"Classy Christmas" eleventh/twelfth episode of Season 7 and the 137th/138th episode overall. It was played in two separate "parts". It was written by Mindy Kaling and directed by Rainn Wilson. It originally aired on December 9, 2010. It was viewed by 7.18 million people.
Summary
Michael Scott finds out that Holly Flax will be replacing Toby Flenderson, and demands that Pam Beesly throw a new Christmas party to celebrate Holly's return. Michael wants the Christmas party to be "classy", and is resistant to doing any typical Christmas stuff that would be too childish or unsophisticated. He is under the impression that Holly will be single when she arrives, even though last time he saw her, she was dating A.J., her boyfriend from her last job.
Meanwhile, Darryl Philbin is worried that his daughter doesn't want to spend Christmas with him. He decides that he will try and convince her to spend Christmas with him by bringing her to the office Christmas party. He is dismayed when he finds out that Michael has decided to make the party "classy", thus making it no fun for kids.
Dwight Schrute challenges Jim to a snowball fight, which at first is all in good fun, but eventually gets intense. Jim is haunted constantly by the threat of getting hit with a snowball, and Dwight uses fear as his main weapon.
When Holly arrives, it turns out she is still dating her boyfriend, despite living far away from him. It is clear that she is somewhat disappointed that he hasn't proposed yet. Michael is so annoyed about her feelings for A.J. that he takes it upon himself to vandalize a Toy Story doll of Woody that A.J. gave her, which she keeps at her desk. When she discovers that he did it, he agrees to wash Woody, but he realizes her opinion of him is tainted by the incident.
Meanwhile, the employees of the office team up to give Darryl's daughter a fun scavenger hunt so she will be more interested in spending Christmas with her father. In the end she chooses to spend Christmas with Darryl.
Cultural references
- A comptroller is a management level position responsible for supervising the quality of accounting and financial reporting of an organization. Kevin, an accountant himself, doesn't know what a comptroller is.
- Michael's does a little scat singing when talking about how boring he finds jazz.
- Holly's doll is Woody from Toy Story.
- Nora Ephron was a writer best known for her romantic comedies When Harry Met Sally... and Sleepless In Seattle.
- The Grinch is a fictional character created by Dr. Seuss.
Connections to previous episodes
- Holly returns to replace Toby once more, just like she did in Goodbye, Toby.
- When Michael destroys her Woody doll, it makes Holly feel unwelcome at the branch again, much like in Goodbye, Toby.
Cast
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
- Ed Helms as Andy Bernard
Supporting Cast
- Leslie David Baker as Stanley Hudson
- Brian Baumgartner as Kevin Malone
- Creed Bratton (actor) 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
- Craig Robinson as Darryl Philbin
- Phyllis Smith as Phyllis Vance
- Zach Woods as Gabe Lewis
- Amy Ryan as Holly Flax
Recurring Cast
- Mark Proksch as Nate
Guest Cast
- Rob Huebel as A.J.
- Jack Coleman as State Senator Robert Lipton
- Taylar Holloman as Jada
- Jonathan Pintoff as Bassist
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