The Office - "The Farm" (Mar. 14, 2013)

Back from another awkward, mid-season hiatus, The Office begins its home stretch with "The Farm", an episode which is undoubtedly the failed NBC pilot for a spin-off series about Dwight and his misadventures as proprietor of a new farm he and his cousins/siblings inherit from their deceased aunt. That's essentially all that happens in this episode. That, and a side story about Todd Packer's return from rehab* to make amends with everyone in the office. (*SPOILER: His "return from rehab" turns out to be just another elaborate prank involving drugged cupcakes.)

This really wasn't a great half-hour. It wasn't very funny, save for a segment with Andy and Kevin that highlighted the duo's late-night, drug-induced antics at the office. It's presented alongside a "morning after" narration, and it's just hilarious. Aside from that, I wasn't impressed. Not really worth your time this week, although I'm pretty sure we now know what Dwight will be up to once the series ends. If you're still watching The Office like I am, it's nice to have that piece of the puzzle at least. Fingers crossed for a better outing next week.

(A week or two ago, John Krasinski, a.k.a. Jim Halpert, tweeted about the last table read for the final episode that included a photo of the script. Certainly they're at least in the filming stages by now, if not close to wrapping. If it hasn't already, it looks like this "office" is just about closed.)