HBO’s The Chair Company wrapped up its first season by seemingly answering the longest-running question pertaining to Ron’s story, but didn’t give fans a whole lot of help in figuring out what the hell is actually going on with Tecca, RBMG and the other shadow corporations that took hold of Tim Robinson’s attention span. You know what else that episode didn’t answer? Exactly which unchosen foods Jim Downey’s Douglas survived on while trapped beneath the weight of his own refrigerator.
Okay, so I wouldn’t actually expect to learn that factoid during The Chair Company’s later episodes, but it turns out there was at least talk of potentially taking audiences into Douglas’ world to glimpse the presumably sad and humbling sight of an older man trapped beneath a large appliance. Wait, no, I meant hilarious sight. Speaking with TheContending.com, The Chair Company’s cinematographer Ashley Connor gave high praise to Saturday Night Live vet Jim Downey for being a consistent gem behind the scenes, and addressed why we didn’t get to see Douglas’ kitchen-floor plight, saying:
Every time Jim was on set, he grand-slammed it out of the park. Had everyone dying. He understands their delivery. And again, it’s just a side character. They wouldn’t [film the fridge scene] because it would break from Ron’s perspective, but every single time Douglas talked about being under the fridge, I just couldn’t choose what [take] I had. We’re truly squealing behind the camera, laughing.
Indeed, every time Douglas speaks on The Chair Company, it’s an exercise in comedic timing and word choice. The conviction he brings to telling Ron that he’s going to dress up like a chicken to improve office morale is more than I bring to just about anything I say in any given day. And that probably includes declarations of love that I give my wife and kids. If I tried any harder, my daughter would just say, “Stop trying to be Jim Downey, ya dumb bitch,” and I would take that salient advice to heart.
Here’s how Douglas addressed the rest of the office after returning, describing the moments that audiences sadly won’t get to see outside of that half-finished fan-fiction in my Documents folder.
Oh my God. I can’t tell you how good it feels to see all of you again. There were times when I wasn’t sure I would make it out of there alive. Luckily, I was under a refrigerator, so I was able to swing open the freezer and have access to food. I couldn’t pick what I had. I just grabbed whatever I could touch. But I was able to survive, even though I couldn’t pick.
Douglas, Hero In The Flesh
“Even though I couldn’t pick” is absolutely one of my favorite phrases of The Chair Company‘s first season. It’s up there with “My God, they stack the turkey,” and “I swear, I have the worst pillow in town!” and other classics. Because not only is it so funny for Douglas to lean into that as a sympathy-driving detail, but also because it lets us know that he is definitely the kind of person who would initially turn away tepid water while dying of thirst.
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Which is precisely what would have made it so great to see highlights from Douglas’ homebound version of 127 Hours. How much of it would have been him second-guessing all of his choices regarding the Mistakes Party? How much of it would have been him wishing he’d gone even further? How much of it would have been him gnawing on slightly thawed, thickly breaded fish sticks? These are the questions heroes like Ashley Connor should have been able to answer with a quick (or lengthy) throwaway scene at Douglas’ home.
Of course, I understand and largely agree with the reasoning stated. Stepping away to focus on Douglas for any amount of time during the back half of the season would have meant pulling away from Ron’s increasingly hectic journey. And even though this show feels wildly erratic and random, it’s very much paced like a ’70s thriller. So even though Season 1 did venture away from Ron sporadically to give viewers a window into Mike’s private life via his interests in Christmas porn and kidnapping, that character’s actions and mental health will have far more direct consequences for Ron than anything Douglas ate while trapped. UNLESS…
Well, that’s something Season 2 would need to dive into. For now, gumshoes will need to re-watch Season 1 via HBO Max subscription to pore over the clues again and again and again until you become the Ron Trosper in your own life.
