1 [Report This]Date: November 15, 2021 03:29 pm Title: The Slap
Cool take on an alternate scenario. I don't hate Jim for what he said to her about Roy, but it was definitely below the belt. An apology was/ is certainly in order. (I'm working on a S3 story right now and dealing with this myself!)
Having Jim break up with Karen BEFORE the crux of the Beach Games speech opens up some interesting opportunities. As is, that speech feels particularly bittersweet.
I love the idea that Josh Porter was basically responsible for all of this, something I really never thought about until now. And Dwight giving Jim a ride home was fun.
Nice job!
Author's Response:
Many thanks! And I await your story on this scene!
I don't hate Jim for what he said either (he's my favorite character, to be honest), but it certainly wasn't warranted. And considering there's been a lot of Jim and/or Pam hate over the last few years, this moment can be considered one of the reasons why. And I love the speech for what it did for Pam's character, so I wanted to keep it around. Even if in this scenario it would just be her ranting to her coworkers.
It's interesting, if it wasn't for Josh Porter, Pam and Jim probably wouldn't have reunited at all. As for the ride home, it gave me an excuse to write more Dwight.
Thanks for the review!
1 [Report This]Date: November 08, 2021 11:59 am Title: The Slap
I do think Jim deserved it even if it didn't happen in canon. He was being cruel to Pam with the "I'm sure you'll find your way back together" comment. For Pam to reach her boiling point like that just shows the depth of how hurt she was about a host of things. In this case it felt a lot like that slap was the thing that broke the dam. Yeah they had to deal with a lot of the aftermath, but finally they get the crap taken care of and are honest with themselves and each other.
Makes total sense that Pam would be apologetic about it later. She's a kind soul and the idea that she hurt someone like that would be hard for her to deal with. The heart to heart they had was nice to see.
Then she also still has her coal walk and even better Jim is right there to comfort and support her in a much better way. Nice to see that.
Nice job with this one.
Author's Response:
Appreciated! Yeah, I definitely agree that some sort of comeuppance was necessary for that moment, considering all of Pam's complex emotions. And I'm glad it came across that I wanted the slap to be the catalyst for the resolution, because after an event like that, some sort of aftermath would be necessary.
Despite Pam's faults, at the end of the day she really is a gentle soul, so immediate regret would be natural. And the resolution was fun to write, too, because it's always interesting reading S2/3 fix-its or post-"The Job" stories where they actually have an honest conversation with each other about their past actions.
The "Beach Games" moment is probably my favorite part, as she'd still be coming into her own and being more honest with herself and others at this point, and with Jim there she'd stick to her guns even more.
Thanks for the review!
1 [Report This]Date: November 08, 2021 11:23 am Title: The Slap
‘Oh, put it down, Dwight!” Dwight lowers his pepper spray.’
Ok this made me laugh.
So this was a interesting amalgamation of a whole lot of different scenes but it still got to the only ending that made sense for these two. Nice that Pam got to get her aggression out early (I’m glad it wasn’t on Karen - I was afraid of that at first- poor girl gets a lot of fan fic hate ) - maybe now she won’t feel the need to smack Michael later (who am I kidding of course she will).
Author's Response:
Thank you! Wow, I love writing Dwight.
Merging a bunch of different scenes into a cohesive whole is something I've been doing a lot with these stories on here, and hopefully that skill is paying off. And angry Pam was fun to write, since I don't write her often and the anger, while irrational, was completely justifiable. Also, #KarenDeservedBetter. I understand why you were afraid she'd get chewed out because she's not a bad person at all, just dating the wrong person at the worst possible time.
And of course, she'll still slap Michael. She wants to every other day.
Thanks for the the review!
1 [Report This]Date: November 08, 2021 10:24 am Title: The Slap
I definitely have a more favorable perception of Jim's actions towards Pam post-Cocktails than the average bear (he's definitely in the wrong, but I feel like a lot of people see this as a moral event horizon moment in a way I don't). But it's nice to see Pam able to get in touch with her anger in a real way in Season 3 - definitely a strong choice as an alternative scenario. And Karen frankly deserved to have this kind of moment onscreen.
Also, props on working in the "put it down, Dwight" and "onto greener prairies." Nice bit of levity injected into the seriousness, very canon-style.
P.S. Looks like the link to Explosion and The Aftermath is broken? Would consider link to the reviews or the table of contents page - the problem might be consent warnings from the MA rating.)
Author's Response:
Oh yeah, I fixed the broken link issue. Had NO idea what went wrong there.
Much appreciated! I'll definitely say Jim's anger towards Pam is justified considering her poor decision-making and how badly her actions hit him. But I dunno, for me it's the snide delivery and the choice of words that really grinds my gears, which makes me shocked that Pam didn't channel the kind of anger I wrote for her at that moment. But yeah, it was really fun to write for both Pam and Karen, especially the latter, after everything. She ain't perfect, but she was strung along. Well deserved moment, indeed.
I love that you enjoy those moments of levity, as I try and add as much as I can without completely breaking the flow of the story.
Thanks for the review!
1 [Report This]Date: November 08, 2021 07:16 am Title: The Slap
This scratched an itch I didn't even know I had! That slap was cathartic for Pam and me. So much about how Jim handled things during this time was frustrating.
This was a great cleanup of the season 3 angst-fest & even included some sweet jam at the end. What more could anyone want?
Well done!
Author's Response:
Many thanks!
Yeah, I feel you there. Jim's flaws are very human and relatable, especially in S3, but that was a line he should not have crossed. And if there's one thing I do on this site, it's alleviating all the angst in the show and replacing it with good times. I did very much enjoy writing the Beach Games bit, and I figured the speech would be more truncated given they're together now.
Thanks for the review!
1 [Report This]Date: November 08, 2021 06:07 am Title: The Slap
This was a great lunchtime read :)
Author's Response: Appreciate the compliment!