Inside Outsourced: When the Cat's Away...

As this episode begins, Todd is excited because he just received a shipment of Kansas City ribs from back home. His excitement doesn’t last long, though – due to a prolonged stay in customs, the ribs are covered in cockroaches. After one of the roaches climbs up Rajiv’s shirt, Asha, Madhuri and Manmeet are all a little too eager to try and whack the roach off of him.

But that roach isn’t the only thing bugging Rajiv. He doesn’t like that the agents have covered their desks with personal items. As he sees it, it makes everyone look less professional. Todd disagrees and says how “happy workers are good workers.” Still, Rajiv doesn’t approve of Todd’s relaxed management style.

Out in the hall, Todd’s girlfriend Tonya presents him with a plane ticket to go back home to Kansas City for the holidays. And that gets him thinking about everything he’s missing out on – football, in particular. Charlie informs him that there’s a restaurant nearby that shows American TV, and the two plan to go there to watch a football game. In his excitement, and despite Asha’s warning, Todd eats some street food, which immediately makes him sick.

With Todd out of commission, Rajiv finally gets his moment in the spotlight and assumes control of the call center. He demands that everyone start dressing up, especially Gupta, who has been cracking his toe knuckles while wearing sandals. Pleasant thought, right? Rajiv even goes so far as to tell Madhuri she needs to come up with a new facial expression.

Although Charlie and Manmeet attempt to take Todd home, he insists that he’s still well enough to watch the football game at the restaurant. This turns out to be a bad idea, as he spends most of the time in the bathroom. When Charlie and Manmeet check up on him, it’s clear that it’s not just his physical condition that’s wrecking him – he’s struggling to cope with being away from his family and friends.

The next day, the agents are all in formal dress, as instructed by Rajiv. Gupta has left the sandals at home but has a hard time walking around in the shoes he borrowed from his twelve-year-old cousin. Although Rajiv enjoys being in control, he is met with some hardships of his own. Since the center’s calling plan is about to expire, and since Todd is out, Rajiv has to pick a new plan. He struggles to make up his mind and resorts to consulting a palm reader for help. (Although, an ICMI training course would be much more effective in improving his management skills.)

Later that night, Todd’s friends all show up at his apartment for an American-style tailgating party. Gupta is wearing a beer can helmet, Madhuri brings the salsa and chips and Asha makes Todd some Kansas City ribs, albeit the vegetarian variety.

This really cheers Todd up, and he goes back to work the next day. Rajiv explains the troubles he’s had picking a new calling plan – a decision Todd easily made on his own. Despite his wishes to be manager, Rajiv is happy that Todd is back to make the big decisions. Although we learn that Rajiv really does respect Todd after all, something tells me he’ll be up to his old tricks next week.

Did you miss this episode of Outsourced? You can watch it online right here. As always, check back soon for our recap and analysis of each new episode!