"And THAT is Dallas."

Oh man. One after the other, and I haven't even watched the Pulp Fiction episode of Community yet. But I've got to post while it's fresh in my mind, and tomorrow morning I won't have time.

One of the hallmarks of the best episodes of The Office are two or three storylines that all carry through and bring something great to the table in order to create the perfect blend of drawn-out-joke funny, quippy, and emotional. "Garage Sale" handles all three of these elements with the wit and visual dexterity we all know and love, and turns out yet another great segment in The Final Chapter Of Michael Scott. I want to break down all three of the storylines and then we'll deal with the fun squee! stuff at the end.

The B storyline was about Dwight starting at the garage sale with a thumbtack and trading his way up to the best thing there. It was classic entrepreneurial Dwight ("Those are the money beets") at his best, and because he really is a great salesman he manages to convince people that they need things like half a candle. Along the way Jim tries to trick him with his "miracle legumes", but Dwight, as has been the case lately, has a growing awareness of Jim's pranks. He resists the magic beans until the very end, and even though we see that he knows he might have made a really dumb mistake, Dwight can't help but believe in even the possibility of magic. It's a good way to show that even though Dwight has deepened as a character, he is still both cunning and childishly guileless is a wonderfully entertaining way.

The C storyline was Andy, Darryl, and Kevin playing the Dallas board game (I can't help thinking that Bill from Freaks and Geeks would LOVE to play) that Kevin had brought to the garage sale. A great excuse for Ed Helms and Craig Robinson to bring out their hilarious vaguely-Southern accents and for Kevin, once again, to use his gambling skills for fun and profit. One of the best C stories they've had for a while, with a fun twist at the end.

The A storyline was, of course, about Michael preparing to propose to Holly. Pam finds him trying to light the parking lot on fire, and so she arranges a special meeting with Jim, Ryan, and Oscar to help guide Michael in the best - and safest - method of proposal. These are actors who are so comfortable in their characters that they play off each other effortlessly and the scenes in the conference room are a joy to watch. And to have the very quick rehash of Jim and Pam's proposal was a nice emotional tag, especially because those two are the best at meaningful glances.

You almost think Michael has botched the proposal when Holly tries to do it herself and he stops her. But then he takes her on a romantic tour of the office monuments to their love, leads them down an aisle lined with the employees holding candles and occasionally proposing, which was weird, but also weirdly great (after Ryan's proposal, Michael mutters, "Only one I was kinda worried about.") Then a billion unfeasible candles are in the annex and, of course, the sprinklers go off. But, like always, they laugh through it and the following proposal in totally misspoken Yoda-talk, just like when he helped fix her chair. Then Michael announces that they're moving to Colorado (Kevin: "All of us?") and we see the news dawn on everyone's faces - some sad, some happy, all of them shocked. And kissing and yay!

I found the reason for leaving being Holly's aging parents in Colorado to be very true-to-life (I've watched my mom deal with her own mother's dementia) and very unarguewithable. Though what they plan to do for money when Michael just spent three years' salary on a giant diamond and they both work for the same company is beyond me, I'm willing to suspend my disbelief and see Michael Scott off with good cheer and no hard feelings, though I am hoping for a kick-ass wedding. I'm really enjoying the ride to his departure, and to see what comes next.

Notes & Quotes, por supuesto.

"Schrutes are farmers by hobby, and traders by trade."

"Correction: I do NOT want to sell you Professor Copperfield's Miracle Legumes."

I love the reappearance of the St. Pauli girl neon ("If it's a problem with the neon, I can have my neon guy take a look."), maybe the ultimate symbol of his completely ill-matched relationship with Jan. Michael with Jan resented having to hide parts of himself. Michael with Holly can be himself completely, so he doesn't need the dumb neon sign that is so much more appropriate for Kevin.

"Which one's decaf?" Hank is the best.

"I'm asking Holly a question in fire."

"You got this Kosher-certified?"

"No, I meant like, it's cool, it's kosher, it's all good."

"Oh, it's just Stanley's old photo album. I was thinking about throwing it in the garbage - I mean, why would I want some random black man's old photo album sitting on my bookshelf? I'm not James Franco."

"If you are in costume, you're doing something wrong."

"We must honorably adhere to the rules we are making up on the spot."

"But that's not fair!"
"Well, that's Dallas."

"Blogs are out, but people are texting each other - no more animals."

"That must have been a surprise...when at the gas station you proposed."

"You can't go, you're dead, I shot you five moves ago."

The only thing this episode was missing is more Creed.

Image via Daemon TV