Fight and Flight

S09E20

A paper airplane contest with a $2,000 purse provides the backdrop for much of this week's "action." Erin proves to have a vicious competitive streak as a result of her hardscrabble childhood and in almost complete contradiction of everything else we know about her. Toby got half-blinded by Pam, allowing us to establish that Andy has a phobia of anything eye-related. Kevin's still a moron. And Dwight tries to throw the competition to Angela, given that she's now separated from her husband and broke. But he makes the mistake of saying something about it to his current girlfriend Esther, who says something to Angela, who stands on her dignity and refuses to accept Dwight's pity or charity.

The Halperts must have gotten eliminated from the competition in the early rounds, because they spend the day going about their ordinary business and doing this weird couples therapy exercise where they're acting all appreciative of each other and speaking their truths and so forth. But it might be too little too late, especially since their choices appear to be for Jim to give up his dream or Pam to give up her life.

Andy and Darryl are also out, because Andy's already got a gig through his new agent. It's an industrial film, which is still pretty damn amazing for his first week. Except he balks when the script calls for him to use an actual eyewash station, but then his agent's threats and Darryl's coaching help him find the strength to power through.

Jim and Pam don't seem to have gotten anywhere, and the fact that Jim's leaving for Philly again at the end of the day can't help. But happenstance leads to a tender moment in the parking lot when they remember their wedding and apparently everything is all better. Man, I hope it doesn't ruin the show for the long term now that they're together.

There's a weird vibe going on; Toby walks in wearing an eye patch, and Clark does some trash-talking to Erin at Reception. Dwight explains, over a flashback to the day before, that the first round of the branch's paper airplane contest was yesterday. Apparently it's being sponsored by a brand that touts itself as the Cadillac of paper. "It's not so easy on the environment, if you know what I mean," Dwight confides, holding up a ream. "Practically made of plastic." And during Earth Day week, when there's a green NBC peacock in the corner of the screen. What would Recyclops say? Wearing a referee's uniform, Nellie cues up a highlight reel showing Kevin getting some major air, Dwight going William Tell with an apple on Nate's head, Creed hurling a cantaloupe, and Pam half-blinding Toby with her throw and then blaming him for it. "We are now down to an elite eight," Nellie concludes, holding up a bracket. "Well, seven and Toby."

After the mini-credits, Andy is running lines with Darryl for an industrial film, which he THs could eventually lead to a role in Moneyballs 2. Toby comes in, apparently having been summoned so Andy can freak himself out looking at Toby's eye injury, which he can't even do right now. Darryl tries to follow Toby out, but Andy's not done with him yet.

In the break room, Jim makes a big show of expressing his appreciation to Pam for letting him sleep in that morning, which she appreciates back. They do a joint TH in which they explain that they're doing homework for couples therapy that includes Jim expressing appreciation and Pam speaking her truths, as she explains that if she'd spoken her truth earlier about not wanting to move to Philly, they wouldn't have the opportunity for couples therapy. "And we're supposed to call everything we don't want to do 'opportunities,'" Jim adds. Yes, I think Pam was the one who started the not-truth-speaking about Philly, wasn't she? Oh, wait.

Andy comes out to the bullpen to announce that he's got a gig, which is his excuse to tell them all about his agent, Carla Fern. Nellie enters with a rep from the fancy-paper company (his name's Robert, because why not have a third guy named Robert on the show?) who brandishes a giant check for two thousand dollars, which is the grand prize for the paper airplane contest. Nellie totally forgot to tell anyone about that part.

Now that we know money is in play, Angela does a TH in which we learn she could probably use the cash, now that she's separated from the senator and holed up in a studio apartment with her baby and three billion cats, several of which are shown in the baby's crib trying to eat his face. "I had a chance with Dwight, but I didn't take it. And if I went back now, when I'm broke, and he just inherited a farm, I'd be one of those gold-digging tramps you read about that try to bag a farmer." For Dwight's part, he THs that Angela turned him down, so the move, if there's going to be one, is hers. Besides, he's now with Esther, who is used to the scent of a manured field. "Angela was at best indifferent," Dwight scoffs.

By M. Giant

Down in the warehouse, people are folding planes, and Erin gets a little snotty with Clark when he scopes out her aircraft-in-progress. She THs about how you have to fight for everything when you grow up in an orphanage like she did, and then you grow up and at some point after you become a receptionist you forget that you grew up in foster homes instead. "I'm kinda worried about Pete seeing that side of me. I once ripped Greedy Susan's pigtail right off her head, just for a handful of Crispix."

In the building where the shoot is happening, Andy's agent Carla asks Darryl if he needs an agent too. Andy scoffs jealously at the idea, saying Darryl is just his entourage. Darryl has time for this with his two jobs? "I was in The Wiz in high school," he volunteers. Inside the lab, Roseanne shows off the director's chair she procured for Andy with the word "STAR" scrawled on a piece of note paper and brags, "All my clients sit." A PA wants to take Andy's picture, which he thinks is a big moment, but it's just for a record of his hairline in case it gets burned off.

The first round of the quarterfinals is about to start, with Angela facing off against Kevin. Before it even begins, Dwight calls into question whether Kevin actually folded his fancy-looking plane himself, as per the rules, and demands a refold when Kevin admits he bought it on Craigslist. Cut to Kevin to a pile of non-airworthy planes he's created from an entire ream, and Nellie makes him pick one. "Angela advances," Nellie flatly intones before Kevin's plane even hits the floor one foot in front of him. Angela pretends in a TH not to notice that Dwight was rooting for her. I'll pretend not to notice how much paper is being wasted during Green Week, as Kevin vows not to give up making planes until he successfully achieves the miracle of flight, "Like Wilbur and Orville Redenbacher."

Erin beats Clark in their round, and gets all up in his face making pig noises until Pete tells her to relax. Phyllis chokes in her round against Dwight (whom Angela cheers on), so Dwight goes to the semifinals as well. He's still celebrating when Esther shows up out of nowhere, saying she plucked the chickens extra-fast to get here. "There might just be a little bit of feather in your nuggets or just a little bit of meat inside of your pillow." Dwight says he likes a little feather in his nugget, souring Angela's mood in a hurry. Nellie comes out to announce the semifinalists: Angela, Dwight, Erin, and "God only knows how but Toby."

The director is explaining to Andy how after simulating acid spilling in his eyes, he'll step over to the eyewash station and let water go all over his eyeballs. And we learned earlier how Andy feels about eyes, so it's not exactly a shock when he demurs, "I'm not comfortable doing my own stunts." He goes over to fret about it to Darryl, and when another PA shows how the eyewash station works, Andy takes one look at the water streams and hollers for Carla.

Toby and Angela are up for the semifinals. Angela makes a strong throw, and Toby just crushes his plane and drops it on the ground. Seeing Dwight's reaction, Esther asks him, "Is there a reason that we're excited for that little woman?" Dwight cheerfully whispers that he pities her. "She was recently in a situation where she could have had it all, and instead she lost everything." Esther figures she's a gambler, and Dwight doesn't exactly go out of her way to straighten her out.

Carla has Andy's cheeks pinched in her meathooks as the angrily threatens to blackball him with every production company in northeastern Pennsylvania if he doesn't stick his eyes in the water. "You won't even make an appearance on a security camera!" Andy collapses in tears, and as the production guys complain to each other in the background about their crying actor, Darryl comes up and tells Andy exactly what he needs to hear. Which is that of course Andy can't do this, "but you know who can?" Darryl checks the nametag clipped to Andy's lab coat costume and answers himself, "Older Male Lab Assistant Number One." Andy realizes Darryl believes in him. "I believe...I want to go home," Darryl says.

As the semifinals commence, Dwight gets some great distance, but Erin steps up and her plane...falls short. She takes it pretty hard, cursing and then trying to pretend to Pete that she isn't mad and then apologizing for being mad and kicking over a box of packing peanuts and almost falling over. A little physical comedy for the people.

By M. Giant

Pam tells Jim that she made them a date to take her mom out for dinner to show their appreciation for all the extra babysitting she's been doing. Jim appreciates the opportunity to see his mother-in-law (jerk) and puts it in his phone calendar. Clark is watching their over-appreciative dialogue, which is abruptly interrupted when Jim all but leaps to take a work call on his cell phone. Pam says she would appreciate it if he hung up so they could continue the conversation they were in the middle of, which he does without a goodbye. Pam sarcastically thanks him, which he says is unfair, and she says it's unfair that she's been putting the kids to bed alone every night for months and he had to miss one phone call. "Is that your truth, Jim? That's really your truth?" Jim announces that he's going to swallow his truth, which is big of him. Clark asks if they're high and want to share. Pam says they're not, and THs, "I wish we'd started the exercise six months ago. My heart just feels so...blocked up."

Jim puts on his suit coat and shoulders his bag, then gets down on one knee right to Pam's chair, whispering, "I know this was really weird and it was really hard, but I think we're making progress. So I'm really sorry that I have to go, but let's keep at this, okay?" Pam agrees, but her blocked-up heart doesn't seem to be in it. Jim turns back to wave at her as she leaves, but she doesn't turn...until he's already out the door. She looks over at his empty desk, and the folded umbrella he left there. Which she picks up and runs out after him with. She just catches him as he's getting into the cab in the parking lot, but there's no big moment -- they just say a perfunctory goodbye and she turns away. But then he runs after her, taking her by the arm and turning her around. Alas, he's got nothing to say. All he can think to do is bend over and put his arms around her. Which she... endures, her hands in the air, not touching him.

"Love suffers long and is kind," reads the minister at their wedding, not all that many years ago. "It is not proud. Love bears all things. Believes all things. Hopes all things. And endures all things. Love never fails." There are some people in that church in Niagara Falls that we haven't seen in a while: Michael, Ryan, Kelly...and the happy young newlyweds. Back in the parking lot, Pam finally throws her arms around Jim. The verse from Corinthians continues: "And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love." And Pam and Jim kiss each other in the parking lot, and he tells her he loves her. So I guess the exercise worked after all. One question: is he going to Philly now or not?

M. Giant is a Minneapolis-based writer with a wife, a son, and a number of cats that seems to have settled at around two. Learn waaaay too much about him at Velcrometer, follow him on Twitter , or just e-mail him at m.giant[at]gmail.com.

By M. Giant