The Office’s cast leaving and ing Scranton’s Dunder Mifflin throughout the show. This meant that ratings and reception for The Office changed over time, but thanks to streaming, the show never stopped being popular.

Regardless if you watched it weekly or binge-watched it on streaming, most people will agree that best cold open in The Office, with “Stress Relief,” an episode that cemented the show’s fantastic reputation at the time, and spawned one of The Office’s most famous memes.

Why The Fire Drill Is The Office's Best Cold Open

The Chaotic Opening Scene Made History For The Office

The fire drill is The Office’s best cold open for a few different reasons, the most important being that it is hilarious. At the start of the episode, Dwight begins constructing a dangerous setup with various fire hazards to make a point about how no one listened to his safety talk. When the fire spreads, the office is launched into chaos as everyone scrambles to get out. Meanwhile, Dwight calmly follows the masses, essentially making the situation worse. The Office’s “Stress Relief” broke viewership records for the show, meaning the cold open was a great hook.

It was important to do something noteworthy for season 5, episodes 14 and 15 (a two-parter) because it aired straight after the Super Bowl. This meant writing a stand-alone The Office episode that would attract newcomers, acting as a “second pilot" with a very strong hook. With the office launched into disarray, people fighting each other to rescue themselves, and the shaky camera closely following the action, the fire drill scene in The Office hooked Super Bowl audiences, resulting in one of the highest ratings of the entire show and cementing the legacy of “Stress Relief” with 22.91 million viewers.

The Fire Drill Turned Into One Of The Office's Most Famous Memes

“Oh My God! Okay, It’s Happening! Everybody Stay Calm!”

Following the “Stress Relief” episode airing after the Super Bowl, the fire drill cold open turned into one of The Office’s best and most famous memes. Over the years, The Office has become a prominent piece of popular culture, with many moments from the mockumentary TV series becoming memes due to certain scenes acting as a stand-alone joke, especially as The Office draws a lot of comedy from the absurd. However, the pure chaotic energy of the fire drill sequence, with Michael’s completely over-the-top reaction to what should be a routine fire drill situation, made it perfect meme material.

Steve Carell’s physical acting as Michael Scott enables viewers to use his comical facial expressions as reactions to various situations, making him the most prominent figure to feature in The Office memes. Perhaps the best example of that is Michael’s “Oh my god! Okay, it’s happening! Everybody stay calm!” reaction to the fire drill, after which the entire situation escalates. At its heart, The Office memes show a true relatability between the audience and the beloved show, even in absurd situations like the one "Stress Relief."