More fun out of the Office

Last night episodes of PARKS AND RECREATIONS and THE OFFICE were pretty excellent, as both ventured well beyond the confines of their normal settings.
Let's begin with the biggest surprise, which was THE OFFICE being funny. I've really been down on the show this year. It's revolved too heavily around Jim and Pam, often cashing in solely on the mystique the show has built up during its tenure. Last night's episode was a return to the ensemble focus this show does so well. Even with Jim and Pam in the episode, they were just featured players and not the primary interest.
The best part of the episode was when Andy came clean about his burgeoning relationship with Erin, which led to him revealing that he's a Drama Queen. They are a very cute couple, and I like that they're not being shoved in our face. Their story is being revealed bit by bit in an addicting manner that leaves us always wanting more.
Much of last night's episode was about coupling. We had Phylis and Bob, which introduced new angles into their rowdy sex life. We got to further explore the dynamic of Kelly and Ryan, including their DDR cohesion. THe gorgeous Isabelle returned as Dwight's soul mate, with Angela trying her mightiest to worm her way into this threesome. Even Michael hit it off with Pam's friend, as Date Michael made moves with the Bar Manager. Finally, there was Matt and Oscar, which included validation for Michael's decision not to let Oscar play basketball in season 1.
The episode was good because it didn't force a storyline, but merely allowed the characters to develop naturally. The wackos on this show are so strange that all you have to do is create a strange scenario for them, and the comedy will essentially write itself. Last night's episode didn't push any agenda and let us just laugh. It felt good.
This is a lesson PARKS hasn't forgotten, as evidenced by another great episode. What really made this episode for me was that it gave everyone something to do and somewhere to shine, which is always the case. Tom in particular has been saddled with dumb stories lately, so it was nice to see his modeling dreams put into action from behind the lens.
The best part of the episode was the rapport of the Park Managers, which was some of the zaniest humor on television. As Ron Swanson, Nick Offerman put on a show simply by describing his hunger and eventually running toward the picnic. He has continuously been one of the strongest pieces on PARKS, along with Chris Pratt's Andy.
The show even knows how to pull Jim and Pam like heartstrings with the stalled progression between Andy and April. I've already forgotten about PB & J and have moved on to Anil Date. (AN and D from Andy Dwyer and IL and ATE from April Ludgate.)

I look forward to more high quality on both shows. What do you think? Do you agree with my assessment?