The Lover

"The Lover" is the seventh episode of Season 6 and the 107th overall. It was written by Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky, who most recently had written the episodes New Boss and The Surplus. It was directed by Lee Eisenberg, who marked his directorial debut. It originally aired on October 22, 2009. It was viewed by 8.52 million people.

Cold open
Pam and Jim come back from their honeymoon in Puerto Rico. Everyone is happy that they are back, and Pam and Jim share that they loved their trip. Michael uses Blind Guy McSqueezy, a character of his who is blind, to welcome them back. Meredith asks Pam what she got for them and Pam says candy. Meredith asks, "What else?" and sarcastically says, "Oh cause you spent so much on the wedding," after learning that they did not bring back anything else. As Michael continues his Blind Guy McSqueezy routine, Pam looks to the camera and says its good to be home.

Synopsis
Dwight tries to get information on Jim by putting a wooden mallard in his office, which contains a listening device.

Pam tells Erin to put the candy she brought on the reception desk, but Erin tells Pam that she is going to ask Michael for permission first. Michael then reveals to Jim that he is dating Helene, Pam's mother. Jim is shocked and outraged that Michael is dating Helene and begs Michael not to tell Pam. However, Michael inadvertently reveals to Pam that he is, in fact, dating her mother. She runs to the parking lot screaming and calls her mom to tell her she is crazy for dating Michael.

Meanwhile, Jim discovers the listening device and makes Dwight nervous by playing classical music while pretending to be talking about Dwight to Andy. When Dwight asks what they were discussing Andy merely laughs that it would only make Dwight mad.

Jim and Michael call a conference room meeting to ask for suggestions to improve community relations while Pam scoffs and belittles Michael after every word he says. Halfway through the meeting, Michael walks out to receive a call from Helene crying and then reenters the conference room to tell Pam to apologize to her mother, who then claims Michael owes her an apology instead to the bewilderment of the other office members. Michael then asks if he should apologize for finding comfort in a lover prompting Pam to shout at Michael to stop calling her mother his lover, filling in the rest of the branch on the situation. The Scranton branch berates Michael for doing so, until Michael invokes their sympathy by asking if he does not deserve to be happy. The Office members then tell Michael they won't judge and wish Michael happiness to Pam's outrage. Michael tells Pam to stop berating him and to leave the room which she refuses to. Michael tells Pam with a solemn look that she better be willing to die in this office like he is, only for her to defiantly says she is.

Pam then has awkward encounters with Oscar when she says Michael could have sex with his mother, who she learns is in a wheelchair. Meanwhile, Angela cheerily asks Pam how her day is going and takes delight in her awkward encounter with Oscar.

In the meantime Jim, gives the mallard to Kelly and Ryan and Dwight buys the mallard back from them.

Michael tries to be nice to Toby, so that he will try to calm Pam down, however Michael then calls him a jackass immediately after he is unable to. Michael then offers to Pam to stop dating her mother if she will forgive him which she accepts. Michael then refuses saying he thought Pam would have turned him down and asked him to be happy, prompting Pam to shout that she doesn't care about his happiness at the moment. Michael then tells Pam that he's going to "start dating her even harder" telling Pam she knows what he means. Afterwards Jim sees the mallard back on his desk and reveals to Dwight that he knows it is bugged. As punishment, Dwight agrees to wash and buff his car as punishment.

Michael leaves while Jim tries to calm Pam down by showing that Dwight is washing their car, telling her Dwight is doing so to cheer her up and they reminisce about their honeymoon, including a couple they met named Frank and Benny ("Frank and Beans") and an old couple who had kids also named Jim and Pam. Relenting, Pam wonders if she is indeed overreacting, but then insists that she is not, which Jim agrees with.

After everyone has left for the day, Dwight tells the documentary crew that he used the mallard as a diversion. His real listening device was a pen he dropped into Jim's pen holder that recorded Jim's entire workday. As he is listening to Jim's customer calls, Dwight proudly tells the camera that he got eight hours of this.

Cultural references

 * Coco Leche is a candy deriving from hardened coconut milk.
 * The opera song that Jim plays in his office is "M'appari".
 * A cancer cluster is an area that has a population with an abnormally large amount of cancers.
 * The conference room scene was part of iParticipate.
 * "Frank and Beans" is a reference to the movie There's Something About Mary.

Amusing details

 * In Jim and Pam's joint talking head, Jim fidgets with his wedding ring. He's still getting used to wearing it.
 * Michael mentions that Blind Guy McSqueezy is not liked by the women in his improv class. Michael's improv class was introduced in the episode, "Email Surveillance." However this is unique due to the fact that it's implied Michael stopped going to his improv class in "The Job."
 * Dwight repeatedly corrects anyone who calls the mallard a "duck" (a mallard is a kind of duck).
 * Before Michael tells Jim that he's dating Pam's mother, he leans forward as if he's about to tell a secret, and he motions for Jim to lean forward. Once Jim leans forward, Michael leans back. Power move.
 * Jim yells at Toby after learning that Michael is dating Pam's mum, Michael similarly yells at a confused Toby to leave them alone thinking that Jim's distress is caused by Toby.
 * Michael looks at Jim triumphantly when Pam says she believes Michael deserves happiness. Jim then looks down in defeat, realizing Michael will tell Pam he is dating her mother.
 * Creed cries when the opera is playing. Later, when Michael says that Dunder Mifflin wasn't involved with the Peruvian cancer cluster, Creed shrugs.
 * Stanley does his crossword until learning that there is a potential reward for offering ideas in the meeting. He pays attention to the rest of the meeting until Pam welcomes everyone to her "personal hell". He then looks up after Michael says that he is sensual.
 * Dwight reveals that he volunteers at animal shelters, only to reveal that he was euthanizing the animals at the shelter.
 * Kevin excitedly exclaims "that's what I'm taking about man!" when it is revealed that Michael is sleeping with Pam's mother and offers him a fist bump.
 * Angela is visibly elated at Pam's distress.
 * Even Creed agrees that dating mothers is despicable.
 * When Pam starts to shout, "No more meetings!", Stanley can be seen grinning and joining in.
 * Ryan is heard protesting "Whoa! that's my mum you're talking about!" when Pam sarcastically tells Michael to date everyone's mothers.
 * Both Pam and Michael tell Oscar to shut up when he does not agree with their point of view.

Trivia

 * The Scranton branch react differently to Jim playing classical music in his prank on Dwight.
 * Oscar, Phyllis and Meredith turn around but remain unconcerned
 * Angela rolls her eyes
 * Creed tears up
 * Stanley is amused
 * Kevin is bewildered
 * Bottecelli's isn't a real restaurant in Scranton.
 * Michael's parrot holding rum is named "Oscuro Rum." Oscuro Rum translates to dark or obscure rum.

Connections to previous episodes

 * In "Chair Model" Jim tells Pam he is putting her mother's phone number on the index card for Michael.
 * Dwight reveals that he volunteers at animal shelters, only to reveal that he was euthanizing the animals at the shelter. He previously expressed his belief that pets that are suffering should be euthanized in "Fun Run".

Goofs

 * Pam wears her coat while she is screaming in the parking lot even though she ran out of the office immediately after finding out about Michael's relationship with her mother. In a later scene, Jim brings Pam her coat after she calls her mother.
 * Segway riding is not recommended or suitable for pregnant women, however, Jim and Pam fondly remember their Segway tour. No tour operator would allow her on their tour had they known she was pregnant, especially not in a place like Puerto Rico.
 * Dwight says, "I really would have appreciated a heads-up that you were into dating mothers, I'd have introduced you to mine." From this phrasing it is unclear whether his mother is still alive. In "Fun Run," two seasons earlier, Dwight suggests to Angela that she should bury Sprinkles "in the east field, with mother," implying she is dead.
 * While Michael is talking to Toby, the monitor changes from Microsoft Word to the Dunder Mifflin desktop between two set-ups.

Deleted scenes

 * Erin tells everyone that there is Coco Leche on her desk. No one cares about her. Pam, from experience, tells her not to make announcements and that Kevin will eat them.
 * Kevin comes to the reception desk, and takes much of the Coco Leche. Erin announces that it is going fast.
 * Michael sweet talks Helene who left her socks at Michael's condo. Michael sexually calls her "bad."
 * Pam yells even louder and then throws up.
 * Pam is pissed and explains that Michael Stupid Scott is dating her mother. She says that she has to be the adult however, because "Michael is incapable."
 * Michael calls Pam a bully.
 * Michael complains to Jim about Pam and tells him to talk to her. Jim begins complimenting Michael, who in turn insults himself, so that neither one will have to talk to her.

Behind the scenes

 * This episode's credited director is Lee Eisenberg, but in reality it was co-directed by Gene Stupnitsky and Lee Eisenberg. However, the rules of the did not permit co-directing credits, so the two took turns taking credit on the episodes they co-directed.

Main cast

 * Steve Carell as Michael Scott
 * Rainn Wilson as Dwight Schrute
 * John Krasinski as Jim Halpert
 * Jenna Fischer as Pam Halpert
 * B.J. Novak as Ryan Howard

Supporting cast

 * Ed Helms as Andy Bernard
 * Leslie David Baker as Stanley Hudson
 * Brian Baumgartner as Kevin Malone
 * Creed Bratton as Creed Bratton
 * Kate Flannery as Meredith Palmer
 * Mindy Kaling as Kelly Kapoor
 * Ellie Kemper as Erin Hannon
 * Angela Kinsey as Angela Martin
 * Paul Lieberstein as Toby Flenderson
 * Oscar Nunez as Oscar Martinez
 * Phyllis Smith as Phyllis Vance