It’s been two weeks since we last saw our favorite Office workers. Remind me again how we got through the summer? The countdown has begun to an all new episode of The Office…just hours to go. As always,GMMR is here with all the Office gossip. A Thursday just isn’t a Thursday without Office Thursdays on Give Me My Remote.
As always, check back for updates throughout the day. On we go….

Tonight’s Episode - “The Convict”…
There’s an ex-con in the office and Michael’s determined to be supportive - once he discovers their identity. Meanwhile, Andy makes a move on Pam with a little help from Jim. Prepare yourself for some super cringeworthy moments, after all it was written by original UK Office creators Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant. I was lucky enough to see an advanced screener, so make sure you check out my review of The Office: The Convict (warning, minor spoilers)

From the desk of Meredith Palmer…
Kate Flannery has penned another great blog for TVGuide.com. Check out her thoughts on working with Gervais/Merchant and find out which one of her co-stars she thinks is a “genius”. As always, please make sure you leave Kate some love on her blog by leaving a comment. If you have nothing to say, then just let her know that everyone at GiveMeMyRemote.com loves her! (Read Kate’s blog)

This week, USA Today’s Pop Candy interviewed Kate about her role as Meredith, how she got the part and her comedy act The Lampshades. You can listen to the interview online right now, just click here.

Michael Scott’s Words of Wisdom?….
Business 2.0 magazine knows who to turn to for sage business advice - Michael Scott. Michael talks to the magazine about the finer points of employee motivation. Here’s an example of the genius of this man: “The three keys to motivating your staff are love (positive reinforcement), fear (negative enforcement) and chocolate (chocolate reinforcement)” (Read the fully story at The Office LJ Community)

As an added bonus, check out this great video of Paul Lieberstein (Toby) as he talks about Michael’s business philosophies while taking us on the tour of Dunder Mifflin.

MORE Office Thursday after the jump!

(more…)

Thursday nights are a good time to be alive. With the triumphant return of Scrubs to the Must-See-TV lineup, NBC will be pumping out two hours of the most rock-solid comedy in recent memory. My Name Is Earl, The Office, 30 Rock, and Scrubs is about as good as it gets.One can’t help but think back to those carefree Thursdays when Cheers was in its prime, or when Friends was still in its infancy. Assuming Scrubs picks up where it left off, viewers will be treated to four wickedly smart comedies in a row. (Okay, maybe Earl isn’t smart. But it’s fun!)

The Office continues to do the heavy lifting on Thursdays, but there are now three other legitimate load-bearing sitcoms to help out. Even The Simpsons can’t boast that kind of support.

Expectations were sky-high for both The Office and Earl after last season, and neither show has disappointed. Earl continues to chip away at everything uptight and stuffy in this world, while The Office has added a whole new dimension. Jim has proven to be the heart of the show, now that he’s made yet another Dunder-Mifflin branch funny as hell. He’s even found a new Pam*, who not only adores him, but also is completely available. Maybe nice guys don’t finish last after all. The merger has only made life better for those of us who like a little sexual tension with our comedy.

Meanwhile, 30 Rock shrugged off an onslaught of bad reviews before its premiere, and has become a standout among both new and established shows. It’s not every day that a parody is better than the show at which it’s poking fun (SNL), but Tina Fey is just that good.

Finally, it’s nice to see that the world wasn’t done with Scrubs yet. With hospital dramas popping up like a lottery winner’s long-lost relatives, Scrubs is the perfect antidote for too much drama.

So don’t take this moment in time for granted. Quit your Thursday bowling league, hire a sitter for the kids, drop out of night school, TiVo ‘til it hurts…do whatever you have to do. Just make Thursday night television a priority again. You’ll be glad you did.

*IMPORTANT!!! This article came from my friends at  TV with MeeVee.  Would you seriously EVER think that I would say Jim has found a new Pam?!  Come on now.  Let’s not be crazy.
Related Links and Stories:

• My Name Is Earl
• The Office
• 30 Rock
• Scrubs

You know who I think might be the most intriguing woman in all of television? It’s going to be hard to guess, because she’s never actually been on TV. But I’ll tell ya….it’s Michael Scott’s mother. I am consumed with curiosity about the woman who raised the bewildering and befuddled man that is Michael Gary Scott. Don’t tell me you aren’t the least bit curious.

In this week’s episode of The Office, Michael Scott outdoes even Michael Scott when he learns that one of his employees once spent time in prison. Under the always present guise of good intentions, Michael outs the man’s criminal past to the entire office, who in turn have a lot of question about prison life.

When one of the employees likens prison to the office, Michael sets out to prove to everyone how good they truly have it there at Dunder Mifflin. As you might expect, Michael’s tactics are just a little bit left of center, and no one is amused.

Thursday’s episode, entitled “The Convict”, was written by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant who were of course the creators of the original UK version of The Office. Although Gervais and Merchant have both said that they wrote the episode specific to the American version of the show, fans of the UK version may feel a sense of familiarity. Although you won’t be hearing Dwight Schrute saying “cheers” as he leaves the office, or Ryan inviting Kelly out for bangers and mash, the uncomfortable, unbearably awkward moments that the UK version perfected are definitely present throughout the episode.

(more…)

Just a quick note to say that I’m sorry that I’ve hardly posted anything but recaps the past two days. Things have been wacky around here, and I just haven’t had much time for GMMR. I’m hoping to be back to our regularly scheduled posting tonight.
In addition to sharing my thoughts on last night’s Veronica Mars, I’m going to give you Office fans a sneak peek at this week’s episode.  I watched it last night, and holy Lord it’s funny (but I guess that goes without saying).  I’m also heading home tonight to watch the season premiere of Scrubs, so more on that later.

Just bear with me…please

Title: “Knit, People, Knit!”
Original airdate: 11/2/2006

It’s Friday night dinner at maison Gilmore and they’re sitting around holding champagne glasses. Richard is making a toast to the new couple but Lorelai is eyeing the present in front of her. It’s very long and slim, so I’m guessing it’s not a house like they were planning for her and Luke. Totally should have married him Lor. Anyway they finally let her open it and the look on her face is priceless, and we get to see its an etching called “Wolfgirl” I know art is subjective and all…but that is hideous. Chris and Lorelai pretend to like it which makes Emily happy, since she didn’t know what to get with a lack of registry and all. Emily also shares that they found out the happy couple was married via their answering machine. Yes folks, she left them a freaking voice message. Emily even plays it for everyone, again and again.

Sitting at the dinner table Emily decides she wants to throw a wedding party for Chris and Lor. Richard doesn’t want anyone to think they are “ashamed” of their marriage so they must throw one, and as soon as possible. Lorelai is against it so Emily asks Rory’s opinion, and unsurprisingly Rory feels the marriage should be celebrated. Since Chris would never turn down a free cocktail his wife okays it. Emily wants a list of people Lor would like to invite to the shindig, but she only wants Sookie, Jackson and Michel there…and Logan if he wants to come. That’s it? What about all her Stars Hollow friends? Lorelai avoids the question. I’m pretty sure they all must be dead because we haven’t really seen any of them in a while. Emily lets it go but Chris gives her a funny look.

(more…)

Title: “Finding Judas”
Original Airdate: 11/28/06

First off, let me just start this recap by saying that after perusing various “House” message boards and reading various comments left my policemen and relatives of policemen, I am happy to state with confidence that in reality, NO, Tritter does NOT have the power to seize everyone’s assets. America is not a Police State – only judges and district attorneys, after presenting a substantial amount of evidence, have this power. Cops could never get away with what Tritter is getting away with. There. Now, don’t we all feel better? I know I do.

And now back to the unrealistic world of TV. So we begin the episode with our patient of the week, i.e. a cute little girl and her dad at some sort of amusement park. But while on some sort of spinning ride, the cute little girl suddenly has some sort of bad reaction, and goes into some sort of… Oh, sorry. Basically, she starts screaming like a banshee for no apparent reason – well after the ride stops. Cut to the hospital; cute little girl is in a hospital bed, and Cameron is trying vainly to get some solid answers about the girl’s medical history out of her bitterly bickering parents. To the surprise of no one, we learn this couple is divorced. They also fight constantly about how to raise their daughter – while said daughter is present, I might add. And not surprisingly, this upsets and depresses the child. Poor little Stuck in the Middle Girl. Stupid Selfish Parents.

(more…)

I can’t believe we are already here. The first mystery arc for Veronica Mars is over. Those responsible for the Hearst rapes has been revealed, and the second mystery for our little Roni is already in full swing.

Due to my concern for the safety of your eyesight and your sanity, I’m only going to recap last night’s episode in this post. But there is a LOT to discuss and I will be back later with my take on Season 3 thus far, as well as my thoughts on the rapist reveal, and the second mystery arc. But for now, I think you have enough to deal with given the length of this recap. Now you know why I leave recapping to the others. Don’t say I didn’t warn you!!

Title: “Spit and Eggs”
Original airdate: 11/28/2006
As we open, Mac and Piz are standing on the roof of a frat party looking for Veronica. They won’t find her there, she’s pretty busy running down the halls of Hearst, clearly being chased, but by whom. A hurt and bleeding Veronica collapses against Piz and Wallace’s locked dorm room door, only to look up and see….

(…a long time ago, we used to be friends)

dniwer ot reilrae ni eht yad…

Veronica’s VO is waxing poetic in the courtyard when she spies Hearst Hotties, Logan and Dick laughing. Her VO laments that it’s nice to know that Logan can still smile since she hasn’t seen it lately. Well that’s what you get for blowing off your mega-hot, mega-rich boyfriend Veronica….deal.

The three exchange some snarky quibbles before Dick drops trou and moons a truck filled with women celebrating the end of Greek life at Hearst. And no, they lost a huge opportunity here by NOT showing Dick’s naked ass.

(more…)

Title: “Single Stamina”
Original Airdate: November 27, 2006

Ahhh, winter time is so beautiful. Especially if you can stay inside and just admire it through the windows.

That’s the beauty of being a couple I guess. Lilypad and Marshmallow, Robin and Ted, they can all stay inside in “couple hibernation mode” while enjoy each other’s company without having to worry about going outside too much. But, poor Swarley Barney, being the bachelor that he is, he has to go out to find his good times still. This leaves Barney as his own wingman.
Yea, not so much. That doesn’t work. He decided to bring in reinforcements. Stinson. James Stinson. Yep, you heard that right, he brought in his brother James (Wayne Brady) as his reinforcement.

(more…)

“Six Months Ago”
Original Air Date: 11/27/2006

Hiro’s right where we left him, in the diner in Midland Texas, six months ago. Charlie comes by with the coffee, and he jumps on the opportunity to tell her “My name is Hiro Nakamura. I’m here to save your life.” Unfortunately, his message from the future is interrupted by birthday song for Charlie. He follows her, still trying to talk to her and is captured with uncomfortable smile in the birthday picture we saw last week.

Meanwhile, in Brooklyn, a Clark Kent-looking fellow in complicated spectacles carefully assembles a watch, putting its intricate gears together. He’s interrupted as well, when Chandra Suresh arrives hoping “Mr. Gray” can help him. Gabriel tells him his watch is broken; he can hear it running 2 seconds slow, and fixes it in a jiffy. Suresh tells the watchman who he is and that he thinks he, Gabriel, might be special. He hands Gabriel a copy of “Activating Evolution” and leaves.

Matt pulls over a woman in sports car. It’s Eden, with long brown hair. Girlfriend was speeding, and she’s got a bottle of booze on the seat. Matt wants her to get out, but she’s got another idea: “I think you really want to eat some doughnuts.” She gives him a focused stare and her voice goes a bit wiggy. He walks back to his car gets in and drives away. In front of her car is the Haitian.

(more…)

Title: “The Killing Box”
Original Airdate: 11/28/2006
Felt weird to watch the “Fall Finale” of “Prison Break” right in front of my Christmas tree, but I’ll take Michael Scofield and company any way I can get ‘em. Even if in front of a fake pine tree.

So, after the intentional car crash, Mahone has Lincoln and Michael on their knees and tells them to turn around; apparently he wants to kill them on the spot.

“If you’re gonna murder us, Alex, you’re gonna have to look us in the eyes while you do it,” Michael tells him.

And Mahone can’t do that. He tells them he just wants is own life back, and Michael asks him if he’s willing to murder two innocent people to do it. He obviously fails to see the irony in his own question; let’s not forget that Michael has been willing to let literally dozens of innocent people be murdered and otherwise wronged in his quest to give his brother back his life. Mahone, God bless ‘em, lets this fact slide. And then border patrol shows up and makes all of the men, including Mahone, surrender. His chance to kill the brothers has been lost. Border patrol takes everyone into custody.

Sucre is in his plane, headed toward the Mexican border. Suddenly, his plane is being pursued by another – the pilot says border patrol, but I could have sworn I heard the other guy identify himself as DEA, so who knows? – and Sucre and his pilot prepare to jump. “Pull the cord and pray,” his pilot tells Sucre, before he assures him that he certainly WILL land – it’s just a matter of how hard he’ll land. Sucre takes a big swig of liquor (atta boy) and jumps into the middle of the desert. We find out later he landed safely and he literally walks into the sunset. I hope that’s not the last time we see him.

(more…)