A Benihana Christmas
Encyclopedia
"A Benihana Christmas" is the tenth and eleventh episode of the third season
of the American comedy
television series
The Office, and the thirty-eighth (and thirty-ninth) episode overall. It was written by Jennifer Celotta
and directed by Harold Ramis
. The episode originally aired in the United States on December 14, 2006, on NBC
.
In the episode, Christmas time at the office leads to depression for Michael, when his girlfriend Carol (Steve Carell's real life wife Nancy Walls
) breaks up
with him. Michael, Andy, Dwight, and Jim then go to a local Benihana
, where both Michael and Andy find dates with two of the restaurant's waitresses. Back at the office, after a conflict with a bossy Angela, Karen and Pam decide to create their own Christmas party. When the majority of the office decide to go to Karen and Pam's party, Angela becomes upset, and seeing this, Karen and Pam decide to combine the parties. Soon after, Michael and Andy's dates leave them, but Michael nevertheless finds someone to go to Jamaica
with him.
) confronts Michael Scott
(Steve Carell
) about the Christmas card he sent her, in which he superimposed his head on the body of Carol's former husband in a family photo. She breaks off the relationship, leaving Michael heartbroken and stuck with a pair of tickets to Jamaica. For the past several months, Pam Beesly
(Jenna Fischer
) has led Dwight Schrute
(Rainn Wilson
) to believe that he is being recruited by the CIA
, and her gift to Jim Halpert
(John Krasinski
) is that he can choose Dwight's first assignment. Jim declines the gift, claiming that as the new office "Number Two" he shouldn't be engaging in such activities.
Andy Bernard
(Ed Helms
) takes Michael to Benihana (an "Asian Hooters
" according to Michael), to help him forget his recent troubles; Michael drags Dwight and Jim along. Dwight fails when attempting to impress the chef with his knowledge of Japanese knives
. Andy successfully isolates Dwight from the rest of the party and convinces Michael to ask out their waitress. Meanwhile, Jim plays pranks on Dwight and realizes that his excuse for declining Pam's gift doesn't hold water.
Angela Martin
(Angela Kinsey
) kicks Karen Filippelli
(Rashida Jones
) off the Party Planning Committee. In response, Pam reaches out to Karen, and the two plan a rival party. The rival Christmas parties begin, and the office staff members are forced to choose sides. Pam and Karen's party is a hit, while Angela's is a dreary affair. Michael and Andy each return with a waitress as their "new girlfriend" (though neither is the one who waited on them at the restaurant). Angela accepts Pam's offer to merge the parties. Michael is unable to tell the two waitresses apart. To remedy this, he surreptitiously marks his date's arm with a Sharpie
. When he offers to take her to Jamaica, she declines, and the two waitresses leave the party because it "blows".
Jim consoles Michael by explaining that he just had a "rebound
" relationship. Jim mentions that they're fun for a while, but then you keep on thinking about the girl who crushed your heart, implying he still thinks about Pam (the girl who "crushed his heart"). From his office, Michael makes a phone call and asks an unknown person to go to Jamaica with him. The offer is accepted. Pam is crushed when she sees Jim and Karen exchange gifts. Jim is crushed when he sees Roy give a gift to Pam. At the end of the day, Jim tells Pam that a helicopter will be arriving to take Dwight to a welcoming party at CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia
. Dwight waits on the roof and receives a text message: "You have been compromised. Abort mission. Destroy phone." Dwight throws his phone off the roof and walks away.
and written by Jennifer Celotta
. It was produced by Stephen Merchant
, Ricky Gervais
, Greg Daniels
, Howard Klein, and Ben Silverman
. The episode was shot in a real Benihana restaurant. According to the show's prop master, different actresses were used because Andy and Michael failed to pick up the original waitresses, and settled for "less attractive ones". At Paley Fest 2007, Greg Daniels admitted that the joke failed due to poor casting. The waitresses that come to the office were supposed to be unattractive. Daniels stated that the actresses they hired for the role were "too good" looking. During filming, John Krasinski threw a shrimp across the table at Rainn Wilson. It bounced off Dwight's glasses and landed in the glass of water he was about to drink. The producers chose not to use the footage because it looked so improbable as to be unbelievable.
review stated:
The episode was also given a 9.2 out of 10 rating by the IGN staff, and an average rating of 9.6 by readers. On the day that the episode first aired, it was the second most watched show of the night, behind only CBS
's Survivor: Cook Islands
. According to estimated by the Nielsen Media Research
's Nielsen ratings
, the show was watched by 8.5 million viewers in the ages 18 to 49 demographic.
The Office (U.S. TV series) season 3
The third season of the American television comedy The Office premiered in the United States on NBC on September 21, 2006, and concluded on May 17, 2007. The season had a total of 25 half-hours of material, divided into 17 half-hour episodes, four 40-minute "super-sized" episodes, and two one-hour...
of the American comedy
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
television series
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
The Office, and the thirty-eighth (and thirty-ninth) episode overall. It was written by Jennifer Celotta
Jennifer Celotta
Jennifer Ann Celotta is an American television producer and writer. Among her credits are Home Improvement, Malcolm in the Middle, Greg the Bunny, Andy Richter Controls The Universe and The Office...
and directed by Harold Ramis
Harold Ramis
Harold Allen Ramis is an American actor, director, and writer, specializing in comedy. His best-known film acting roles are as Egon Spengler in Ghostbusters and Russell Ziskey in Stripes , both of which he also co-wrote...
. The episode originally aired in the United States on December 14, 2006, on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
.
In the episode, Christmas time at the office leads to depression for Michael, when his girlfriend Carol (Steve Carell's real life wife Nancy Walls
Nancy Walls
Nancy Ellen Carell is an American actress best known for her comedic work on Saturday Night Live and The Daily Show.-Early life:...
) breaks up
Break Up
Break Up may refer to:* relationship breakup* Break Up , also known as The Man with the Balloons, an Italian film directed by Marco Ferreri* Break Up , starring Bridget Fonda, Kiefer Sutherland, and Steven Weber...
with him. Michael, Andy, Dwight, and Jim then go to a local Benihana
Benihana
Benihana can refer to:*Benihana, Benihana's Hibachi Restaurant*Benihana * Benihana, the Japanese word for safflower...
, where both Michael and Andy find dates with two of the restaurant's waitresses. Back at the office, after a conflict with a bossy Angela, Karen and Pam decide to create their own Christmas party. When the majority of the office decide to go to Karen and Pam's party, Angela becomes upset, and seeing this, Karen and Pam decide to combine the parties. Soon after, Michael and Andy's dates leave them, but Michael nevertheless finds someone to go to Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
with him.
Synopsis
Carol Stills (Nancy WallsNancy Walls
Nancy Ellen Carell is an American actress best known for her comedic work on Saturday Night Live and The Daily Show.-Early life:...
) confronts Michael Scott
Michael Scott (The Office)
Michael Gary Scott is a fictional character on NBC's The Office, portrayed by Steve Carell, and based on David Brent from the original British version. Michael, the central character of the series, was the manager of the Scranton branch of paper and printer distribution company Dunder Mifflin Inc...
(Steve Carell
Steve Carell
Steven John "Steve" Carell is an American comedian, actor, voice artist, producer, writer, and director. Although Carell is notable for his role on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, he found greater fame in the late 2000s for playing Michael Scott on The Office...
) about the Christmas card he sent her, in which he superimposed his head on the body of Carol's former husband in a family photo. She breaks off the relationship, leaving Michael heartbroken and stuck with a pair of tickets to Jamaica. For the past several months, Pam Beesly
Pam Beesly
Pamela Morgan "Pam" Halpert is a fictional character on the U.S. television sitcom The Office, played by Jenna Fischer. Her counterpart in the original UK series of The Office is Dawn Tinsley....
(Jenna Fischer
Jenna Fischer
Regina Marie "Jenna" Fischer is an American actress and director. She is most widely known for her Emmy-nominated portrayal of Pam Halpert on the NBC situation comedy and mockumentary The Office, and has also appeared in several films, including Blades of Glory, Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story,...
) has led Dwight Schrute
Dwight Schrute
Dwight Kurt Schrute III is a character on NBC's The Office portrayed by Rainn Wilson. He originally exactly resembled Gareth Keenan from the original UK version of The Office. Dwight is the top salesman and former acting manager for the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company and has won numerous awards for...
(Rainn Wilson
Rainn Wilson
Rainn Dietrich Wilson is an American actor and comedian. He is primarily known for his role as the egomaniacal Dwight Schrute on the American version of the television comedy The Office...
) to believe that he is being recruited by the CIA
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
, and her gift to Jim Halpert
Jim Halpert
James Duncan "Jim" Halpert is a fictional character in the United States version of the television sitcom The Office, played by John Krasinski. The character is based on Tim Canterbury from the original version of The Office...
(John Krasinski
John Krasinski
John Burke Krasinski is an American actor, film director, and writer. He is most widely known for playing Jim Halpert on the NBC sitcom The Office...
) is that he can choose Dwight's first assignment. Jim declines the gift, claiming that as the new office "Number Two" he shouldn't be engaging in such activities.
Andy Bernard
Andy Bernard
Andrew "Andy" Baines Bernard is a fictional character from the U.S. television series The Office. The character is highly insecure, yet egotistical, constantly mentioning his education at Cornell University...
(Ed Helms
Ed Helms
Edward Paul "Ed" Helms is an American actor and comedian known for his work as a correspondent on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, as Andy Bernard on the US version of the sitcom/mockumentary The Office and for his role as Dr. Stu Price in The Hangover films.- Early life :Helms was born and raised...
) takes Michael to Benihana (an "Asian Hooters
Hooters
Hooters is the trade name of two privately held American restaurant chains: Hooters of America, Incorporated, based in Atlanta, Georgia, and Hooters, Incorporated, based in Clearwater, Florida...
" according to Michael), to help him forget his recent troubles; Michael drags Dwight and Jim along. Dwight fails when attempting to impress the chef with his knowledge of Japanese knives
Nakiri bocho
Nakiri bōchō and usuba bōchō are Japanese-style vegetable knives. They differ from the deba bōchō in their shape, as they have a straight blade edge suitable for cutting all the way to the cutting board without the need for a horizontal pull or push. These knives are also much thinner...
. Andy successfully isolates Dwight from the rest of the party and convinces Michael to ask out their waitress. Meanwhile, Jim plays pranks on Dwight and realizes that his excuse for declining Pam's gift doesn't hold water.
Angela Martin
Angela Martin
Angela Noelle Martin is a fictional character from the US television series The Office played by American actress Angela Kinsey. She is an original character, and has no equivalent in the British version of the show, The Office.-Overview:...
(Angela Kinsey
Angela Kinsey
Angela Kinsey is an American actress. She currently appears as the uptight accountant Angela Martin on the hit NBC television series The Office.-Personal life:...
) kicks Karen Filippelli
Karen Filippelli
Karen Filippelli is a fictional character from the U.S. television series The Office. She is played by Rashida Jones. She is loosely based on the character of Rachel from the original UK version of the show, in that she transferred during the merger of the two branches, and became romantically...
(Rashida Jones
Rashida Jones
Rashida Leah Jones is an American film and television actress, comic book author, screenwriter and occasional singer. She played Louisa Fenn on Boston Public and Karen Filippelli on The Office as well as roles in the films I Love You, Man and The Social Network...
) off the Party Planning Committee. In response, Pam reaches out to Karen, and the two plan a rival party. The rival Christmas parties begin, and the office staff members are forced to choose sides. Pam and Karen's party is a hit, while Angela's is a dreary affair. Michael and Andy each return with a waitress as their "new girlfriend" (though neither is the one who waited on them at the restaurant). Angela accepts Pam's offer to merge the parties. Michael is unable to tell the two waitresses apart. To remedy this, he surreptitiously marks his date's arm with a Sharpie
Sharpie (marker)
Sharpie is a manufacturer of writing instruments whose products are sold in over 20 countries. Originally a name designating a single permanent marker, the Sharpie brand has been widely expanded and can now be found on a variety of previously unrelated permanent and non-permanent pens and markers...
. When he offers to take her to Jamaica, she declines, and the two waitresses leave the party because it "blows".
Jim consoles Michael by explaining that he just had a "rebound
Rebound (dating)
A rebound is an undefined period following the break up of a romantic relationship. The term's use dates to at least the 1830s, when Mary Russell Mitford wrote of "nothing so easy as catching a heart on the rebound"...
" relationship. Jim mentions that they're fun for a while, but then you keep on thinking about the girl who crushed your heart, implying he still thinks about Pam (the girl who "crushed his heart"). From his office, Michael makes a phone call and asks an unknown person to go to Jamaica with him. The offer is accepted. Pam is crushed when she sees Jim and Karen exchange gifts. Jim is crushed when he sees Roy give a gift to Pam. At the end of the day, Jim tells Pam that a helicopter will be arriving to take Dwight to a welcoming party at CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia
Langley, Virginia
Langley is an unincorporated community in the census-designated place of McLean in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States.The community was essentially absorbed into McLean many years ago, although there is still a Langley High School...
. Dwight waits on the roof and receives a text message: "You have been compromised. Abort mission. Destroy phone." Dwight throws his phone off the roof and walks away.
Production
"A Benihana Christmas" was directed by Harold RamisHarold Ramis
Harold Allen Ramis is an American actor, director, and writer, specializing in comedy. His best-known film acting roles are as Egon Spengler in Ghostbusters and Russell Ziskey in Stripes , both of which he also co-wrote...
and written by Jennifer Celotta
Jennifer Celotta
Jennifer Ann Celotta is an American television producer and writer. Among her credits are Home Improvement, Malcolm in the Middle, Greg the Bunny, Andy Richter Controls The Universe and The Office...
. It was produced by Stephen Merchant
Stephen Merchant
Stephen James Merchant is an English writer, director, radio presenter, comedian, and actor. He is best known for his collaborations with Ricky Gervais, as the co-writer and co-director of the popular British sitcom The Office, as the co-writer, co-director and a co-star of Extras, and as the...
, Ricky Gervais
Ricky Gervais
Ricky Dene Gervais is an English comedian, actor, director, radio presenter, producer, musician, and writer.Gervais achieved mainstream fame with his television series The Office and the subsequent series Extras, both of which he co-wrote and co-directed with friend and frequent collaborator...
, Greg Daniels
Greg Daniels
Gregory Martin "Greg" Daniels is an American television comedy writer, producer, and director.-Life and career:...
, Howard Klein, and Ben Silverman
Ben Silverman
Benjamin Noah "Ben" Silverman is the founder and CEO of Electus, a next generation entertainment studio staked by IAC's Barry Diller....
. The episode was shot in a real Benihana restaurant. According to the show's prop master, different actresses were used because Andy and Michael failed to pick up the original waitresses, and settled for "less attractive ones". At Paley Fest 2007, Greg Daniels admitted that the joke failed due to poor casting. The waitresses that come to the office were supposed to be unattractive. Daniels stated that the actresses they hired for the role were "too good" looking. During filming, John Krasinski threw a shrimp across the table at Rainn Wilson. It bounced off Dwight's glasses and landed in the glass of water he was about to drink. The producers chose not to use the footage because it looked so improbable as to be unbelievable.
Easter Egg
During the Christmas party back at the office, Michael has difficulty telling the two invited Asian waitresses apart. Michael even inconspicuously marks one of the waitress' arms with a black marker to distinguish the two. Although Michael's ability to distinguish Asian faces is tested, so is the viewer's. The waitresses who are at the office are two different Asian actors than the ones originally invited at the Japanese steakhouse.Reception
"A Benihana Christmas" was generally well received by critics. An IGNIGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
review stated:
The episode was also given a 9.2 out of 10 rating by the IGN staff, and an average rating of 9.6 by readers. On the day that the episode first aired, it was the second most watched show of the night, behind only CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
's Survivor: Cook Islands
Survivor: Cook Islands
Survivor: Cook Islands is the thirteenth season of the American CBS competitive reality television series Survivor, having premiered on September 14, 2006...
. According to estimated by the Nielsen Media Research
Nielsen Media Research
Nielsen Media Research is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre films and newspapers...
's Nielsen ratings
Nielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
, the show was watched by 8.5 million viewers in the ages 18 to 49 demographic.
External links
- "A Benihana Christmas" at NBC.com