By now I assume you are all picturing Michael pounding his fists on her desk for emphasis while repeating her name over and over. As you might have guessed, this blog is going to be all about Angela. Oh, wait … no … Pam. Well … yeah, Pam. At Kari’s request, of course. She wants me to make my first official Office blog about an oft-discussed, at least between Kari and I, topic. And that is, that in our opinion anyway, Pam is, in fact, the heart and soul of The Office.
This isn’t about whether or not Pam’s our favorite character, although she may very well be. It’s more about the group dynamic and her place within that dynamic. Personally, I love all the characters, even though it IS true that Jim and Pam are my favorites. But everyone in the office has their own little niche to fill, and something is lacking when any one of them is gone. However, the absence of some characters is felt more acutely than others. And so it is with Pammy. Granted, she was gone a LONG time during this first part of season 5, at a time when most of us we’re clamoring for MORE cute little Jim and Pam moments, not less. (Like anyone would ever clamor for less Jim and Pam.) But still, Pammy being gone for even one episode is too long.
Oh sure, The Office may be centered around Michael, but it’s Pammy that is truly its heart. Never was this more clear than during her long leave of absence from the reception desk this past fall. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve enjoyed all the season 5 episodes so far. Granted, not ALL of them will make it to my top ten list of favorites, but I found them all to be entertaining, clever, and funny as hell. The addition of Holly to the group, letting us see Michael in a new light - happy, sweet, and less generally jackassy than usual - was wonderful. The utterly disturbing, yet funny, love triangle between Dwight, Angela and Andy provided many entertaining moments. The temp back as the temp? Priceless. And yet, something was missing. Or rather, someone. Pammy was off in New York, and frankly, nothing felt right because of it.
I can’t say that I wish they wouldn’t have sent Pam to New York to go to art school because I think it absolutely was the right thing to do. After all, it was sort of the culmination of the growth we’ve been seeing her over these past four and half seasons. It’s hard to imagine the timid and - dare I say?- mousy Pam of season 1 packing up her washer-woman grey cardigans and trekking off to Manhattan for three (or four, as it may be … gee, turns out I can count, after all) months all on her own. Hard to imagine because it never would have happened. Look how easily Season 2 Pam let Roy talk her out of her opportunity to pursue her dream of a career as an artist. She wasn’t ready then. But things change. And seeing Pammy willing to step outside her comfort zone to live her dream? Downright inspirational. Not to mention, necessary for her growth. And even her failure was probably necessary to close that chapter so that she can move on to the next chapter of her life without any regrets. (But more on that in another blog.)
And it wasn’t just Pam that this change was good for. Jim’s sweet, selfless attitude about the whole situation (not to mention that gas station mini-mart proposal) melted all our hearts. I don’t know that being separated from his beloved Pam was exactly good for JIM, but it did allow us to realize all over again just how amazingly wonderful Jim is. Sigh. And Pam’s leave from the office, and from Scranton, did give us some deeper insights into Jim and Pam’s relationship. Yeah, it was kind of confirmation of what we already knew … he’s “not that guy and [they’re] not that couple.” Still, it was good to see it play out that way. If they can pretty much skate through three or four months of being apart with little-to-no jealousy, petty bickering, or selfish demands all while managing to keep their bond strong and not grow apart … well, it seems pretty apparent that if they can get through that trial so easily, there’s not much out there that could pull them apart. And that is certainly good to know.
So Pam’s leave of absence wasn’t all bad. Not in the long run. Not from a character growth perspective, certainly. But that doesn’t mean that it wasn’t tough to take. Why? Because the office was without Pam. And it was just wrong. It wasn’t enough to just see glimpses of her, off in New York. We missed her behind the reception desk. We missed her goofing around with Jim. We missed her tempering effect on Michael’s insanities. It’s just not right when the camera pans over to reception and all that’s there is some washed up douche bag who still thinks he’s the crown prince of Dunder-Mifflin. Talk about adding insult to injury. I wanted to see Pammy’s sweet face and her warm smile lighting up the room. Personally, I didn’t need for her to be gone to realize that she is the heart and soul of that place, but it certainly did make it all the more obvious. To me, funny as the episodes were, they just felt a little flat, lacking in some of the color and vibrancy that Pammy’s sunsety aura normally brings to the place. Not to mention the caring and nurturing that she provides. Generally speaking, Pam is the first one to show concern when one of her fellow co-workers or her goofy boss is in a bad way. She tends to be the first one with a kind word or some sort of reassurance. Or she gives Jim that LOOK until he gets up and goes to join Dwight in the stairwell. But either way, her concern and caring are evident. Especially when it comes to Michael. She wouldn’t put up with all his nonsense if she wasn’t a warm, caring person with a heart of gold. Seriously. The comments, the leering, the schemes he tries to drag her into … and she just takes it all with a smile. Often a fond smile, even, oddly enough.
Not that I’m suggesting that Pam is the only one in the office who cares about anyone else. She’s not … she’s just the most consistent. And maybe the most observant. She seems to understand, perhaps unfortunately, what makes her co-workers tick. She doesn’t know all the gossip about their lives the way Kelly might, or have a running list of the sins they commit or inappropriate behavior that they regularly engage in as Angela might, but she knows them. After all, when Kelly was practically giving Jim the cold shoulder … it only took Pam about 10 seconds to figure that out, from 200 miles away. And who was it that understood a couple years ago how upset Toby was to be left out of the Dunder-Mifflin holiday gift and so, gave him her robe? See? And example of both being observant about her co-workers and doing something sweet and caring for them. She really is like the mother of the place. It’s a wonder they could get along without her at all. After all, SOMEONE really need to put the temp in his place … and once she got back, it didn’t Pam long at all. Again, I’m not saying that Pam is the only one in the place to give a damn , or even that they can’t function without her. They can. But it’s not as easy. And it just doesn’t feel right. There seems to be a feeling that at any moment … chaos! At least Jim was there to keep things in check most of the time. But it must have been rather scary on those days that Jim left early to go visit Pam in New York and Oscar was left to steer the ship on his own. Yikes. That’s why we need sweet Pammy behind at reception keeping things under control, and making sure that everyone is all right.
Now I’m certainly not suggesting Pammy’s some sort of saint. Would a saint conspire with Jim in a prank that broke Andy’s brain and then laugh hysterically about it? Probably not. But Pam would. That’s part of why we love her. For never failing to make us smile or laugh. And that’s the another thing that was missing … the fun and light-heartedness that Pam, and especially Jim and Pam, bring to the usually madness that goes on. Maybe Jim doesn’t exactly need a partner in crime, but it sure does help. It brings that fun and frivolity that is such a necessary counterpoint to Dwight’s intensity, Angela’s bitchiness, Andy’s zealousness , Michael’s wackiness and just the general insanity that seems to plague that office. The fun, the banter, the sheer normalcy that Jim and Pam bring to the place is pretty necessary to keep things feeling realistic. Yeah, they can both manage to do it on their own pretty well, but that’s a heavy burden for one person to carry. Besides, it’s better when they are being sane, and adorable, together. And it’s really hard to have cute little moments of Jim and Pam togetherness when they aren’t in the same state. And with Michael and Holly falling apart, Dwight and Angela sneaking around, and poor Andy on the verge of being broken hearted, we really need a little love around that place. Jim and Pam seem the natural choices to bring the love back. Of course, we needed to get Pammy back first.
But now she is back. And it’s all the more apparent what was lacking when she was gone. Yeah, the show was funny. Andy and Angela and Dwight were surprising. Creed and Meredith and Kelly and Darryl and even the temp, not mention all the others, were entertaining. The Michael and Holly moments were sweet. But somehow it was just missing that “aww” quality. And then suddenly, Pammy was back. Standing in the parking lot, golden light spilling across her smiling face … making all Jim’s dreams (and ours!) come true. And that ‘aww’ factor was suddenly there again. The ‘aww’ factor that is what give this show its’ heart. And it doesn’t matter if she’s locked in a battle over office furniture with Oscar (and Jim) forcing her suck up to Michael in a most hilarious fashion or standing in stunned silence when Jim proposes (or buys her a house) before breaking into a smile that could bring a smile to even Stanley’s face, just her very presence, be it sweet or sassy or caring or goofy, is enough to give a ridiculously funny show a little something more. A little something special that helps to make a funny show into the our favorite tv family. They better never take her away from us, and our favorite tv family, ever again. Seriously. Or else!
**Thanks to Kari for suggesting that topic and thanks to Nette of netteslayouts.com for the use of the image. (I hope you don't mind, Nette, as I don't know how to take the damn thing off even if I wanted to.)
