The characters on Six Feet Under were fascinating to watch, but they often made horrible romantic choices. Even the couples that stood the test of time had their issues. Most of the truly memorable train wrecks didn't last, though. Here's a look back at some of the show's weirdest relationships.
Ruth Fisher and Arthur Martin - Ruth and Arthur's relationship was arguably the most awkward pairing in Six Feet Under history. Apart from the significant age difference, the relationship suffered from a lack of physical intimacy. You can't build a romance on nuzzling and spooning alone; it didn't take long for Ruth to figure that out. Ruth dumped Arthur, and things took a turn for the worse when she suddenly married George Sibley. Arthur showed his jealousy by arguing with George over the origins of the word "formica" and labeling his food. They finally parted ways after the "poo by mail" misunderstanding.
Do not adjust your web browser. You are now entering the Retro Squad, where we are reviewing past episodes of classic TV shows.
(S03E08) Two words: Jeanne Tripplehorn. Keith's paintball revenge was his finest moment on the show as far as I'm concerned. The Fishers and Diazes played against type and became people of action, if only for a short while. David and Keith settled their differences on the battlefield, Ruth made several uncomfortable moves on Arthur, and Lisa sized up her competition. Petrarch, head lice, and polygamy also came into play.
In last season's finale of The Office, sparks flew between Michael Scott and Toby's HR replacement Holly. Amy Ryan, seen for four seasons on The Wire, brought a new dynamic to the show as Holly with her interactions with Steve Carell's Michael. "Amy gave the character of Holly an openness and matured innocence that exposed a new side of Michael," said Paul Lieberstein, who played Toby and was recently promoted to executive producer on the show. "She placed her character right on his level."
All I can say is bring on more Holly and congratulations to Toby! I guess since Lieberstein will still be so involved with the show, there's always a chance of more Toby in the future, but the beautiful Ryan will add a new dynamic to the series. While Amy Ryan's currently only set for five or so episodes, I hope they can expand that if it works. Now that Pam is back off the market and Karen's gone, Holly represents a new amorous target for the boys of the office. And having her be the HR rep at the same time makes it all the more taboo to pursue. Which means Michael will be all over it like Dwight on Second Life.
"This is man is an impostor. Do not do business with him. This is not Dwight Schrute." --Dwight to Jim
NBC has released a sneak peek of The Office's season finale called "Good-bye Toby." After Thursday night's stellar episode, I'm psyched for the finale even though I tend to be underwhelmed by one-hour Office episodes. How about you? Ready for next Thursday?
In the scene, Jim reprograms Dwight's phone to forward to his own. Dwight reacts...well, exactly how you'd expect him to. It's pretty hilarious. I love the Jim-Pam-Dwight dynamic. And I love any time Jim pulls a prank on Dwight. My favorite prank had to be when Jim sent Dwight a fax from "future Dwight" telling him not to drink the coffee.
I put the video after the jump. I also put the two-minute recap of last Thursday's show just in case you missed it. The Office's one-hour season finale is Thursday May 15th at 9 p.m. ET / PT.
(S04E13) Remember that movie The Chase? Okay, you probably don't, but believe me, it exists[link NSFW]. Anyway, Charlie Sheen takes Kristy Swanson hostage, and over the course of the movie some major league Stockholm Syndrome kicks in (like, really major league: they do it while he's leading the cops on a high speed chase). The lesson of the movie is obvious: if you kidnap the original Buffy the Vampire Slayer, she'll eventually fall in love with you.
I bring this up because I'm becoming scared that I might have lost perspective on The Office. I've sincerely loved every episode that has aired since its return from the break. Now, here's the question: is this because the writers spent the entire strike doing brain push-ups? Or is it because The Office is Charlie Sheen to my Kristy Swanson? My (glowing) review after the jump...
(S04E12) Jay Black couldn't be with us today because he was called away suddenly. Something about not leaving the table until he'd finished all his vegetables but he didn't like asparagus and yet that didn't matter he can sit there all night if he has to or until the asparagus evolves arms and legs and jumps off his plate and leaves on its own. So he figured since my name is the closest to his, maybe we could get away with this last minute pinch hit.
I got an episode that won't necessarily go down in the annals of time as an Office classic, but does bring us back to the core of the show: the office. The episode takes place entirely in one day, entirely in the office, and virtually every cast member gets pulled into one storyline or the other. For me, this is when The Office is at its best, when its presenting us barely controlled chaos. Offices are constantly bustling with activity productive or otherwise. Tonight's episode captured just that, and very well.
In a reversal of their stance on most of the major awards shows this season, Variety tells us the WGA is not only allowing Guild member Rainn Wilson to host the 2008 Spirit Awards, but he has received a waiver to write gags for it as well. The awards ceremony will be held February 23, a day before the Oscars (which did not receive a waiver), on the Santa Monica beach in a tent.
Broadcast live and uncensored on IFC at 5/4pm Central, the Spirit Awards honors the best in independent filmmaking and tends to feature a lot of off-color humor and remarks. Hell, last year's host Sarah Silverman opened the ceremony with a long discussion of her Mommy parts! Hopefully Wilson won't feel the need to discuss his Daddy parts, but if he wants to tell any off-color stories about Jenna Fischer, I'm all ears. Pam Beesly is my Office crush (Shh! don't tell HR) and now that Jenna's as "single" as Pam is, I can fantasize about both of them without feeling guilty! It's a win-win ... win!
Kate Flannery, who most of you will know as Meredith from The Office, has updated her TV Guide blog with some tidbits about the big J.J. Abrams directed episode, "Cocktails." There are a couple spoilers, so save it for tomorrow if you dodge that kind of stuff. The entry also includes some more trivia on last week's Whedon episode, "Business School." For instance, Rainn Wilson named the bat, and it was a live bat, Gary.
The thing I found interesting was her story of her past with Abrams. It seems that previous to her Office gig, Kate spent some time working as a waitress. Abrams would come in to write and ask how her acting was going. When the two met again on the set he remembered her, and was very excited for her success. Abrams catches a lot of crap for his role in the whole Lost deal, so it's worth pointing out the positive stories now and again too.
Rainn Wilson, who plays Dwight Schrute on The Office, will host Saturday Night Live this coming weekend. And, there's even more good news! Rainn has experience in sketch comedy shows. According to his IMDB bio, he co-created and directed The New Bozena, a sketch comedy and clown show in New York City. He even created a pilot of his comedy show for Fox, but it never got the greenlight for air. (P.S., his bio also says he's from Seattle- do you think that's why his parents named him Rainn?)
I'd like to see SNL try to parody The Office, though I'm not really sure how they could do it successfully.
Ed Helms' status has been changed from "recurring" to "regular" on The Office.
This is a little surprising to me. I thought that Andy and Karen would only be on the show for this season, since they were the newbies in the Dunder-Mifflin office and were brought over to just be a wrench in the Jim/Pam and Michael/Dwight relationships. And I thought that this was confirmed in the last couple of episodes, since Jim told Karen he still likes Pam and Michael was hip to Andy's sneaky, suckup-ish ways. But I guess that the people behind the scenes have more plans for these two characters.
Of course, Rashida Jones, who plays Karen, still hasn't been made a regular, so maybe she's on her way out after all. Though if Pam gets back together with Roy, maybe Jim will need her again.
I look forward to PopCandy every day, and not just because Whitney is so darned adorable sitting there in her Chuck Taylor's. While that is certainly a better way to start your day than getting a gander at my ugly bearded mugg, she also has some cool content. Like this interview she did with Rainn Wilson from The Office, for example.
Wilson made Whitney's top 100 list again this year, coming in at #17. A deserved ranking I think. The Office hasn't managed to find those glory days Must See TV ratings numbers yet, but it's a great show getting all kinds of good press, largely in part to Wilson's Dwight. They talk about this week's big Christmas episode, the Dwight and Angela relationship (I really want to see the two of them outside the office), and his upcoming projects, among other things. It's a fun read for fans of The Office, or Wilson.
Ryan Budke is at it again, bothering employees over at Dunder-Mifflin. This time he's in the breakroom of the company, interviewing cast member and writer/producer Mindy Kaling. In the exclusive Netscape video below, he talks to her about tonight's episode:
Sheesh. You'd think that winning an Emmy would buy a cast some time off. Not so for the crew over at Dunder Mifflin. Michael has been covering the webisode mystery since July. But that isn't all that NBC had the cast up to this summer. While clicking around Comcast's On Demand service today I came across the NBC fall preview. Between promos for their various shows, there were eight little scenes from The Office. Everyone gets to play, but the focus is mostly on Dwight, Pam, and Jim. If you are a fan of the show, you will enjoy it. I'll not spoil it for you by quoting, but there are some classic Dwight lines. And thanks to the power of the internet, you won't even need Comcast to see it. Watch the video, sans previews, after the jump.
Some of the American characters on NBC's The Office are going to come face-to-face with their British alter-egos! American executive producer Ben Silverman says next season we can expect to see Mackenzie Crook, who played Gareth; Martin Freeman, who played Tim; and Lucy Davis, who played Dawn on the American version of the show. These are essentially the alter egos to Dwight, Jim, and Pam. I think I'm most excited to see Dwight butt heads with militaristic Gareth, but I know my heart will be torn between Jim and Tim!
Unfortunately, show creator Ricky Gervais is not scheduled to appear on the next season of The Office. Too bad. I can only imagine the wonderfully uncomfortable conversation between David Brent and Michael Scott (Steve Carell).
The characters on Six Feet Under were fascinating to watch, but they often made horrible romantic choices. Even the couples that stood the test of time had their issues. Most of the truly memorable train wrecks didn't last, though. Here's a look back at some of the show's weirdest relationships.
In last season's finale of 
"This is man is an impostor. Do not do business with him. This is not Dwight Schrute." --Dwight to Jim 
(S04E13) Remember that movie The Chase? Okay, you probably don't, but believe me, 
(S04E12) Jay Black couldn't be with us today because he was called away suddenly. Something about not leaving the table until he'd finished all his vegetables but he didn't like asparagus and yet that didn't matter he can sit there all night if he has to or until the asparagus evolves arms and legs and jumps off his plate and leaves on its own. So he figured since my name is the closest to his, maybe we could get away with this last minute pinch hit.
In a reversal of their stance on most of the major awards shows this season, 
Kate Flannery, who most of you will know as Meredith from The Office, has 
Rainn Wilson, who plays Dwight Schrute on The Office, will host Saturday Night Live this coming weekend. And, there's even more good news! Rainn has experience in sketch comedy shows. According to his 
Ed Helms' status has been 
I look forward to PopCandy every day, and not just because Whitney is so darned adorable sitting there in her Chuck Taylor's. While that is certainly a better way to start your day than getting a gander at my ugly bearded mugg, she also has some cool content. Like 
Sheesh. You'd think that winning an Emmy would buy a cast some time off. Not so for the crew over at Dunder Mifflin. Michael has 
Some of the American characters on NBC's The Office are going to come face-to-face with their British alter-egos! American executive producer Ben Silverman says next season we can expect to see Mackenzie Crook, who played Gareth; Martin Freeman, who played Tim; and Lucy Davis, who played Dawn on the American version of the show. These are essentially the alter egos to Dwight, Jim, and Pam. I think I'm most excited to see Dwight butt heads with militaristic Gareth, but I know my heart will be torn between Jim and Tim!
Celebrate the 4th by watching television!
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