TERRY GROSS, HOST:
This is FRESH AIR. The Peacock streaming service recently unveiled all 10 episodes of its new comedy series called "The Paper." It's a sequel of sorts to NBC's long-running sitcom "The Office," with an almost completely new cast of characters but with the same mockumentary workplace format. Our TV critic David Bianculli has this review.
DAVID BIANCULLI, BYLINE: "The Paper" arrives with an unusually long and impressive TV lineage. It starts with the original British version of "The Office," which premiered in 2001 on the BBC, starring Ricky Gervais as paper company executive David Brent. That entire series consisted of a dozen episodes and a movie-length finale.
But after "The Office" closed up shop, its series concept was sold to NBC, where it was developed for American television by Greg Daniels. Daniels had written for "The Simpsons," "King Of The Hill," and "Parks And Recreation" and adapted "The Office" with respect for its main structure and characters. Like the British version, it was presented without a laugh track and framed as though a documentary crew was capturing the workplace dynamics and private comments of employees at a paper company.
The instantly identifiable character types were retained as well. For America, the clueless, self-important boss, Michael Scott, was played by Steve Carell. The will-they-or-won't-they lovestruck coworkers, Jim and Pam, were played by John Krasinski and Jenna Fischer. And playing the office nemesis, Dwight, was Rainn Wilson.
The NBC version of "The Office" premiered in 2005 to initially lukewarm reviews, including mine. I loved the original British sitcom so much, I thought the Americanized adaptation arrived as a pale imitation. But very quickly, the writers and actors found their own comic rhythms, and the stories became original by necessity. NBC's "The Office" thrived and finally ended in 2011 after nine seasons, followed by an encore finale special two years later. And now "The Office" is back, sort of.
(SOUNDBITE OF THE SCRANTONES' "SONG FROM THE NINTH FLOOR (MAIN THEME FROM 'THE PAPER')")
BIANCULLI: Peacock's "The Paper" is cocreated by Greg Daniels, who has returned to steer this new ship, and Michael Koman, a writer on "Saturday Night Live," "Late Night With Conan O'Brien" and "Nathan For You." Their framework for "The Paper" is so similar to what Daniels did for "The Office" that it borders on reverential. Even its opening theme has echoes of the original.
(SOUNDBITE OF THE SCRANTONES' "SONG FROM THE NINTH FLOOR (MAIN THEME FROM 'THE PAPER')")
BIANCULLI: "The Paper" is about a once-thriving, now-dying local newspaper and some new efforts to save it, even though some of its company managers have a very low opinion of journalism in general and the Toledo Truth Teller in particular. Like so many businesses these days, the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company seen in "The Office" has been absorbed by a larger corporation. The new business is called Enervate. It's based in Toledo, Ohio, and the documentary crew from "The Office" is back to check them out.
The crew is given a basic tour by company executive Ken Davies, who's played by Tim Key and whose character is 1 of 2 antagonists in this show. He has the same abrasive personality as David Brent from the original "Office" and a similar British accent as well. The buzzing at the start is from an electric razor used by an office staffer shaving at his desk nearby. And as you hear that, you also hear Ken's disdain for the company's local newspaper.
(SOUNDBITE OF TV SHOW, "THE PAPER")
TIM KEY: (As Ken Davies) Enervate sells products made out of paper. So that might be office supplies. That might be janitorial paper, which is toilet tissue, toilet seat protectors and local newspapers. And that is in order of quality.
BIANCULLI: The other office nemesis is Esmeralda Grand, whose accent is Italian. She's a flamboyant attention hog played wildly and delightfully by Sabrina Impacciatore, who was Valentina in Season 2 of "The White Lotus." When "The Paper" begins, she's basically in charge. And when she takes over the company tour, the filmmakers stumble on a very familiar face. It's Oscar Martinez, played by Oscar Nunez. He's the accountant from NBC's "The Office" who finds himself once again stalked by a camera crew and not at all happy about it.
(SOUNDBITE OF TV SHOW, "THE PAPER")
SABRINA IMPACCIATORE: (As Esmeralda Grand) Anyway, here are two accountants and the head accountant - boring, boring and head boring.
OSCAR NUNEZ: (As Oscar Martinez) God, not again. I'm not agreeing to any of this. Don't you guys have enough after nine years? Nobody wants this. You know what? You can't use my voice, my likeness, my face, nothing.
BIANCULLI: "The Paper" also features Domhnall Gleeson, who stars as incoming editor-in-chief Ned Sampson, and Chelsea Frei as eventual cub reporter Mare Pritti. They're destined to become the Jim and Pam of this series. And when Ned arrives in Toledo with optimistic dreams of restoring this nearly dead news operation, he's also a bit like Ted Lasso. Gleeson, from the Star Wars and Harry Potter franchises and from the movie "Ex Machina," is a perfect sitcom star, instantly likable.
(SOUNDBITE OF TV SHOW, "THE PAPER")
DOMHNALL GLEESON: (As Ned Sampson) My name is Ned Sampson. I am signing the visitors log even though I am not a visitor. This is my first day working at the Truth Teller. I'm so excited to be saying that. When I was a kid, I didn't want to be Superman. I wanted to be Clark Kent, 'cause to me, Clark is the real superhero. He's saving the world, too, by working at a newspaper. And that to me is much more noble and much more achievable. And I love that.
BIANCULLI: These characters and actors will win you over quickly and completely, partly because the performances are so smart and partly because the writing is, too. The issues facing journalism these days, from online clickbait to corporate interference and a real concern for the survival of the printed newspaper, run all through "The Paper." But it's primarily a comedy, a very, very funny one. And by the end of the 10th episode, you're likely to love both the characters and its emotional cliffhanger.
GROSS: David Bianculli is a professor of television studies at Rowan University. He reviewed "The Paper," which is now streaming on Peacock.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)
GROSS: Tomorrow on FRESH AIR, with the 2026 midterms looming, President Trump is floating proposals to ban mail-in ballots and even voting machines. We'll talk with election law expert Richard Hasen, who will reflect on what this says about the state of our democracy, the broader push to reshape it and what's at stake for free and fair elections. I hope you'll join us.
Therese Madden directed today's show. Our cohost is Tonya Mosley. I'm Terry Gross.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
