‘The Office’: Leslie David Baker’s Favorite Episode Involved Bubble Wrap

The Office is remembered as being one of the wittiest recreations of modern office life. Its larger than life, hilarious characters helped depict that. The ensemble show had so many people contributing to its success. One of those actors who got plenty of opportunities to shine was Leslie David Baker. Baker recently reflected on his time on the show. According to the actor, there was one episode that stood out for him. Here’s the story of the show, the character Baker played, and the outrageously ridiculous episode he counted as his favorite. 

‘The Office’ had one of the best casts of all time

Steve Carell starred as Michael Scott, headlining the show, but every Office fan knows that in this case, the whole was greater than the sum of its parts. The show had so many memorable characters, that replacing any of them was almost impossible. Whether it was Dwight’s antics, Jim’s wisecracks, or Kelly’s ditziness, every character contributed something funny. The show was so well written, that even side characters like David Koechner’s Todd Packer or Melora Hardin’s Jan stood out. 

While there was certainly a hierarchy of characters (Michael, Jim, and Pam often got the majority of the attention), the show’s subplots often revolved around different supporting cast members. For example, the Dwight-Angela romance subplot runs throughout the entire series. When Carell departed the show, Ed Helms’ Andy becomes a much more integral figure in the series. One of the show’s best characters was played by Baker. 

Who was Leslie David Baker on ‘The Office?’

Baker played Stanley, the curmudgeon member of the Dunder Mifflin staff. While many of the characters had quirky personalities, Baker’s Stanley felt like someone out of a real-life office. He rarely smiled or expressed any emotion. He showed no respect for his bumbling boss. During staff meetings, he often did crossword puzzles to pass the time. 

What made Baker’s portrayal of Stanley so great were the times he did get to show some emotion. The juxtaposition of Stanley getting furious or happy was almost always hilarious. For example, when the office park has an annual pretzel day, Stanley shows great excitement at the mere thought of getting one. He comments that while he’s not happy with his life, for the most part, everything is fine on pretzel day. Once in line for the pretzel, he chastises his friend Phyllis for cutting in line and high-fives his nemesis, Michael. 

Leslie David Baker’s favorite episode of ‘The Office’ involved bubble wrap

Baker appeared on The Jeremiah Show from OMNY where he recounted his old times on The Office. According to Baker, his favorite episode was titled “Stairmageddon.” Vulture reported that this episode featured Dwight shooting Stanley with tranquilizers followed by the staff putting him in bubble wrap as they attempted to move him down the stairs. Baker said that it was safe to film, but that he was the one in the bubble wrap rather than a stunt man. 

“I was on the stairs a little bit, I did not slide into the wall because I value my cranium … I was in the bubble wrap … that was me that fell face forward but I didn’t hit the floor, I hit a mat.” 

This is one of Stanley’s funniest moments, so there’s no surprise that it would resonate with Baker. Getting to see the typically stationary Stanley being bandied about in bubblewrap made for one of the show’s most memorable images years after it’s been off the air.