Line #8 Recap/TheOfficeUSS2E12TheInjury


1	Michael accidentally steps on his George Foreman Grill (which he set up in his bedroom so he could wake up to the smell of bacon cooking) and burns his foot. Rather than take a sick day, he insists on coming to work. On his way to give a Michael a ride to the office, Dwight runs his car into a pole. While Michael treats his injury as a major disability and demands constant help from his employees, Dwight's behavior starts bouncing between oddly pleasant and downright bizarre, leading to suspicion that he has a concussion.
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3	Air date: January 12, 2006
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5	!!! Tropes
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7	* ActuallyPrettyFunny: The otherwise serious doctor snickers at the concussed Dwight's BorrowedCatchphrase joke.
8	* AmusingInjuries: Both Michael's cooked foot and Dwight's more serious concussion.
9	* BorrowedCatchphrase: Dwight does Michael's ThatsWhatSheSaid shtick, which the latter does ''not'' take kindly to.
10	* BreakfastInBed: Michael's explanation for burning his foot on a George Foreman Grill is that he enjoys breakfast in bed, but because he doesn't doesn't have a butler, he begins to cook his bacon at his bedside before going back to sleep.
11	* BreakingTheFourthWall: Michael removes his microphone when Dwight gets a CAT scan.
12	* BreatherEpisode: This was intended as a DenserAndWackier change of pace after the more involved character development in "Booze Cruise".
13	* CloudCuckooLandersMinder: Pam becomes this to Dwight. She's then horrified that Dwight has become "kind of" her friend.
14	* ConcussionsGetYouHigh: {{Jerkass}} Dwight starts acting uncharacteristically nice after crashing his car. The others eventually realize that he has a concussion and take him to the hospital. During this bout of identity amnesia, Dwight also shows absentmindedness and compulsive behavior not unlike fictional portrayals of being high on marijuana.
15	* DisabilityAsAnExcuseForJerkassery: Michael. While he only ''thinks'' he's disabled, he milks it by parking in the accessible spot and trying to get everyone to help him.
16	* DoubleMeaningTitle: The title Can refer to Michael's burned foot, his bruised ego, or Dwight's concussion.
17	* InspirationallyDisabled: Michael thinks the wheelchair-bound property manager, Billy Merchant, should be this, but he's a capable property manager who's irritated by Michael's antics.
18	--> '''Michael:''' Did you ever see ''Film/BornOnTheFourthOfJuly'' ? I thought he'd be more like that guy.
19	* ItsAllAboutMe: Michael is resentful that Dwight is getting more attention for his injury than him, even though Dwight's is far more serious.
20	* MinorInjuryOverreaction: While Michael's injuries are inconveniencing and do look genuinely painful, they're not serious, basically amounting to some mild and easily-treated second degree burns at absolute worst. Michael is clearly trying to milk them for sympathy points. Illustrated when Ryan tricks him into eating some aspirin by crushing it into a pudding (in a similar way to how dogs are often tricked into eating medication); Michael immediately perks up and begins acting more like his usual self, implying that all he really needed all along was some over-the-counter painkillers.
21	* NotHimself: Dwight after his accident. He starts to act friendly, which others find kind of creepy.
22	* OhCrap:
23	** Pam gets this when she and Dwight have essentially become friends.
24	** Jim once Billy's words cause him to realize that Dwight's car collision earlier that day resulted in him getting a concussion. This spreads to their coworkers when he informs them, particularly Angela.
25	** Jim and Michael when they realize that Dwight, thirsty from the concussion, is about to drink some of Meredith's alcohol in her van.
26	* OnlySaneMan: Billy Merchant, the property manager. He knows about Dwight's accident from his job and he recognizes oddities in his behavior, but, unlike the others, he realizes concussions are SeriousBusiness and should be examined at a hospital. Also, he assumes he was invited to speak not because of his disability, but because people have been parking in freight spaces.
27	* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: Dwight gets more friendly and exhibits strange behavior, such as repeatedly typing his name for a file name for no reason, stopping in the middle of sentences, raising his hand before getting confused as to why he did so, and openly flirts with Angela with no regard for who may be watching them, among other quirks, after he crashes his car. It eventually occurs to the others that this is due to a serious concussion and send him to the hospital.
28	* PersonalitySwap: In a subtle way, the injuries of Michael and Dwight have led them to take on parts of each other's personalities. Michael becomes a humorless ControlFreak, while Dwight becomes more amiable and even starts joking around with the others.
29	* PetTheDog:
30	** Despite Pam and Angela's ongoing tension, Pam sees Angela watching as she's getting an update from Jim about Dwight's condition. She then goes and tells Oscar that Dwight is okay, within earshot of Angela.
31	** Jim is probably the first person in the office to notice how weird Dwight is acting and instantly goes to his aid when it becomes clear that he actually ''has'' experienced a serious concussion.
32	** Michael (grudgingly) agrees to accompany Dwight into the CAT scan chamber when Dwight shows trepidation about it.
33	* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: Michael's discriminatory and offensive behavior on top of his entitled attitude gets on Billy's nerves, prompting him to leave once he's had enough of Michael's demeaning attitude and behavior.
34	* ThrowingOffTheDisability: Downplayed. When Dwight needed Michael to come with him into the CAT scan room, Michael revealed he was perfectly capable of moving about without crutches, even for long periods of time.
35	* TooDumbToLive: Michael is lucky a burnt foot is the worst thing that happened to him for leaving raw food out overnight at the foot of his bed.

Context Recap / TheOfficeUSS2E12TheInjury