The Office is one of the most beloved and iconic TV shows of the 2000s, growing from an under-the-radar remake of a British comedy in its first season to an absolute TV juggernaut by Season 3. It has somehow only gotten more popular with time, as streaming services have brought The Office to younger generations who have instantly latched on to its offbeat charms. In a world of reboots and IP, some sort of return to The Office has always felt inevitable, and it has always felt like whatever form that took would likely be disappointing.
Enter The Paper, Peacock’s new spinoff of The Office, which follows a struggling local newspaper in Toledo, Ohio. Using the same mockumentary format as The Office, and returning one Oscar Nuñez to reprise his role as the beloved accountant, The Paper seemed from the jump like it could be the cash-grab NBCUniversal has been waiting for with this property. Make no mistake, this will be a success for the company, but it is anything but a simple ploy for revenue. The Paper is a fully realized series that will charm you out of the gate with its endearing characters, delivering a 10-episode season that you’ll immediately wish was longer. This is a show that will make fans of The Office proud, even if its first season doesn’t quite hit the heights of the original show’s peak (a feat that would be nearly impossible).
The Paper comes from The Office creator Greg Daniels and Nathan For You‘s Michael Koman, and it picks up with the original Dunder Mifflin documentary crew, returning 15 years later for a follow-up. I won’t spoil the details here, but the paper trail they follow on the search for Dunder Mifflin leads them to the building that once belonged to The Toledo Truth-Teller. The once great local paper has since been acquired by a company that specializes in selling toilet tissue, with the couple of employees that just handle the online side of the Truth-Teller secluded in a small corner of a single floor of the building.
Once one of the most storied toilet paper salesmen, Ned Sampson (Domhnall Gleeson) is given the opportunity to work anywhere in the company. He chooses to take over the Truth-Teller in an attempt to bring real, local journalism back to the community. From there, he enlists the help of some other employees around the office who want to take a crack at actual journalistic writing, thus forming his news team.
Not that everything in The Paper should be compared to The Office, but Ned is something of an amalgamation of Michael Scott and Jim Halpert. He’s the boss and he can be charmingly aloof at times, but he’s also a tender guy who really works to boost his co-workers above himself. Then there’s Mare (Chelsea Frei), the only employee with any actual journalism experience, who becomes both Ned’s top reporter and the other half of his will-they-won’t-they love story (a staple of The Office).
The ensemble, led by Gleeson and Frei, is exceptional out of the gate, bringing big laughs and big heart from the start of the series. Each brings something unique and modern to the mockumentary structure, especially when you dig into the trio of writers-turned-supporting players (Gbemisola Ikumelo, Alex Edelman, Eric Rahill), hilariously follow in the footsteps of Mindy Kaling, B.J. Novak, and Paul Lieberstein, stealing scene after scene. It’s also nice to see Melvin Gregg emerge from the world of Netflix originals (a true breakout of the criminally underrated American Vandal) and land a big series. His offbeat chemistry with Ramona Young makes for one of the better side-stories of the season.
The true gem of the ensemble, however, comes from The Paper‘s desire to infuse some of the dry and uncomfortable comedy of Ricky Gervais’ original version of The Office. Tim Key is far and away the leader in laughs-per-joke ratio on this series. As a sleazy executive in the parent company, trying desperately to impress his bosses by tearing apart Ned and the Truth-Teller, Key is a laugh-out-loud riot all on his own. The way his brand of comedy awkwardly but effortlessly blends in with the American sense of humor across the rest of the show is one of The Paper‘s greatest strengths. His frequent scene partner, Sabrina Impacciatore, will surprise viewers as perhaps the second-funniest of the whole bunch, playing the editor of the online Truth-Teller. Together, they’re as formidable a comedic pair as any on TV right now.
Of course, you can’t talk about The Paper‘s cast without talking about Oscar Nuñez, the lone returnee from The Office. Don’t worry, his reason for being on the show makes total sense and he doesn’t feel shoe-horned into the narrative at all. In fact, Oscar might be the perfect character from The Office to bridge the gap between the shows, having been beloved enough to get his own storylines in the original, while not being prominent enough to have his life fully explored. Here we see a more self-assured version of Oscar, an evolution that is only possible because of the antics he endured at Dunder Mifflin. He steadies this group, both as a character and an actor, and carries the weight of The Office well.
Given how strong the casting was on The Office, I expected this high-profile series (led again by Greg Daniels) to put together a great ensemble. Sure, they exceeded my expectations, but the cast was the element I was least worried about going in. What I didn’t expect, however, was a fully realized vision of a world that had so much to say. This is a series that aims to be super relevant in today’s media landscape and absolutely hits its target. From the opening minutes, the jokes about the state of online journalism and clickbait are chillingly hilarious and accurate. As someone who works on this side of the business day in and day out, it was refreshing to see the frustrations of the modern industry captured so perfectly.
As bleak as journalism can feel at the moment, The Paper is relentlessly optimistic. Ned’s hope-above-all mentality when it comes to journalism — and why it matters — is constantly inspiring. The show understands the struggles of media today, and the immense uphill battle we face, but also fully believes in our ability to be a force for change.
The Paper isn’t just a great comedy, it’s also a rallying cry for all of the truth-tellers out there, encouraging folks that our local communities are worth supporting and fighting for.
Rating: 4 out of 5
The Paper Season 1 debuts on Peacock Thursday, September 4th.
