What I’m Watching: The Office

The Office: Season 6, Episodes 4 & 5 “Niagara, Parts 1 & 2” (A-)

This one-hour wedding extravaganza is one of the funniest “Office” installments in quite a while. Bringing everyone to Niagara Falls instantly reminded me of the classic short-lived series “Wonderfalls,” but this proved to be far wackier and even more entertaining. The arrival at the hotel was just the start of all the fun, and the setup for so many priceless moments. Dwight actually following through and demonstrating that, if their positions were reversed, Michael really wouldn’t do the same for him, was amazing. Michael asking everyone if he could stay in their room and their very different reactions were extremely entertaining. It’s always funny to see how Michael makes the best of absurd situations, and it never gets old or ceases to be surprising when Dwight actually hooks up with a girl. Oscar’s flabbergasted, horrified reaction to the fact that someone thought he was dating Kevin was very funny. The most unexpected surprise was who accidentally let it slip that Pam was pregnant: Jim and not Michael. Michael’s attempt to salvage the situation was typically awkward but really funny. Andy’s one of the most entertaining characters here, and his chauffeur service, frequent crying, party-throwing, and scrotum-splitting were all terrific moments. While I hadn’t seen the famous YouTube video which inspired the wedding party interruption, I loved every moment of it and actually thought, after watching the video after seeing the episode, that the Niagara version was better, mostly because the familiar characters are incorporated. My favorite moment, which had me cracking up for a while, was Jim cutting his tie in half in order to make Pam feel better about her veil being torn. Their very romantic Plan C boat wedding was a great idea, and it makes the fact that their wedding was a bit preposterous just funny and not at all lamentable. I wonder if Michael hooking up with Pam’s mom is going to get to Pam. I’d love to see how that plays out. This was a terrific episode with so many more great moments – what were your favorites?