The 25 Days of Christmas Episodes – Day 24 – The Office “Christmas Party”
Sure enough, Michael gives Ryan a video iPod. And then he gets his gift, a handmade oven mitt from Phyllis. Michael begins his long tradition of making Phyllis almost cry, as his disdain for the gift is almost palpable. So Michael turns Secret Santa into Yankee Swap. You can either take a gift that’s already been opened or open a new one. Naturally, everybody swaps for the iPod whenever possible, leading to hurt feelings all around. Jim in particular is desperate to make sure Pam ends up with that teapot.
After all the gifts are distributed and everybody is thoroughly demoralized, we get a worst case scenario for Jim. Pam ends up with the iPod, and Dwight gets the teapot. Which he intends to use for his sinuses. You can imagine how well Jim takes that. Meanwhile, Michael leaves the party to buy booze. Fifteen bottles of vodka, to be exact. (Meredith assures us that she’s decided to quit drinking, at least during the week. This does not last.)
As they make the best of a depressing party, Pam notices how much her gift means to Jim, so she trades the iPod to Dwight. (As Michael later tells him: “If it couldn’t go to Ryan, I’d want you to have it.”) It’s really a sweet ending, with the addition of a great bit where Kelly kisses Dwight, and Angela freaks out. At this point, their affair had only been referenced once, so it’s a nice reminder that these guys are planning ahead! Oh, and Meredith begins her streak of flashing people.
This is one of my favorite Christmas episodes, and even though it’s so uncomfortable that you may want to leave the room, it’s really, really funny all the way through. Kevin’s just so excited about that foot bath!
Best Line – Michael to Darryl: “You want to be Santa? Have you ever seen Santa?”
Christmas Tropes:
Santa Claus – Michael wears a Santa Claus hat for most of the episode.
Reindeer sweater – No actual reindeer, but Phyllis and Meredith wear holiday sweaters, and Michael has a Christmas tie. Plus Dwight wears an elf hat and ears.
Gifts – OK, between the episode and the deleted scenes, I’ve assembled a nearly complete list of gifts. If we go with all the times they changed hands, we’ll be here all night. Thus, I’ll limit it to who bought each gift and who was the intended recipient. Deep breath… Michael to Ryan: Video iPod. Jim to Pam: Teapot. Phyllis to Michael: Handmade oven mitt. Toby to Angela: Poster of babies playing saxophones. Oscar to Creed: Shamrock keychain. Kevin to himself: Foot bath. Kelly to Oscar: Shower radio (the same gift she got him last year). Creed to Jim: An old shirt from the back of his closet. Stanley to Kelly: A desk nameplate. Pam to Meredith: A drawing of Meredith’s desk. Ryan to Toby: Book of short stories.
We also know that Dwight gave somebody a bag of paintball pellets and two free lessons. We don’t know what Angela or Meredith gave, or what gifts were intended for Stanley, Phyllis, or Dwight. Thus, Dwight’s paintball lessons were meant for either Phyllis or Stanley, and either way, it’s pretty hilarious to imagine.
Trimming the tree – The episode opens with Michael and Dwight bringing in the Christmas tree, which is about three feet too high. Kevin lops off the top (with a paper cutter!), and ends up with, as Michael puts it “A mini-tree. Which we will sell to charity.” There is also some controversy as to whether the tree should have big lights or small lights, and let’s just say, there’s a reason that Angela is the head of the Party Planning Committee.
Learning a lesson – Yankee Swap is always, always a bad idea.
Cheer-o-meter Score: This one will break your heart more than once, but the ending really gets to me. And there’s always something really nice about seeing the Dunder Mifflinites unite and behave like adults whenever Michael goes over the edge. It’s a 9.
