I don’t really know when the “dinner party murder mystery” game was popular. My entire life I’ve only just seen them wedged on to shelves with more well-traveled board games, or lumped in with a bunch of baby clothes and appliances at a yard sale. I imagine that when someone buys a dinner party game, they have these grand fantasies of everyone getting together, taking the mystery very seriously, and the evening turning into a night no one could ever forget. Regardless of whether or not that happens, The Office definitely backs up my theory about how these bizarre games work.
“Murder” opens with a very entertaining, if sort of forced, scene where Dwight is teaching everyone the updated moves in Karate. It’s a funny premise that makes sense, but is Dwight really that stupid to attack himself because Jim tricks him? It doesn’t matter, groin punches will continue to be a practical means for any comedy to cut to a commercial break. Well played.
The main plot this episode involves the ripped-from-the-headlines threat of Dunder Mifflin going bankrupt. Not that any newspaper actually reported that the fake paper company from The Office was going broke, but it only makes sense from a story arc perspective that the show would hit on our current economic woes. So the Scranton branch gets an e-mail from David Wallace warning them that a Wall Street Journal article saying the company was going broke was conjecture. Everyone goes into a frenzy as the idea of suddenly losing their jobs sinks in. Initially Jim and Michael try to calm everyone down, to just keep everyone working until official word comes in from corporate. No dice.
It’s only when faced with brutal, depressing reality, that Michael Scott truly rises to become a good boss. It never feels that way at first, of course, but in retrospect he usually comes off as a managerial savant. This time around, Michael turns to Belles, Bourbon, and Bullets, a murder mystery dinner party game set in the deep South. Jim is resistant at first, but like anything else, the Dunder Mifflin crew embraces the idea 110%. Everyone gets their stereotyped, pun-named character cards and launches into solving the murder.
This, for the record, was a great episode. I’m really enjoying The Office’s penchant for slightly dated references, even if most of said references are to three-year old YouTube videos; however, taking all of these supremely defined characters and letting them play one of these awful dinner party games is comedy gold. From that point on, the episode practically wrote itself. I loved everyone’s take on their character (especially Kevin), and the awful Louisiana accents. Also, true to form, Creed shows up for his incredible one-liner and exits. This time, he comes in just as Michael informs him that there’s been a murder, and he high-tails it out of there (implying that Creed’s committed a murder?).
In the background of this game of “deadly fun,” Andy continues to court Erin. He tells us that he was expecting Erin to have asked him out by now, but since she hasn’t he’s going to have to take matters into his own hands. Unfortunately, he decides to ask her on a date whilst in character, and she replies in character… so he’s not sure if he asked out Erin or Deb, her dinner party role (after all, she might be the murderer). Later in the episode, he tries to broach the subject with her, but they confuse the issue by switching in and out of character. It was really kinda heartbreaking, especially since Erin confesses she was actually hoping he wanted a date. Her character is adorable, and so unlike anyone else in the office. Even though this is a similar Jim/Pam situation, it is still managing to feel fresh. I hope those two make it!
“Murder” was the first episode in which we learn of any financial troubles within the company, and it already feels like a very strong storyline that could carry the rest of the season. Wallace confides in Jim that the company is going to be completely broke by the end of the year. The employees in the Scranton branch are going to have to face reality eventually, but I’m glad they didn’t this episode. Especially for that incredible Mexican standoff between three double agents who happened to be at the Southern murder dinner party. I do declare!
Oh, and if you are interested in seeing the other dinner party themes made by Mondo Games, check out their excellent website.
Fri, Nov 13, 2009
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