Throwback Thursday, Part II: Casino Night (Season 2, Episode 22)

Ah, Casino Night. Possibly my favorite episode, though I constantly change my mind. It’s got everything you could want or expect out of a season finale without losing any of the comedy of a typical episode–in fact, it’s one of the funniest, in my opinion. The Dwangela slap…Kevin’s “I suck…”…Pam’s ‘practice runs’ for Michael on the phone…Toby’s “I’m gonna chase that feeling”…”Dinkin’ flicka”…all totally in character, all totally hilarious!

Then, in the final moments, Jim lays it all on the line. And even though Pam stops him with a crushing ‘let’s-be-friends,’ JAMmers got to see that fabulous last-minute kiss. Knockout performances by both Jenna and John, not to mention Steve Carell and his ‘girls’, Melora and real-life-wife Nancy. Actually, knockout performances by EVERYBODY, as usual. I think the major reason why I loved, loved, loved the Season 2 closer was that it was so REAL. I completely believed (okay, I still believe, I admit it!) that Jim and Pam were real people who couldn’t be together despite this deeply intimate connection; I believed that Jim would finally tell Pam how he really felt exactly the way he did; I believed the dialogue; I ate it up. It wasn’t trite, it wasn’t expected, it wasn’t conventional. It was just…life. And I love it.

And in the spirit of Throwback Thursday, check out this awesome post Brian wrote after Casino Night: “>Even More Info on Kevin’s Band.

Deleted Scenes (I know I say this every Throwback Thursday, but they are a MUST-SEE if you haven’t seen them yet!!):

Further reading:
1. Wikipedia Entry, Casino Night (Trivia here)
2. Jenna Fischer’s blog, Casino Night
3. OfficeQuotes.net, Casino Night
4. Northern Attack on Casino Night
5. The Chicago Tribune on JAM
6. Televisionary Blogspot on the Season 2 Finale

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