'The Office' Season 7, Episode 20 Recap

['The Office' - 'Michael's Last Dundies']

The nostalgia factor was high in Steve Carell's next-to-last episode, because seeing a reprise of The Dundies reminded me of what the show was like the first time we saw them, way back in the Season 2 opener almost six years ago.

It was after a first season that struggled to make headway with viewers and was constantly being compared to the UK version that spawned it. What 'The Dundies' showed was that, yes, the American version of 'The Office' could stand on its own, and that there was potential in what 'The Office' could offer over Ricky Gervais' original, namely a supporting cast that will become the backbone of the show.

That's what we saw tonight, with a twist that brought things full circle.

If you remember those early days, the people in Dunder Mifflin Scranton wanted no part of The Dundies. They just thought of it as another silly team building tool by their dope of a manager. Sure, by the end of the night, everyone was with Michael, but it sure took a lot to get them there.

Cut to six years later. Everyone's looking forward to the Dundies. They may not be looking forward to getting the nomination plaques at six in the morning -- except for Meredith, who was doing the walk of shame -- but the award show is something they now enjoy. Jim even wore a tuxedo this time around.



It's a symbol of the notion that there's a lot of affection for Michael in that office, no matter how silly or embarrassing he gets. They've all stuck with him over the years, and he's been more or less loyal to them. This isn't just "graduation goggles," which we learned about on 'How I Met Your Mother' last week; this affection is genuine.

And while it does seem like Michael trying to force the Dundies tradition on the new boss, it's disconcerting to the entire staff that DeAngelo hasn't been so receptive. This week, we find out a little more about DeAngelo, namely that he used to be 200 pounds heavier and that he's deathly afraid of speaking in public outside of meetings. These are clues that he might not be the easygoing boss he's projecting right now, but we're still not sure how his story will ultimately play out.

What we do know is that Will Ferrell and Steve Carell continue to display a heck of a lot of comic chemistry together, whether we're watching Michael sit on DeAngelo to get him to relax or seeing the two of them slap the hell out of each other in a men's room stall. If bringing Ferrell on was a way to have Carell go out with a bang, then Ferrell is doing his job.

The awards I liked the best:

-- Best Dad goes to Jim, who makes every award show speech cliche imaginable, including addressing CeCe as if she's watching on TV. One little problem, as Pam pointed out: "You think you could have mentioned me?"

-- Somehow Meredith gets Best Mother instead of Pam. Loved how Dwight took a picture of the two together. "You don't have to do that," said Pam.

-- Cutest Redhead goes to Erin, who uses the opportunity to publicly break up with Gabe. "I cringe when I see you," she says. We didn't get a huge reaction out of Andy, which I was surprised to see. Maybe someone else saw something I didn't.

-- The Diabetic Award goes to Stanley. I loved Phyllis' reaction: "I've got diabetes. You don't see me making a big deal about it."

-- Oh, and the now-standard awards intro movie parody was spot on. Michael's impression of Phyllis was pretty cruel (and out of date... I've fallen and I can't get up?), but his impression of Jim -- complete with earring, for some reason -- was pretty good, as was his take on Angela's gay senator boyfriend.

So, what did you folks think of the song? It's a take on '525,600 Minutes' from 'Rent,' with Michael-specific lyrics. I thought it was sweet and a great sign of the staff's affection for Michael. Was it goofy? Sure. But for some reason, it felt right to me.

More fun stuff:

-- Not sure why Erin thought that Pam is the expert on dumping guys. I liked Jim's reaction to Erin's complaints about Gabe: He's not even interested enough to care.

-- Dwight is still seething at being passed over. Wonder how that'll play into DeAngelo's departure (which we know is coming)?

-- Ryan always has to show he's cooler than the losers he works with. "Why do people compare things to crack when they haven't tried it?" Love that Pam pushed back: "I forgot, I'm a middle-class sellout."

-- Kevin brings his own crayons to a restaurant. Why am I not surprised?

Next week is Steve Carell's last episode. Get your tissues out, folks; this might be weepier than when Radar left 'M*A*S*H.'

'The Office' airs Thursdays at 9PM ET on NBC.

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Watch the full episode here: