In this episode, Robert California (James Spader) decides to sell his mansion following his divorce and Kevin Malone (Brian Baumgartner) suggests that he have an office pool party.
There, Erin Hannon (Ellie Kemper) tries to make Andy Bernard (Ed Helms) jealous by flirting with Dwight Schrute (Rainn Wilson).
According to Nielsen Media Research, "Pool Party" drew 6.02 million viewers and received a 3 rating/7% share in the 18–49 demographic, marking a slight increase from the previous episode, "Trivia".
After Robert California is forced to sell his mansion at the behest of his ex-wife following his divorce, Kevin Malone suggests that he have an office pool party.
Andy Bernard takes his girlfriend Jessica to the party and brings an engagement ring his Jessica-approving mother gave him, albeit without a center stone.
Kelly Kapoor and Phyllis Vance later find the ring and, thinking it had belonged to Robert’s wife, decide that it is bad luck and must be destroyed, setting it in the pool atop a tiny pyre.
While most of the employees are congregated in the pool area, Robert gives some of the guys - Jim Halpert, Gabe Lewis, Ryan Howard, Oscar Martinez, and Toby Flenderson - a tour of his massive home, spending most of the time mournfully describing how it was intended to be the location for wild Bacchanalias.
Eventually, Robert realizes that he is hosting one of the parties he had always imagined, at which point he jumps into the pool completely naked, followed by Gabe and Ryan.
At the end of the night, Gabe and Ryan, both drunk and unwilling to concede defeat to the other, remain at the party with Robert even as the CEO passes out.
WhatCulture critic Joseph Kratzer awarded the episode four out of five stars and wrote, "Now that's what I'm talking about – few things are better in art than having your expectations overturned and 'The Pool Party' pleasantly surprised me with the efficacy of its execution.
"[12] Many reviewers, including McNutt and Forcella, found Kevin's lines and actions to be particularly memorable, most notably, his declaration that Val was racist after she asked if Darryl swims.
Club awarded the episode a C rating, saying, "'Pool Party' was so loosely structured that it relied heavily on the characters to carry the narrative, and the result was some languid storytelling which gave me way too much time to think about missed opportunities, failed experiments, and the increasing burden of a show without any momentum.
"[13] The Huffington Post wrote that, "Once [at the titular pool part], the plot bits were so loose it might have been difficult for casual fans to follow it all.
The show's approach to this storyline ... is to have Andy enjoying a fairly normal evening with his girlfriend Jessica while Erin acts like a crazy person in an effort to get his attention.