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Ryan Was Hired to Replace Tom Peets
Ryan Became the Most Hated Character on The Office
Ryan Ran Away With Kelly at the End of the Show
This article contains references to suicide.
Like any working environment, The Office incorporated the hiring of new employees as and when Scranton's Dunder Mifflin needed it. As the show was a mockumentary, the fictional paper merchants needed to be credible enough for viewers to feel like they really were watching an office and its employees. Ryan Howard (B.J. Novak) was hired as a temp in the pilot episode, though the character didn't have any real significance to the main plot.
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As the seasons went on, Ryan became a prominent figure, with storylines that impacted the series. Although fans will be very aware of his rise and fall, and the on-off relationship he had with Kelly (Mindy Kaling), there's another part to his story that could easily be missed, as it was only briefly mentioned in one episode. Ryan wasn't just put on the show for the sake of it.
Ryan Was Hired to Replace Tom Peets
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Ryan is introduced to the show from the first episode but without a lot of context to explain why he was hired. He began his career at the paper merchant as a temp, earning him the not-so-creative nickname "the temp." Initially, his role wasn't a core part of the narrative, but he eventually became a bigger character, leading some viewers to question how he came to be part of Dunder Mifflin. In a very brief part of Season 2, Episode 8, "Performance Review," where it's revealed that a man named Tom used to work at the company. Michael told Pam to bring in their suggestion box, which, evidently, hadn't been used in years prior to the episode. While in the meeting, Michael pulls out insulting suggestions that are directed at him, including telling him he has "coffee breath" and body odor. He attempts to play it all off as a joke, trying to prove it wasn't a big deal with a suggestion that came from Tom. The suggestion stated, "We need better outreach for employees fighting depression." Michael believed the note didn't hold any truth because there was no one named Tom working at Dunder Mifflin. Jan encouraged Michael to take it seriously, much to no avail. But that's when Phyllis gave Michael a reminder.
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Ryan was 26 at the beginning of The Office and 35 by the end.
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She mimed an action to him which pointed out that Tom had committed suicide. As per Michael's usual inappropriate dialogue, his reaction was to say, "Oh, that guy? That guy was weird." Seemingly, Michael still didn't understand the seriousness of what happened to Tom, and it also proved that he hadn't looked in the suggestion box in a long time. It's a very dark part of The Office that wasn't delved into, but it did provide a backstory to Ryan's place at the company. Although Tom was an accountant and Ryan wasn't, Ryan was there to fill the gaps and help out where necessary. As it is a small segment of the overall episode, audiences may have easily missed what was said and not realized that Tom's passing was the reason that Ryan got a job.
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Ryan Became the Most Hated Character on The Office
At the start of the show, Ryan appeared to be pretty harmless. He was much like his UK counterpart, Ricky, who joined Wernham Hogg (but didn't have the same backstory). Gradually, he became a nuisance. He got a kick out of winding others up and had no interest in forming solid work relationships. He had the tendency to think his ideas were the best and should be listened to more than any others. Ryan's claims of being more professional and a better employee than his colleagues were soon disproved when he wasn't quite as competent at sales as the others in the department. He moved to sales when Jim transferred to the Stamford branch. After Jan was no longer Vice President of Northeast Sales, the position was opened up for others to apply. Karen and Jim both interviewed, although Jim withdrew his application after deciding to stay in Scranton. Ryan got the corporate job but didn't last very long as Vice President. He was found to be using drugs in New York, lied to shareholders of the company, and eventually got arrested. Needless to say, he was let go.
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In Season 5, Ryan was granted parole and quickly regained a job at Dunder Mifflin through his temping agency. Despite being in a lower position, he still approached others with the same arrogance as before, but no one felt too threatened by him, considering his history. Later on, when Michael sets up the Michael Scott Paper Company, he finds Ryan working at a bowling alley and asks him to join the team, which he does. After a rocky start, he managed to settle down and be a little less annoying. When the company gets bought out by Dunder Mifflin, Ryan becomes a salesman before moving back down to a temp position. At this point, he took on a new hipster image and claimed to have given up with climbing the corporate ladder and is content with just being around the office. Jim became angry with him when he refused to do any work and started a rumor that Jim wasn't as powerful as he pretended to be. To prove that he actually was above him, Jim forced Ryan to work in a small cupboard where he couldn't get distracted or be distracting towards anyone else. With such little commitment to any duties at Dunder Mifflin, Ryan had enough time to develop a new company called WHUPH. The idea was to for notifications to be sent to every messaging account that belonged to one person at once. It wasn't groundbreaking, however, he did hook in a few investors. Once that came to an end, he went back to temp work before telling Deangelo Vickers that he is Kelly's boss, which works and sticks. By the end of the series, Ryan's work life wasn't discussed. His characteristics hadn't changed, so it's probably safe for audiences to assume that he was up to the same old tricks.
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Ryan Ran Away With Kelly at the End of the Show
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Ryan and Kelly had a very toxic relationship throughout The Office. Their personalities were not suited to one another, yet it seemed like they could never cut the toxicity off completely. Ryan learned early on that Kelly wanted them to be together, whereas he was only interested in hooking up with her. Her talk of having children scares him, and he continues to look for ways to end their relationship, which he is able to do properly when he gets his job with corporate. When Ryan goes back to Scranton, Kelly is together with Darryl. However, she was clearly using Darryl to make Ryan jealous, and it worked. Once he'd lost his job, gone to prison, and then got re-hired at Dunder Mifflin by Michael, he tried to rekindle his connection with Kelly. Kelly dumped Darryl to be with Ryan, which didn't work out at all, as he said he was dumping her to go on a trip to Thailand. Ryan was constantly leading Kelly on, while Kelly used manipulation (including telling Ryan she was pregnant when she wasn't) to be with Ryan. By the final episode, Kelly was with Ravi, who was a doctor. It seemed like Kelly had found someone who was a good person, far from what she had known with Ryan. At Dwight and Angela's wedding, Ryan shows up with his baby, Drake. To get Kelly on her own, Ryan let Drake suck on a strawberry, which gave him a rash. He asked Ravi to take a look at him. Kelly was flattered that Ryan gave Drake an allergic reaction just to have some time with her. The cameras watch as the two run off together, leaving Drake and Ravi behind. Ryan's ending didn't state where he was in his work life, but him and Kelly just couldn't let each other go.
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Novak wrote for Kaling's show, The Mindy Project.
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By the end of the series, there was nothing likable about Ryan. He had been so self-centered throughout the series that it was impossible to find any redeeming features. He was, however, a great character for the show. The writers had to work in the villainous characters in a realistic way, and Ryan was the perfect representation of someone who would do anything to make his way to the top, not caring about how he might affect other people. The darkness to his backstory brings depth to why he was hired, and creates the illusion of Dunder Mifflin being a real place that was working way before the cameras joined their office.
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The Office
Comedy
Drama
Sitcom
A mockumentary on a group of typical office workers, where the workday consists of ego clashes, inappropriate behavior, and tedium.
Release Date March 24, 2005
Cast Mindy Kaling , Jenna Fischer , Kate Flannery , Ed Helms , Craig Robinson , Paul Lieberstein , Ellie Kemper , B.J. Novak , Angela Kinsey , Oscar Nunez , Rainn Wilson , Brian Baumgartner , Phyllis Smith , Leslie David Baker , Creed Bratton , Steve Carell , John Krasinski
Rating
Seasons 9
Creator
Production Company
Story By Ricky Gervais, Stephen Merchant
Writers Mindy Kaling , Paul Lieberstein , Michael Schur , ricky gervais , Greg Daniels , B.J. Novak
Network NBC
Franchise(s) The Office
Directors Greg Daniels , Paul Lieberstein , Paul Feig , Randall Einhorn , Ken Kwapis
Showrunner Greg Daniels
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