Stress Relief

"Stress Relief", a two-parter, is the fourteenth and fifteenth episodes of the fifth season of the television series The Office, and the show's 86th and 87th episodes overall. It was written by Paul Lieberstein and directed by Jeffery Blitz. The episode aired in the U.S. on February 1, 2009, after the Super Bowl. It was viewed by 22.91 million viewers.

Cold open[]

Dwight tries to teach fire safety by example, forcing all the doors closed and disabling the phones before setting a fire in an office trash can with a cigarette. He quips, "Today, smoking is gonna save lives." He returns to his desk and tries to draw attention to the fire, asking "Does anyone smell anything smoky?" People remain oblivious but he clears his throat and Pam notices the smoke. During the subsequent panic, Jim and Andy use the copy machine as a battering ram, Michael smashes a window to call for help, Angela throws her cat into the ceiling, Kevin raids the snack machine, and Stanley suffers a heart attack. Dwight announces that the whole thing was a drill, oblivious to Stanley's distress until he falls unconscious. Michael, having been advised by Jim not to give CPR to Stanley, instead shoves a wallet in his mouth.

Synopsis[]

As Dwight's actions could have burned down the building or killed Stanley, Michael and Dwight are called on the carpet in New York, Michael to be reminded of his responsibilities to his subordinates and Dwight to be reprimanded. On the drive back home, Michael revokes Dwight's status as safety advisor. Back in Scranton, because he hadn't had any idea how to give first aid to Stanley, Michael has the American Red Cross send over an instructor (and most importantly a dummy) to teach CPR. The staff are distracted by the dummy's lack of limbs and singing The Bee Gees' song "Stayin' Alive" (despite none of them knowing the lyrics), and the lesson proves fruitless. Dwight mutilates the dummy to "harvest the organs" and wear its face as a mask. CFO David Wallace and Corporate HR Kendall, upset that Dwight's mutilating the dummy cost the company $3,500, require Dwight to apologize to his co-workers and get their acknowledgement of his apology in writing. Michael signs the apology without much thought, but the rest of Dwight's coworkers refuse after he openly declares that his apology is insincere and denies that he is responsible for Stanley's heart attack.

Michael tries a number of ways to get his employees to unwind, like soft music and meditation, before discovering that he is the number one cause of stress at work when the beeping of Stanley's stress reader quickens the closer Michael gets to him. The same occurs when Oscar holds the stress reader. So that people won't feel afraid of him, he insists on a no-holds-barred roast of himself. Dwight tricks everyone except Phyllis into signing the apology letter by pretending that it is an attendance sheet. Dwight finally gets Phyllis's signature by having a fake delivery sent to her. The employees express misgivings about roasting Michael but end up having a great time, gleefully releasing their grievances with Michael through jokes, song, and unbridled rants. Michael initially enjoys the jokes, but grows increasingly hurt and offended, especially after Dwight tells him "You don't have any friends, or any family", and storms out of the warehouse. After taking a "personnel Day," he recovers and conducts a mini-roast of his employees - initially making them somewhat uncomfortable, before Stanley bursts into laughter about his joke and the rest of the office jumps in.

While all of this has been going on, Andy is convinced that Jim and Pam are film gurus because they are talking about Pam's parents as the three watch a pirated movie. Andy assumes they're talking about the movie, but since their comments do not align with its events, he thinks they're noticing subtleties that he is missing. The movie, Mrs. Albert Hannaday, stars Jack Black, Cloris Leachman, and Jessica Alba in a love triangle with a "May - late-December" relationship. Pam's father stays with Pam and Jim for several days. Pam asks Jim to talk to her father and see if he will tell Jim what is wrong with his relationship with Pam's mother. After the two men talk her father tells her mother he is going to get his own apartment. Pam blames Jim and does not believe him when he says he has no idea what he could have said to make Pam's father leave her mother. Later Pam confronts her father for an explanation. He tells her that Jim told him that he never doubted Pam was the right one for him, and he realized that he never felt that way about her mother, even at the high points of their relationship. Pam comes to terms with the separation and tearfully embraces Jim. In an interview, Pam says that children assume their parents are soulmates, but Pam and Jim's children “will be right about that.” She also says that love affairs look different from the outside, which is overhead by a frustrated Andy, who believes she is talking about the film they watched and decides he is not fit to be a movie critic.

Deleted scenes[]

These were notable cuts from this episode as seen on the Season 5 DVD:

Michael congratulates Darryl, Stanley, and maybe Kelly on the inauguration of President Obama. Michael tells Darryl that black people have to be responsible and Darryl issues a list of declarations of the new black regime.
Andy gives Stanley a mix of his songs. Under Michael's orders, Kevin insists on accompanying Stanley on bathroom trips.
Phyllis explains that it was hard for her when Stanley was gone.
Michael shows Stanley that he got a defibrillator. People disagree on the pronunciation of "defibrillator", but Kelly spells it for them. In a talking head interview, Kelly explains that she came in seventeenth in the Scripps National Spelling Bee, and then she gained 40 pounds. Michael treats the defibrillator like a toy, threatening to shock people with it.
In a talking head interview, Dwight explains why Michael would be a terrible safety officer.
In a talking head interview, Michael looks forward to shaking someone's hand and shocking them with the defibrillator. He shares his new catchphrase: "You've been defibrillated!"
Michael tries to trick Toby into shaking his hand with the defibrillator pad. He eventually succeeds, but Toby isn't shocked because Michael forgot to turn it on.
Michael thinks that Stanley is dead, shocks him, and realizes that he was just sleeping. He then puts a sign on Stanley saying, "NOT DEAD." Watch these scenes.
An alternate extended scene of the Rose/CPR scene.
The office lists things that are stressful and things that stop stress.
Stanley signs Dwight's apology letter and eats a wheel of brie as a reward for "letting go of [his] anger".
Dwight angrily tells her to sign the apology letter.
Kevin messes up Meredith's hair by putting the defibrillator on her chair. Angela gives him a fist bump.
Michael wakes up from sleeping and says that beaches aren't stressful.
Dwight asks Angela to sign his apology letter during Michael's relaxation seminar, offering sex as an inducement; she refuses. He receives a text message and announces the Albany Branch is closing. Angrily, Michael confiscates everyone's cellphones and places them in a plastic garbage bag on his desk. The vibration of the phones causes them to fall off the desk.
Michael is angry that the mayonnaise is gone as he has the habit of eating a spoonful of mayonnaise during tough situations.
Michael signs Dwight's apology letter and steals the pen he was using for the signatures.
Jim tells Dwight he could get more signatures if he smiled more often and instructs him on twisting his face into a creepy leer. Jim takes a photo of Dwight with his cellphone and happily signs the apology letter.
Phyllis brings Stanley three bean salad for lunch; the meal is derided by Andy and Michael.
In a talking head interview Michael explains why he wishes people would freely criticize him.
Toby extorts an order of girl scout cookies from Dwight in exchange for his apology letter signature.
In separate talking heads, Michael, Toby, Dwight, Andy, and Jim express their feelings about the upcoming roast.
Michael goes over his grandiose plans for the roast with a dismayed Darryl.
Extension of the roast. Kelly says that Michael dyes his hair and that she saw him at a screening of Twilight, with his mother. Oscar rants to Michael in English; in a talking head, he says he came up with the material simply by writing down a typical drive-home rant. Jim reviews the contents of Michael's stomach. Jan calls and is placed on speakerphone, saying Michael destroyed her life. Michael rebuts with a crack about her breast augmentation. In a talking head, Dwight struggles over whether he should intervene to stop the roast.
During his personal day Michael wallows in self pity and shoots hoops.
The office staff worries about the absent Michael.
Talking head interview where Michael gloats about having "killed" stress.

Connections to previous episodes[]

In "Basketball", Angela was the safety officer, even though Dwight acted like he was in charge. It's not stated whether Angela still is the safety officer, whether Dwight formally took over at some point, or whether Dwight merely usurped the position again.
Dwight took charge during a fire alarm in "The Fire". In both that episode and this one, he shouts, "Have you ever seen a burn victim?"
Pam failed art school in "Business Trip".
Michael hit Meredith with his car in "Fun Run". Pam walked in on Michael half naked in the same episode.
Angela's cat Bandit was first seen in "Dunder Mifflin Infinity" under the name "Garbage" as a gift from Dwight. Angela later accepts the same cat as a gift from Andy in "Money", this time christened as "Bandit".
Stanley can't afford to retire. In one earlier episode he mentioned he couldn't be happier to retire as he planned to travel with his wife. In "Did I Stutter?" it is revealed he divorced his first wife. Probably the cost of divorce caught up to him and ate half his savings.
Meredith says Michael posted a picture of her boobs on the bulletin board, with the caption "Gross". Michael took a picture of her topless in "Christmas Party".

Trivia[]

This is one of the two episodes in which Leslie David Baker (Stanley Hudson), Brian Baumgartner (Kevin Malone), Creed Bratton (Creed Bratton), Kate Flannery (Meredith Palmer), Mindy Kaling (Kelly Kapoor), Angela Kinsey (Angela Martin), Paul Lieberstein (Toby Flenderson), Oscar Nunez (Oscar Martinez), Craig Robinson (Darryl Philbin), and Phyllis Smith (Phyllis Vance) are credited during the opening theme.
- The other episode is Finale.
Based on Kendall's reaction to learning Meredith has been having sex with a paper representative for discounts in "Business Ethics", Dwight is likely not fired because of the ongoing major recession in the United States at the time, as he brings in a large amount of money to the company.
During the fire scare at the beginning of the episode, it is established that the phones have been disconnected by Dwight. However, when the scare escalates, Dwight calmly suggests that they call 911, perhaps by using a cell phone.
B.J. Novak (Ryan Howard) appears in this episode only via archive footage.
Oscar's rant in Spanish translates as "You give me an ulcer every time I wake up and I have to come to work. I have to come to work for you. For you!"
Jim saying to Michael, "Multiple times a day Michael says things that are way beyond my vocabulary," is a reference to the ongoing joke of Michael often confusing words and common phrases.
Michael does not roast Toby, Kelly, or Phyllis. Neither Toby nor Phyllis mock Michael at the roast.
The lyrics to Andy's song, which is a parody of "What I like About You" by The Romantics:
- ♪ What I hate about you, you really suck as a boss. you're the losiest, jerkiest, and you're dumber than apple sauce! We're stuck listening to you all day, Stanley tried to die just to get away, well it's true, that's what I hate about you! That's what l hate about you [holds note] Yeah! ♪
When the employees meet in the break room following the roast there are no snacks in the vending machine, because Kevin broke the glass and stole all of the snacks during the drill.
Because this episode aired after Super Bowl XLIII, this is the only episode to air on a Sunday instead of the traditional Thursday.
This is the third episode where Dwight has been threatened with being fired. The first one was "The Coup" and the second one was "Traveling Salesmen". In both episodes he was threatened with being fired by Michael.
The stress beeper is a computer mouse, the Apple Mighty Mouse.

Amusing details[]

In the opening seconds of Part 1, Pam gets up, and she is holding her hand against her tummy. Many women who are pregnant or think they're pregnant do this. This foreshadows Pam's first pregnancy, that is eventually revealed in "Company Picnic."
During the cold open fire scene, Kevin breaks open the vending machine. Later when Stanley faints, Kevin is messily eating snacks while dropping bags on the floor while Jim and Toby try to get Michael off of Stanley.
Michael is the only person who is able to come up with a solution that would actually alert people outside the office that they needed help.
Nobody (even Oscar or Jim) uses their cellphone to call the fire department once they realize that the phones are dead.
Angela reveals that she keeps Bandit in a cat bed, in the bottom shelf of a filing cabinet.
Angela panics just like the rest of the office, even though in "The Fire" Angela is well informed on how to evacuate. However in that episode none of the doors are locked and they are quickly able to leave. It's also possible that she's only freaking out now because one of her cats is also in danger.
Dwight pulls a fire alarm pull station located above the fire extinguisher by the door to the kitchen. That pull station is never seen again, with the exception of the rest of the cold open. Also the fire alarm doesn't go off by itself despite all the smoke.
Michael insists that the correct word instead of "heed" should be "head", before reversing himself and deciding that it should actually be "heed".
Michael tells Stanley that he can't leave the wheelchair until he is back on his feet while Stanley is standing in front of him, prompting Stanley to tell the camera he is likely going to die at the office due to his heart issues being aggravated by Michael.
Not only does Kelly stand up and dance when Michael is practicing with the CPR dummy, Phyllis, Andy, and Creed also bop their heads.
When David Wallace states that the CPR dummy costs “thirty-five hundred dollars” (a common misphrasing of three thousand five hundred dollars, or $3,500), Michael mistakenly thinks that this means $5,300 (but correctly phrases it as "five thousand three hundred dollars").
In some of the talking heads after the fire drill, the boarded up window is the one Michael broke with the projector to yell for help.
Michael intends to play a song that reminds him of death at his relaxation seminar.
When Stanley's stress beeper starts going off whenever Michael gets near him, you can see John Krasinski (Jim) trying to hold in his laughter.
In a very quick shot of the top of the filing cabinet next to Dwight's desk, as Pam walks past, we see what looks to be the duck from "Cocktails".
Most of Andy's popcorns are uncooked.
Phyllis is the first one to jump to Stanley's defense when Dwight claims the fire incident "wasn't a big deal". This is one of many instances that show Phyllis considers Stanley a genuine friend.
Dwight tells Michael that he gets stress only from seeking approval from his inferiors, then says "speaking of which" and asks Michael to sign his acknowledgement form.
Michael says he's "got to make sure that YouTube comes down to tape" his roast. When this episode originally aired in 2009, YouTube was relatively new, and it was a common misconception among kids and people unfamiliar with how it worked that YouTube themselves had a crew who would film videos.
After Pam says Michael "never does any work himself - ever" Dwight enthusiastically claps his hands.
When Dwight has Michael sign his "form of regret" the pen has a chain on the end of it, showing it was stolen from a desk or somewhere else.
Michael and Dwight drink from a mini bottle of liquor, possibly obtained from a flight or hotel minibar. Michael gives Andy another such bottle in a deleted scene from "The Duel", just two episodes prior.
Michael learned from television and movies that when you are glum and moody, you dress in black and sit in the park feeding the pigeons. However, he carries this out by going to a busy playground (not a park) and tossing whole slices of bread to nonexistent birds. Furthermore, he makes crow noises, which is not going to attract pigeons. It is particularly difficult to attract birds during the winter in Pennsylvania.
Michael says the astronaut would use a microscope to look at him. A microscope is for looking at very small things. Michael means a telescope, which is for looking at very distant things.
Surprisingly Dwight doesn't freak out after Kelly mentions Lord Voldemort, like he did in "Beach Games".
During the roast, Kelly lists things she would rather make out with than Michael Scott. When she says "a fridge", Bob Vance calls out "Yeah!" from off-screen.
Roasting Michael is one of the rare times Angela is seen genuinely smiling while having fun.
When Michael mini-roasts Creed, saying that his breath stinks, Creed smiles and nods in agreement.

Behind the scenes[]

The show which airs immediately after the Super Bowl has a huge carryover audience, and networks use it to introduce a new audience to a show. The writers had to come up with an episode that could stand alone and appeal to new viewers unfamiliar with the show's style and backstory, yet also be satisfying for longtime viewers. Writer Halsted Sullivan called it "probably the most difficult episode to write" in Season 5. Producer Greg Daniels viewed the opportunity as a "second pilot" and insisted upon a very grabby opening, so as not to lose viewers.^[1]
Greg Daniels got an idea from a French film he saw: Jim loses Pam in a poker game." The writers thought it was a bad idea, but they spent quite a bit of time breaking the story before Daniels agreed that the story wouldn't work.^[1]
Greg Daniels kept asking for the fire drill to be bigger and crazier, which led to all of the antics on screen.^[1]
The "Save Bandit!" scene was very complicated to stage. The show spent $12,000 creating a fake cat identical to Bandit that could be thrown. In the original script, Oscar kicks the cat away with his foot, but director Jeffrey Blitz decided that was too mean-spirited. Blitz also believed that a stuffed cat would be too obvious. The scene was performed with a stunt actor and two identical cats. The actor playing Angela threw one cat into the ceiling, where a trainer would catch it, and then another trainer threw a second cat from the ceiling. The trainers would allow at most three takes because the cats get traumatized and have to be retired. Daniels considered buying out the cat's future income in order to get more takes, but he was talked out of it.^[1]
The cameraman's fall during the fire drill was an accident, but they kept it in.^[1]
NBC insisted that the show employ stunt casting. One idea was to have an actor with a blue-collar aesthetic like Matt Damon or Ben Affleck who could play a warehouse owner. Greg Daniels argued with the network that using an A-list actor to play a character would take you out of the show; there is no plausible reason why a celebrity would be in Scranton. Furthermore, it could mislead new viewers into thinking that the celebrity was a regular cast member. The movie-within-the-show was the solution to the problem. In early drafts, it was a martial arts movie.^[1]
The set had a very "un-Office-like" feel on the day they shot the fake movie. As enthusiastic as Jack Black was, Cloris Leachman surprised everyone with her excitement about the idea of making out with Jack Black.^[1]
Writer Halsted Sullivan provided the idea of having a roast to end the episode. His father was president of a medical school, and every year, the students put on a follies where they made fun of the professors. The professors enjoyed the show, but also worried, "Is that really what they think of me?"^[1]
There was a lot of discussion over how serious the Jim and Pam story line should be. John Krasinski and Jenna Fischer felt strongly that the drama was necessary.^[1]
Paul Feig wanted desperately to direct this episode, but he had just finished "Moroccan Christmas" which the network was not fond of, so they gave the assignment to Jeffrey Blitz, who won an Emmy for the episode. Feig praises Blitz's work, but quietly feels that he missed out on his Emmy.^[1]

Goofs[]

When Kelly says "A vacation!" she is holding a closed spiral notebook. In the very next shot, the notebook is open and upside-down.

Cultural references[]

Perm is a hairstyle.
Jerky is a dried meat product.
When Michael yells at Stanley not to die because "Barack is president," he is referring to Barack Obama, the first African American president of the United States, who was elected in 2008.
PETA is an animal rights non-profit in the United States, and stands for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.
The Red Cross (ARC) is a well known charity that teaches CPR classes and does first aid and CPR certification.
After giving up on practicing CPR, Kevin says "Call it". In medical TV shows, this is commonly said when they've tried all life saving measures and are ready to officially call time of death.
When Michael says "No rest for the sick," he is incorrectly quoting a well known biblical expression, "No rest for the wicked," or "No rest for the weary," another common idiom.
"Stayin' Alive" is a famous disco song by the Bee Gees. Michael confuses it for the song “I Will Survive” by American singer Gloria Gaynor.
An organ donor card is a piece of paper that people can carry in their wallets, indicating that after their death they want their organs donated. It is also common for people to indicate this on their driver's license.
Dwight removes the face of the dummy and turns to the office, saying, "Clarice?" mimicking a famous scene from the movie The Silence of the Lambs. Dwight tells David Wallace he thought the scene was unrealistic, which is why he tried acting it out himself.
Jack Black, Jessica Alba and Cloris Leachman are all famous actors.
The songs in the fake movie Mrs. Albert Hannaday are "You Make My Dreams" by Darryl Hall & John Oates, "Have a Little Faith in Me" by John Hiatt, "All Out of Love" by Air Supply, and "Lady" by Little River Band.
Pam refers to the Nigerian Prince/Princess scam, a form of advance-fee scam.
Andy says that the role of Lily was originally Sophie's mother and intended for Nicole Kidman, an Australian actress. There is no evidence that the writers ever intended Kidman to play the role. This was just an in-show joke.
Chunky Monkey is an ice cream flavor made by Ben & Jerry's. It is banana flavored with chunks of fudge and walnuts.
Om is an Indian spiritual symbol.
Although there is not such a thing as the Comedy Central Roast Channel, Michael is referring to a series of famous TV specials, aired on Comedy Central, which were roasts of various celebrities.
YouTube is a well-known video hosting website where users can upload their own videos. However, Michael suggests that it is a production company that solely makes videos itself.
Sammy Davis Jr. was an American actor known for his impersonations. He was roasted on the NBC show The Dean Martin Celebrity Roast in 1975.
Lord Voldemort is the villain from the famous fantasy series Harry Potter.

Quotes[]

See: Stress Relief Quotes

Cast[]

Main cast[]

Steve Carell as Michael Scott
Rainn Wilson as Dwight Schrute
John Krasinski as Jim Halpert
Jenna Fischer as Pam Beesly
B.J. Novak as Ryan Howard (archive footage)

Supporting cast[]

Recurring cast[]

Andy Buckley as David Wallace
Bobby Ray Shafer as Bob Vance
Hidetoshi Imura as Hidetoshi Hasagawa (uncredited)
Calvin Tenner as Calvin (uncredited)
Melora Hardin as Jan Levinson (Deleted scene/Voice only)

Guest cast[]

John Hartmann as Kendall (Corporate H.R. Rep.)
Robin Lynch as Rose the CPR Instructor
Lamont Ferrell as Michael the Warehouse Worker
Rick Overton as William Beesly
Joanne Carlsen as Teri Hudson (uncredited)
James O. Kerry as Deliveryman

Special celebrity guest cast[]

Jack Black as Sam (in a fake movie)
Cloris Leachman as Lily (in a fake movie)
Jessica Alba as Sophie (in a fake movie)
Nate Federman as Lily's New Boyfriend (in a fake movie)

References[]

↑ ^1.00 ^1.01 ^1.02 ^1.03 ^1.04 ^1.05 ^1.06 ^1.07 ^1.08 ^1.09 Greene, Andy, The Office: The Untold Story of the Greatest Sitcom of the 2000s. Dutton/Penguin Random House, 2020. Excerpted, Vulture, 2020.

[greene-vulture-1] 1.00 ^1.01 ^1.02 ^1.03 ^1.04 ^1.05 ^1.06 ^1.07 ^1.08 ^1.09 Greene, Andy, The Office: The Untold Story of the Greatest Sitcom of the 2000s. Dutton/Penguin Random House, 2020. Excerpted, Vulture, 2020.

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