The Convict

Not just executive producers this time

The Convict is an episode of the American series of The Office written by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant. The episode aired on 06 November 2006 during the third season of the show and was the 38th episode overall. To date, it remains the episode that Ricky and Steve had the most involvement in.

Plot

Prison Mike

The main plot begins in the conference room where Michael and several employees are find out that a ex-con is working at their branch. It is revealed to be Martin, a recent transfer to Scranton. Reactions are mixed, with Angela fearful of being attacked, Dwight on the offense, and Michael disappointed that the convict is a black man. Michael announces Martin's incarceration to the entire staff and attempts to rationalize the non-issue of race. The staff asks Martin about his time in prison, which he served for insider trading. When it is revealed that his prison life had perks better than those in the office, Michael becomes upset. He allows the staff to have "outdoor time" but it fails miserably due to the cold. After more prison perks are told, Michael summons everyone into the meeting room. There, the character of "Prison Mike" (Michael with a bandana and a poorly done Bronx accent) is revealed. His crimes include stealing, robbing, and kidnapping the president's son (though he never was caught). When asked about the worst thing about prison, he responds "the dementors". Prison Mike uses "Scared Straight" styled tactics to try and convince the staff that prison life is not fun. Michael returns to his former self after his attempt fails and then locks everyone in the meeting room. Toby (who was not in the room) saves the day by convincing Michael to open the door after explaining how office life is actually better than prison life. In the end, Martin quits over the whole affair and Michael is glad to see him go (but he's not racist).

Subplot

After the intro, we find out that Jim is seeing Karen now, but on the downlow so few people know about it. Andy calls Jim and asks him about girls in the office. Jim points out Pam to him, but lists all the things she hates as ways to woo her. Andy later tries to hit on Pam using Jim's maligned pointers, much to her amusement. When Karen tries to get in on pranking Andy with Jim, he dismisses her in order to protect Pam. The episode ends with Andy singing "The Rainbow Connection" in falsetto pig latin while playing a banjo.

Pam's "Favorite" Things

• Frisbee based competitions
• Hunting
• Six Flags ads with that "old guy"
• Pig latin
• Country music
• Falsetto singing