"Beach Games" is the twenty-third episode of the third season of the American version of The Office and the 51st of the series. In this episode, the office goes to a nearby lake for some "beach games". It is revealed that Michael (Steve Carell) is being interviewed for a position at corporate and that the winner of the beach games will become regional manager. Meanwhile, Dwight (Rainn Wilson) and Angela (Angela Kinsey) sabotage Andy (Ed Helms), and Pam (Jenna Fischer) spends her day taking notes of the office workers' activities.
The episode was written by Jennifer Celotta and Greg Daniels and directed by Harold Ramis. Filming took place at a fake beach near Hansen Dam, as it was "the bleakest lake [they could] find." The crew had to deal with hot temperatures during the day and "frigid" weather at night. One of Helms' scenes involved him being trapped on a lake in a sumo wrestling outfit, forcing him to wear a harness and be pulled by a boat manned by a crew member. For the fire walk, orange and yellow gels and lava rocks were used, and gas lines were installed to produce flames.
An estimated 7.2 million viewers watched "Beach Games" on its first American broadcast on May 10, 2007, resulting in the episode placing fourth for the night in its timeslot. It received mainly positive reviews from television critics, and many cited the sumo suit scenes and the coal walk scene as particular highlights. Most critics praised Pam's speech at the end of the episode.
Plot
When Michael Scott (Steve Carell) is invited by CFO David Wallace
to interview for a position at Dunder-Mifflin corporate headquarters in New York City, he assumes he will get the job. So he decides to hold a Survivor-like competition at Lake Scranton to determine his successor. The entire office travels to the lake by bus, except for Toby Flenderson (Paul Lieberstein), whom Michael will not allow to attend, much to Toby's disappointment because he anticipated getting to see Pam Beesly (Jenna Fischer) wearing her bikini.
Michael selects the "tribe" captains – Jim Halpert (John Krasinski), Dwight Schrute (Rainn Wilson), Andy Bernard (Ed Helms) and Stanley Hudson (Leslie David Baker) – and instructs Pam to take detailed notes on the events of the day, which include games such as egg and spoon races and hot dog eating contests. Initially unaware of the purpose of the exercise, the employees do not all take it seriously. However, when Michael reveals he is interviewing for the job in New York, Andy and Dwight step up their efforts and Stanley tries to be enthusiastic but quickly gives up. David Wallace also asks Jim and Karen Filippelli (Rashida Jones) to interview for the same position that Michael is pursuing.
To support her secret lover Dwight, Angela Martin (Angela Kinsey) sabotages Andy, leaving him adrift in the lake in an inflatable sumo wrestling costume. Michael's final event is a walk across hot coals. Initially, only Pam volunteers, but Michael refuses to let her walk across because she is not being considered to replace him. However, Michael cannot even bring himself to do it. Dwight throws himself on the coals, refusing to leave until he is given the job, and he writhes in agony until he is dragged off.
As a last-ditch effort to salvage the day, Michael assembles a "Tribal Council" stand-up comedy competition. Jim declines to participate, and reveals that he has applied for the position in New York. While they are doing this, Pam wanders off and runs barefoot across the hot coals. Feeling a new sense of confidence because of the experience, she interrupts the Tribal Council to berate her colleagues for treating her poorly, citing the fact that almost no one attended her art show. She rounds on Jim, and tells him that she called off her wedding because of him, that it is "fine" that he is with someone else now, but that she misses the fun that they had as best friends before he transferred. As she runs to cool her feet in the water, the cameraman turns to Jim who is now in a blank stare, shaken by the confession.