Frankie: How much direction did you give Rainn and Angela before their big scene? Or did they just go for it?
David: Rainn and Angela just went for it! The last take was my favorite as Angela justifiably dropped the ‘F’ bomb after being run off the road, and Dwight was SO LOUD with that bullhorn. We tried some different things with timing and dialogue, but they were on fire from take 1!
jkrasislove: How long has this beautiful ending to the Dwight and Angela story been planned?
threatlevelmiddwight: Did you guys initially rule out Dwight’s paternity at the beginning of the season because of The Farm? If The Farm had gone through, would Dwangela have been denied their happy ending?
David: A big if not the sole reason for initially ruling out Dwight as the father in the beginning of the season was because of the changes that would have taken place to allow for Dwight to leave for The Farm. We needed him untethered and leaving behind a son, and even a woman he loved, would not have made sense logically or been beneficial to who he is as a character. We always wanted them to end up together but I’m not sure when it was decided that it was time to make the big step. I think once The Farm was no longer going to be it’s own series then that cleared the way for Dwight and Angela to really reconcile and be together.
—– ANDY —–
OfficEial Fan: Were Andy’s scenes always planned or was this a later adjustment to bring him back?
David: Andy’s exit from Dunder Mifflin was never intended to be his exit from the series. The camera crew is still following him as a major character in the doc. What happened in this audition is pretty big in that he’s suffered a major blow to his dream of being a singer/performer since he just quit his job and he’s serious about this and he’s been told that he’s just not good enough. Coupled with him dropping to the floor and sobbing is pretty humiliating. What will be the repercussions to this in his life?
Michael Scarn: What was the change in mindset from the writers’ view in Andy’s characterization from Season 8 to Season 9? I don’t think there’s any denying that Andy’s character changed significantly between the two seasons, but I wanted to know if this was a conscious decision on the writers’ part or not.
David: Ed has a lot of depth so we wanted to explore that and give him fun things to do. Goofy Andy, Sensitive Andy, Romantic Andy, Angry Andy and Mean Andy are all sides of his persona. I loved in New Guys Andy’s return from outward bound and his incredible confidence. Love that he’s even a bit of a bully when he names Clark and Pete Dwight Jr. and Plop, and continually picks on Nellie.
Sam: Andy met a woman in line for his a cappella audition. Were they supposed to be a romantic connection so we know Andy will find happiness after Erin? Were there any scenes of Andy/line girl or Andy/Erin cut from the episode due to time?
Wow! Great Q&A! Thanks to David for taking the time to carefully answer so many questions, and thanks to Tanster for asking all of them!
I love that John wrote a special note to Jenna!! I am so going to miss Jim and Pam!!
John writing a special message in the card without Jenna knowing is a total Jim move….It’s like they really are a unit. I always thought they had a great chemistry together.
Okay, and I’m a mess now after reading about John writing the note to Jenna that made her react like that! Absolutely the best Q & A ever – can we get a special edition box set of all 9 seasons with Dave doing audio commentary for every episode?!
[ from tanster: i second that! ]
Thank you, David, for answering these questions! So cool to know that you were “the voice”.
John and Jenna are so freaking awesome. JAM has always reminded my husband and I of our relationship, he says I’m his Pam, but John and Jenna’s friendship is what makes their characters so…magical.
Wow! Wonderful Q&A — thank you!
He answered my question! Thanks for answering, and thanks tanster for organizing!
Give it up for Stanley the Manly! LDB is the man for sitting through all the talking heads.
The best Q&A ever! This was fascinating, fun to read and informative. I love how much care and thought and detail are put into these amazing episodes. I’m going to miss this show and all the talented people who work on it. Thank you David Rogers and Office Tally!
Wow, that was amazing! Thank you, Dave Rogers. Incredible insight into the episode and how sweet was it that JK wrote a special note to JF in the card.
Amazing Q&A. It really makes the episode that much better (and it was close to perfect to begin with).
Wow, only John and Jenna know what’s in the card, that’s amazing!! It makes the scene even more potent.
My unanswered question has always been… who is the father of Jan’s baby? It always seemed to me that she had some extra knowledge when she told people she went to the sperm bank. My theory is that Astrid is really Hunter’s, OR… Jan picked out Kevin from the sperm bank donor book.
The information about the card made me happy. It’s like the hug and the “Thank you” was not only between Jim and Pam, but a genuine moment between John Krasinski and Jenna Fischer, which just makes it awesome.
Thank you so much for this!
The one unanswered question I still have and don’t really expect to be resolved is whether Kevin is really the biological father of Astrid…
Wow that was an amazing Q and A, as someone has already
said, thanks to David for answering and Tanster for asking them.
Awesome Q&A. Love this stuff.
Jan got an anonymous donation from a donor bank. The only way to know if Kevin was the father would be to do a genetic test with him….but why would Jan ever do that?! It wouldn’t make any sense to reveal a father.
Great Q&A! I really enjoyed reading it :)
Thank you so much for the awesome insight, David! And thanks for the organization of this Q and A, Tanster! You’re both so great. And as always, even more obsessed with JAM after reading about this private card. Can they get any more perfect?!
Wow, just wow. I read this right after seeing the video “The Faces of Jim.” I miss them already!
Really great Q&A. This was awesome of David.
I’m still confused about the Beesly/Beesley thing. Didn’t Jim’s video say Beesley?
Wow. Great Q&A! Thanks so much for answering my question. I actually forgot that Dwight had used a dirty diaper for the DNA test. I’m also glad that the content of the card won’t be revealed…it’s much better that way.
What will we do now? Now that the Office is officially over? Will the characters watch themselves now?
the only unanswered question – why did Michael hate Toby so much? Greg Daniels mentioned he might do a backstory on that but never did…I would love to know!
I wonder if that means that LDB technically has the most screen time of any actor on the show. I hope that reflects in his syndication royalties! :)
Thank you David, it was a very informative and moving Q&A. Glad you contributed to the show.
@ash
Some things, like the card from Jim to Pam, are better left unexplained. And I’m glad they never addressed that.
The common guess for Toby is that, Toby being HR, he didn’t answer to Michael Scott, wasn’t compelled to take part in his charades and may have transmitted over the years reports and complaints to the headquarters, as he was supposed to do.
Anyway, Dwight did fire Toby in the finale, something Michael could never do. Either David Wallace changed the rules, or he approved first Dwight’s request for undisclosed reasons (Toby not reporting that Andy was missing?)
And it still made it more effective that Michael’s hatred for Toby is so irrational. If there had been a concrete reason for it, we would have linked Michael’s behavior with the original incident. Without explanation, it was even more childish and effective.
Great Q&A, thanks for this!
Question though: from which episode is the deleted scene Tyson refers to in his question – with Jim talking about his best first date with Pam?
Amazing! Thank you!
I thought the misspellings of Pam’s last name were addressed in a commentary from one of the Niagara episodes. They said that at the rehearsal dinner, on the sign outside of the door, beesley was spelled wrong on purpose.listen to commentary though
Did erin end up with plop?