New Office Webisodes Premiere Today!

NBC.com is about to unleash a new set of webisodes from "The Office," featuring a new mini story arc called The Outburst. The story begins with an uncharacteristic cellphone outburst from Oscar, the show’s double-token character (he’s gay and Hispanic), in front of everyone in the office. His co-workers spend the rest of the time trying to figure out what’s gotten under his skin – and who the mystery caller might be. The webisode

Having screened the complete story arc, as a fan I’d have to say that the webisodes are great, if slightly agonizing – not for lacking content, but for the fact that they’re so short and don’t feature any of the central characters on the show (played by Steve Carell, John Krasinski, Jenna Fisher, Rainn Wilson). The Outburst set is certainly better than the last installment (Kevin’s Loan).

Anyone who’s seen Oscar Nunez’s other work, specifically his performance as a Homeland Security expert on Comedy Central’s "Reno 911!" show, can attest to his ability to carry a plotline. The Outburst is no exception, as he shines in his anal-retentive but ultimately lovable role.

The webisodes are meant to serve as gap-fillers in plotlines, centering on peripheral characters on the show. Much of the non-central cast is featured, including Brian Baumgartner (Kevin), Creed Bratton (Creed), Kate Flannery (Meredith), Ed Helms (Andy), Mindy Kaling (Kelly), Angela Kinsey (Angela), Paul Lieberstein (Toby) and Phyllis Smith (Phyllis).

Did you catch that?

If you watch the first installment before seeing tonight’s episode of "The Office," however, you’ll get a first glimpse at Toby (Paul Lieberstein), who has apparently returned from Costa Rica to resume his old job (Dunder Mifflin HR Rep and arch-nemesis to Steve Carell’s Michael Scott).

The Office webisodes for “The Outburst” will premiere on NBC.com, Thursday, November 20, 2008, but you can see the first one right here.

What caused Oscar to lose it at the office? Love? Money? Angela? The staff at Dunder Mifflin investigate:

Go behind the scenes as the cast talks about making the latest Office webisodes:

Check back every Thursday for new webisodes on NBC.com.