The Search (The Office)
Encyclopedia
"The Search" is the fifteenth episode of seventh season of the American comedy
television series
The Office, and the show's 141st episode overall. Written by Brent Forrester
and directed by Michael Spiller
, the episode aired February 3, 2011 on NBC
.
In the episode, Michael gets left behind at a gas station when Jim leaves him to attend to Cece and starts wandering around Scranton, leaving Dwight, Erin, and Holly to look for him. Meanwhile, Pam starts a caption contest in the office, with Gabe instituting rules that no one wants to follow.
continues to try to ask Holly
to get back together with him, but she continually refuses, stating she doesn't want a relationship with someone she works with. Since she dated Michael when she worked in Scranton before and AJ when she moved to Nashua, she feels like she doesn't want to fall into her pattern of dating co-workers again. Michael and Jim
then go out on a sales call. After landing the sale, an irritable Michael needs to stop to use the bathroom. While at a gas station, Jim gets a call from Pam's mother Helene, who was taking a feverish Cece to see the doctor when she accidentally locked the child in the car. Jim leaves to attend to Cece, but not before attempting in vain to tell Michael through the door of the bathroom; he also tells a guy in coveralls to tell Michael what happened, but the guy is a customer rather than a gas station employee and drives away. Michael is left at the gas station with no way of contacting the office, as his cell phone and wallet are with Jim and he doesn't remember the office's number, so he ends up wandering around Scranton and making stops at a pet store and a hot dog stand.
Jim, now with Cece, calls Pam and tells her Michael is at the gas station, so Holly, Dwight
, and Erin
plan to head out before Dwight insults them both and says he'll lead the expedition. Dwight and Erin are rude to Holly, but when Dwight suggests that Michael walked back to the office, Holly correctly guesses that he went in the direction of the bakery next door "just for the smell of it". After stopping at a grocery store to get some things for Pam, Dwight and Erin notice Holly changing cell phone services at a kiosk outside the store. They and the kiosk attendant are annoyed to discover that Holly used a joke name to complete the forms in order to get a rubber stress ball, but when the attendant mentions that someone else had done the exact thing earlier, Dwight and Erin recognize a fake name that is used by Michael. Believing that Holly can subconsciously determine where Michael has been, they follow her to a Chinese restaurant, where they find his picture on the wall along with others who have dined there without paying (Creed
also being among them, twice).
Michael eventually runs away from the camera crew so they can't find him. Dwight demands Holly to tell him where Michael is, but Holly says she doesn't know. She suggests that they find a high vantage point at which they can try to spot him, but Dwight rejects this idea, and the two split up. Holly walks away while Dwight decides to look in a bowling alley. Holly heads up to the roof of a tall building to see if she can spot Michael from above. On the roof, she finds Michael who was similarly trying to spot the office from above. They both admit that they've missed each other and kiss. Erin, who opted to follow Holly instead of Dwight, walks in and is happy for Michael.
Meanwhile, Pam notices her Sabre printer doodle on the refrigerator has funny captions that insult Sabre and gets the office to participate in a caption contest involving a cartoon of two dogs on a tropical island. Gabe, who finds the captions insulting, implements a list of annoying rules, stating that they can't insult Sabre or use pop culture references, and that they have to use new Sabre "sticky quips". The office instead decides to use an instant messenger to share quips. Gabe catches them and prints out the list of quips and reads them to the office, which start off insulting Sabre before they attack Gabe personally. The favored entry involves one where one of the dogs says he's going to piss on one of the palm trees because it reminds him of Gabe; an interview reveals that Angela
came up with that one. The office continues to get good laughs out of the ones that insult Gabe, who is once again defeated and miserable.
, his first writing credit of the season and his ninth writing credit of the series. It was directed by Michael Spiller
, his first directing credit for The Office. This was the third consecutive episode in which John Krasinski
has a limited role in the episode as Jim, due to the filming of Everybody Loves Whales in Alaska.
.
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
television series
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
The Office, and the show's 141st episode overall. Written by Brent Forrester
Brent Forrester
Brent Forrester is an American writer, who wrote several episodes of the animated television sitcom The Simpsons between 1993 and 1997. He has also worked as an executive producer on King of the Hill, and a writer on The Ben Stiller Show, Mr. Show with Bob and David, Undeclared, and The Office...
and directed by Michael Spiller
Michael Spiller
Michael Alan Spiller is an American cinematographer and television director.Spiller has directed on numerous series and has also served as a cinematographer prior to directing and worked frequently with Hal Hartley. He was a regular director on the HBO series, Sex and the City where he also served...
, the episode aired February 3, 2011 on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
.
In the episode, Michael gets left behind at a gas station when Jim leaves him to attend to Cece and starts wandering around Scranton, leaving Dwight, Erin, and Holly to look for him. Meanwhile, Pam starts a caption contest in the office, with Gabe instituting rules that no one wants to follow.
Synopsis
MichaelMichael Scott (The Office)
Michael Gary Scott is a fictional character on NBC's The Office, portrayed by Steve Carell, and based on David Brent from the original British version. Michael, the central character of the series, was the manager of the Scranton branch of paper and printer distribution company Dunder Mifflin Inc...
continues to try to ask Holly
Holly Flax
Hollis "Holly" Partridge Flax is a fictional character from the US television series The Office played by Amy Ryan. She was an original character, and not based on a character from the British version of the show...
to get back together with him, but she continually refuses, stating she doesn't want a relationship with someone she works with. Since she dated Michael when she worked in Scranton before and AJ when she moved to Nashua, she feels like she doesn't want to fall into her pattern of dating co-workers again. Michael and Jim
Jim Halpert
James Duncan "Jim" Halpert is a fictional character in the United States version of the television sitcom The Office, played by John Krasinski. The character is based on Tim Canterbury from the original version of The Office...
then go out on a sales call. After landing the sale, an irritable Michael needs to stop to use the bathroom. While at a gas station, Jim gets a call from Pam's mother Helene, who was taking a feverish Cece to see the doctor when she accidentally locked the child in the car. Jim leaves to attend to Cece, but not before attempting in vain to tell Michael through the door of the bathroom; he also tells a guy in coveralls to tell Michael what happened, but the guy is a customer rather than a gas station employee and drives away. Michael is left at the gas station with no way of contacting the office, as his cell phone and wallet are with Jim and he doesn't remember the office's number, so he ends up wandering around Scranton and making stops at a pet store and a hot dog stand.
Jim, now with Cece, calls Pam and tells her Michael is at the gas station, so Holly, Dwight
Dwight Schrute
Dwight Kurt Schrute III is a character on NBC's The Office portrayed by Rainn Wilson. He originally exactly resembled Gareth Keenan from the original UK version of The Office. Dwight is the top salesman and former acting manager for the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company and has won numerous awards for...
, and Erin
Erin Hannon
Kelly Erin Hannon is a fictional character from the U.S. television series The Office. She is the office receptionist for the Scranton branch of Dunder Mifflin, a position previously held by Pam Halpert before she left the company. Erin is played by Ellie Kemper...
plan to head out before Dwight insults them both and says he'll lead the expedition. Dwight and Erin are rude to Holly, but when Dwight suggests that Michael walked back to the office, Holly correctly guesses that he went in the direction of the bakery next door "just for the smell of it". After stopping at a grocery store to get some things for Pam, Dwight and Erin notice Holly changing cell phone services at a kiosk outside the store. They and the kiosk attendant are annoyed to discover that Holly used a joke name to complete the forms in order to get a rubber stress ball, but when the attendant mentions that someone else had done the exact thing earlier, Dwight and Erin recognize a fake name that is used by Michael. Believing that Holly can subconsciously determine where Michael has been, they follow her to a Chinese restaurant, where they find his picture on the wall along with others who have dined there without paying (Creed
Creed Bratton (character)
Creed Rowland Bratton a.k.a. "William Charles Schneider" is a fictional character from the U.S. television series The Office. Confusion may arise from the fact that the character is played by and partially based on the musician of the same name, Creed Bratton...
also being among them, twice).
Michael eventually runs away from the camera crew so they can't find him. Dwight demands Holly to tell him where Michael is, but Holly says she doesn't know. She suggests that they find a high vantage point at which they can try to spot him, but Dwight rejects this idea, and the two split up. Holly walks away while Dwight decides to look in a bowling alley. Holly heads up to the roof of a tall building to see if she can spot Michael from above. On the roof, she finds Michael who was similarly trying to spot the office from above. They both admit that they've missed each other and kiss. Erin, who opted to follow Holly instead of Dwight, walks in and is happy for Michael.
Meanwhile, Pam notices her Sabre printer doodle on the refrigerator has funny captions that insult Sabre and gets the office to participate in a caption contest involving a cartoon of two dogs on a tropical island. Gabe, who finds the captions insulting, implements a list of annoying rules, stating that they can't insult Sabre or use pop culture references, and that they have to use new Sabre "sticky quips". The office instead decides to use an instant messenger to share quips. Gabe catches them and prints out the list of quips and reads them to the office, which start off insulting Sabre before they attack Gabe personally. The favored entry involves one where one of the dogs says he's going to piss on one of the palm trees because it reminds him of Gabe; an interview reveals that Angela
Angela Martin
Angela Noelle Martin is a fictional character from the US television series The Office played by American actress Angela Kinsey. She is an original character, and has no equivalent in the British version of the show, The Office.-Overview:...
came up with that one. The office continues to get good laughs out of the ones that insult Gabe, who is once again defeated and miserable.
Production
This episode was written by consulting producer Brent ForresterBrent Forrester
Brent Forrester is an American writer, who wrote several episodes of the animated television sitcom The Simpsons between 1993 and 1997. He has also worked as an executive producer on King of the Hill, and a writer on The Ben Stiller Show, Mr. Show with Bob and David, Undeclared, and The Office...
, his first writing credit of the season and his ninth writing credit of the series. It was directed by Michael Spiller
Michael Spiller
Michael Alan Spiller is an American cinematographer and television director.Spiller has directed on numerous series and has also served as a cinematographer prior to directing and worked frequently with Hal Hartley. He was a regular director on the HBO series, Sex and the City where he also served...
, his first directing credit for The Office. This was the third consecutive episode in which John Krasinski
John Krasinski
John Burke Krasinski is an American actor, film director, and writer. He is most widely known for playing Jim Halpert on the NBC sitcom The Office...
has a limited role in the episode as Jim, due to the filming of Everybody Loves Whales in Alaska.
Reception
In its original American broadcast on February 3, 2011, "The Search" was viewed by an estimated 7.29 million viewers and received a 3.7 rating/9% share among adults between the ages of 18 and 49, decreasing in viewers from the previous episodeThe Seminar
"The Seminar" is the fourteenth episode of seventh season of the American comedytelevision series The Office, and the show's 140th episode overall. Written by Steve Hely and directed by B. J. Novak, the episode aired January 27, 2011 on NBC....
.
External links
- "The Search" at NBC.comNBCThe National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...