The Office: a guide to navigate the media

When Peacock first announced that it would be adding The Office to its library with new Superfan episodes, I was as excited as anyone else. Who doesn’t want an extra deranged rant from Dwight or a “That’s what she said” joke from Michael? What I never expected was for them to change my perception of Dunder Mifflin, forever. The Office’s extended cut episodes don’t merely add depth to Season 3. They rewrite them.

At the moment Peacock’s extended episodes are only available for Season 3 of the series. But that one season makes a great argument for why the streaming service should keep adding these new installments. I’ve only made it through six episodes of painstakingly tracking everything new in The Office’s Superfan cuts, but already I’m viewing characters I love in a different light.

These apply to big, overarching plot points. Did you ever think it was weird that Pam (Jenna Fischer) got back together with Roy (David Denman) after going on basically one date with another guy? In the typical cut of The Office, Pam’s choice to return to Roy seems a bit sad. It’s as if she’s resigned herself to a lackluster fate she knows she hates. Yet it doesn’t play out that way in the extended cut. We get to see more of Pam’s date with the cartoonist and her tiny fling with that cute guy she danced with during “Diwali.” But more importantly we get to see more of Roy and Pam. We see the breaks Roy keeps taking in the hopes he can see the woman who broke his heart, and we see more of their quiet flirting. It’s easy to write off Roy as an unemotional jerk. But in these small moments it’s clear that he and Pam really had something.

Similarly, Jim’s (John Krasinski) relationship with Karen (Rashida Jones) feels like more than a rebound. When Jim first transfers to Stamford, he’s pretty insufferable. He’s constantly volunteering for more responsibility from Josh (Charles Esten) and copying his boss, down to Josh’s bike riding hobby. We see a bit of that in the traditional cut, but in this longer version Karen consistently berates Jim for his overeager attitude and love of calling himself Assistant Regional Manager. Yes, that is the same gimmick Jim used to pull on Dwight. In this way she acts more as the anti-Pam, not a quiet nice girl but an upfront go-getter who is unafraid to call Jim out on his nonsense. And Jim responds to that reality check.

On the flip side, as these episodes spend more time with Karen we get to see just how cutting and borderline cruel she can be. During “Gay Witch Hunt” Karen walks by a co-worker who is breastfeeding at her desk. In disgust Karen says, “Put that away. No one wants to see your udder.” That more insulting version of Karen’s typical snark speaks volumes. It foreshadows how she will come to handle her eventual breakup with Jim.

Less crucial romances also gain more dimension. In “Diwali” Ryan (BJ Novak) initially pressures his co-workers to go to the celebration because it would make Kelly (Mindy Kaling) happy. He later bails when it becomes clear her parents are expecting him to ask for permission to marry Kelly. Is Ryan still scum? Absolutely. But in this version he comes across more as a clueless guy in love who can’t bring himself to take the next step. Also, did you know that Angela (Angela Kinsey) was jealous of Kelly between Seasons 2 and 3? During the Season 2 Christmas party, Kelly kissed Dwight (Rainn Wilson) because they were both standing under mistletoe. Of course that’s something the vicious Angela would never forget. Yet that entire plot line and Dwight’s admittedly sweet reconciliation with Angela was cut.

This re-evaluation isn’t limited to the show’s romantic relationships. Though Jan’s (Melora Hardin) monitoring of Michael’s (Steve Carell) work performance is mentioned throughout all cuts of the season, only the Superfan edition truly emphasizes how close Michael was to getting fired. In several episodes Jan forces Michael to walk her through his workday on an hour-by-hour basis. During this evaluation period we get a glimpse of what makes Michael Scott an actually good boss. After slacking off on pretzel day, Michael suddenly bursts into the main room in a sugar-fueled mania. Over the course of about two minutes he spouts off several non-insane ideas about how to make the office more efficient, including a desk reorganization and increased accountability from his employees. He then returns to his desk to presumably make the major sale mentioned at the end of the episode. It isn’t until Season 5 and the Michael Scott Paper Company that it’s revealed that Michael may be good at his job. Yet those seeds were planted two seasons prior then cut out of the script.

And then there’s the bird funeral. Pam’s obsession over organizing a funeral for a dead bird in “Grief Counseling” has always given me pause. I chalked her interest up to sheer boredom, though that never seemed quite right. Now I understand what I was missing. While reflecting on the death of Ed Truck Pam tells the camera, “Michael once told me that Home Alone is the saddest movie ever. When I asked him why he said, ‘Because the whole family forgets the kid at home. There is nothing funny about that!'”