NBC's "The Office" is arguably one of the best sitcoms that has ever been on television. The writing, characters, and comedy is all phenomenal, and many people have fallen in love with everything it has to offer. Many may also argue that the openings to each episode, called "cold opens," may be some of its finest pieces of work. I am a total "Office" nerd, so I have listed what I think are the best cold opens amongst all 9 Seasons.
After reading through the list, let me know if you agree with this placing. What are your favorite cold opens from this brilliant show?
1. Dwight's Fire
The famous fire drill cold open can be seen in Season 5, Episode 14 ("Stress Relief: Part 1"). It is crazy, chaotic, hilarious, and has to be the best opening to an episode that this show could create. It features Dwight creating a an extremely realistic fire drill (complete with smoke) that everyone in the office thinks is an actual fire. It creates a panic, revealing the characters' way of dealing with crises. It is without a doubt laugh-out-loud funny and truly shows the comedic quality of this amazing sitcom.
2. "Bears, beets, Battlestar Galatica"
3. The Lip Dub
Also used as a promotional item for the then new Season 7, this cold open aired before Episode 1 ("Nepotism"). The Office has always been very good at interjecting relevance into their writing and lip dubs were then becoming a popular way for anyone to create content. So the members of Dunder Mifflin, Scranton had to get in on the action. This is the most different opening to the show that you will probably see and captures each character in their essence. This was also Steve Carrell's last season, so they probably figured they needed to start it off with a bang. And let me just say- this take was a good one.
4. The TV Cube
From Season 4, Episode 3 ("Launch Party"), this cold open is one of my personal favorites. It's simple and perfect comedic timing is relatable to nearly every person who has had the tense experience of watching a DVD logo float across a television screen. The audience and the office find relief as that little square finds its way perfectly into the corner. Celebration ensues, much to Michael's nonchalance. This cold open shows that simple comedy can be fantastic comedy.
5. Stanley is Oblivious
6. Asian Jim
7. Pavlov's Dwight
This nod to Pavlov's famous experiment is from Season 3, Episode 15 ("Phyllis' Wedding"). There has to have been a psychology fan in the writer's room because this is a near perfect example of classical conditioning while enveloped in comedic genius. This cold open is another iconic one which shows the brilliant chemistry between Jim and Dwight.8. Jim Fakes A Murder
This cold open is from the later Season 8, Episode 15 ("Tallahassee") and seems to be somewhat lost on people's radar. Jim really goes all out for this prank on Dwight (and poor Erin) while they are working in Florida. He stages a murder in his hotel room as Dwight is performing the wake up call and times the dead corpse collapse from the closet in near perfection. This Jim prank deserves a real round of applause
9. Parkour
10. Cheese Balls
You can find a list of all cold opens here