I finished watching The Office all the way through for the fourth time recently, so like any fan of the series, I decided to start it all over again. This time as I go through each season, I am putting together a ranked list of each episode in that season in order from my least favorite to my favorite. Keep in mind that these are MY opinions, which means they are 100% correct. Just kidding. Sort of. I’ve already ranked the episodes from seasons 1-6, now let’s get to season 7:

26. Christening: Episode 7

I’ve never been a big fan of this episode. It takes place out of the office at a local church for Cece’s christening, where the entire office shows up. It’s pretty funny seeing them act inappropriately and Toby’s battle of whether or not to go inside, but for the most part it’s just not a very entertaining episode. And basically it never had a chance with the plot set-up. Michael and Andy abruptly decide to get on the bus with the church youth group to Mexico to help build a school for the next few months, but end up making fools of themselves by childishly shouting to stop the bus. Those scenes just never did it for me, just like this episode.

25. PDA: Episode 16

Not one of the more entertaining episodes. It’s the first episode where Michael and Holly reveal they are dating and they can’t stop their PDA around the office, even though many others (except Kevin) are complaining about it. And it’s Valentine’s Day, which makes it even worse. With that being the main focus in this episode, it sets up a rather boring 21 minutes. There are a few other small topics going on, such as Jim and Pam coming back from a bottomless champagne lunch (which they took full advantage of) looking for a place to “do it” in the office and Erin and Andy going on the Valentine’s scavenger hunt that Gabe set up solely for Erin. But neither of these things were entertaining. Definitely a forgettable episode.

24. Todd Packer: Episode 18

Todd Packer is great in small doses, but it’s difficult to handle him throughout an entire episode. He returns to the office after years as a traveling salesman, much to everyone’s dismay. Holly is fooled by his fake charm and hires him back instantly. Packer’s insults after a while just sort of get annoying, so the best part is Jim and Dwight teaming up to trick him into thinking he got hired on at the company’s corporate office in Tallahassee, Florida, sending Packer out the door. Also Michael realizing from Holly that Packer is not actually funny, and instead a jerk, was another “growing up” part of Michael’s character, one of many in season 7. The other minor storyline in this one was the new computer Pam got Erin for the reception desk that Andy was super jealous of. I like Andy’s character, but he was so annoying in this episode, which also took away from it.

23. Search Committee: Part 2: Episode 26

This one is the second part of a two-parter and also wraps up the 7th season. The first part was more entertaining, especially with the different interviews for the new office manager position. But this one doesn’t offer nearly as much and is a little boring. Dwight begs, begs, and begs, and finally gets Jo to offer him an interview. Kelly takes over for Gabe in the search committee as Gabe is being transferred back to Florida. Andy and Darryl are a little annoying by both clamoring for the office manager position. Andy turns down a date offer from Erin. Angela is beyond annoying talking about her upcoming wedding in a condescending way to everyone. And maybe the worst thing of it all is nothing getting done by the end of the episode. Nothing is decided, leaving you to have to wait until the next season to find out which direction the show will go in as far as the office manager position.

22. WUPHF.com: Episode 9

This is a rather dull episode. There’s three main storylines here and none of them are very entertaining. The first is Jim finding out he has a sales commission cap and has no incentive to make any more sales, leading him to be bored all day and looking for things to do. The second is Dwight’s “Hay Place” he sets up in the parking lot of Dunder-Mifflin. He has all these hay activities for kids to enjoy and crowns a “Hay King” at the end, which he ends up crowning himself. None if it is really that funny, except Kevin getting lost in the hay maze. And lastly, the main storyline, is Ryan’s website WUPHF that several folks around the office have invested in. They find out he only has nine days to raise money or the start-up will become bankrupt. They pressure him to sell to a willing buyer for the domain name. It’s just not very entertaining. The best part of the episode is at the very end when Michael is naming his employees like they are playing cards. Jim (ace), Dwight (king), Oscar (queen), Pam (solid 7), Phyllis (old maid), himself (joker), and Ryan (2, “but sometimes 2’s are wild”).

21. The Search: Episode 15

The purpose of this episode is for Holly to realize that her and Michael are meant for each other, which is kind of “ehhh” for me, although I recognize its importance. Once Jim leaves Michael at a gas station restroom for a family emergency, Michael is on his own wondering around Scranton without his phone or wallet. Dwight, Erin, and Holly go off in search for him, but it is Holly who has the special sense to know Michael’s every move and track him down, thus proving to her that they are meant to be together. Like I said, that whole storyline was “ehhh,” but it marks a pretty important turn of events for Michael and the show. I did, however, enjoy the scenes back at the office where everyone wrote funny captions for Pam’s drawings and Gabe tried desperately, but unsuccessfully, to shut it down. Gabe’s character is just so annoyingly and strangely perfect that he shined in this episode.

20. Ultimatum: Episode 13

There’s some decent parts in this one like when Andy, Darryl, and Dwight go to the bookstore and the roller rink, and also Creed trying to do a cartwheel. But most of the episode revolves around the fact Holly did not carry through with her ultimatum and Michael responsively acting very childish. It’s not the best episode. Pam’s New Year’s resolution chart proved too much for the office to handle, but I feel like more could have came from that to make it more entertaining. Holly does break up with AJ at the very end of the episode though, so you know big things are coming in the future for her and Michael.

19. Nepotism: Episode 1

This is an ok way of kicking off the seventh season. The opening where the office lip dubs “Nobody But Me” in attempt to become an internet hit is a top five Office opening. Most of the episode revolves around Michael giving his nephew, who he hired, serious favored treatment around the office, which led to some pretty funny moments, especially the spanking scene. Dwight’s “pee corner” was also a funny part of the episode where he and Pam are stuck on the elevator after a prank gone wrong. Perhaps the most interesting thing, and surprising thing, about this episode is the fact that Erin is now dating Gabe instead of Andy. That came out of nowhere and you just know it will lead to some good scenes in the future.

18. Counseling: Episode 2

It was pretty entertaining seeing Michael do his required six hours of counseling with Toby. Having those two in the same room alone brought out the funny immature qualities of Michael. At first, he wouldn’t talk and then he went on to making up crazy stories to pass the time. It was also pretty funny seeing Dwight dressed up like a rich snob to go back to the mall to exact revenge on the store owner who wouldn’t sell him an expensive heirloom he wanted the previous day. We didn’t get a whole lot from the secondary characters in this episode, which takes away from it, but it wasn’t bad overall. And Pam forcing her way into the office administrator position was another aspect from this episode, but there wasn’t too much to take away from that.

17. Classy Christmas: Part 2: Episode 12

This one wasn’t as good or memorable as the first part. The first part had a lot of scenes that make you laugh and this one didn’t. It had Michael breaking down and ruining Holly’s Woody figure and basically giving up all hope on her until Pam informed him of the ultimatum. Jim is still being terrorized by Dwight from the snowball fight, which had a few chuckling scenes, but not as many as the first part did. The snowball from inside the gift was good, though. And Andy was funny as the grinch who stole the star in the warehouse in attempt to make the party exciting for Darryl’s daughter. But whereas the first part of this episode was pretty funny, this one was more serious, which bumps it down several spots.

16. Sex Ed: Episode 4

When Michael is convinced he has herpes, he contacts all his ex-lovers to warn them and to see if he can find out who might have given it to him. This, of course, leads to several funny interactions with characters we haven’t seen in a while like Jan, Carol, and Helene. Meanwhile, back at the office, Andy’s sex ed meeting with the rest of the office employees was hilarious, as he attempted to discuss sexual health while trying to uncover Erin and Gabe’s status on the matter. While a funny episode, it does touch a tad on the serious side at the end with Michael’s message to Holly on her answer machine about how he still feels for her. It hints at something to come between the two characters pretty soon.

15. The Seminar: Episode 14

Andy’s holding a sales seminar in the office to try to pick up some new clients. But when Jim, Dwight, Phyllis, and Stanley all flake on him, he’s forced to use Creed, Kelly, and Kevin to replace them. And as you can imagine, they provide several laughs. Kevin’s introduction to Ozzy Osbourne’s “Crazy Train” where he runs around the room and throws up and Creed’s non-sensical Loch Ness Monster speech were hilarious. But Andy ended up overcoming them and closing with several people with Michael’s advice, which were feel-good moments that helped their characters “mature” a little bit. Other parts weren’t as interesting or entertaining, such as Jim’s avoidance of one of the seminar participants, Michael and Holly’s impersonation routines, and the Erin/Gabe “Words With Friends” game that Oscar and Pam help Erin on. But a decent episode for season 7 of the show, which is already past its prime.

14. Viewing Party: Episode 8

This is one of those episodes that take place outside of the office, taking place at Gabe’s apartment for a Glee viewing party. It has some small, funny parts in it that make it a solid episode. Michael’s immaturity, Andy swallowing the seahorse stuff, and the Gleeks all contribute to this episode in a good way. And while Michael is immature for 95% of the episode, he realizes at the end that Erin looks to him as a father figure since she grew up an orphan, and starts to act the part. That was a cool moment that shows Michael really is a good, caring person underneath his immature exterior.

13. Search Committee: Part 1: Episode 25

Not a bad episode overall, with some memorable parts. The most memorable to me was the opening, which I love. It was Creed as the boss doing the strangest and funniest things that only Creed would do, such as the BOBODDY acronym thing. The whole opening was hilarious. And the interviewing process, which the entire episode was based around, brought in some characters such as Ray Ramano’s character. We are also introduced to Robert California and Nellie, as they are two of the interviewees, but first-time viewers have no clue at this point we will ever see them again. As the 7th season prepares to wrap up with one more episode, the show continues to leave the viewers in an intrigued state as to what the post-Michael Scott chapter will look like.

12. The Inner Circle: Episode 23

A mildly entertaining episode, it’s the first one after Michael left the show. Will Ferrell as Deangelo Vickers takes center stage as the new boss and this was his episode to shine. He has a very confusing character where he seems cool one minute and the next you hate him, and that’s exactly how he is throughout this episode. The guys in his “inner circle” suck up to him like crazy, which is especially funny to see Gabe and Kevin do just that. The two most memorable things in this episode was Deangelo’s air juggling routing, which was hilarious, and his “MJ dunk from the free throw line” attempt which ended in him going to the hospital. Office fans have no idea what to think after viewing this episode for the first time.

11. Dwight K. Schrute, (Acting) Manager: Episode 24

We find out Deangelo is in a coma and won’t return as boss, so the office needs an acting manager for the time being. When Jim turns it down, Dwight definitely does not and takes drastic measures around the office which are fairly entertaining, but horrendous to work under. The most memorable scene is when Dwight accidentally fired the gun in the office. Andy’s temporary deafness in one ear was pretty funny while he pretended it was much worse, calling himself a gunshot victim. And of course, the reign of Dwight as manager ended there once Jo Bennet found out, leaving viewers heavily anticipating what is next when it shows Creed taking over as acting manager. It’s a solid 22 minutes, especially given the fact you’re still trying to adjust without Michael being there.

10. Threat Level Midnight: Episode 17

I honestly have no idea how to rank this one. It’s completely different from any other Office episode, as 80% of it is Michael’s movie “Threat Level Midnight.” After working on it for years, he’s finally ready to show it to the office staff. And it’s actually pretty entertaining. It has several funny parts, such as Michael doing The Scarn dance, Toby being killed (of course), as well as others. And since production of the movie took place over many years, I also liked how it featured former office characters we hadn’t seen in a while such as Jan and Karen. It was a fun episode and a great way to mix things up. But ultimately I’m going to favor the more traditional-style episodes over this one for my rankings.

9. Garage Sale: Episode 19

This is a very important episode that leads to a drastic turn in the series. It has some entertainment elements in it, which make The Office what it is, but it also has dramatic elements in it as well. I enjoyed the few entertainment bits such as Dwight trading all the way up from his thumbtack to a $150 telescope at the garage sale, just to be tricked by Jim into trading that for a pack of beans (or legumes). I also enjoyed Kevin, Darryl, and Andy playing the Dallas board game and Kevin outwitting them to get their money. But then you have the serious side of the episode as well that changed the show for the remainder of its entirety. We knew it was coming, but Michael proposes to Holly in a neat, unique way in the office, to which she said “yes.” But the series-altering news came when Michael announced he was moving to Colorado with Holly so she could be with family. The look on everyone’s face in the office was exactly the same as ours, “wait, what?” And then the episode was over. We’re happy for Michael Scott, but we don’t want to see him leave. This is, after all, his office and his show.

8. China: Episode 10

This is a good episode that has a lot of little funny parts throughout it. Dwight attempting to learn to use his feet for everyday tasks, the back and forth between Michael and Oscar about the knowledge of China, and Dwight installing all of his “green” initiatives around the office are all funny. It’s funny seeing Michael taking such great pride in the fact he bested Oscar on a fact about China, therefore thinking he is the smartest guy in the office. And it made it even better when everyone else in the office joined in jokingly to help Michael believe that. It’s a pretty good, light-hearted comedic episode all around that I enjoyed.

7. Classy Christmas: Part 1: Episode 11

The first part of a two-part Christmas special is a real solid episode. It hints early that something dramatic is getting ready to happen once the Christmas party was going too perfectly. And that something was Holly being temporarily transferred back to Scranton to replace Toby while he’s on the infamous Scranton Strangler jury duty. There’s a lot packed into this one with Holly’s return, Toby’s jury duty, the Jim/Dwight snowball fight, and Darryl’s daughter not wanting to visit him for Christmas. The snowball fight has some really funny parts to it, much to Jim’s terror. “Better put some ice on it LOL.” Michael has some immature scenes, which are always good. And several people have a funny line or two, like Kevin’s line to Angela, “that would be pretty impressive if anyone knew what a comptroller is.” Overall it’s a good episode, although it ranks on the bottom half of Christmas episodes from the show.

6. Training Day: Episode 20

A pretty entertaining episode and the first one since Michael announced his leaving. It features Will Ferrell as the new boss (Deangelo Vickers), who is in training before Michael leaves to Colorado. It’s tough to get a grip on him as a character, and at first you think you like him, but he slowly becomes more and more unlikeable. There’s a lot of funny parts in this episode though, including the opening scene with Michael and Deangelo at the bar, Andy as “the office funny guy,” Darryl’s cowboy get-up, Kevin’s hair-piece, and Erin’s telephone-answering dilemma. While you know Michael is leaving soon, and you’re sad about that, this episode delays any sadness and is just pure entertainment.

5. Costume Contest: Episode 6

Overall, it’s a pretty good episode, even though there are some annoying parts in it. For one, I find it annoying how Jim and Pam keep on pandering Danny Cordray about why he didn’t call Pam back after a date four years prior. It just seems childish and something that is below Jim and Pam. Also I didn’t really care for the Michael-Darryl “going over his head” thing, but it wasn’t as annoying as the Jim and Pam thing. But these two things for me were overshadowed by the Halloween costumes, which were great. It was fun seeing everyone dressed up and in the Halloween spirit to try to win the costume contest and the coupon booklet. There were also a lot of little funny parts throughout this episode that made it pretty good, such as Stanley not noticing anything that goes on around him and Kevin and Andy talking about Danny’s party at his bar later on.

4. The Sting: Episode 5

This is just a pretty funny episode through and through. Michael, Dwight, and Jim team up to figure out a way to stop losing sales to rival-salesman Danny Cordray after losing out on a sale to him that morning. They set up a sting, where they watch him on surveillance footage from the next door room to try to pick up on his sales tendencies, which is hilarious. After things go awry, he finds out, gets really mad, and Michael showcases his incredible salesmen skills in convincing Cordray to work for Dunder-Mifflin right then and there. Everything that revolved around that storyline was funny. It was also entertaining seeing Andy, Darryl, and Kevin play music together in the warehouse, especially at the end when they had everyone on board with their songs.

3. Andy’s Play: Episode 3

I’ve always loved this episode and find it hilarious. It takes places outside of the office at a local theater for Andy’s Sweeney Todd play. With the many mishaps during the play, it offers up laugh after laugh. And Michael was hilarious in the episode with his pouty attitude from not getting casted as Sweeney Todd. The balloons popping and the rolling wine bottle were great scenes. And as soon as you start to feel bad for Andy, the entire office gathers around him in support at the very end (with great reassuring words from a suddenly more mature Michael) and he sings Macy Gray’s “I Try” to them while Darryl plays the piano. I LOVE that scene. It’s a funny and feel-good episode.

2. Goodbye, Michael: Episode 22

This one is tough to watch for all the right reasons. It’s very emotional as it’s Michael’s last day in the office and he says his individual goodbyes to everyone. At this point (long before this point, actually) the office employees feel like your co-workers, so seeing your fun-loving, eccentric (but deep down caring) boss leave is very hard. There were some funny moments in this episode, such as Gabe’s jealous and revengeful behavior and some of Michael’s gifts to his employees. But mostly it was a build-up to the inevitable last scene that you wanted to delay so badly. And when it arrived, man was it tough to watch. Michael and Jim’s interaction in Michael’s office was very emotional, as well as the silent goodbye with Pam at the airport after he took off his microphone for the last time. I dread watching this episode every time, but you can’t deny how well it was done. It portrayed very well the maturity that Michael has gained over the last season or so and how it was just time for him to move on to gain the things he’s always aspired to have throughout the show. It’s the end of an era.

1. Michael’s Last Dundies: Episode 21

Man, what an episode! Honestly, this one has it all. It’s hilarious throughout as Michael prepares for his last Dundies and trains Deangelo to take over hosting duties. And like always, The Dundies deliver, with Erin’s acceptance speech where she dumps Gabe, Stanley’s diabetes award, and the hilarious videos Michael made such as the Phyllis bit where she’s “fallen and can’t get up.” The whole episode was hilarious until the end, when it delivers one of the most memorable and emotional scenes throughout the entire series. When the staff comes back to the office to finish The Dundies and sings “9,986,000 Minutes” to an unexpected Michael, it gets me and every fan of The Office EVERY SINGLE TIME. It’s such a special moment and show of appreciation for Michael. What a great episode.

Garett

The Office: Season Seven Episodes (Ranked)