I, like many of you, love the show The Office. Not the British "original" show with the abomination Ricky Gervais, but the wholesome American version with Steve Carell, one of America's gems. I've seen every episode at least 5 times (including "Scott's Tots" *cringe*). I have modeled my relationships after Jim and Pam, arguably one of the greatest love stories in the history of television. Or is it?
Every time I watch the show, I always root for them to get together. When Pam and Roy finally end their engagement, it gave everyone hope; hope that Jim could finally make his move. This binge watching, I decided to root against them getting together and I found that they are actually terrible together. Jim and Pam's relationships should not be looked up to. In this two-part series, I will be looking at examples of how awful they actually are.
In the beginning, Jim and Pam are just friends. Let me rephrase that: "just friends." They flirt back and forth with each other, all while Pam is engaged to Roy, someone I guarantee bites the whole Kit Kat bar instead of breaking it off, but still her fiancé. Later on, the office workers and the warehouse staff, which Roy is a part of, play in a basketball game. Pam cheers for Jim when he makes a shot, making Roy jealous. Jim posts Roy up and Roy throws an elbow into Jim's nose. This is all due to Pam's flirtation with Jim.
Before Jim leaves for the Stamford branch, he and Pam kiss in the office during casino night. Jim thinks that she'll leave Roy after, but she refuses, saying she can't do it, and Jim leaves. Jim, I'll get to you in a minute but PAM, YOU'RE ENGAGED. WHY ARE YOU KISSING SOMEONE ELSE? Jim, as for you, why in God's name would you still want her after that? If she's engaged, the second closest step to being totally off-limits, and kissing you, what's stopping her from doing that with someone else when she's with you?
Jim comes back to Scranton after eight episodes with a better outlook on his job and a new girlfriend, Karen. A girlfriend he doesn't deserve, mind you, because of his infatuation with Pam.
Oh yeah, Pam. Did I mention she broke it off with Roy? Coincidentally, almost right after the kiss.
At the end of the season, Jim and Karen are up for a promotion that would take them away from Scranton. They ride up to New York together for the interview; the next time we see either of them, Jim is in the car alone. They cut to Pam answering an interview question and Jim bursts into the room, finally asking Pam on a date. Everybody watching breathes a sigh of relief and the tension is gone.
On the next installment of this highly acclaimed series, I will be looking at their eventual marriage; the ups and downs between Jim following his dreams and Pam trying to run the family alone. Stay tuned next week.
