Special guest and longtime Office fan Rod Johnson (yes, that’s his real name) stops by to discuss the departure of Michael Scott / Steve Carell from NBC’s current flagship sitcom. Tom and Rod talk about where the show 
is and where the show is headed. Of course, there’s also the obligatory tangent to sing the praises of 30 Rock, but they push through it quickly enough.
Listen or download below!
Last night provided us with one of those rare glimpses at unfolding history with the full understanding of its significance as it happened. The gleefulness of some of the responses were mildly troubling to me, as were the quickly-
fatigued memes involving Waldo, Donald Trump death certificate demands (get it?!?), and various numbers of awaiting virgins (or not). I’m simply not entirely comfortable celebrating a death, even a death that I myself agree was for the best and needed to happen.
I also noticed the usual strange lack of historical perspective by those of us living presently, particularly younger people. Twitter was replete with comparisons of Osama bin Laden’s death to that of Adolf Hitler (in part because of a quirky historical coincidence regarding May 1st), and the celebration of Bin Laden’s death to V-J Day. Anyone who thinks our current military operations or the destruction brought about by al-Qaeda are comparable to the events of World War II should cease all present leisure activities in order to find the time to read a book on the second World War. Or, failing that, watch the History Channel for no less than fifteen minutes.
Despite these concerns, I understand the symbolism and significance of this achievement by the American government, and, more to the point, our military and intelligence communities. This is an important moment of closure for many people. This is an important moment of triumph for the personnel who have worked diligently for nearly a decade to carry out this task on behalf of a grateful nation.
Having said all of the above, I hope that our respective responses to the news of the past few hours are tempered by the knowledge that there is much work yet to be done.
Still at large:
Archer wrapped up last week after nearly winning four straight to end its season. We’re therefore down to two: 30 Rock, and the (crying) elephant in the (melancholy) room—The 
Office. I have a feeling picking a victor in tonight’s SitCombat will be easy. I’m either going to love The Office or pull several orbital muscles thanks to perpetual eye-rolling.
Let’s find out which it was. This was SitCombat for April 28, 2011:
Or, if not “good,” at least “watchable.” But it looks like Hugh Jackman and company will put the premise-I-just-made-up to the test with 2011’s Real Steel.
If Transformers could somehow have a baby with Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots, the resulting offspring would be this movie. I’m not entirely sure whether this is meant to be taken seriously. The tone is certainly indicative of such an intent. That is, until the closing moments of what you see below, when Jackman screams “BRING IT!” to some unseen robot and/or boxer. I can only hope this was done with at least a hint of irony.
The premise is that people no longer box because of the debilitating physical effects the sweet science can bestow upon fragile human flesh. However, our mechanical allies are only too happy to step into the ring in our place. Given that Jackman is evidently an ex-boxer, the cultural metamorphosis from human fighters to robot-only pugilism must have taken place in a matter of a few years. This is merely a guess, but that’s probably not even in the top five most unbelievable plot points found in Real Steel.
Although I can’t fully support this endeavor, I bring it to your attention in the name of Robot History Month. If nothing else, at least this movie helped provide work for several members of the robot community.
The annual sports entertainment rite of passage known as the inaptly-named WWE Draft took place tonight (April 25, as I write this). The event fascinates me for reasons wholly unrelated to in-ring competition. For fans savvy enough to read between the lines, the
Draft offers a rare opportunity to divine how the organization’s creative team perceives the ideal business model over the course of the next year or so.
I thought it might be fun to break out the almost-a-cliche “live blog” format (Bill Simmons would call it a “running diary”) for this evening’s festivities. Before I do that, indulge me the opportunity to provide my take on talent utilization within the company.
I’d like to take this opportunity to drive the brow-o-meter down to its basest level for the first time ever with a video that has nothing whatsoever to do with this or any other holiday. Enjoy!
All three shows were new again tonight. Would Archer’s season finale be enough to propel the FX animated show to an improbable fourth consecutive victory? Would The Office take the crown as Steve Carell’s long goodbye continues? Or perhaps 30 Rock’s 100th episode would be enough to put Alec Baldwin and company over the top?
This could be a very close race. This was SitCombat for April 21, 2011:
I may have mentioned once or twice that we here at the Axis of Ego are celebrating Robot History Month. Well, apparently, so are the Philadelphia Phillies.
A robot (brilliantly dubbed “PhillieBot”) will throw out the first pitch at the Phillies-Brewers game later today. While I would love to tell you this is part of a RHM celebration, this magnanimous gesture of inclusiveness is actually related to something called “Science Day.”
No one is complaining about that tiny detail: As everyone knows, robots will take recognition however they can get it.
We would like to applaud the Phillies for allowing this Robo-American the chance to prove himself on the field, rather than perpetuating negative stereotypes about robots.
I look forward to the day in the near future when Brian Cashman offers the PhillieBot a thirty million dollar contract in the off-season. Then, when the PhillieBot winds up remaining in Philadelphia, Hank Steinbrenner claims the Yankees were merely trying to drive up the PB’s price for the sake of gaining an even bigger competitive payroll advantage.
Robot History Month is a time to celebrate the unsung heroes woven into the rich tapestry of this proud community. One such hero is the Robotic Operating Buddy. “ROB” for short.
ROB the Robot was born in Japan* in 1985. More than anyone else, he is responsible for the revival of the video game industry after the infamous crash of 1983. This is his story.
ROB, during happier times
It’s the summer of 1982. Video game manufacturers and publishers are at the tail-end of a golden era in home electronics. However, low-quality games begin to flood the market, lowering consumer confidence that video games would continue to be a reliable medium for entertainment. Sales tumble downward, and several formerly-prominent companies are bankrupt by the following year. The most iconic incident during this dark time for console games is the burial of thousands of unsold video game cartridges in a New Mexico landfill by former kingpin Atari.
The Axis of Ego 
SitCombat: 5/5/11
It’s the dawn of an exciting and frightening new era on The Office, as we’re treated to our first post-Michael Scott episode (although, as I said last week, the real test won’t come until the beginning of the 2011-12 season).
Meanwhile, 30 Rock winds down its penultimate season with tonight’s finale. Archer has already wrapped and isn’t showing re-runs, so, again, this will be a two-horse race.
Can 30 Rock defend its title against the revamped Office? This was SitCombat for May 5, 2011:
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