Frame Toby

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"Frame Toby" is the ninth episode of the fifth season of The Office and the 81st episode overall. It was written by Mindy Kaling and directed by Jason Reitman. It first aired November 20, 2008. It was viewed by 8.40 million people.

Synopsis

Michael is upset when he learns that Toby is back as their HR representative. He tries to get CFO David Wallace to get rid of Toby, but David Wallace is annoyed with Michael and wonders why the office manager didn't notice Toby's return for an entire week. Michael says he has been unaware of Toby's return as he hasn't gone back to the annex since Holly was transferred. David says that he will just have to accept the fact that Toby is back and that he can only be fired for cause (and Michael saying "it's be-cause I hate him" does not qualify).

Michael tries to pretend to be friends with Toby, but he finds himself unable to do so. He then schemes with Dwight to frame Toby. First he tries to set up Toby up for sexual harassment via Pam, but Pam defuses Michael's scheme. He then knocks some pictures out of Toby's hand and taunts Toby to hit him, but Toby says he won't hit Michael. Michael decides that "the ends justify the mean" and buys marijuana for $500 from a couple of workers from Vance Refrigeration and hides it in Toby's desk. Dwight then tips the police about possible narcotics in the office. Two policemen arrive and Dwight takes them to Toby's desk. Toby panics and Michael seems to regret his actions as he tries to call them off. The police search Toby's desk and find a bag of Caprese salad in one of the drawers, which the Vance Refrigeration guys had clearly sold to Michael on purpose, knowing he would not know the difference. The policemen leave and Toby berates Michael for calling the cops on him, specifically wasting their time when they could be out catching real criminals. Michael is disgusted that Toby is more worried about the cops' time than about possibly being framed, and remains as hateful towards Toby as ever. Creed clearly shows concern when the cops arrive, stepping forward with hands upraised when they head towards Toby's desk, and then telling the camera crew to pretend they are talking until the cops leave.

Pam gets frustrated when she finds a big mess in the microwave. She writes an anonymous memo on the microwave telling everyone to keep it clean, which nobody seems to care about, save for Angela, who agrees with the message, and Ryan, who tries to manipulate Pam into cleaning the microwave before being reminded that doing so is a temp's job, which he still refuses to do. Meredith all but admits to leaving the mess when she starts talking about how she doesn't have time to clean up after herself because she doesn't get paid to be a maid between her job at the office, tending to her children and being a part-time maid. Ryan tells Kelly that they have to break up again because he is allegedly going on a trip to Thailand with friends from high school (or, more accurately, friends from a high school). He asks her to have sex with him one last time and for any extra cash she may have, to which she hesitantly agrees.

It is revealed to the entire office that Jim bought his parents' house without asking Pam, mentioning to the camera crew that he is helping out his mother and getting a good deal. Jim begins to think keeping it a secret from Pam might have been a bad idea. Nevertheless, he takes her after work to show her. He gives her a tour of the imperfect house before showing her the garage, which he turned into an art studio for her. After noticing a seemingly disappointed look on Pam's face, Jim tells her he acknowledges that the house is not perfect and that he took a big risk buying it without telling her. He lets her know that it is okay if she does not like it, but Pam excitedly tells him that she loves the house.

Cast

Main Cast

Supporting Cast

Recurring Cast

Andy Buckley as David Wallace (Voice Only)

Guest Cast

Lee Eisenberg as Gino
Gene Stupnitsky as Leo
Patrick Faucette as Policeman
Michael Harrity as Policeman

Trivia

When Ryan presents his "cup of soup" to Pam, note that the "Maruchan" branding has been blotted out using what seems to be a liquid paper tool. This was done likely to avoid product placement and/or copyright issues with the Maruchan company.