The fifth season of the American

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...

The Office ''The Office'' is a mockumentary sitcom created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, first made in the United Kingdom, then Germany, and subsequently the United States. It has since been remade in ten other countries. The original series of ...

'' premiered in the United States in the 2008–2009 television season on NBC on September 25, 2008 and concluded on May 14, 2009. The fifth season consisted of 28 half-hours of material, divided into 24 half-hour episodes and two hour-long episodes. ''The Office'' is an American adaptation of the British TV series of the same name, and is presented in a mockumentary format, portraying the daily lives of office employees in the Scranton, Pennsylvania branch of the fictitious

Dunder Mifflin Paper Company Dunder Mifflin Paper Company, Inc. is a fictional paper and office supplies wholesale company featured in the American television series ''The Office''. It is analogous to Wernham Hogg in the British original of the series, and Papiers Jennings ...

. The season stars Steve Carell, Rainn Wilson,

John Krasinski John Burke Krasinski (; born October 20, 1979) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is known for his role as Jim Halpert on the NBC sitcom ''The Office''. He also served as a producer and occasional director of the series throughout its nine ...

, Jenna Fischer, and B. J. Novak, with supporting performances from

Ed Helms Edward Parker Helms (born January 24, 1974) is an American actor and comedian. From 2002 to 2006, he was a correspondent on Comedy Central's ''The Daily Show with Jon Stewart''. He played paper salesman Andy Bernard in the NBC sitcom ''The Offic ...

, Melora Hardin,

Leslie David Baker Leslie David Baker (born February 19, 1958) is an American actor. He is known for playing disgruntled paper salesman Stanley Hudson in ''The Office'' for nine seasons (2005–2013). Early life Baker was born on February 19, 1958 in Chicago, Il ...

, Brian Baumgartner,

Creed Bratton Creed Bratton (born William Charles Schneider, February 8, 1943) is an American actor, singer and musician. A former member of the rock band the Grass Roots, he is best known for playing a fictionalized version of himself on the NBC sitcom ''T ...

, Kate Flannery,

Mindy Kaling Vera Mindy Chokalingam (born June 24, 1979),Additional archive on June 25, 2015. known professionally as Mindy Kaling (), is an American actress, comedian, screenwriter and producer. She first gained recognition starring as Kelly Kapoor in the N ...

Angela Kinsey Angela Faye Kinsey (born June 25, 1971) is an American actress. She played Angela Martin in the sitcom ''The Office'' (2005–2013) and appeared in the sitcoms '' Your Family or Mine'' (2015) and ''Haters Back Off'' (2016–2017). Since ''The ...

Paul Lieberstein Paul Bevan Lieberstein (born February 22, 1967) is an American actor, screenwriter, television director and television producer. A Primetime Emmy Award winner, he is best known as writer, as executive producer, and as supporting cast member Toby ...

, Oscar Nunez, Craig Robinson, and

Phyllis Smith Phyllis Smith (born July 10, 1951) is an American actress and casting associate. She is best known for playing Phyllis Vance in the television series ''The Office (U.S. TV series), The Office'' and her critically acclaimed voice role as Sadness ...

. The fifth season of ''The Office'' aired on Thursdays at 9:00 p.m. ( Eastern). The season was released on DVD in a box set containing five disks featuring all 28 episodes with audio commentaries on select episodes. The DVD was released by Universal Studios Home Entertainment.

Production

The fifth season of the show was produced by Reveille Productions and Deedle-Dee Productions, both in association with Universal Media Studios starting from late July 2008. The show is based upon the British series created by

Ricky Gervais Ricky Dene Gervais ( ; born 25 June 1961) is an English comedian, actor, writer, and director. He co-created, co-wrote, and acted in the British television sitcoms ''The Office'' (2001–2003), '' Extras'' (2005–2007), and '' An Idiot Abroad' ...

and Stephen Merchant, both of whom are

executive producer Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the making of a commercial entertainment product. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights o ...

s on both the US and UK versions. ''The Office'' is produced by Greg Daniels, who is also an executive producer. Daniels would have a limited role in this season, not writing an episode, as he was busy writing his new show, ''

Parks and Recreation ''Parks and Recreation'' (also known as ''Parks and Rec'') is an American political satire mockumentary sitcom television series created by Greg Daniels and Michael Schur. The series aired on NBC from April 9, 2009, to February 24, 2015, for 125 ...

'' which he co-created with ''Office'' writer/producer Michael Schur, who left the writing staff of ''The Office'' to focus on the new show. Returning writers from the previous season include

, B. J. Novak,

Lee Eisenberg Lee Eisenberg (born April 5, 1977) is an American film and television writer and producer. He usually works with Gene Stupnitsky, with whom he founded Quantity Entertainment. Life and career Eisenberg was born in Needham, Massachusetts. His fath ...

, Gene Stupnitsky,

Lester Lewis Lester "Les" Lewis (November 26, 1966 – March 19, 2013) was an American television writer and producer, whose credits included sitcoms such as ''Flight of the Conchords'', '' Caroline in the City'' and ''The Larry Sanders Show.'' He was a supe ...

Brent Forrester Brent Forrester is an American writer and producer, who has written for 6 Emmy Award-winning television comedies. He wrote several episodes of the animated television sitcom ''The Simpsons'' between 1993 and 1997. He has worked as a writer on ''T ...

Justin Spitzer Justin Spitzer is an American television and film writer, producer, and series creator whose credits include ''Scrubs'' and ''Courting Alex''. He worked as a writing assistant on '' Queer as Folk'' (U.S. version) and ''Grounded for Life'' prio ...

, and

Jennifer Celotta Jennifer Ann Celotta (born November 11, 1971) is an American television producer, writer, and director. Among her credits are ''The Office,'' Cobra Kai, Abbott Elementary, ''Malcolm in the Middle'', '' The Newsroom'', ''Greg the Bunny'', ''Andy R ...

. This season saw many new additions to the writing staff, including Ryan Koh, Aaron Shure, Charlie Grandy, Anthony Q. Farrell,

Warren Lieberstein Warren Keith Lieberstein (born September 20, 1968) is an American writer and producer. He has worked on shows such as ''Carpoolers'' and ''The Office'', to which he has extensive ties. He is the younger brother of Paul Lieberstein, the show's fo ...

, and

Halsted Sullivan Halsted Sullivan is an American television writer and producer who has worked on shows such as ''Carpoolers'' and ''The Office''. He often works with his writing partner Warren Lieberstein. He's currently an executive producer and one of the t ...

. Paul Lieberstein and Celotta were promoted to executive producers, with Lieberstein becoming the new

showrunner A showrunner (or colloquially a helmer) is the top-level executive producer of a television series production who has creative and management authority through combining the responsibilities of employer and, in comedy or dramas, typically also th ...

, to take over from Daniels. Kaling, Novak, Eisenberg and Stupnitsky were co-executive producers; Lewis and Forrester were consulting producers; and Spitzer and Grandy were producers. This season featured 28 episodes directed by 16 directors. Paul Feig,

Jeffrey Blitz Jeffrey Blitz is an American film director, screenwriter and producer best known for the documentary '' Spellbound'' (2003), ''The Office'' (2007 - 2010), the fiction film '' Rocket Science'' (2007) and ''Comedy Central’s'' ''Review'' (2014 ...

, Ken Kwapis, and Randall Einhorn each directed several episodes during the season, while Greg Daniels, David Rogers, Stephen Merchant,

Jason Reitman Jason R. Reitman (; born October 19, 1977) is a Canadian-American actor and filmmaker, best known for directing the films ''Thank You for Smoking'' (2005), ''Juno'' (2007), '' Up in the Air'' (2009), ''Young Adult'' (2011), and '' Ghostbusters: ...

Dean Holland Dean Holland is an American film editor, television director and producer best known for working on ''Entourage'' and the comedy shows ''The Office'' and ''Parks and Recreation''. In 2007, he was honored with the Primetime Emmy for Outstanding S ...

Asaad Kelada Asaad Kelada ( ar, أسعد قلادة; born May 11, 1940) is an American television director of many American television sitcoms. Early life Kelada was born in Cairo, Egypt and he studied drama under Youssef Chahine at the American University ...

, Ken Whittingham, and

directed an episode each. Writers

, Gene Stupnitsky and

each made their directorial debut, and series star Steve Carell directed his first episode.

Season overview

Notable ongoing plots that affect the fifth season and beyond include: * Jim Halpert's engagement to Pam Beesly * Michael's relationship with HR rep Holly Flax, which ends when Holly is transferred to Nashua * The Scranton returns of Ryan Howard and Toby Flenderson * Pam going to art school in New York City * Angela Martin's continuing affair with Dwight Schrute, despite her engagement to Andy Bernard * The arrival of no-nonsense corporate employee Charles Miner to Scranton * Michael quitting Dunder Mifflin to form his own paper company (The Michael Scott Paper Company), with Pam and Ryan joining Michael in his new venture * The hiring of Kelly "Erin" Hannon as the new Scranton branch receptionist

Cast

Many characters portrayed by ''The Office'' cast are based on the British version of the show. While these characters normally have the same attitude and perceptions as their British counterparts, the roles have been redesigned to better fit the American show. The show is known for its generally large cast size, with many of its actors and actresses known particularly for their

improvisation Improvisation is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. Improvisation in the performing arts is a very spontaneous performance without specific or scripted preparation. The skills of impr ...

al work.

Main

* Steve Carell as Michael Scott, Regional Manager of the Dunder Mifflin Scranton Branch. Loosely based on David Brent, Gervais' character in the British version, Scott is a dim-witted and lonely man, who attempts to win friends as the office comedian, usually making himself look bad in the process. * Rainn Wilson as

Dwight Schrute Dwight Kurt Schrute III () is a fictional character on ''The Office (U.S.)'' and is portrayed by American actor Rainn Wilson. Dwight's character was a salesman and the assistant to the regional manager, at the fictional paper distribution compan ...

, who, based upon

Gareth Keenan Gareth Keenan (born 17 April 1971) is a fictional paper salesman on BBC's comedy ''The Office'', portrayed by Mackenzie Crook. Gareth is a self-important team leader proud of his alleged Lieutenant status in the Territorial Army. He spends his da ...

, is the office's top-performing sales representative. *

Jim Halpert James "Jim" Duncan Halpert is a fictional character in the U.S. version of the television sitcom ''The Office'', portrayed by John Krasinski. He is introduced as a sales representative at the Scranton branch of paper distribution company Dunder ...

, a sales representative, assistant manager, and prankster, who is based upon Tim Canterbury, and is in love with

Pam Beesly Pamela Morgan Halpert (née Beesly) is a fictional character on the U.S. TV series, television sitcom ''The Office (American TV series), The Office'', played by Jenna Fischer. Her counterpart in the original UK series of ''The Office (British TV ...

, the receptionist. * Jenna Fischer as

, who is based on

Dawn Tinsley ''The Office'' is a mockumentary sitcom created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, first made in the United Kingdom, then Germany, and subsequently the United States. It has since been remade in ten other countries. The original series of ...

. She is shy, but in many cases a cohort with Jim in his pranks on Dwight. * B. J. Novak as

Ryan Howard Ryan James Howard (born November 19, 1979), nicknamed "the Big Piece", is an American former professional baseball first baseman. Howard spent his entire Major League Baseball (MLB) career playing for the Philadelphia Phillies, from to . He is ...

, based on Ricky Howard and Neil Godwin, who at the end of the fourth season was arrested while acting as Vice President, North East Region and Director of New Media, returns to Scranton as a temp on the fifth season. On the episode "

Frame Toby "Frame Toby" is the ninth episode of the fifth season of the television series ''The Office'', and the show's eighty-first episode overall. The episode aired in the United States on November 20, 2008, on NBC. On November 25, 2008, a producer's c ...

", Novak's character leaves the office to travel to Thailand. Novak actually took a leave of absence from the show to appear in

Quentin Tarantino Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American film director, writer, producer, and actor. His films are characterized by stylized violence, extended dialogue, profanity, Black comedy, dark humor, Nonlinear narrative, non-lin ...

's film, '' Inglourious Basterds'', although he resumed his role later in the season.

Starring

as Andy Bernard, a preppy salesman with anger issues. * Melora Hardin as

Jan Levinson Janet Levinson (formerly Levinson-Gould) is a recurring fictional character from the US television series ''The Office'', portrayed by Melora Hardin. She is the no-nonsense Vice President of Northeast Sales at the paper distribution company Dunde ...

, a former Dunder Mifflin employee and Michael's ex-girlfriend, who is only present at the beginning of the season. *

as Stanley Hudson, a grumpy salesman. * Brian Baumgartner as

Kevin Malone Kevin Malone is a fictional character in the American television series ''The Office (US TV series), The Office''. He is portrayed by Brian Baumgartner. Kevin's counterpart in the The Office (UK TV series), UK TV series is Keith Bishop, who sha ...

, a dim-witted accountant, based on Keith Bishop. *

as Creed Bratton, the office’s strange quality assurance officer. * Kate Flannery as Meredith Palmer, the promiscuous supplier relations representative. *

as Kelly Kapoor, the pop-culture obsessed customer service representative. *

Angela Martin Angela Noelle Schrute (née Martin; formerly Lipton) is a fictional character in the U.S. version of the television sitcom ''The Office,'' portrayed by actress Angela Kinsey. The character is based on Sheila from the original version of ''The O ...

, a judgmental accountant and Dwight’s main love interest. *

as Toby Flenderson, the sad-eyed human resources representative who left to Costa Rica on the fourth-season finale, who returns to replace Holly Flax. * Oscar Nunez as Oscar Martinez, an intelligent accountant, who is also gay. * Craig Robinson as Darryl Philbin, the warehouse supervisor. *

as Phyllis Vance, a motherly saleswoman.

Special guest stars

Amy Ryan Amy Beth Dziewiontkowski, known professionally as Amy Ryan, is an American actress of stage and screen. A graduate of New York's High School of Performing Arts, she is an Academy Award nominee and two-time Tony Award nominee. Ryan began her pr ...

Holly Flax Hollis Partridge "Holly" Scott (''née'' Flax) is a fictional character from the US television series ''The Office'', played by Amy Ryan. She is an original character, and not based on any character from the British version of the show. Initia ...

, Michael's love interest. * Idris Elba as Charles Miner, the new Vice President of the North East Region.

Recurring

* Andy Buckley as David Wallace, Dunder Mifflin’s CFO. *

Bobby Ray Shafer Robert Ray Shafer (born April 10, 1958) is an American character actor who has appeared in film, television, commercials, voice-over and theater. Shafer, sometimes credited as Bobby Ray Shafer, is perhaps best known for playing Bob Vance, Vanc ...

as Bob Vance, Phyllis’ husband, who runs Vance Refrigeration. * Hugh Dane as Hank Tate, the building’s security guard. *

Lisa K. Wyatt Lisa K. Wyatt is an American actress and comedian. According to the biography on her official site, she has appeared in more than 150 film, television and regional theatre credits. In the fifth season of ''The Office'', she appeared as Lynne, th ...

as Lynn, Kevin's love interest. *

Ellie Kemper Elizabeth Claire Kemper (born May 2, 1980) is an American actress and comedian. She has been nominated for a Critics' Choice Movie Award, two Critics' Choice Television Awards, two Primetime Emmy Awards, three Satellite Awards, and seven Scre ...

as Erin Hannon, the new receptionist after Pam left for the Michael Scott Paper Company. She is the new love interest of Andy.

Notable guests

* David Denman as Roy Anderson, a former warehouse worker and Pam’s ex-fiancé, who now works at a vitamin store. * Wendi McLendon-Covey as Marie, a concierge at a hotel in Canada. *

Dan Bakkedahl Dan Bakkedahl (born November 18, 1969) is an American actor and improvisational comedian. He is best known for starring as Tim Hughes on the CBS sitcom ''Life in Pieces'', as Congressman Roger Furlong on the HBO series ''Veep'', and as Steve Nuge ...

as Roger Prince Jr., the son of the owner of Prince Family Paper. * Rick Overton as William Beesly, Pam's father. * Rashida Jones as Karen Filippelli, Jim’s ex-girlfriend, who is now regional manager of the Utica branch. *

Rob Huebel Robert Anderson Huebel (born June 4, 1969) is an American actor, comedian and writer best known for his sketch comedy work on the MTV series ''Human Giant'' and for his role of Dr. Owen Maestro on the Adult Swim series ''Childrens Hospital''. He ...

as A.J., Holly's boyfriend at the Nashua branch. * Katie Aselton as the Glove Girl, an unnamed woman that Michael meets at a blood drive. *

Ranjit Chowdhry Ranjit Chowdhry (19 September 1955 – 15 April 2020) was an Indian character actor, known for his roles in television, movies, and theatre. He appeared in two episodes of ''The Office'', as Vikram, a telemarketer who worked with Michael, and w ...

as Vikram, a telemarketer that Michael used to work with. * Connie Sawyer as "Nana" Scott, Michael's grandmother.

Reception

Ratings

The fifth-season premiere "

Weight Loss Weight loss, in the context of medicine, health, or physical fitness, refers to a reduction of the total body mass, by a mean loss of fluid, body fat (adipose tissue), or lean mass (namely bone mineral deposits, muscle, tendon, and other conn ...

" received a 4.9/11 in the

Nielsen ratings Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the Nielsen rat ...

meaning that it was seen by 4.9% of all 18- to 49-year-olds, and 13% of all 18- to 49-year-olds watching television at the time of the broadcast. This marked a rise in the ratings set by the fourth season finale, "

Goodbye, Toby "Goodbye, Toby" is the fourth season hour-long finale of the American comedy television series ''The Office'', and the show's seventy-first and seventy-second episodes overall. Written by Paul Lieberstein and Jennifer Celotta, and directed by Pau ...

". The season reached a high with "

Stress Relief In psychology, stress is a feeling of emotional strain and pressure. Stress is a type of psychological pain. Small amounts of stress may be beneficial, as it can improve athletic performance, motivation and reaction to the environment. Excess ...

" due to it airing after Super Bowl XLIII. The season finale, "

Company Picnic "Company Picnic" is the fifth season finale of the American comedy television series ''The Office'', and the 100th overall episode of the series. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on May 14, 2009. In the episode, Michael plans to ...

" became the lowest-rated episode of the season with 6.72 million viewers and a 3.9 rating/12% share in the 18–49 demographic. Ratings taken at the end of the season placed it at #52 out of 193 programs. This marked a significant rise in the ratings from the previous season.

Review

''The Office: Season Five'' received generally positive reviews. DVDTalk.com rated the season four stars out of five saying that "After a truncated and ever-so-slightly uneven fourth year, Season 5 of ''The Office'' stands tall as one of the finest to date. The show's effortless balance of drama, intrigue and pitch-perfect comedy remains remarkably consistent, thanks to strong performances, clever writing and a devoted creative team." Film.com gave the season a positive review saying "Season five reminds us why we continue to root for Michael Scott". Sitcoms Online reviewed the Season 5 DVD set, and in the final comments section of the review said "It's a great show, and a great set, and it'll be extremely interesting to see how the show is continued this fall. It's the funniest show on broadcast TV right now, in my opinion, and I highly recommend the fifth season." Travis Fickett of

IGN ''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...

stated that it "feels a lot like the downward slope of a great series. I don't believe this was a bad season, but it is a season that let us see the show's age and put the concept to the test." He appreciated the writers for trying to change the status quo calling it "both necessary and appreciated". He ultimately gave the season a 7.9/10. Alan Sepinwall of ''

The Star-Ledger ''The Star-Ledger'' is the largest circulated newspaper in the U.S. state of New Jersey and is based in Newark. It is a sister paper to ''The Jersey Journal'' of Jersey City, ''The Times'' of Trenton and the '' Staten Island Advance'', all of wh ...

'', while reviewing "

", called the season "my favorite season of ''The Office'' to date" commenting, "I don't know that it's ever been this consistently satisfying, because the characters have become so richly-drawn, and because the writers ..have really learned to trust their actors to convey so much emotion in really quiet moments".

Awards

The fifth season has received a significant number of nominations, including 10 for Emmy Awards, 3 for Teen Choice Award, and 2 for TCA Awards. The ten nominations for the 2009

Emmy Awards The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

were announced on July 16, and include the categories: "Comedy Series" for the entire season; "Comedy Series Lead Actor" for Steve Carell for the episode "Broke"; "Comedy Series Supporting Actor" for Rainn Wilson in "Heavy Competition"; "Comedy Series Directing" for

for the episode "Stress Relief"; "Comedy Series Editing" for Stuart Brass for "Two Weeks", Claire Scanlon for "Dream Team", and David Rogers and Dean Holland for "Stress Relief"; "Comedy Series Sound Mixing" for "Michael Scott Paper Company"; "Comedy Series Casting" for Allison Jones; "Interactive Media - Fiction" for 'The Office Media Experience, NBC.com. It won an Emmy for Outstanding Directing in a Comedy Series for Jeffrey Blitz for the episode Stress Relief. The three

Teen Choice Awards The Teen Choice Awards is an annual awards show that airs on the Fox television network. The awards honor the year's biggest achievements in music, film, sports, television, fashion, social media, and more, voted by viewers living in the United S ...

nominations were for the show, the actor and the actress categories. The Television Critics Awards nominations were for the "Outstanding Achievement in Comedy" and for "Individual Achievement in Comedy" categories. The show also received nominations from TCA for best TV of the decade for Comedy Series and two for Comedy Actor.

Episodes

In the following table, "U.S. viewers (million)" refers to the number of Americans who viewed the episode on the night of broadcast. Episodes are listed by the order in which they aired, and may not necessarily correspond to their production codes. denotes an hour-long episode (with advertisements; actual runtime around 42 minutes).

Media release

The fifth season was released as boxsets on DVD and on

Blu-ray The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of sto ...

on September 9, 2009. The 5 DVD

box set A box set or (its original name) boxed set is a set of items (for example, a compilation of books, musical recordings, films or television programs) traditionally packaged in a box and offered for sale as a single unit. Music Artists and bands ...

includes, aside from the episodes, multiple deleted scenes, episode commentaries by various members of the production team, a "Gag Reel", a presentation of the show made by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, show ads that ran during the

Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual final playoff game of the National Football League (NFL) to determine the league champion. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966, replacing the NFL Championship Game. Since 2022, the game ...

and during the

2008 Beijing Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nat ...

, as well as several webisodes. The Blu-ray version has 4 discs and includes, in addition to the DVD content, BD-LIVE, a program which allows access to BD-Live Center for accessing online content such as trailers and downloading exclusive content. Another software included is "One-Liner Soundboard" which allows users to create audio mixes from stringing one-liners and quotes from the show, and to share these online via BD-LIVE. On the same date, ''The Office: Seasons 1–5 Collection'' was also made available.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Office (American season 5), The 2008 American television seasons 2009 American television seasons