Posted on by tanster

The Office: Mrs. California, 8.09

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The Office: Mrs. California

Writer: Dan Greaney, Director: Charlie Grandy

Summary (NBC): Meet Mrs. California — Robert California (James Spader) brings his wife (guest star Maura Tierney) into the office to find her a job. Meanwhile, Dwight opens a gym in the building. Guest stars: Maura Tierney, Lindsey Broad.

The Office Mrs. California extras

The Office Mrs. California rating

In a poll conducted December 1-5, Tallyheads rated this episode: 7.60/10

See all The Office Season 8 ratings.

The Office Mrs. California quotes

Dwight: Picture someone doing something heroic. Now was he sitting or standing? Not counting F.D.R.

Dwight: Look at all of you. I feel like you’re in a suicide cult.

Jim: You know I have to do this.
Dwight: I know.

Andy: Andrew… Baines… Bernard.

Jim: If I were you, I wouldn’t hire his wife.

Dwight: Your path from obesity begins right here.

Darryl: I want to live long enough to see a really, really gay president.

Dwight: Their massive BMs bust the rivets on my pipes.

Dwight: A gym turns fat into cash.

Ryan: Bitch.

Jim: It’s sales, so you have to be able to live in the world of rejection.

Susan: I love shopping. And sales is just the other side of that.

Andy: Survival skills. Ranking of animals.

Andy: What I wouldn’t give for one of Phyllis’ classic room-clearing farts right now.

Darryl: This is not a gym. This is like a scene out of Saw 5.

Dwight: Look! Gravel bucket squat yoke.

Robert: It’s not a bad thing to have the CEO owe you one.

Robert: Why can you not say exactly what I tell you?

Dwight: I am now accepting memberships for the Dwight Schrute Gym for Muscles.

Phyllis: We have a gym at home. It’s called the bedroom.

Dwight: You gotta get the black people to do it to get the white people to do it. Then you gotta get the black people to stop doing it. One step at a time.

Andy: It would be great if she were gone by lunch.

Erin: I know exactly which stapler to give her.

Kevin: I’m going to save you some time, sweetie, and give you the answer now. I. Don’t. Know.

Jim: I think we should let this place just crush her spirit by itself. I mean, it knows what it’s doing.

Susan: Excuse me, waiter, there’s a dog in my soup.

Susan: Last time I had a job, I remember I hated the boss’ wife. Of course she was married to Robert.

Andy: The dude is an enigma.

Dwight: Is that the same philosophy you apply to buffalo wings?

Dwight: I’m going to make you look like Lebron James!
Darryl: It’s Lejon Brames.

Robert: You lying son of a bitch!

Robert: Where’s Jim?
Erin: He just rolled out and crawled out.

Jim: Creed. I was never here, all right?
Creed: Okay. What about your friend?
Jim: Oh boy.

Dwight: How do you think the Fonz got so cool? He stretched his pelvic bowl.

Gabe: Nice pelvic bowl. Deep.

Andy: Jim, I’ve had enough of your unhelpfulness.

Dwight: I am going to make you the buffest dude Val Kilmer has ever seen.

Icon provided by pessimistreader.

67 comments

  1. Is there no Christmas episode, or is this the Christmas episode?

    [ from tanster: i need to check with NBC. the schedule may have changed. ]

  4. i’m pretty sure there’s still a christmas episode, look, there’s another episode on December 8th

  6. There is still a christmas episode.
    Remember Mindy Kaling was writing it.
    Her episode will probably be the 8th.

  7. There is a Christmas episode, and it will air December 8th. The assumption was that there was two episodes left after Pam’s Replacement was wrong.

    The Christmas episode was written by Mindy Kaling and some of the cast tweeted photos of the set during filming which was early in October.

  8. I know that there IS a Christmas episode, at the time of my comment there were supposedly only 2 new episodes for 2011 after Pam’s Replacement.

  11. Oh, goody! Another employee. Let’s see, the desks in the main office are all taken. The annex seems pretty full. The conference room is apparently Robert’s permanent office. Ryan already has the closet spoken for. Hmmm… Maybe the stairwell?

    I’m starting to get claustrophobic when I watch this show.

  12. I really, really hate Robert California. I don’t have a reason or anything to back up why I hate him. I just do, and I’m really tired of seeing his face on the show.

  13. Except I doubt a high profile guest star who is only signed for one episode will actually get the job that Robert is searching for.

  14. @Nathan – Good point! But my rant was more about the mere intention of bringing in a new employee. Would a new CEO be looking to add to an already bloated payroll? Or would he more likely be looking to cut it (Kevin, Ryan, Creed…)? Just sayin’.

  16. They said there would be no big baby-centered episode like they did in S6 so I’m going to guess Pam had the baby between “Gettysburg” and this episode since he was conceived on Valentine’s Day and can’t possibly be THAT late that it’s born in December.

  18. @remember to call – I did glimpse one over the weekend, and you’re right. In the future, I will refrain from ranting about episode summaries. They are supposed to be vague and incomplete, so we are encouraged to watch. Duh!

  19. I love seeing Robert California finally not being in total control of a situation. Spader is such a terrific actor, but he needs more to work with than just being an omnipotent always in control guy…that gets boring.

  20. Does it drive anyone else completely nuts that Angela and Dwight have had NO contact whatsoever this season?? Or is it just me? How are Dwangela ever going to get back together? *sighs* I’m hopeful that it will happen but every episode I’m let down by the lack of interaction between the two of them.

  23. this was a great episode after last week’s misstep, and it was great seeing an episode that didn’t have Andy winning the favor of his employees.
    I think Jim running away was a little overplayed, but at least it paid off, so it’s forgivable!
    The Jim line about Pam was great, it felt legitimately sincere (:
    Dwight and the gym storyline was awesome, “I will make you the buffest man Val Kilmer has ever seen” HAHAHAH
    overall, my ranking is:
    Pam’s Replacement
    The Incentive
    Mrs. California
    Garden Party
    The List
    Doomsday
    Spooked
    Lotto
    Gettysburg

  24. the chemistry between Robert california and his wife was weird. She had a good line about how she had met his previous wife… and then this date thing with Andy. And what was the exchange between susan and robert california before they left? it didn’t work for me.
    my favourite episode so far: Spooked

  25. I actually liked this one pretty well. And with no Pam that’s really saying something. Loved the cold open. You know I have to do this? I know. :D And for once I was actually sympathetic to Andy’s plight. I mean Robert gave him no background. If he’d told him that he was going to act like he was pushing really hard for his wife but it wasn’t what he wanted then Andy I might have been able to do that. Seemed like he was doing well with it. So nice to feel for Andy again. And even without Pam we had a nice JAM moment.

  26. I honestly thought Gettsyburg was by far the worst episode in this show’s history, so glad to say they bounced back solidly. Probably one of the season’s better episodes, and more importantly, there’s still hope for this show.

  27. This is probably my favorite of the season.

    Garden Party a close second. Funny, good flow, some drama, and nice parts for the characters involved especially Jim’s moments.

  28. Loved the episode! The dwight and darryl scenes were hilarious. Jim had some great moments as well. I was a little bit sad that there was no dedication to patrice o’neal though, i mean he was one of the original warehouse guys!

  29. This was definitely the best episode this season. For once, the laughs kept on coming. Dwight was hilarious as usual and we got Creed moments. At first, Jim climbing up to the rooftop was kinda pushing it but to see Creed up there, it was well worth it. I don’t think Andy and Robert have a good chemistry but when you put Jim in between, the dialogue and the situation is much funnier and believable. I guess you also got your JAM moment when Jim said how he felt about working with Pam and you got a Jim prank on Dwight too. 9/10

  30. Really enjoyed this one; from start to finish it was probably my favorite episode this season. Robert California is such a weird guy and I really like him for it. Enjoyed Maura Tierney as Mrs. California…or should I say the ex-Mrs. California. It appears Robert dug himself a marital grave by trying a little to hard to show his wife he was on her side. The Office might be intimidated by Robert, but it was evident he was intimidated by her leverage at home.

  32. I liked this episode a lot! And is it just me, or does Kelly look really different this season? I barely recognized her!

  33. Another GREAT episode! This one had not only my favorite cold open of the season, but one of the best ever, it was classic. Jim in between Robert and Andy was that perfect awkwardness i love. More and more it’s clear that Dwight and Jim are certainly the shows MVP’s.

  34. One of my favorites this season. I love Maura Tierney in everything she does. Also loved Jim and how he spoke of Pam.

  35. I thought I was going to hate this episode, but it was actually one of the best so far this season.

  36. I thought this episode was really good. Loved Maura Tierney as Mrs. California. So glad to see her back on NBC (old ER fan here). I died laughing at Dwight’s comment about The Fonz. Only Dwight would hold up that late 70s and early 80s icon, The Fonz, as his yardstick of coolness.

  37. WOW, this episode had it all! I was laughing throughout the whole thing! I have this one up there with Pam’s Replacement for this season. Creed on the roof was priceless! Haha, and Val Kilmer!

    Rating: 9/10

  38. The idea of Jim running out of the office, abandoning his car and climbing the roof to escape being questioned by the boss sounds groan-inducing and eye-rollingly over the top. Instead, it was absolutely hilarious. And before I could finish thinking “how is there a camera man already up on the roof to film Jim?” we see Creed up there to explain it. Brilliant! This episode was great. The situation Andy found himself in led to a lot of wonderfully awkward moments, the cold open was classic Office and the cast did an excellent job per usual. I’m liking this season so far.

  39. It was great seeing more Creed in this episode. I wonder if Robert California’s son is the child of his current wife or his earlier wife?

  40. I thought this was quintessential Office. Ensemble comedy, some great Dwight stuff, a Jim prank, not one but TWO hilarious Creed moments, a touch of JAM, and the right amount of Andy and Robert. It might be my favorite of the season. 9.5/10.

  41. Some of the one-liners were a little weak, but the main plot was funny and fresh. The dynamic between Robert and Andy clicked really well. I couldn’t stop laughing from the moment Jim rolled out of harm’s way and then kept on running.

    Other highlights were Erin and the small stapler, Dwight’s medieval gym and Andy’s imitation of Oscar.

    Gettysburg was terrible, so thank God they bounced back this week.

  42. I didn’t have high hopes for the episodes without Pam, but this was really good. The cold open was great, Jim’s pranks are always hilarious. I also loved Dwight’s gym, I hope they show more of his ‘traditional’ exercises in the deleted scenes.

    I do hope we see Pam back soon though.

  44. Cold open was great, but was so irritated at how California kept flipping back and forth in his controlling, enigmatic confusion with Andy, Jim and Mrs. C. I know a lot of people like that about his character, but I know someone exactly like this.
    Loved Jim’s shoe falling off when he was climbing the ladder !

  45. I loved the cold open! It reminded me of when Jim pulled out the scissors to pop the exercise ball that Dwight was sitting on. “Prank!”

    Missed Pam, but was glad for the JAM moment and everything else Jim (and Creed) tonight.

    I’m still having a rough time with Robert California. I get it, but…

  46. I loved the episode. It’s so good to see Maura Tierney back on track, after what she’s been through due her illness. Still, I miss Pam. Of course she’s on maternity leave (again, after CeCe). I hope she’s in the show’s new Christmas episode next week.

  47. great cold open, the face of jim before the prank is genius, great episode, really funny and good flow

  52. There were some decent laughs. Not a bad episode. I think the plot was kinda interesting.

  54. I thought the opening was hilarious; one of the best. I thought Dwight was hilarious, as was the scene with Creed on the roof.

    HOWEVER, I don’t get Robert California. He’s weird and creepy. With each episode he seems less and less like a brilliant genius salesman and more and more like a weirdo. I also don’t like that Pam is out. I also didn’t get the ending.

  55. I thought this was one of the worst episodes ever. And didn’t Andy used to have a rage problem? I don’t, but I would acquire one if someone was jerking me around like that. I agree the cold open was funny, though.

  56. Loved Creed on the roof with his helicopter. Was a great shout out to Creed’s webisode series.

  57. Good to see more of the actual office building, including Vance Refrigeration and the roof. Is Mrs. California the future Mrs. Bernard?

  58. I really loved this episode! So funny!

    Jim running away was brilliant and his “Prank!”

    Andy was great! And for some reason Dwight’s original gym kinda appealed to me, since it’s not like every other gym haha

  59. This episode had me laughing out loud for the first time in a while. Dwight’s limited cultural references were hilarious. Val Kilmer indeed. HAHA

  60. This episode was one of my favorites from this season so far. I thought the cold open was really good, Dwight’s Gym for Muscles was awesome, plus there were less overly dumb Kevin lines, so that was good as well. I actually thought the A-story was pretty well done also. We finally got to see some hint of weakness in Robert California, which I think helps define his character a lot, and will help how I see him in future episodes too.

  61. HIGH-larious episode. Brilliant :) I was literally laughing all the way. Missed Pam though. BUT the scene where Jim talks about her totally made up for it.

  63. I just realised that Jim has now put an end to two marriages after stating how much he loves Pam. The other being Pam’s Mum and Dad.

  64. I’d like to see Robert California in more talking head scenes. The one I recall is in spooked: “what am I up to?” Robert and Susan? Their marriage is weird, seems doomed. creepy.

  65. In the cold open, Dwight’s metal Sabre water bottle crashes down onto Jim’s desk. Dwight says: “A little help.” He’s asking Jim to hand it back to him. “A Little Help” is, of course, the movie that Jenna Fischer made with her husband. In it, her character’s brother-in-law tells a story of how, when they were in high school, he would not unintentionally allow a tennis ball to be hit near where Jenna’s character was, and he would ask “A little help” in order for her to toss the ball back. He wanted her to notice him. I’m wondering if Dwight’s line in this episode is a kind of nod to Jenna, who does not appear. Just a thought, while I’m missing Pam…

  66. @ScrantonDan – “A Little Help” was the name of the movie? That’s awesome! The first line of the first episode that Jenna misses? That is definitely an homage to her!

    Superlative catch!

    [ from tanster: here’s the trailer for a little help ]

  67. I loved this episode as much the second time around as the first…one of my favorite episodes this season! :)

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