The Office's 15 Best Episodes Ranked

American remakes of foreign shows are a mixed bag, but the American version of "The Office" grew to become as beloved as its British source material. Developed by Greg Daniels and based on the 2001 series created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant across the pond, the American "Office" became a comedy staple on NBC. The American version retains the narrative broad strokes of a boorish boss, Michael Scott (Steve Carell), leading a paper company, unaware of how cringey and unfunny he is. This is juxtaposed with young salesman Jim Halpert (John Krasinski) trying to win the affections of receptionist Pam Beesly (Jenna Fischer) despite her being engaged to someone else, along with bizarre and funny storylines involving the rest of Dunder Mifflin Scranton's eccentric employees.

Earlier this year, Daniels returned to the "Office"-verse by way of Peacock spinoff "The Paper," in which the same documentary crew from the original series now follows the staff at a declining Ohio newspaper. After dropping all its episodes on Peacock in September, "The Paper" is now getting a second run on NBC. In celebration of the "Office" universe's return to primetime NBC, here are the 15 best episodes of "The Office," ranked and ready for you to revisit.

Even the most devoted "Office" fan would concede that the show was still figuring out its own voice throughout its first season. The highlight of this six-episode season is "Diversity Day," where a racially insensitive joke by Michael leads the staff to undergo corporate-mandated diversity training. Led by consultant Mr. Brown (Larry Wilmore), the seminar is immediately derailed when Michael constantly tries to take control of it, only to be incensed when he learns it was imposed because of his behavior. Privately humiliated, Michael then tries to lead his own diversity seminar, to his staff's chagrin.

Whereas the American pilot took many of its cues and gags from the British series, "Diversity Day" was a wholly original story. This change took the show out from under the shadow of its predecessor, maintaining the premise, but with its own unique comedic sensibilities. The episode also began to develop the wider ensemble the series became known for, instead of hinging the focus on its leads. As an early defining moment for the show, "Diversity Day" helped the American version's nascent comedic voice take its baby steps.

Every once in a while, Michael Scott's surprising effectiveness as a businessman surfaces, reminding the audience that he's not completely inept. During Season 5, a frustrated Michael leaves Dunder Mifflin to start his own paper company, joined by Pam and Ryan Howard (B.J. Novak). As Michael begins poaching Dunder Mifflin's lucrative clients, increasingly desperate CFO David Wallace (Andy Buckley) offers to buy out Michael's company. During business negotiations, Michael does his best to conceal the fact that his company is actually completely broke.

"Broke" is really Michael Scott at his business-savvy best, clearly articulating his leverage over David. Given how morally dubious David and his right-hand associate Charles Miner (Idris Elba) had become, there is a clear sense of triumph as Michael finally comes out on top. The episode also clearly shows Dwight Schrute (Rainn Wilson) being his own worst enemy, aware of Michael's financial plight but too awkward to reveal it to Charles and David. A neat wrap-up of the Michael Scott Paper Company storyline, "Broke" is Michael at his most heroic.

The Season 2 episode "Office Olympics" features the Scranton branch left to its own devices when Michael and Dwight leave the office for most of the day. Michael faces the prospect of being trapped in a financially unwise mortgage, something accentuated by Dwight's constant unwanted observations about Michael's new condo. Meanwhile, Jim leads his co-workers in hosting an impromptu Office Olympics, honoring the winners of silly office games with makeshift medals. The event becomes a bonding one for the staff, even as Michael and Dwight make their return at the end of the day.

"Office Olympics" is another early effort to highlight the wider ensemble, defining their interpersonal dynamics and individual foibles. This is a simple and sweet episode, devoid of the bigger drama that came increasingly into play as the show progressed. It's a joy to see which game each character excels at, as is Michael's quiet acceptance of the proceedings. A comfort-food watch if there ever were one, "Office Olympics" continues to distinguish the American series early into Season 2.

Season 4 of "The Office" opened with four two-parters, which were each originally broadcast as a single double-sized episode. The first of this set was "Fun Run," with Michael deciding to host an office-wide charity run after accidentally hitting his co-worker Meredith Palmer (Kate Flannery) with his car. This development is coupled with Jim and Pam trying to keep their burgeoning romantic relationship a secret from the rest of the staff despite their visible happiness. As Jim and Pam's romance takes off, the relationship between Dwight and Angela Martin (Angela Kinsey) faces its first major challenge when Dwight euthanizes Angela's beloved cat.

Season 4 was a mixed bag for Michael, with the character often displaying more boneheaded behavior than usual. "Fun Run" manages that delicate balance between keeping Michael as a buffoon, albeit one who's not completely reprehensible as he is in his worst moments. And in true "Office" form, Michael certainly gets his comeuppance for his boorishness by the episode's end. A solid way to start the fourth season after resolving the will-they/won't-they tension between Jim and Pam, "Fun Run" retains the show's momentum.

There are times when the absurd works well within the series' comedic sensibilities, and "The Office" always recognized when to dip into this arena. In the Season 3 episode "Ben Franklin," Phyllis Lapin (Phyllis Smith) and Bob Vance (Bobby Ray Shafer) celebrate their impending nuptials. Dwight hires a stripper for Bob's party, while, as a prank, Jim hires a Benjamin Franklin impersonator (Andrew Daly) for Phyllis' bridal shower. In the midst of the chaos, Jim's girlfriend, Karen Filippelli (Rashida Jones), questions Pam about whether she is still attracted to Jim.

The idea of a Ben Franklin impersonator largely staying in character and wandering around the office is ridiculous, but it still works well. Similarly, Dwight putting the stripper (Jackie Debatin) to work in the office after Bob's bachelor party falls apart is another fantastic gag. The episode also begins to escalate the tension between Pam and Karen, playing a key role in Season 3. An episode that steadily advances the plot while finding outlandishly hilarious scenarios for its characters, "Ben Franklin" has a lot of fun with its premise.

Season 7 of "The Office" was ultimately the last one with Carell in the cast, and it quietly laid the groundwork for his departure. The turning point occurred in the episode "Garage Sale," with Michael deciding to propose to his girlfriend, Holly Flax (Amy Ryan). This coincides with Holly privately deciding to relocate to Colorado to care for her aging parents, complicating matters. Michael manages to pull off a memorable proposal, surprising his staff further by announcing that he plans to move with Holly, leaving them behind.

Michael and Holly's romance is one that rivals Jim and Pam's as the show's best, and certainly didn't feel as overly protracted in its realization. Michael's proposal, with the rest of the staff present and participating, is one of the most romantic moments in the entire series, and the beginning of a wonderful send-off. Sadly, his subsequent announcement about leaving comes as a genuine surprise, even with the episode clearly telegraphing it earlier on. "Garage Sale" hits all the right sentimental notes while signaling the end of an era.

Season 3 saw Michael embark on an on-again/off-again toxic romance with his boss Jan Levinson (Melora Hardin), trying to break it off over her controlling nature. This comes to a head, along with Jan's corporate standing with Dunder Mifflin, in the Season 3 finale. Michael, Jim, and Karen travel to New York to interview for a corporate job opening, unaware that they are interviewing for Jan's position, with plans for her ousting. This is complicated by Michael agreeing to reconcile with Jan after she reveals that she's received breast augmentation surgery.

Like so many great season finales, "The Job" offers closure on several underlying storylines while setting up interesting directions for the subsequent season to pursue. Jan and Michael's story revealed that she was more unstable than he is, or at least less compassionate, while Ryan swoops in to take her job, foreshadowing his villainous turn. Of course, the episode finally resolves the long-standing romantic tension between Jim and Pam in the sweetest closing scene of any season. In a way, the series could've ended with "The Job" and still felt satisfyingly concluded. But fortunately, there was more story to tell.

During its fifth season, "The Office" got the coveted post-Super Bowl slot, with the double-sized "Stress Relief" airing after the big game that year. In one of the show's best cold openings, Dwight fakes a fire in the office to instill the importance of emergency readiness. However, in the chaos, Stanley Hudson (Leslie David Baker) suffers a heart attack, prompting Michael to institute ways to mitigate stress at the workplace. This culminates in a roast, with himself as the subject, and the staff is eager to join in.

Knowing they would get millions more viewers than usual who weren't necessarily well-versed in the show, the "Office" creatives designed "Stress Relief" as an introduction and highlight for the series. Apart from the tacked-on guest stars, the episode really is a showcase for the show's strengths. From Dwight's inane prologue to the ensemble cast capitalizing on the roast-of-Michael premise, so many characters get a chance to shine. A super-sized episode that takes full advantage of its increased runtime, "Stress Relief" is easily the best episode in Season 5.

As self-centered and clueless as he often is, Michael Scott is a far more endearing character than Ricky Gervais' David Brent in the British "Office." That distinction makes his departure from the show in the Season 7 episode "Goodbye, Michael" all the more bittersweet. As Michael prepares to relocate to Colorado for his fiancée, Holly, he bids farewell to each of his staff members individually with as little drama as possible. Meanwhile, incoming branch manager Deangelo Vickers (Will Ferrell) begins to show signs that he's not up to replacing Michael.

For better or worse, "Goodbye, Michael" signals a turning point for the series, both with its lead actor and overall perception of quality. The episode brings plenty of emotionally poignant moments, particularly Jim's final conversation with Michael, as well as recurring gags rewarding longtime viewers. Thematically, the idea that an egomaniac like Michael would skip his own farewell party underscored how much the character had grown. After "Goodbye, Michael," the show was never the same.

Jim isn't in the Scranton office in the beginning of Season 3, having relocated to Stamford in an effort to overcome his lovesickness for Pam. This leads to a shake-up of staff dynamics in Scranton, explored in the episode "Initiation," with Dwight trying to take Ryan under his wing. As Dwight leads Ryan on bizarre sales training exercises at Schrute Farms, Michael's productivity back at the office is completely derailed by the chance of scoring a free pretzel. Meanwhile, Jim's flirtatious relationship with Karen develops as the two good-naturedly tease each other in the Stamford branch.

It's not often that we get to see Ryan and Dwight pal around together, even if said palling is one-sided. The two play off each other well in the episode, with writer and producer Michael Schur making his debut as Dwight's even stranger cousin, Mose. The episode also provides funny insight into Pam and Michael's working relationship as she tries to get him to sign off on a single form despite his pretzel-focused procrastination. Jim returns to the Scranton fold before too long, but "Initiation" offers a fun glimpse at how his co-workers operated without him.

The relationship between Michael and Jan was always a pressure cooker that was going to explode when they rekindled their romance at the end of Season 3. That inevitable rupture occurs in the Season 4 episode "Dinner Party," with Jan and Michael hosting an intimate dinner with Michael's closest friends. The hosts put on their best attempt at a unified, happy facade, though long-simmering tensions quickly surface. As the dinner progresses, the friendly evening becomes increasingly derailed as the true extent of the couple's misery reveals itself.

There are a lot of people who regard "Dinner Party" as one of the best episodes of the entire series, and some who find it excessively cringey. This is an episode that will leave viewers feeling as awkward as Michael and Jan's guests, which many find all the more hilarious. Regardless of your tolerance for cringe humor, there are some big gags that appeal more broadly, including Michael showing off his tiny mounted flatscreen TV. A tale of four couples of varying dispositions, "Dinner Party" has the audience laughing and wincing at the same time with every watch.

The long-anticipated wedding of Jim Halpert and Pam Beesly truly was event television when it was broadcast in 2009 as part of "The Office" Season 6. Originally airing as a double-sized episode, the happy couple, along with their friends and family, travel to Niagara Falls for their nuptials. Jim and Pam try to manage the unexpected complications that come with the event, including trying to keep Pam's pregnancy a secret from her super-traditional grandmother. Meanwhile, Michael and Dwight try to hook up with women at the wedding party with varying amounts of success.

With its doubled runtime, "Niagara" finds interesting moments for most of the ensemble cast, including Andy Bernard (Ed Helms) injuring himself dancing and Kevin Malone (Brian Baumgartner) losing his shoes. The episode contains some of the sweetest moments between Jim and Pam, including the two secretly and privately getting married on a Niagara Falls tourist boat before the big church ceremony. And the sight of the entire staff recreating a viral dance video down the aisle in unison is a fun climax to the event. A beautiful episode with an interesting shocker involving Michael and Pam's mom, "Niagara" is the standout from Season 6.

As a means to inevitably get Jim back to Scranton, the Dunder Mifflin Stamford office is closed partway through Season 3, with Michael's branch absorbing the displaced workers. This plot development gave the show the opportunity to offer a fresh perspective on Michael's antics from his new employees and, unsurprisingly, many of them ended up resigning. The highlight of this rapid attrition is "The Convict," with Michael learning that relocated employee Martin Nash (Wayne Wilderson) previously did time in prison. Michael tries to keep Martin from feeling ostracized while simultaneously warning his employees about the rigors of life behind bars.

This is the only episode of the series fully written by the franchise's British creators, Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, and they get the American characters' eccentricities down perfectly. Of note is Michael developing the persona of Prison Mike, a convict caricature who tries to scare his staff straight and warns them about the Dementors (yep, like in "Harry Potter"). Of all the guest stars "The Office" has had, Wilderson does a great job here, and one wishes he'd stuck around longer. In any case, "The Convict" is another strong episode from Season 3, when the series was firing on all cylinders.

Christmas episodes of "The Office" became something of an informal tradition for the show, starting with its second season. The best of these holiday-centric stories was the third season's "A Benihana Christmas," which was the first double-sized episode in the series. When possessive Michael is dumped by his girlfriend Carol Stills (Nancy Walls, Carell's real-life wife), Andy leads a handful of the guys to cheer him up at a Benihana restaurant. Back at the office, tensions between Angela and Pam and Karen lead to rival holiday parties being held in the same space.

The first of four episodes directed by the late, great Harold Ramis, "A Benihana Christmas" is the funniest of the show's holiday tales. Admittedly, the gag about the Asian servers Michael and Andy pick up has aged poorly, but it serves more to underscore the two characters' general obliviousness and buffoonery. The episode also firmly establishes Andy and Karen within the Scranton ecosystem, able to roll with the punches in a way their recently departed fellow transplants couldn't. A super-sized episode highlighting all the ensemble cast's idiosyncrasies, "A Benihana Christmas" is also Steve Carell's personal favorite.

The first "Office" episode written by Carell, "Casino Night" closes out the second season with the show's biggest cliffhanger to date. Michael throws a charity casino night in the office warehouse, using the event to invite both Jan and Carol as his date — to his surprise, both women agree. Meanwhile, Pam continues to prepare for her wedding, reviewing band audition tapes with Jim, and the two are shocked to learn Kevin fronts a Police cover band. (!) Everything comes to a head at the casino night, from Michael's two dates to Jim finally acting on his unrequited love for Pam.

Like all the best episodes of "The Office," "Casino Night" shares the spotlight among most of its characters, with the premise giving them the chance to change up their usual roles. For viewers who had been on the hook for the will-they-won't-they dynamic between Jim and Pam, the episode finally offers a payoff, something that was a long time coming. Moreover, the episode is just plain funny, playing on the natural rapport between its extensive ensemble to great effect. The perfect distillation of everything that makes "The Office" so celebrated, "Casino Night" comes in hot and keeps the laughs coming.