The Paper Season 2 Review

Love is in the Air (and Everywhere Else): A Deep Dive into ‘The Paper’ Season 2

Get ready for a rollercoaster of office romances, questionable decisions, and laugh-out-loud moments because “The Paper,” Peacock’s hilarious spin-off from Greg Daniels and the team behind “The Office,” is back with a second season. And this time, love – or something resembling it – is everywhere you turn at the Toledo Truth Teller.

Office Romances Gone Wild

Season 2 of “The Paper” throws viewers headfirst into a whirlwind of workplace relationships, often with hilarious consequences. While the first season established the quirky ensemble cast and their struggles to keep a struggling newspaper afloat, this season focuses heavily on the budding romance between Ned (Domhnall Gleeson), the competent but often flailing editor-in-chief, and Mare (Chelsea Frei), the star reporter. Their relationship mirrors the classic Jim and Pam dynamic from “The Office,” complete with secret rendezvous involving Orwellian food delivery carts and sweet FaceTime dinners. However, unlike the slow burn of “The Office’s” central romance, “The Paper” moves at a breakneck pace. By the Season 2 premiere, Ned and Mare are fully committed, navigating all the tribulations that come with a new relationship.

Nearly every episode of Season 2 revolves around Ned and Mare’s romance intersecting in unexpected (and often hilarious) ways. We see Ned grapple with jealousy when Mare, a former military veteran, proves to be a better shot than him at the gun range. They co-host a debate-style podcast where they manage to flirt while vehemently disagreeing. And they even cut short a romantic weekend getaway when the rest of the office can’t be trusted to handle an election-related story. This refreshing approach to sitcom relationships showcases the romantic progression between two characters who share the same passions (in this case, journalism) and uses their relationship to add depth to the workplace shenanigans.

A Galaxy of Romances

While Ned and Mare’s romance takes center stage, “The Paper” doesn’t shy away from exploring the romantic lives of its supporting cast. Resident attention-seeker Esmeralda (Sabrina Impacciatore) and corporate hack Ken (Tim Key) engage in a series of hijinks that frequently verge on a pseudo-relationship. Oscar (Oscar Martinez) concocts a scheme to snag a cute nursing home employee. Staffers Detrick (Melvin Gregg), Adelola (Gbemisola Ikumelo), Nicole (Ramona Young), and Troy (Eric Rahill) each deal with their own office crushes. Even parent company CEO Marv (Allan Harvey) makes a play for love near the end of the season. While these storylines are often benign on their own, in aggregate, they risk turning “The Paper” from a cutting mockumentary about the state of journalism into a late-aughts romantic comedy with too many intersecting narratives.

Broad Humor and Bold Swings

Beyond the myriad romances, Season 2’s most notable trait is the willingness of the show to take big comedic swings. “The Office” was known for its golden tickets and rabies scares, but Season 2 of “The Paper” ventures into moments that are broad, farcical, and often over-the-top. While smart humor remains a staple, the show frequently pushes itself out of the confines of the mockumentary format into something more universal. This approach doesn’t always work; Esmeralda’s undercover stint as a teenage boy is a prime example. However, when it lands, it’s brilliant, like Ned faking a rat bite to prove a point to Mare or the secret office task force recreating a crime scene with condiments.

The show also welcomes new faces this season, including Lisa Gilroy as the wildly inappropriate HR representative. In her interactions with various Truth Teller employees, we see Lisa be competent, spiteful, manic, and hilariously bawdy. She’s the classic “Office”-universe character: decent at her job but somehow completely inept and infinitely watchable. Joining Gilroy this season are sitcom mainstays Andy Richter and the legendary Jon Lovitz, who fit perfectly into the show’s expanding scope.

Echoes of Scranton

Over the course of two seasons, “The Paper” has evolved beyond its origins as an “Office” spin-off and created its own distinct identity. However, echoes of Scranton remain throughout the show, both welcome and frustrating. We see a character reassigned to another office (a clear nod to Dunder Mifflin Stamford), Ned’s employees dress up like old-timey newspaper staff for the Truth Teller’s 125th anniversary, Nicole disguises herself as Lisa to stalk Detrick on a road trip, and Esmeralda dons a fat suit in a move straight out of Michael Scott’s playbook. These callbacks are obvious, welcome, and frustrating all at once. Given the pedigree of the team behind “The Paper,” it’s understandable why the show brims with echoes of its predecessor. However, after 20 episodes, the team could probably stand to fully drive forward with their own gimmicks, archetypes, and inside jokes and leave Scranton in the dust.

Verdict

Season 2 of “The Paper” goes broad with humor and breaks past a number of overplayed sitcom formulas, providing a fresh take on office politics, office romances, and oddball characters. While some of these swings don’t connect, “The Paper” Season 2 continues to be a worthwhile successor to “The Office” and a refreshing comedy in its own right.

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The Paper Season 2 Review

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