Toby Flenderson

Toby Flenderson (born in 1971) is a fictional character on the U.S. comedy television series, The Office. He is portrayed by the show's writer, director, producer and showrunner Paul Lieberstein, and is an original character with no equivalent in The Office (UK TV series). 2Overview Toby Flenderson is the human resources representative for the Scranton branch of paper distributor Dunder Mifflin/Sabre. Mild-mannered to the point of being physically incapable of voicing his opinions or asserting himself, Toby can be somewhat mournful about his life choices (he fell into the field of Human Resources after leaving his training at seminary in order to pursue the woman he'd later marry and painfully divorce). He likes his colleagues, although he is sometimes exasperated by the excessively chatty Kelly Kapoor. He also has a long-standing crush on Pam Beesly, which he almost reveals at the end of Season 4 when he resigns from his position to move to Costa Rica. Toby was intensely despised by branch manager Michael Scott, largely because Michael had no authority over him as Toby reported to corporate headquarters, and because Toby frequently tried to dissuade Michael from many of his ill-conceived and impulsive ideas. Michael sums up his feelings for Toby in the episode "Casino Night," asking, "Why are you the way that you are? Honestly every time I try to do something fun or exciting, you make it not that way. I hate so much about the things that you choose to be." For Toby's going away party in "Goodbye Toby," Michael gives him as a gift a rock with a note attached reading "Suck on This!" Shortly after arriving in Costa Rica, Toby suffers a zip-line accident and midway through season 5, he returns to his old job at Dunder Mifflin, much to Michael's fur