Angela and Phyllis’ iconic rivalry moments from The Office

The Office has had many iconic duos, platonic and romantic. But perhaps one of the most underrated pairings of them all has been of Angela Martin and Phyllis Lapin-Vance. The two have always been on each other’s cases, trying to one-up one another anyhow. Throughout the 9 seasons of the show, the duo never saw eye to eye, especially when both of them were a part of the party planning committee.

Anglea had a knack for letting go of her temper on the seemingly timid Phyllis in the first couple of seasons. However, as time went by the veteran employee came into her own, using all tricks, from reasoning to blackmail to get her way with her nemesis. Today we list their most iconic moments on The Office.

When Phyllis tried to reason with a difficult Angela

Season 4

Episode 3: The Launch Party

The Launch Party was the real pivoting moment in their relationship. Throughout the episode, Phyllis tries to calmly deal with Anglea in the ways the internet suggests her. But as the accountant keeps belittling her, i.e. explaining to her the difference between spoons and forks like a 2-year-old, Phyllis finally breaks. In what might have been one of the most satisfying moments of the whole season, the saleswoman ends up throwing a bunch of sticky notes at Angela.

When Angela got a little to passive aggressive with Phyllis

Season 3

Episode 10: A Benihana Christmas

As Angela goes up against Pam and Karen, she decides to become the most insufferable version of herself. But one particular moment in the show stands out. When Anglea tells Phyllis to pick up green streamers for their Christmas Party, the latter asks her, “I thought you said green was who-ish?’ To which the blonde fires back, “No, orange is who-ish,’ as the camera pans out revealing Phyllis is wearing an orange shirt. The whole episode is filled with Angela snapping at everyone, but this one truly stinks. 

Phyllis takes over the party planning committee

Season 4

Episode 14: Goodbye, Toby

The finale of this season was perhaps one of the most entertaining of all. The party planning committee starts to plan a going away party for Toby, the HR. But as Micheal falls in love with Toby’s replacement at first sight, he wants to plan a full-blown carnival instead of a farewell for his soon-to-be former colleague. As the manager’s expectations of the party go out of control, Angela draws the line, at which point he simply asks Phyllis to take over. The whole episode is filled with shimmering tension between the accountant and the saleswoman. However, truly the biggest win comes for the latter when she walks in on Angela cheating on Andy with Dwight in the office. This episode sets up a plotline, where for the first time Phyllis has something in her arsenal to keep Angela in line.

Phyllis reveals Angela’s secret

Season 5

Episode 11: Moroccan Christmas

Moroccan Christmas is perhaps one of the funniest holiday episodes of the show. One thing that elevated the comedy was just how comically villainous Phyllis got while blackmailing Angela about her secret affair. The accountant holds back her tough again and again as one look from Phyllis tells her not to mess with her. But as the night nears its end, she’s had enough of the saleswoman, challenging her to, go ahead and reveal her secret. For a moment Vance thinks it over, and then announces to the office that Martin is sleeping with Dwight behind her fiance’s back. While we can’t say she had it coming, but she had it coming.

Phyllis messes up the Christmas tree

Season 2

Episode 10: Christmas Party

Angela and Phyllis’ funniest fights seem to take place around Christmas, as the two mostly face each other in the party planning committee. This was still in the early seasons of the show, when Phyllis hardly had any voice in the show, seen as a meek old lady doing whatever everyone else told her to do. So when Angela asks her if she has lights for the Christmas tree, she informs her she bought the “cute, little ones.” Angela passive-aggressively ignores her, telling her only time will tell if her cute little lights will work. And lo and behold, they didn’t, looking like a small light bug on a big tree. 

Meanwhile, the duo’s relationship improves by leaps and bounds as they grow as characters, and start to treat each other with respect by the finale of the show.

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