TVSquad

In my cubicle world days as an IT guy, I always wondered if upper management would have a much different picture of what went on among the rank and file if they just took some time to come to the office and do what we did. So the premise of the new CBS reality series 'Undercover Boss' intrigued me; a CEO goes undercover to work with various employees to see what really goes on where the rubber hits the road.

But after three episodes (and seeing the preview of the fourth), a few troubling questions have come up that make me wonder if this show is going to be as illuminating as originally thought:

1. Why so many food service companies? Of the five episodes already scheduled, three involve food service companies (Hooters, 7-Eleven and White Castle). I know these companies have more manual-labor, entry-level jobs than a technology company might have, and seeing the CEO of 7-Eleven struggle to make coffee is fun to watch, but the formula is going to get a little boring after a while, isn't it?

(S01E10) What does Mary expect? I mean, really, what does she expect! Okay, before we get to the gory details, let's talk about the case of the week.

Remember the Russian girl from the pilot? Natasha with the new boobs -- thanks to the U.S. government, our tax dollars -- has gotten a job at Headlights (nee Hooters) and has hooked up with a new guy.

Turns out he's Marshall's charge, another program member, Serge. The problem is not just the huge coincidence that they've hooked up, it's that she's a witness and he's a felon, they cannot stay together.

Michael Scott (Steve Carell) was at his obnoxious best (or worst, depending on your point of view) in this episode. It's Spring Cleaning Day at Dunder Mifflin--although it's January, Michael wants to get it done today. Everybody has assigned tasks, and we can see that Dwight is a perfect fit in a supervisory role. We also learn that Oscar is out sick--on a Friday, no less--and Michael and Dwight call him at home to make sure everything's on the up and up. Michael is convinced that Oscar is suffering from the flu, but Dwight is not so sure, and undertakes an investigation.

At the same time, Pam is discussing her upcoming wedding to Roy. Michael inquires of Jim what the "411" is with his crush on her, but Jim implores him to keep it quiet. Michael, of course, can't keep it to himself and basically follows Jim around the office and makes veiled comments about the situation. Michael is acting like an annoying high-school kid, and Jim is doing everything possible to keep things on the down-low. Finally, Michael asks Jim out to lunch, so Jim reluctantly agrees.

Meanwhile, Dwight continues his investigation into Oscar being sick, and he ends up explaining with lying is, with little effect. Michael and Jim make it to lunch at Hooters, and you can tell Jim is very uncomfortable being around Michael, who makes bad breast jokes and has the Hooter girls sing "Happy Birthday" to him, even though it wasn't his birthday.