The Duel (The Office)
"The Duel" | |
---|---|
The Office episode | |
Episode no. | Season 5 Episode 12 |
Directed by | Dean Holland |
Written by | Jennifer Celotta |
Cinematography by | Randall Einhorn |
Editing by | Dean Holland |
Production code | 511[1] |
Original air date | January 15, 2009 |
Guest appearance | |
"The Duel" is the twelfth episode of the
The episode was written by
"The Duel" was seen as a defining episode for Andy Bernard, who is portrayed in a more sympathetic way than he has been seen in previous episodes. Ed Helms was particularly praised for his performance. Several bits of dialogue were improvised, especially during the duel scene between Andy and Dwight. That scene was shot over the course of six hours in an exterior parking lot set, with Helms and Wilson providing their own stunts.
The episode received generally positive reviews, and was largely described as an effective conclusion to the love triangle subplot. According to
Plot
Andy confronts Dwight and challenges him to a "duel" in the parking lot, with Angela as a prize to the winner. Dwight accepts and Angela, anxious to avoid making a choice between the two men herself, says she will honor the results of the duel. Jim, acting as office manager in Michael's absence, tries to talk them out of the duel and confiscates Dwight's hidden weapons around the office, but concedes he does not have the power to prevent a fight outside the office. In New York, Michael is nervous about why David Wallace wants to meet with him. But as the meeting begins, David tells him Scranton is the most successful Dunder Mifflin branch amid a difficult economic climate, and he wants to learn why Michael's management has been so successful. Michael is delighted with the compliment and attention, but can only manage vague, off-topic and largely nonsensical answers. David claims it is difficult for someone to make a self-evaluation, and Michael leaves the meeting in a very pleasant mood.
In the parking lot, Andy has not shown up for the duel, instead leaving a deliberately verbose note hanging in the bushes saying he has given up. As Dwight reads it, Andy sneaks up behind him in his Toyota Prius, a hybrid car that remains completely silent when driven below five miles per hour due to the electric motor. Impressed by Andy's deviousness, the rest of the office does not warn Dwight, saying that Andy "deserves the win". Andy pins Dwight between the car and the large bushes in the parking lot. Dwight, having no weapons, whips the car with his belt. Jim races out to check that Dwight is not seriously injured, but they snap at him to go away. The two bicker back and forth about Angela, leading to Andy revealing that he has had sex with Angela, despite previous assumptions that only Dwight had done so. Realizing that Angela played them both, Dwight and Andy both admit defeat and return to the office, where Andy calls to cancel his wedding cake, and Dwight throws away a bobblehead doll Angela previously bought him as a gift. A saddened Angela realizes she has lost both men.
Production
Writing
"The Duel" was written by
The subplot with David Wallace seeking managerial advice from Michael due to the poor financial condition of Dunder Mifflin was the first acknowledgment of the economic crisis facing much of the globalized nation at the time of the episode due to the
A number of scenes and lines in "The Duel" were improvised by the actors. During one scene, Michael repeatedly tries to tell Andy about Angela's affair, but Jim constantly interrupts him while forcing him into his office. John Krasinski improvised most of his lines and noises, and Wilson said they were so funny, "I was just chortling over at my desk."[4] The scene as it appears in the episode consists of about six different takes spliced together.[3] Krasinski also conceived a moment in "The Duel" when Jim returns to his desk by awkwardly passing through Dwight and Andy while they are facing off against each other. Wilson called the addition to the scene "a really nice touch".[4] During another scene, Dwight sings a nursery rhyme that goes, "Learn your rules, you better learn your rules, if you don't, you'll be eaten in your sleep!" Celotta and Wilson came up with several versions of the song, but the one that appeared in the final episode was conceived by Wilson.[3]
A line in which Dwight tells Andy that Angela "certainly seems to enjoy making lovemaking" was improvised by Wilson.[4] Much of the dialogue between Andy and Dwight during the duel scene was also improvised. It was writer Paul Lieberstein, who served as show runner along with Celotta at the time, who suggested the idea of Andy sneaking up on Dwight with his Toyota Prius.[8] The original script called for the entire office cast to come down to the parking lot from the Dunder Mifflin office to try to stop Dwight and Andy from fighting. However, the staging proved awkward during filming, so John Krasinski suggested that only Jim go down to the parking lot while the others stayed behind, and the change was eventually incorporated into the episode.[4]
Filming
"The Duel" marked the directorial debut of Dean Holland, a longtime film editor with The Office. The original cut of the episode was 38 minutes long and Holland, who edited it himself, had to trim it down to 22 minutes.
The original script called for Michael to tell Andy about Angela's affair outside in the parking lot before getting into his car and driving away. When filming began, Holland considered filming the scene inside the car instead. Steve Carell suggested Michael get in the car and leave Andy outside, then tell him while driving away, which was how the scene was ultimately shot.[3] During a scene when Andy returns to the office and confronts his co-workers; there is a long, awkward silence, and the script originally called for Kevin to pass gas and ruin the tension. During filming, it was changed so Phyllis would pass gas instead because it was decided it would be funnier if it were a woman. During the editing process, Holland decided the joke did not work very well and cut it, but a brief moment of Dwight reacting in a disgusted way to the flatulence, while maintaining a defensive fighting pose toward Andy, can still be seen in the finished episode.[8]
The duel scene itself was shot over the course of six hours in the exterior parking lot setting. Natural lighting from the sun changed so drastically over that time, large bounce cards had to be placed above the hedges so the shadows would remain consistent throughout the shoot.[9] Ed Helms actually drove the car during the scenes, and Rainn Wilson performed his own stunts. The crew considered using a stunt double for Wilson, but they found his acting so funny during filming that they decided against it. At the end of "The Duel", Michael Scott talks directly to the camera with a New York City background behind him. The scenes were not filmed in the city, but rather behind a greenscreen where the scenery images were later added.[3]
Cultural references
During the cold open, after Michael believes he has run extremely fast, he says, "Eat that, Carl Lewis", a reference to the American track and field athlete and gold medalist.[10]
Reception
In its original American broadcast on January 15, 2009, "The Duel" was watched by 8.35 million viewers. It aired the same night as actor
It's fun to see an episode of The Office that is more plot-driven, as opposed to the norm of being based on observational humor. The Andy/Dwight/Angela triangle has proven to be a lot of fun. They are the anti-Jim and Pam, and in this episode it all really pays off well.
"The Duel" received generally positive reviews. Andy calling off the wedding after learning Angela cheated on him with Dwight ranked number 6 in phillyBurbs.com's top ten moments from the fifth season of The Office.[13] "The Duel" was voted the fourteenth highest-rated episode out of 26 from the fifth season, according to an episode poll at the fansite OfficeTally, where the episode was rated 8.11 out of 10.[14] Alan Sepinwall of The Star-Ledger said the episode "brings the Dwight/Angela/Andy triangle to an effective close" that made him feel sympathy for both Dwight and Andy. He was disappointed, however, that the idea of David Wallace trying to learn from Michael seemed undeveloped.[2] The A.V. Club writer Scott Tobias said "The Duel" efficiently resolved a major storyline in 30 minutes, and was "a nice mix of the wacky and the melancholy, though it's perhaps a little long on the former and a little short on the latter". He called the David Wallace subplot "funny-but-forgettable".[15] Travis Fickett of IGN said the episode was surprisingly intense and dramatic, and particularly highlighted the talents of Ed Helms. Fickett said "The Duel" was a great payoff to the Angela love triangle storyline and demonstrated how well The Office varies and paces stories from episode to episode.[12]
References
- ^ Wilson, Rainn (December 13, 2012). "Remember all of these? #FinalSeason". Facebook.com. Retrieved December 13, 2012.
- ^ a b Sepinwall, Alan (January 16, 2009). "The Office, "Duel" & 30 Rock, "Flu Shot": Silent but deadly". The Star-Ledger. Retrieved March 16, 2010.
- ^ Universal Studios Home Entertainment.
- ^ Universal Studios Home Entertainment.
- ^ a b Leitch, Will (March 16, 2009). "The Office Returns Dirtier, Crazier, and Meaner". New York. Archived from the original on January 28, 2011. Retrieved March 16, 2010.
- ^ a b Abbas, Shahzad (January 16, 2009). "The Office Episode Recap: "The Duel"". TV Guide. Archived from the original on June 5, 2009. Retrieved March 16, 2010.
- ^ Leitch, Will (December 11, 2009). "The Office Recap: So This Is Christmas". New York. Archived from the original on February 10, 2010. Retrieved March 16, 2010.
- ^ Universal Studios Home Entertainment.
- Universal Studios Home Entertainment.
- ^ Ingebritson, Rick (January 16, 2009). "Dwight and Andy duel...Sort of". The Palm Beach Post. Archived from the original on July 24, 2011. Retrieved March 17, 2010.
- ^ Gorman, Bill (January 16, 2009). "Updated Thursday Ratings: CSIs Petersen Farewell Draws 23 Million". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on April 18, 2009. Retrieved March 17, 2010.
- ^ a b Fickett, Travis (January 16, 2009). "The Office: "The Duel" Review". IGN. Retrieved March 16, 2010.
- ^ Wielgus, Jen (May 14, 2009). ""The Office": Top 10 moments from Season 5". phillyBurbs.com. Retrieved May 16, 2009.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Tan, Jennie (May 19, 2009). "The Office Fan Ratings, Season 5". OfficeTally. Retrieved May 21, 2009.
- ^ Tobias, Scott (January 15, 2009). "The Office: "Duel"". The A.V. Club. Retrieved March 16, 2010.
- ^ Wheat, Alynda (January 16, 2009). "'The Office' Recap: Lonely Girl". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved March 16, 2010.
- ^ Howard, Brian (January 16, 2010). "The Office recap: The Duel (Nothing fancy, just a great episode. I said nothing fancy!)". The Journal News. Archived from the original on February 12, 2009. Retrieved March 16, 2010.
- ^ Black, Jay (January 15, 2009). "The Office: The Duel". TV Squad. Retrieved March 16, 2010.
External links
- "The Duel" at NBC.com
- "The Duel" at IMDb