Job Fair (The Office)
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"Job Fair" is the seventeenth episode of the fourth season of the American
comedy Comedy is a genre of dramatic 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. Origins Comedy originated in ancient Greec ...
television series ''
The Office ''The Office'' is the title of several mockumentary sitcoms based on a British series originally created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant as '' The Office'' in 2001. The original series also starred Gervais as manager and primary charac ...
'' and the show's seventieth episode overall. Written by
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 fat ...
and
Gene Stupnitsky Gene Stupnitsky (born August 26, 1977) is a Ukrainian-born American film and television writer, producer, and director. He usually works with Lee Eisenberg, with whom he founded Quantity Entertainment. From 2005 to 2010, he served as a writer, di ...
and directed by
Tucker Gates Tucker Gates is an American television director and producer. He has directed several episodes of the ABC series '' Alias'' and '' Lost''. He has also directed episodes of '' Bates Motel'', ''Weeds'', '' Carnivàle'', '' Point Pleasant'', '' Hu ...
, the episode first aired in the United States on May 8, 2008 on
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
. In the episode, Michael and a few employees go to a high school's job fair to find a summer intern for
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 ...
. However, very few students seem interested in the internship. Meanwhile, Jim attempts to make an important sale by golfing with a potential client. At first the client claims to be not interested in talking about business, but after much negotiation, Jim lands the sale. Back at the office, Dwight is left in charge. Everyone leaves except his ex-girlfriend Angela, leading to an awkward day.


Plot

After
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 ...
gives
Jim Halpert James 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 Miff ...
a warning about his job performance, Jim tries to land his biggest client ever. He takes the potential client golfing, bringing along co-workers
Andy Bernard Andrew Baines Bernard (born Walter Baines Bernard Jr.) is a fictional character portrayed by Ed Helms in the NBC comedy television series ''The Office.'' Character synopsis Season 3 (2006–2007) Andy's character is introduced in the season ...
and
Kevin Malone Kevin Malone is a fictional character in the American television series '' The Office,'' portrayed by Brian Baumgartner. In the series, Kevin is a member of the accounting department at the Scranton branch of Dunder Mifflin. He is shown to ...
. When Jim tries to talk business, the client reveals that he is not interested in switching paper suppliers. But after much persistence and negotiation, Jim lands the account.
Michael Scott Michael Scott, Michael Scot, or Mike Scott may refer to: Academics * Michael Scot (1175 – c. 1232), mathematician and astrologer * Michael L. Scott (born 1959), American academic and computer scientist * Mike Scott, British linguist and designer ...
,
Pam Beesly Pamela Morgan Beesly Halpert ( born 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 th ...
,
Oscar Martinez Óscar Martínez or Oscar Martinez may refer to: *Oscar Martínez (actor) (born 1949), Argentine actor * Óscar Martínez (basketball), Paraguayan basketball coach, see Paraguay women's national basketball team * Oscar Martínez (fencer) (born 1889 ...
and
Darryl Philbin ''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 ...
set up a booth at a local job fair to find a student for
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 ...
’s summer internship but while other companies are prepared and have provided materials and products for their booth, Michael only brought a single white piece of Dunder-Mifflin paper. The fair proves unsuccessful, as Michael drives away the only interested student, Justin because he deems Justin not cool enough for him. After everyone else either ignores the booth or tells Michael off, Michael tries to recruit Justin as their intern, only for Justin to call Michael out for treating him badly and walk away. Michael then makes such a commotion that the teacher calls security and has him removed from the fair. After, Pam ventures to a booth advertising
graphic design Graphic design is a profession, academic discipline and applied art that involves creating visual communications intended to transmit specific messages to social groups, with specific objectives. Graphic design is an interdisciplinary branch of ...
, where she discovers that she has yet to learn many graphic design programs. The man working at the booth recommends she goes to either
Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
or
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
to learn about the graphic design technology. Meanwhile, Michael has left
Dwight Schrute Dwight Kurt Schrute III () is a character on the American television series ''The Office'' and is portrayed by American actor Rainn Wilson. Dwight is a salesman and assistant to Michael Scott, at the fictional paper distribution company Dunde ...
in charge of the office, but none of the employees obey his wishes. When most of the employees leave in the middle of the day, Dwight is left alone except for ex-girlfriend
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 ''Th ...
, causing the two to interact awkwardly for the rest of the day. When Jim and Pam meet up again in the office, they share two long, passionate kisses having accomplished both of their goals (Jim making the sale and Pam finding out the next step for her future in graphic design).


Production

This episode was the third episode of the series directed by
Tucker Gates Tucker Gates is an American television director and producer. He has directed several episodes of the ABC series '' Alias'' and '' Lost''. He has also directed episodes of '' Bates Motel'', ''Weeds'', '' Carnivàle'', '' Point Pleasant'', '' Hu ...
. Gates had previously directed the third season episodes " Branch Closing" and "
Women's Appreciation "Women's Appreciation" is the twenty-second episode of the third season of the American version of ''The Office'', the show's fiftieth overall, and the third supersized episode of the season. In this episode, Phyllis is flashed in the parkin ...
". "Job Fair" was written by
Gene Stupnitsky Gene Stupnitsky (born August 26, 1977) is a Ukrainian-born American film and television writer, producer, and director. He usually works with Lee Eisenberg, with whom he founded Quantity Entertainment. From 2005 to 2010, he served as a writer, di ...
and
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 fat ...
.TV.com (May 9, 2008
"Job Fair"
TV.com, Retrieved June 22, 2008
In order to create the blisters that Andy had on his hands during the episode, the make-up crew had to use Ben Nye sunburn colors, RCMA scar making material, and acetone. The process took twenty to thirty minutes, in which the sunburn colors were applied first and the scar making material was applied last.
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 O ...
was pregnant during shooting. Her character wasn't pregnant, so items (such as a copy machine) were placed between her stomach and the camera to hide her pregnancy. Writer
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 fat ...
recalled that during editing "I asked if we had any wider shots. Both Gene (Stupnitsky) and Dave Rogers (the editor) reminded me that we were shooting around Angela's enormous belly".Eisenberg, Lee (May 13, 2008
Lee Eisenberg answers ‘Job Fair’ questions
OfficeTally.com, Retrieved June 22, 2008
Kinsey later gave birth on May 3, five days before the episode premiered.Zap2It (May 5, 2008
''The Office's'' Angela Kinsey Gives Birth
Zap2It.com, Retrieved June 23, 2008


Reception

"Job Fair" received 3.6/9 in the ages 18–49 demographic 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 ...
. This means that 3.6 percent of all households with an 18- to 49-year-old living in it watched the episode, and nine percent had their televisions tuned to the channel at any point. The episode was watched by 7.22 million viewers.Seidman, Robert (May 9, 2008
Nielsen Ratings May 8, 2008: Trouble in Shonda-land?
TVbytheNumbers.com, Retrieved June 22, 2008
Reviews for this episode were mixed. Travis Fickett, of
IGN ''IGN'' is an American video gaming 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 district and is headed by its former e ...
, criticized parts of the episode, saying that the situation between Dwight and Angela was "played out so minimalist that virtually nothing develops" and even though Michael "gets up and makes an ass of himself" the resolution "isn't much of a pay-off". Fickett did say that although "this may not be the funniest episode, it shows how the series is capable of subtlety and depth."Fickett, Travis (May 9, 2008
''The Office'': "Job Fair" Review
IGN ''IGN'' is an American video gaming 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 district and is headed by its former e ...
, Retrieved June 22, 2008
BuddyTV BuddyTV is an entertainment-based website, which generates content about television programs and sporting events. The website publishes information about celebrity and related entertainment news through a series of articles, entertainment profile ...
's Oscar Dahl thought that "Job Fair" "had some nice moments, but it was a bit lacking in the comedy department".Dahl, Oscar (May 8, 2008
''The Office'': "Job Fair" Recap
BuddyTV.com, Retrieved June 22, 2008
Jay Black, from
TV Squad Weblogs, Inc. was a blog network that published content on a variety of subjects, including tech news, video games, automobiles, and pop culture. At one point, the network had as many as 90 blogs, although the vast majority of its traffic could b ...
, wrote that Andy "stole the show".Black, Jay (May 9, 2008
''The Office'': "Job Fair" – VIDEO
TVSquad.com, Retrieved June 23, 2008


References


External links


"Job Fair"
at NBC.com * {{The Office US Episodes The Office (American TV series) season 4 episodes 2008 American television episodes Television episodes directed by Tucker Gates