have a clue why nobody's laughing Right. 00:17:55.530 --> 00:17:57.146 They just don't get that he is Hitler. 00:17:57.146 --> 00:18:00.097 They absolutely get that he's Hitler. 00:18:00.859 --> 00:18:07.147 Everyone got it and it's funny because that's definitely termable. 00:18:07.147 --> 00:18:11.243 That is a little term of all that would. 00:18:11.243 --> 00:18:11.785 That would be. 00:18:11.785 --> 00:18:34.096 So michael's already fired by like the first episode but suspension of belief, he has the job the whole time and I have to laugh because I have been in a room where, like, a leader has made a slightly like borderline racial joke and I'm like and no one laughs because everyone's like you say that like it really freaking happens. 00:18:34.096 --> 00:18:34.799 Is that really? 00:18:39.405 --> 00:18:42.910 and and yeah, so they. 00:18:42.910 --> 00:18:47.655 I guess he keeps on you and also to pick up man crushes. 00:18:47.655 --> 00:18:59.880 This begins the man crush that he has with Ryan, the Temp, which we'll be talking a lot about, I'm sure, over the course of these episodes. 00:19:00.421 --> 00:19:08.275 And the funny part is and, like I think the broader gag is, the company's not doing well. 00:19:08.275 --> 00:19:18.893 They're looking at cutting people and terminating people, but Michael spends the money and brings in a temp A temp. 00:19:18.893 --> 00:19:23.259 And that is so stupid, so stupid. 00:19:25.823 --> 00:19:49.594 Well, I think it's like the next scene that Michael has an all-hands meeting with everybody and announces that corporate's going to be doing a layoff yes, and then he basically guarantees and, mind you, five minutes earlier he just told Jan the VP, vp, that hey, you know, I'll keep this a secret. 00:19:49.594 --> 00:19:50.295 And what do you know? 00:19:50.295 --> 00:20:00.615 He's got all hands meeting letting them know that there's going to be, you know, downsizing, I think is what the term they kept using. 00:20:00.654 --> 00:20:13.105 Downsizing and the thing is like it's funny because at some point, like before, before that meeting people are already like understanding and whispering that downsizing could be a thing Like it's in the air. 00:20:13.105 --> 00:20:25.009 You know, like we're kind of thrown into this like situation, like as in fresh eyes of like people are already worried about it and they're talking quietly, like even Oscar is like I don't know, you better update your resume. 00:20:25.009 --> 00:20:29.268 And then Michael just like just throws gas on the fire. 00:20:31.512 --> 00:20:33.807 Exactly, oh, the meat. 00:20:33.807 --> 00:20:58.653 First, we're going to have a lot of fun talking about Michael and his meetings episode, because there's there's some really good things If you, if you haven't watched, or haven't watched in a while, that happened in his meetings, but anyways, he goes on to have a meeting and announces that yeah, but then Pam who was in the meeting says because he's sitting there guaranteeing that it's not going to happen to him. 00:20:58.653 --> 00:21:06.273 Well, I was in the meeting and she said we're definitely on the chopping block, I guess. 00:21:06.614 --> 00:21:06.894 Yeah. 00:21:07.500 --> 00:21:10.711 And once again, terminal offense, sharing that confidential information. 00:21:10.711 --> 00:21:20.099 Yeah, that's very high on the list of things that Michael could be termed for just in episode one. 00:21:20.099 --> 00:21:26.327 And then we see the pranks, and yeah, the pranks. 00:21:26.327 --> 00:21:28.166 Which prank was first? 00:21:28.849 --> 00:21:30.194 let's see, so it was. 00:21:30.194 --> 00:21:39.965 There was a sales pitch that jim was trying to make and then, while he's doing it, dwight keeps like, just like disrupting him, and I think it was like with the pencil sharpener. 00:21:39.965 --> 00:21:50.153 So then jim lines his desk up with sharpened pencils to like display a border, like a barricade, like to which you know. 00:21:50.153 --> 00:22:01.414 Dwight is just like then pounding the pencils through the thing, just being obnoxious and I do want to say he could get hurt oh yeah, that's right because he could. 00:22:01.575 --> 00:22:04.021 He could get hurt, like yeah, that was what it was. 00:22:04.021 --> 00:22:06.468 We've all worked with a Dwight. 00:22:07.891 --> 00:22:08.613 We can only hope. 00:22:10.621 --> 00:22:17.854 I have to say like I am a big Jim fan, but I am going to say that Jim is a workplace bully. 00:22:17.854 --> 00:22:30.380 I'm going to say it just constantly, all of his pranks, and not to say, like Dwight doesn't deserve it and he kind of gives it back to him every once in a while, like Dwight doesn't deserve it and he kind of gives it back to him every once in a while. 00:22:34.299 --> 00:22:42.400 But I'm like I feel like Jim should have had a conversation by now with everything, Not only I think Jim is the very first quiet quitter doing the bare minimum. 00:22:43.181 --> 00:22:44.025 Oh. 00:22:48.079 --> 00:22:49.894 And he even talks about hey, maybe not in this episode episode. 00:22:49.894 --> 00:22:50.078 It's one of the features of the Office. 00:22:50.078 --> 00:23:03.019 If you're listening to this, I'm assuming you're listening to the Office but they have these where they talk directly to the camera, maybe answering some of the people's questions and things like that future episodes. 00:23:03.019 --> 00:23:07.579 I'm just doing the bare minimum to get by, or whatever. 00:23:07.579 --> 00:23:13.442 He says something along those lines later down, but I think he's the original quite quitter, but he's also. 00:23:13.442 --> 00:23:14.243 He is a bully. 00:23:14.243 --> 00:23:19.314 A bully because some of it's funny, but it it could be funny. 00:23:19.314 --> 00:23:29.355 It doesn't take the fact that, but dwight is such the only target, the only person he really targets is, well, jim and Michael Scott. 00:23:29.815 --> 00:23:30.036 Yeah. 00:23:30.721 --> 00:23:33.155 Or Dwight I should say, and Michael Scott. 00:23:33.196 --> 00:23:33.699 Yeah, yeah, yeah. 00:23:34.560 --> 00:23:35.343 He really targets. 00:23:35.343 --> 00:23:39.731 He leaves everybody else alone for the most part, as far as I remember. 00:23:39.731 --> 00:23:42.585 But yeah, I agree, he is a workplace bully. 00:23:42.585 --> 00:23:44.811 Yeah, and yeah. 00:23:44.811 --> 00:23:50.270 So we get introduced to, I think in that same scene with the pencil barricade. 00:23:50.270 --> 00:23:58.681 We get introduced to jello jim putting objects in jello for, and that'll come up again, which I think is hilarious. 00:23:59.061 --> 00:24:09.791 Okay, I've told any number of times we would prank the hell out of patrick now you're making me think I'm a workplace bully but we worked together and like we destroyed his desk. 00:24:09.791 --> 00:24:22.366 We would when he'd go on vacation you know he hated returning after like the second or third time returning from vacation or or something like that, to see what the hell they'd done to to my, my desk now. 00:24:22.366 --> 00:24:28.445 But we, we screwed up with with his stuff so much, and one time to find his keyboard. 00:24:28.445 --> 00:24:30.671 I hid the keyboard in them and it was a treasure hunt. 00:24:30.671 --> 00:24:31.813 It wasn't his keyboard. 00:24:31.813 --> 00:24:37.932 He comes back from vacation and you'd find a clue here and then you'd have to go over here to find the next clue. 00:24:37.932 --> 00:24:40.929 I did this whole elaborate treasure. 00:24:40.929 --> 00:24:49.664 Now I'm feeling sort of bad because being a workplace bully, but we did, that was all me. 00:24:49.664 --> 00:24:57.326 I was the maybe not mastermind, but yeah, I was the master, I initiated most of that and then everybody else joined in. 00:24:57.326 --> 00:24:59.647 But yeah, now I'm sorry, sorry, patrick. 00:25:00.019 --> 00:25:05.353 I think it was like I see, pranks are fun between people who like each other, right? 00:25:05.353 --> 00:25:12.250 I think it's like this Jim and Dwight-ness, where Jim just does it to get a rise out of Dwight. 00:25:12.250 --> 00:25:15.549 I think that makes it a bullying situation. 00:25:16.840 --> 00:25:20.730 Especially when Dwight is so easy to push a button. 00:25:21.211 --> 00:25:21.511 Oh yeah. 00:25:22.882 --> 00:25:28.528 Anything will push his buttons, dwight's buttons, and that makes you a target for bullies. 00:25:28.528 --> 00:25:31.003 So yeah, so yeah. 00:25:31.003 --> 00:25:39.688 That's a good thing, but I guess the biggest prank of the episode is the jello? 00:25:39.887 --> 00:25:41.464 Oh no, which big prank? 00:25:41.464 --> 00:25:43.305 Because there's a couple pranks. 00:25:44.260 --> 00:26:30.781 The big one when Mike and Brianrian bring pam into yes, yeah, so so, yeah, they bring pam into the office and michael, with ryan present, just to prove how like fun and pranky they are, quote, quote, unquote pranks pam by telling her that she is fired for stealing post-its, and and she just starts crying because she takes it so seriously, because she was just terminated and and yeah and he goes on to say and because this was gross misconduct, you will not be eligible for any severances. 00:26:31.022 --> 00:26:36.156 I mean he's, he's laying it on really thick and ryan the whole time. 00:26:36.156 --> 00:26:42.134 New guy day one is just sort of oh, you got this, what the fuck am I getting into? 00:26:42.134 --> 00:26:52.015 Right look and he's like looking away and you know he's like you just put me in the most uncomfortable situation you possibly could have put me into. 00:26:52.015 --> 00:26:54.067 So yeah, that was. 00:26:54.299 --> 00:26:57.289 It's also like just bad timing for that. 00:26:57.289 --> 00:26:58.565 Well, that's a bad prank. 00:26:58.565 --> 00:27:08.729 To begin with, you shouldn't fake fire someone which, funny enough, happens another couple times, I think, in the series but you shouldn't be fake firing anyone. 00:27:08.729 --> 00:27:12.411 And second of all, you shouldn't be fake firing someone when you're talking about layoffs. 00:27:13.820 --> 00:27:15.046 Exactly exactly. 00:27:15.046 --> 00:27:25.375 And you know, in the real world I've said before I was laid off twice within six months of each other, in 2011. 00:27:25.375 --> 00:27:39.684 I've been on the layoff side of things, both as the person being laid off and I've been the HR person discussing okay, let's make our list and decide how we're going to do this and who's going to be on the list, and things like that. 00:27:39.684 --> 00:27:45.962 Layoffs are not fun at all they're stressful. 00:27:46.023 --> 00:27:58.349 The second time I got laid off I knew that I was getting laid off because I didn't get invited to that layoff meeting oh no oh yeah, I, I we had weekly meetings. 00:27:58.911 --> 00:28:00.373 I was working that hospital. 00:28:00.373 --> 00:28:19.853 It lost its license, so our patient count is going down every day and we we were allowed to keep the patients we had, but as people were being discharged we couldn't take new patients in and a lot of the the patients were wards of the state and these agencies were pulling their people out. 00:28:19.853 --> 00:28:28.869 So you know, there's a in a medical field you have to have so many people working per patient, you would say, and our numbers are going down. 00:28:28.869 --> 00:28:31.926 So we're laying people off and I'm in those meetings every week. 00:28:31.926 --> 00:28:35.269 And then I didn't get the invitation to the next meeting. 00:28:35.269 --> 00:28:37.224 I just went to the director and said I'm on the list, aren't I? 00:28:37.224 --> 00:28:40.413 And she's like oh, she took it. 00:28:40.413 --> 00:28:41.625 I was like you know. 00:28:42.579 --> 00:28:44.123 The writing is kind of on the wall. 00:28:44.845 --> 00:28:53.112 Yeah, at some point I was going to be on that list, so I've been there both sides of the story. 00:28:53.112 --> 00:28:58.046 But yeah, layoffs are not fun, they're not something to joke around about, and things like that. 00:28:58.046 --> 00:29:01.008 So yeah, so that's Terminable Offense. 00:29:01.008 --> 00:29:10.615 And why the hell would Ryan come back for day two after seeing the shit show he's walking into with this, with this job? 00:29:11.000 --> 00:29:14.173 I would have called my temp agency and been like get me out of here. 00:29:14.173 --> 00:29:15.699 I don't care about the bonus. 00:29:15.699 --> 00:29:21.790 Like get me out of here yeah, exactly, and how did the? 00:29:21.991 --> 00:29:23.074 how did the episode end? 00:29:23.074 --> 00:29:23.413 What did? 00:29:23.413 --> 00:29:25.547 What did we have going on? 00:29:25.567 --> 00:29:38.563 I can't remember well, well, pam, like calls him an asshole and like walks out of the room because like and then the office place budding romance I guess that is true. 00:29:39.163 --> 00:29:49.592 Yes, we learned that jim, even though pam's engaged for three years to another co-worker, that jim and pam have a thing going on already they do. 00:29:49.901 --> 00:29:58.548 they're like work besties, but they also are like each other's work husband and work wives but they actually like, actually they're crushing, they're crushing. 00:29:58.548 --> 00:30:21.048 So I'm I'm so glad you brought that up, because when I was in grad school I actually there was a professor there who her like area of expertise was workplace romance, like, and she did a lot of research around that and I thought it was like super interesting, so okay, so really funny story. 00:30:21.048 --> 00:30:31.845 I think she started off, like in her career, as doing research with, like, like, air traffic controllers and their workplace dynamics and their workplace satisfaction and morale. 00:30:32.385 --> 00:30:47.092 air traffic controllers have the lowest morale, so fun fact about that I heard it's the highest stress job it is, it's the highest stress job and like morale is really low and it's just like really stressful, so hated that. 00:30:47.092 --> 00:31:06.482 And then she fell into like this whole workplace romance thing and but yeah, she's like the leading expert in studying that and apparently like I think it's really interesting that the office kind of touches on it, because we've all been in situations where we know the people, the couple that's getting too flirty or this or that. 00:31:06.482 --> 00:31:18.660 I've been in situations where one like two people were working in the same company together and the woman found out that he was also dating somebody else in the company and it was like a little bit of an altercation. 00:31:18.660 --> 00:31:26.061 But yeah, like this is it's such a recognizable, relatable thing that I love that they interweaved it in the office. 00:31:26.061 --> 00:31:28.289 Plus, you have to have that for a hit TV show. 00:31:28.289 --> 00:31:31.209 There needs to be a Sam and Diane. 00:31:31.249 --> 00:31:31.830 Sam and Diane. 00:31:31.830 --> 00:31:38.888 Well, it's so crazy that while they're crushing on each other, you know she's engaged to someone who works down in the warehouse. 00:31:39.009 --> 00:31:39.471 Yes. 00:31:39.920 --> 00:31:41.506 And so that's it. 00:31:41.506 --> 00:31:51.875 But you get to meet that and then so, oops, you get to meet Roy and he doesn't want to go out to drinks with them, and things like that, and I don't know so. 00:31:52.779 --> 00:31:54.346 Roy is an idiot. 00:31:54.346 --> 00:31:55.048 I hate Roy. 00:31:55.048 --> 00:31:57.944 Well no, I love the actor. 00:31:57.944 --> 00:32:01.846 The actor is pretty funny, but Roy himself, he's a schlub. 00:32:04.551 --> 00:32:08.346 Yeah, he keeps it interesting there. 00:32:08.346 --> 00:32:15.028 But all of them, you know I love the dynamic of all these people and how crazy and different and everything they are. 00:32:15.028 --> 00:32:19.181 I I think it's such a well cast show. 00:32:19.181 --> 00:32:29.096 And okay, phyllis, you know she, she was hired to not to be on screen talent, she was a casting person on the show. 00:32:29.096 --> 00:32:41.453 And then Toby and Ryan and oh gosh, kelly, the writers of the show they end up from listening to Office Ladies. 00:32:41.453 --> 00:32:46.759 They were moved to the back, the annex, very quickly because they're still having to write. 00:32:46.759 --> 00:32:49.327 They're sitting there in the annex areas, actually they're, they're still having to write. 00:32:49.327 --> 00:32:55.907 They're sitting there in the annex areas actually, where they wrote, apparently, and they're writing while they're filming in the other side and they didn't need the. 00:32:55.948 --> 00:32:59.307 You know they didn't need to be in there, they couldn't be in every shot and stuff like that. 00:32:59.368 --> 00:33:01.056 So it's so it's crazy. 00:33:01.056 --> 00:33:22.661 I thought it was really interesting too that, like I think it was the director who insisted that the three of them be part of the show so that they understood the flow of the show and they understood the characters and the dial, and it would give them better ability to write better for the show if they were in the show, and which I loved. 00:33:22.661 --> 00:33:24.845 And Toby, oh god, who plays him? 00:33:24.845 --> 00:33:25.626 Paul Lieber plays him. 00:33:25.626 --> 00:33:37.510 Paul Lieberstein yes, so Paul Lieberstein actually hated to be on camera, so any episode that he produces he's not on camera, he like purposefully doesn't write himself in because he hates being on camera. 00:33:38.059 --> 00:33:55.550 But what I was going to say was so I, my team, is doing something very interesting this year under the same, I think, under the same guise is like everyone on the team has to be working together, and I like the idea of like the writers had to be on the cast too, so they understood. 00:33:55.550 --> 00:34:05.095 So my, our talent management team, we are starting to kind of trade projects now. 00:34:05.095 --> 00:34:20.188 So I think it's interesting, because my boss from a previous company was like we used to do this thing where someone would take something on for three years and then pass it on to someone else on the team and one of those. 00:34:20.188 --> 00:34:28.447 There's a couple of projects now that I'm being given that someone else on the team had before, and I think it's really interesting. 00:34:28.447 --> 00:34:33.835 First of all, my little ADHD brain is like yes, variety, let's do this. 00:34:33.835 --> 00:34:36.387 So I'm like stoked, you know. 00:34:36.840 --> 00:34:58.152 But it's also very interesting where listen, I may have done it in a past, I haven't done it here, but now I'd like to take this and iterate on it, and then it just everything that we do as a team, like we're cross, like cross-pollinating for real, and I feel like there's something so good about, like so healthy about that. 00:34:58.152 --> 00:35:03.393 And I think, even as we're talking about a show like the Office, I think that's one of the things that made that show so popular. 00:35:03.393 --> 00:35:14.846 It's because they were like the director demanded that of them, like you need to do these things so you understand it, so that that will make you better, and we're like real world application. 00:35:14.846 --> 00:35:18.143 We're doing it on my team right now, which I think is something to throw out there. 00:35:19.465 --> 00:35:20.949 Well, that's one thing I was hoping. 00:35:20.949 --> 00:35:26.751 I didn't think we got too much of it in episode one, but that's one thing I was hoping to get out of this. 00:35:26.751 --> 00:35:29.505 The series we're doing is on the offices. 00:35:29.505 --> 00:35:31.673 There are some real hr takeaways. 00:35:31.673 --> 00:35:33.239 Maybe not this episode. 00:35:33.239 --> 00:35:33.922 We can. 00:35:34.123 --> 00:35:46.001 You know I'm teasing about all the terminable offenses yes, the whole the whole show, but there are some actual good hr takeaways that I, as we go through some future episodes, is I've I've thought about it in the past. 00:35:46.001 --> 00:35:58.327 I don't know what episode they are by season and episode number, but there are some really good HR takeaways in the show and I might get a learning opportunity out of this. 00:35:58.327 --> 00:35:58.748 I don't know. 00:35:59.471 --> 00:36:17.445 Yeah, you know, as I was like thinking today, I was like going through like these archetypes of, like these people that work in the office and oh, I've worked with someone like that, or I've worked with someone like that, or I've worked with someone like that I was especially thinking about Michael and how he's just like the person that was just promoted because they were good at their job. 00:36:17.445 --> 00:36:43.431 But, spoiler alert, ryan becomes the opposite of that and they demonstrate in the office the dangers and the opposite of that, because Ryan gets promoted as Michael's boss in later seasons and he's only promoted because he got his MBA but he has no work experience, he's never made a sale and like, literally, we see that shit show fall apart. 00:36:43.431 --> 00:36:57.630 So it's funny because, as I'm like sitting here, I'm like, oh, like I never even clocked that either and that they were very like smart in the way that they wrote this show because it was very real. 00:36:57.630 --> 00:37:02.684 Like some of these, this stuff is very real, like we combat it every day. 00:37:04.309 --> 00:37:06.242 Absolutely, and I just really. 00:37:06.242 --> 00:37:21.853 I think you know, in HR, I think it does have a special resonance with us, but no matter what you've done, you do in an office environment, whether you're a warehouse person, the receptionist, accounting there's someone. 00:37:21.853 --> 00:37:34.340 You've worked with these people and I can pretty much say I've worked with a Stanley, I've worked with a Phyllis, I've worked with every single one of these type of people to some degree or another. 00:37:34.340 --> 00:37:47.452 And if you've been in the workplace more than a couple of years, you probably have too, and that's what makes it so relatable and so you know followable, and then, of course, you know the storylines develop and it keeps you entrapped too. 00:37:47.579 --> 00:37:54.043 But yeah, you've worked with these people, you've been in these situations and and things like that. 00:37:54.043 --> 00:37:59.501 Oh, one other thing I wanted to bring up about season one of the office kevin's voice. 00:37:59.501 --> 00:38:16.324 Kevin uses his real voice in season one and I think there was like a nine month break between season one and season two and then he starts using the the stranger, weirder voice is something I've picked up multiple times before. 00:38:16.324 --> 00:38:18.210 So yeah, he started. 00:38:18.210 --> 00:38:23.746 I think it's season two he'll start using the weird voice that's funny. 00:38:23.885 --> 00:38:38.791 I've never noticed that and I've watched the show so many times oh, watch, watch episode one again and then go back and watch something from the later seasons and when he, when he does, yeah, they change his, his voice in there. 00:38:38.851 --> 00:38:40.373 So that's so good. 00:38:40.373 --> 00:38:47.081 Well, I will just say that you know, as the the one thing I do like how the show just kind of ends, is that michael. 00:38:47.081 --> 00:38:48.302 Michael is feeling bad. 00:38:48.302 --> 00:38:53.134 He's just ruined the morale of the entire office with his stupidity and his big mouth. 00:38:53.134 --> 00:39:03.056 But Jim does end up putting his mug in the Jello and I always consider so here's kind of what we're talking about. 00:39:03.056 --> 00:39:03.960 Is Jim being the bully? 00:39:03.960 --> 00:39:33.505 I think he's a bully toward Dwight, but I think when he pranks Michael it's out of like, love, like because Michael, I think Michael can communicate at that level and if you prank Michael to a certain extent, like he like he either doesn't get it so it goes over his head, or if he does get it, like I don't know, it's kind of like he's there for the jokes, he's there for the good time. 00:39:33.505 --> 00:39:44.132 So that's why I'm like when Jim does it, it's almost like he's doing it out of an empathetic way, like putting his jello in there and like it'll probably put a smile on his face the next day. 00:39:45.561 --> 00:39:49.251 Yeah, I'm thinking he's doing it because he doesn't want Michael to feel left out too. 00:39:49.251 --> 00:40:10.391 I think he's got a soft spot for Michael, because if Michael's feelings get hurt very easily and we're going to see many accounts of that but before we get to that final mug in the jello there's a scene where Michael's talking directly to the camera and he says I'm their friend first. 00:40:10.391 --> 00:40:11.706 He says I'm their manager. 00:40:11.706 --> 00:40:13.619 Second, he says I'm their second, their manager second. 00:40:13.619 --> 00:40:15.885 And then I'm an entertainer third. 00:40:16.226 --> 00:40:16.929 That's what it is. 00:40:16.989 --> 00:40:21.028 Yes, and we've all been with maybe a manager. 00:40:21.028 --> 00:40:23.248 Either we've had a manager or an HR. 00:40:23.440 --> 00:40:37.668 We've had to deal with managers who want to be people's friends first yes, and that is sort of the crux, beyond promoting somebody because they're good at their task or their job to a manager, that's sort of the crux of the whole show. 00:40:37.668 --> 00:40:50.610 He cannot be an effective manager because he wants to be their friend, he wants to play with them and yeah, how does yeah? 00:40:50.610 --> 00:40:51.012 Exactly. 00:40:51.012 --> 00:40:54.911 He wants to be their friend first and that's we've. 00:40:54.911 --> 00:40:57.728 You've either been there or you've been hr. 00:40:57.728 --> 00:40:58.875 You've dealt with somebody who. 00:40:58.875 --> 00:41:07.603 That's what their, their goal is and yeah, that sort of describes michael scott that you're going to, we're going to be covering the whole, the whole way through. 00:41:07.784 --> 00:41:18.389 so yeah, and we learned we do learn later that his old manager, Ed Truck, he didn't like his old manager at all because his old manager was a leader who-. 00:41:18.568 --> 00:41:19.170 Was a manager. 00:41:19.170 --> 00:41:20.413 He was a manager. 00:41:20.532 --> 00:41:21.920 He had accountability. 00:41:21.920 --> 00:41:27.483 He was there to clock in, lead his team, lead them well and clock out. 00:41:27.483 --> 00:41:29.829 And Michael Did not like it. 00:41:29.829 --> 00:41:36.157 And it's just funny because, you're right, he just wants to be their friend and he has no boundaries, so yeah, Yep, no boundaries. 00:41:36.284 --> 00:41:41.936 Yes, that's another reoccurring thing no boundaries at all period, end of story. 00:41:41.936 --> 00:41:45.135 I think that goes through the whole show. 00:41:45.135 --> 00:41:47.672 A lot of the characters, no boundaries. 00:41:47.672 --> 00:42:01.875 But yeah, I think this was a really good first episode of our first take at the Office rewatch, and so I'm assuming we're doing episode two next week. 00:42:02.416 --> 00:42:04.693 Yes, next month, I should say Next month. 00:42:05.786 --> 00:42:11.148 It'll be the third episode of every month will be one of these rewatches, so episode two. 00:42:11.148 --> 00:42:12.773 I don't see. 00:42:13.266 --> 00:42:17.329 Episode two is diversity day, so that's diversity, okay. 00:42:17.889 --> 00:42:20.556 Is that the sexual harassment one, or is that diverse? 00:42:20.556 --> 00:42:23.652 I don't remember diversity day. 00:42:26.307 --> 00:42:41.550 I know I'm pretty sure the second one is diversity day and they have to like wear the cards on the head yes yeah and now, okay, disclaimer here they do a lot of things that you know. 00:42:41.791 --> 00:42:53.237 The show aired 20 years ago yes, thank you things that they would not do on tv today unless it was like on, you know, hbo, like behind a paywall. 00:42:53.237 --> 00:43:15.875 You're not going to do this on on-the-air TV anymore and we're going to cover some of these things that are maybe not politically correct or have aged very poorly over years as sensitivities has changed, but we're going to cover it and just know we're covering the show and not making any social context of it. 00:43:15.875 --> 00:43:16.878 Yeah, yeah. 00:43:16.985 --> 00:43:20.708 And thanks for pointing that out, Because there are, like Diversity Day is. 00:43:20.708 --> 00:43:26.579 It is very cringy because you're right, if that was filmed today, it would have been filmed very differently. 00:43:26.579 --> 00:43:31.695