The Coup (The Office)

"The Coup"
The Office episode
Dwight's punishment
Episode no.	Season 3 Episode 3
Directed by	Greg Daniels
Written by	Paul Lieberstein
Production code	302
Original air date	October 5, 2006
Episode chronology
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List of The Office (U.S. TV series) episodes

"The Coup" is the second filmed and third aired episode of the third season of The Office (U.S. version). It was written by Paul Lieberstein and directed by Greg Daniels. It aired on October 5, 2006 on NBC.

In this episode, Jan becomes unimpressed with how Michael is controlling his branch, so Dwight tries to take his job and an office power play ensues. Meanwhile, Pam conducts a lunchtime fashion show, and the Stamford branch plays Call of Duty as a team-building exercise, something Jim does not do well in.

Synopsis

Jan berates Michael when she discovers that he calls the entire office into the conference room every Monday to watch a movie. Angela prods Dwight to ask Jan to give him Michael's job. After the awkward meeting with Dwight, Jan calls Michael and demands he get his branch under control.

The Stamford branch plays Call of Duty under the guise of a team-building exercise. New to the game, Jim's play is poor and he draws the ire of his teammates. As he leaves for home, Jim pretends to toss a grenade at Karen, who responds by creating a pretend explosion with paper clips. Karen longingly watches Jim leave.

Kelly insists that Pam perform a lunchtime fashion show to show off a new sweater. When it draws unwanted attention, Pam concludes that it is too revealing.

Michael leads Dwight to believe that he has been given control of the branch before revealing the ruse. Dwight begs for his job and for Michael's forgiveness, offering to do his laundry for a year. When it appears that Michael is on the verge of firing Dwight, he makes a reference to Entourage and insists that they "hug it out, bitch." Dwight quickly returns to being Michael's loyal right-hand man, but Michael is still resentful, and forces Dwight to stand atop a box in the middle of the office, wearing a sign that says "LIAR"--and the promise to do Michael's laundry for a year.

Deleted scenes

The Season Three DVD contains a number of deleted scenes. Notable cut scenes include:

• Dwight describes the conflict between his paternal Schrute blood (which is loyal) and his maternal Manheim blood (which knows when to cut and run).
• Creed reveals that he sleeps under his desk four nights a week.
• Dwight and Angela flirt in the break room after he tries to persuade her to join Movie Monday.
• Michael becomes suspicious when Pam interrupts to tell him that he has a phone call.
• Pam responds to Kevin's unwanted attention to her neckline.
• Phyllis, Meredith, and Creed respond to having Dwight as the new boss.
• Jim is surprised when Jan is not upset to find him playing a video game.

Behind the scenes

• Angela Kinsey did an alternate talking head that didn't make the show. Angela (her character) talks about a "friend" of hers that introduced her to Star Trek. "Well, there is this guy named Spock and he is very honorable and brave," Kinsey paraphrases, "And he stands up for what he thinks is right. And she just wishes that 'someone' in the office could be more like Spock." Kinsey continues, "I thought it was a cute glimpse into Dwight and Angela's courtship. I can see her being very resistant to sci-fi but she watches these Star Trek episodes because they are important to Dwight."

• In "The Coup" episode commentary, several cast members noted how darkly the episode ends, with Michael punishing Dwight for his insubordination. Rashida Jones suggested that Dwight's punishment--being forced to wear a "liar" sign and stand silently on some boxes in the middle of the office--was reminiscent of the iconic photo of the Abu Ghraib torture and prisoner abuse. The other cast members in the episode commentary--Rainn Wilson, John Krasinski, and Angela Kinsey--all sound shocked by Jones' offhanded observation, which suggests that any similarities between Abu Ghraib and Dwight's punishment were likely unintended by the cast. The scene more closely resembles an also iconic scene from Jane Eyre.

External links

• "The Coup" at NBC.com
• "The Coup" at the Internet Movie Database
• "The Coup" at TV.com