The Office's Third Season Brings a Breaking - and Re-forming - of the Fellowship

Anytime you have a show with a large cast, there's the potential for some fracturing as various characters move in different directions. In The Office, the NBC comedy about a pack of quirky office drones working for the Scranton branch of fictional paper company Dunder-Mifflin, the third season is marked by this sense of disconnectedness. The first third of the season alternates between Scranton and Stamford, the branch to which lovable everyman Jim Halpert (John Krasinski) has relocated. Though a branch merger eventually brings him back to Scranton, it's in the company of several new characters, and it takes most of the season for the Scranton branch to settle back into its old groove. While the shake-up isn't necessarily a bad thing, it does facilitate the most awkward moments yet in the series.

Probably more than in any season, Jim is the focal point here, as the camera follows him to Stamford (where one co-worker hilariously mocks his habit of gazing meaningfully into the camera and slowly shrugging). While the position and the pay are better there, his main reason for going was to avoid the heartache of working with his best friend, engaged receptionist Pam Beesly (Jenna Fischer), to whom he bared his soul without receiving the response he had hoped for. Meanwhile, Pam, belatedly admitting that her feelings for Jim are strong enough to keep her from the altar, has called off her wedding to the insensitive, incompatible Roy Anderson (David Denman) and is missing Jim terribly. Roy, who spends the first half of the season meek and disheveled, becomes much more likable in his chastened state, though his brutish side comes roaring back when he discovers the true reason Pam broke off the engagement.

With Pam all at once available, we start off season three thinking that Jim ought to come running back to Scranton so he and Pam can live happily ever after. But the show doesn't let us off that easily. First, Jim has to get settled into his new environment, where he thrives at his job but misses the laid-back atmosphere of the Scranton branch. We are introduced to several co-workers, most notably Andy and Karen. Andy Bernard (Ed Helms) is Stamford's version of Dwight Schrute (Rainn Wilson), and his aggressive streak and active attempts to make a nuisance of himself make Jim actually appreciate his geeky former nemesis. There's an air of affection in the way he continues to pester Dwight from afar, and we're rewarded with one of the funniest scenes of the season when the gullible beet farmer reacts to a fax sent by "Future Dwight". Karen Filippelli (Rashida Jones) is a driven young businesswoman who slowly but surely succumbs to Jim's charms, creating great tension when she is one of the employees who joins Jim in Scranton after the Stamford branch closes.

For everybody rooting for a Jim and Pam romance, Karen is not a particularly welcome addition here. She's now standing in the way of their happy reunion, and her interference is more galling than Roy's since it probably wouldn't be an issue if Jim had just stuck around Scranton instead of running away from his problems. While Karen has some pleasant qualities, she carries herself with a very icy air. There's definitely a sense that she, like hot-shot young temp Ryan Howard (B. J. Novak), thinks she's above most of her co-workers - including new boss Michael Scott (Steve Carell), who is as clueless as ever.

Initially, boot-licking Andy is pretty obnoxious, and when he connives to dethrone Dwight, it suddenly becomes apparent that despite all his irritating qualities, Dwight is actually a pretty great guy to have around. After a stint in anger management, however, this hammy uber-WASP, a Cornell grad who is excessively fond of singing a cappella, becomes much more endearing. Though he and Dwight have very different personalities, their tendency to be over-the-top makes them play off each other wonderfully. Especially amusing is the extensive interview of Andy that Dwight conducts when he believes that management of the Scranton branch will soon fall to him and he'll need a second-in-command. (Highlight for this LOST fan? Dwight: What is the DHARMA Initiative? Andy: It is the center of all energy on Earth. Dwight: Wrong! It is a corporation run by aliens. In a DVD set packed with deleted scenes, this kooky conversation from the last episode of the season is my absolute favorite.)

With so much focus on Jim, Pam and the newbies, some of the supporting characters take more of a backseat, but there's still plenty for them to do here, particularly in the terrific Beach Games, in which Michael uses a team-building field trip to determine which of his underlings is most qualified to serve as his successor. Throughout the season, H.R. Eeyore Toby Flenderson (Paul Lieberstein) resignedly bears the abuse Michael heaps on him, and hints of his attraction to Pam become stronger. Lovably cranky Stanley Hudson (Leslie David Baker) shows surprising enthusiasm for Pretzel Day, while Phyllis Lapin (Phyllis Smith) must fret over whether the wedding of her dreams will be compromised by the overzealous Michael.

Creed Bratton (Creed Bratton) candidly reveals more unsavory tidbits about himself, and chatty Kelly smothers the reluctant Ryan in their less-than-blissful relationship. Oscar Martinez (Oscar Nunez) spends a good chunk of the season missing as he enjoys a vacation compliments of the company, attempting to smooth over an unintentional slight by Michael regarding his orientation. Petite, severe Angela Martin (Angela Kinsey) continues her unlikely affair with Dwight, while fellow accountant Kevin Malone (Brian Baumgartner) finds his non-office-related relationship on the rocks. Meredith Palmer (Kate Flannery) has a close encounter with a bat in a bizarre but quite touching episode directed by Joss Whedon of Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog; Michael's buttoned-up corporate love interest, Jan Levinson (Melora Hardin), demonstrates that she doesn't quite have her act together; and warehouse king Daryll Philbin (Craig Robinson) gives Michael some pointers about negotiating a higher salary.

There are 23 episodes in this DVD set, several of which are forty minutes long instead of twenty, all of which include deleted scenes. Aside from those always-amusing gems from the scrap heap, my favorite extra this time around is the music video Lazy Scranton, a parody of Saturday Night Live's Narnia-touting Lazy Sunday that Michael and Dwight prepare as a welcome to the Stamford gang. Given the fractured nature of this third season, I wouldn't recommend starting here, but if you've breezed through seasons one and two, number three will not disappoint.