"Garden Party" is the fourth episode of the
eighth season of the American
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 ...
television series
A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, satellite, or cable television, cable, excluding breaking news, television adverti ...
''
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 ...
'', and the show's 156th episode overall. The episode originally aired on
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
in the United States on October 13, 2011. It was written by co-executive producer
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'' prior ...
and was directed by
David Rogers and marks
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 ...
's first credit as
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 ...
. "Garden Party" features guest appearances from
Josh Groban
Joshua Winslow Groban (born February 27, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actor. His first four solo albums have been certified multi-platinum, and he was charted in 2007 as the number-one best selling artist in the United States, wi ...
,
Dee Wallace
Deanna Wallace (née Bowers; born December 14, 1948), also known as Dee Wallace Stone, is an American actress. She is perhaps best known for her role as Mary Taylor, the mother in the 1982 blockbuster film ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial''. She is ...
, and
Stephen Collins
Stephen Weaver Collins (born October 1, 1947) is an American former actor and writer. He is known for playing Eric Camden on the television series '' 7th Heaven'' from 1996 to 2007. Afterwards, Collins played the roles of Dayton King on the ABC t ...
.
The series—
presented as if it were a real documentary—depicts the everyday lives of office employees in the
Scranton, Pennsylvania
Scranton is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, Lackawanna County. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U ...
, branch of the fictional
Dunder Mifflin
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 ...
Paper Company. In the episode,
Andy Bernard
Andrew Baines Bernard is a fictional character from the NBC comedy television series ''The Office (U.S. TV series), The Office'', portrayed by Ed Helms. He is introduced in Season 3 as the Regional Director in Charge of Sales at the Stamford br ...
(
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 ...
) throws a garden party at Schrute Farms to impress
Robert California
Robert California, also known as Bob Kazamakis, and The Lizard King, is a fictional character on the U.S. comedy television series ''The Office'', portrayed by James Spader. In the eighth season, Robert managed to persuade Jo Bennett to appoint ...
(
James Spader
James Todd Spader (born February 7, 1960) is an American actor. He has portrayed eccentric characters in films such as the drama ''Sex, Lies, and Videotape'' (1989) for which he won the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor, the action scie ...
), with Bernard's parents and brother in attendance. Meanwhile,
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 ...
(
Rainn Wilson
Rainn Percival Dietrich Wilson (born January 20, 1966) is an American actor, comedian, podcaster, producer, and writer. He is best known for his role as Dwight Schrute on the NBC sitcom ''The Office'', for which he earned three consecutive Emm ...
) works to make it a classy event.
"Garden Party" features a substantial appearance by
Josh Groban
Joshua Winslow Groban (born February 27, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actor. His first four solo albums have been certified multi-platinum, and he was charted in 2007 as the number-one best selling artist in the United States, wi ...
; Kaling had asked Groban if he could guest star in the series, through
Twitter
Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
. The episode received mixed reviews from critics, with criticism towards its repetition of plot ideas. According to
Nielsen Media Research
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 ...
, "Garden Party" drew more than 6 million viewers and received a 3.2 rating/8% share in the 18–49 demographic, staying even with the previous episode, "
Lotto Lotto may refer to:
* Lotto, original, 15th century name of the Italian lottery
* Lotto (Milan Metro), a railway station in Milan, Italy
* Lotto carpet, a carpet having a lacy arabesque pattern
* Lotto Sport Italia, an Italian sports apparel manu ...
". It ranked third in its timeslot, and ranked as the highest-rated NBC series on Thursday.
Synopsis
Andy Bernard
Andrew Baines Bernard is a fictional character from the NBC comedy television series ''The Office (U.S. TV series), The Office'', portrayed by Ed Helms. He is introduced in Season 3 as the Regional Director in Charge of Sales at the Stamford br ...
(
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 ...
) decides to throw a
garden party
A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often feature ...
at Schrute Farms to impress his parents and
Robert California
Robert California, also known as Bob Kazamakis, and The Lizard King, is a fictional character on the U.S. comedy television series ''The Office'', portrayed by James Spader. In the eighth season, Robert managed to persuade Jo Bennett to appoint ...
(
James Spader
James Todd Spader (born February 7, 1960) is an American actor. He has portrayed eccentric characters in films such as the drama ''Sex, Lies, and Videotape'' (1989) for which he won the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor, the action scie ...
), and exhaustively explains party manners to the office workers. Andy is jealous at the amount of attention his younger brother Walter Bernard, Jr. (
Josh Groban
Joshua Winslow Groban (born February 27, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actor. His first four solo albums have been certified multi-platinum, and he was charted in 2007 as the number-one best selling artist in the United States, wi ...
) receives from his father, and thinks that by throwing an elaborate party he can ensure his father's blessings. At first, the party goes along smoothly. Andy makes a toast to Robert in order to get his fellow employees to toast him, as if to show to his parents and California that he is valued by his employees. His plan backfires, however, and instead more people toast Robert, and Robert's toast is about the easiness of the manager job. To get everybody's mind off of Robert, Andy decides to sing "
More Than Words
"More Than Words" is a song by American rock band Extreme, released as the fifth track and third single from their second album, ''Pornograffitti'' (1990), in March 1991. It is a ballad built around acoustic guitar work by Nuno Bettencourt and ...
" as a duet with his father. This too goes awry as his father corrects his playing and singing, and ultimately decides to sing a duet with Walter Jr. instead of Andy. Upset, Andy takes his guitar and storms off.
His father confronts him privately about his outburst, and when Andy admits to trying to win his father's affection, he reacts with annoyance, harshly telling him that he is simply not proud of Andy's accomplishments, and is annoyed at Andy's attempts to gain his approval. This conversation is overheard by the other staff on the
baby monitor
A baby monitor, also known as a baby alarm, is a radio system used to remotely listen to sounds made by an infant. An audio monitor consists of a transmitter unit, equipped with a microphone, placed near to the child. It transmits the sounds by ...
Jim
Jim or JIM may refer to:
* Jim (given name), a given name
* Jim, a diminutive form of the given name James
* Jim, a short form of the given name Jimmy
* OPCW-UN Joint Investigative Mechanism
* ''Jim'' (comics), a series by Jim Woodring
* ''Jim ...
(
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 ...
) and
Pam Halpert
Pamela Morgan Halpert ( née Beesly) is a fictional character on the U.S. television sitcom ''The Office'', played by Jenna Fischer. Her counterpart in the original UK series of ''The Office'' is Dawn Tinsley. Pam begins the series as the recept ...
(
Jenna Fischer
Regina Marie "Jenna" Fischer (born March 7, 1974) is an American actress best known for her portrayal of Pam Beesly on the NBC sitcom ''The Office'' (2005–2013), for which she was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Suppor ...
) brought for their daughter, and Pam quickly turns off the monitor to let Andy save face.
Darryl Philbin
''The Office (American TV series), The Office'' is an Television in the United States, American television series based on The Office (British TV series), the British television comedy of the same name. The format of the series is a parody of the ...
(
Craig Robinson) and
Oscar Martinez (
Oscar Nunez
Oscar Nunez (born November 18, 1958), sometimes credited as Oscar Nuñez, is a Cuban-American actor. He is best known for his role as the Dunder Mifflin accountant Oscar Martinez on NBC's ''The Office''.
He was a member of The Groundlings and l ...
) confide to the camera that they now understand why Andy feels he needs to prove himself to everyone. After his family leaves, a dejected Andy, feeling unwanted by his family and co-workers, says goodbye to the office staff as they turn the garden party into a barbecue. Darryl and Oscar, however, convince Andy to stay with a cheeseburger and a beer.
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 ...
(
Rainn Wilson
Rainn Percival Dietrich Wilson (born January 20, 1966) is an American actor, comedian, podcaster, producer, and writer. He is best known for his role as Dwight Schrute on the NBC sitcom ''The Office'', for which he earned three consecutive Emm ...
) wants to make the garden party a classy event to expand Schrute Farms' clientele. He thoroughly reads a book called ''The Ultimate Guide to Throwing A Garden Party'' that he bought online, actually written by Jim under the pseudonym "James Trickington". The book gives outlandish advice such as announcing each guest's name as they arrive in an extremely loud manner, imitating
The Last Supper
Image:The Last Supper - Leonardo Da Vinci - High Resolution 32x16.jpg, 400px, alt=''The Last Supper'' by Leonardo da Vinci - Clickable Image, Depictions of the Last Supper in Christian art have been undertaken by artistic masters for centuries, ...
in a
tableau vivant
A (; often shortened to ; plural: ), French for "living picture", is a static scene containing one or more actors or models. They are stationary and silent, usually in costume, carefully posed, with props and/or scenery, and may be theatrica ...
in the middle of a meal, dancing with his party staff, and a fire court dance as the closing ceremonies, all of which Dwight follows to the letter.
Pam feuds with co-worker
Angela Lipton (
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 ...
) over baby names. Pam and Angela learn they've both chosen the name Phillip for their soon-to-be-born sons, with Pam naming her child after her deceased grandfather and Angela after her favorite cat. Angela, annoyed that Pam does not relinquish the name, makes a toast to "my son Phillip" at the garden party—only to have Pam make the same toast but describe in great detail how the name honors her grandfather. Angela, unwilling to reveal her feline-centric reasons for the name, simply grouses to the camera that Pam is always copying her.
Throughout the party,
Kelly Kapoor
Kelly Rajanigandha Kapoor is a fictional character from the American television series ''The Office'', portrayed by Mindy Kaling. She is the customer service representative at the Scranton branch of Dunder Mifflin from seasons 1 to 8. Followin ...
(
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 ...
) keeps hinting at how cold she is, hoping
Ryan Howard (
B. J. Novak) will offer his jacket. However, Ryan instantly offers his jacket to Robert, who is not even cold.
Gabe Lewis
''The Office'' is an American television series based on the British television comedy of the same name. The format of the series is a parody of the fly on the wall documentary technique that intersperses traditional situation comedy segments w ...
(
Zach Woods
Zachary Woods (born September 25, 1984) is an American actor, comedian, writer, director and producer. He is best known for his roles as a series regular for three seasons as Gabe Lewis on the NBC sitcom ''The Office'', as Jared Dunn on the HBO ...
) also offers his, hinting at a rivalry between them in terms of sucking up to Robert, later evidenced in "
Pool Party
A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often feature ...
". Dwight's cousin Mose (
Michael Schur
Michael Herbert Schur (born 1975) is an American television producer, writer, director and actor. He was a producer and writer for the comedy series ''The Office'', and co-created ''Parks and Recreation'' with ''Office'' producer Greg Daniels. ...
) has fun being a valet, lining up the guests' cars in a field to perform a
motorcycle stunt. However, he fails to get his motorcycle up the ramp, and instead runs across the tops of the cars, but is still satisfied.
Production
The episode was written by co-executive producer
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'' prior ...
, his 10th writing credit for the series. It was directed by series editor
David Rogers, his 4th directing credit for the series. Beginning with this episode,
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 ...
was promoted to executive producer. Before this, it was speculated that she might not return to the series as a writer. The episode features guest appearance from
Stephen Collins
Stephen Weaver Collins (born October 1, 1947) is an American former actor and writer. He is known for playing Eric Camden on the television series '' 7th Heaven'' from 1996 to 2007. Afterwards, Collins played the roles of Dayton King on the ABC t ...
,
Dee Wallace
Deanna Wallace (née Bowers; born December 14, 1948), also known as Dee Wallace Stone, is an American actress. She is perhaps best known for her role as Mary Taylor, the mother in the 1982 blockbuster film ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial''. She is ...
and
Josh Groban
Joshua Winslow Groban (born February 27, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actor. His first four solo albums have been certified multi-platinum, and he was charted in 2007 as the number-one best selling artist in the United States, wi ...
as Andy's father, mother and brother, respectively. Collins and Wallace were reported to appear on the series by Joyce Eng of ''
TV Guide
TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program
Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or t ...
''.
Josh Groban was later reported to appear on the series the next day.
Writer Mindy Kaling had sent Groban a message through
Twitter
Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
asking if he would want to appear on the series.
He responded yes with the filming week of the episode lining up with his
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
concert for his
Straight to You Tour.
Reception
Ratings
In its original American broadcast on October 13, 2011, "Garden Party" was viewed by an estimated 6.050 million viewers and received a 3.2 rating/8% share among adults between the ages of 18 and 49.
This means that it was seen by 3.2% of all 18- to 49-year-olds, and 8% of all 18- to 49-year-olds watching television at the time of the broadcast. Although seeing a 3.8% increase in viewership, the episode matched the 18–49 demo rating from the previous episode, "
Lotto Lotto may refer to:
* Lotto, original, 15th century name of the Italian lottery
* Lotto (Milan Metro), a railway station in Milan, Italy
* Lotto carpet, a carpet having a lacy arabesque pattern
* Lotto Sport Italia, an Italian sports apparel manu ...
". The episode ranked third in its timeslot beating ''
Person of Interest
"Person of interest" is a term used by law enforcement in the United States, Canada, and other countries when identifying someone possibly involved in a criminal investigation who has not been arrested or formally accused of a crime. It has no leg ...
'' which received a 2.7 rating/7% share in the 18–49 demographic and ''
The Secret Circle
The Secret Circle is a supernatural, young-adult series of books created by L. J. Smith. The narrative follows the character of Cassie Blake as she is initiated into a "Circle" of eleven other teenage witches and the danger that ensues when they ...
'' which received a 0.8 rating/2% share, but was defeated by ''
Grey's Anatomy
''Grey's Anatomy'' is an American medical drama television series that premiered on March 27, 2005, on ABC as a mid-season replacement. The series focuses on the lives of surgical interns, residents, and attendings as they develop into se ...
'' which received a 3.4 rating/9% share and ''
The X Factor
''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003 ...
'' which received a 3.6 rating/10% share.
Reviews
The episode received mixed reviews from critics. ''
HitFix
HitFix, or HitFix.com, was an entertainment news website that launched in December 2008 specializing in breaking entertainment news, insider information, and reviews and critiques of film, music, and television. In mid-2010 HitFix crossed the 1,00 ...
'' writer
Alan Sepinwall
Alan Sepinwall (born October 19, 1973) is an American television reviewer and writer. He spent 14 years as a columnist with ''The Star-Ledger'' in Newark until leaving the newspaper in 2010 to work for the entertainment news website HitFix. He ...
stated that the episode "offered more laughs than some of this season's other episodes". Despite this, he criticized the episode's main plot with Andy, commenting that "where giving Michael Scott power made him a funnier character than he would have been were he just another salesman, Andy has somehow become less funny since the promotion".
Chris Plante of ''
New York'' called the episode "funny, weird, touching, and unpredictable. A gem, really".
''
National Post
The ''National Post'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet newspaper available in several cities in central and western Canada. The paper is the flagship publication of Postmedia Network and is published Mondays through Saturdays, with ...
'' writer Barry Hertz compared the episode to "
Booze Cruise
In British slang, a booze cruise is a brief trip from Britain to France or Belgium with the intent of taking advantage of lower prices, and buying personal supplies of (especially) alcohol or tobacco in bulk quantities. This is a legally allowe ...
", "
Beach Games
"Beach Games" is the twenty-third episode of the third season of the American version of ''The Office'', and the 51st of the series. In this episode, the office goes to a nearby lake for some "beach games". It is revealed that Michael (Steve ...
" and "
The Search
''The Search'' is a 1948 American film directed by Fred Zinnemann that tells the story of a young Auschwitz survivor and his mother who search for each other across post-World War II Europe. It stars Montgomery Clift, Ivan Jandl, Jarmila Novotn ...
".
M. Giant of ''Television Without Pity'' gave the episode a B−. Several critics praised the return of former ''Office'' writer,
Michael Schur
Michael Herbert Schur (born 1975) is an American television producer, writer, director and actor. He was a producer and writer for the comedy series ''The Office'', and co-created ''Parks and Recreation'' with ''Office'' producer Greg Daniels. ...
as
Mose Schrute
''The Office'' is an American television series based on the British television comedy of the same name. The format of the series is a parody of the fly on the wall documentary technique that intersperses traditional situation comedy segments wi ...
.
Barry Hertz said that "the sight gag of him running atop a field of cars like a watered-down
Evel Knievel
Robert Craig "Evel" Knievel (; October 17, 1938 – November 30, 2007) was an American stunt performer and entertainer. Over the course of his career, he attempted more than 75 ramp-to-ramp motorcycle jumps. Knievel was inducted into the Motor ...
was enough to give this episode an easy A".
Despite this, the episode received some negative reviews. ''
The A.V. Club
''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...
'' reviewer Myles McNutt was more negative towards the episode writing that "Here, we have a case where an episode could have signaled at least some sense of what else the show might be interested in other than Andy as the well-meaning but hapless boss and Pam and Angela's dueling pregnancies, and all we got were variations on those storylines with no new angle either narratively". He gave the episode a C.
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 ...
writer Cindy White considered the episode superior to previous "external" episodes "
Christening" and "
Phyllis' Wedding
"Phyllis' Wedding" is the sixteenth episode of the third season of the American comedy television series ''The Office'', and the show's 44th overall. It first aired on February 8, 2007, on NBC. The episode was written by staff writer Caroline Wi ...
", but considered it inferior to the "
Niagara" and the "classic" "
Booze Cruise
In British slang, a booze cruise is a brief trip from Britain to France or Belgium with the intent of taking advantage of lower prices, and buying personal supplies of (especially) alcohol or tobacco in bulk quantities. This is a legally allowe ...
". She criticized the main plot for rehashing previous plot lines and ultimately gave the episode a 7.0/10.
References
External links
"Garden Party"at
NBC.com
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...
*
{{The Office US Episodes
2011 American television episodes
The Office (American season 8) episodes