The Paper

Summary

Pop Culture Happy Hour: "The Paper"

Date: September 8, 2025
Host: Linda Holmes (with Ronald Young Jr. and Priya Krishna)

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Episode Overview

This episode dives into "The Paper," a mockumentary-style comedy series on Peacock, depicting a struggling local newspaper in Toledo, Ohio. The show functions as a loose spinoff of "The Office" and is co-created by Greg Daniels (developer of the US "The Office") and Michael Komen ("Nathan for You"). The hosts discuss how "The Paper" navigates legacy, workplace comedy tropes, and the challenges of breathing new life into a familiar format while wrestling with issues specific to local journalism.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

Origins and Premise

• Greg Daniels and Michael Komen Collaboration:

  • The show leverages Daniels’ history with "The Office" and Komen's offbeat touch from "Nathan for You."
  • The Dunder Mifflin universe extends: the parent company now owns the fictional Toledo Truth Teller.

• Story Setup:

  • "The Paper" centers on Ned (Domhnall Gleeson), a new, idealistic editor trying to revitalize a fading paper beset by financial and cultural woes.
  • Esmeralda (Sabrina Impacciatore), an entrenched, power-loving editor, continually sabotages Ned’s efforts.
  • Oscar Nunez reprises Oscar Martinez, now a weary accountant, tying this series back to "The Office."
  • Mare (Chelsea Frey) is an under-motivated, yet talented journalist, invested in real reporting.

Comparisons to Predecessors

• All hosts note the challenge of escaping the shadows of "The Office" and "Parks and Recreation," both of which struggled in their first seasons and improved by expanding ensemble casts and storylines.
• The mockumentary style, ensemble dynamics, recurring tropes (grumpy characters, eccentric caricatures, budding inter-staff romance), and lack of early ensemble focus are called out as both familiar and potentially stale.

"This is a mid show. This is very mid... Greg Daniels stumbles out of the gate."
— Ronald Young Jr. [04:51]

"People who are coming to this show are going to be expecting... the same type of cozy, all-enveloping comfort watch that a show like 'The Office' and 'Parks and Recreation' can be. And I would say it, like, sort of provides that."
— Priya Krishna [06:02]

Character and Performance Analysis

• Esmeralda's Polarizing Role:
  • Priya found Esmeralda a "scene stealer," especially in "Scam Alert" (the season's standout episode).
  • Linda and Ronald felt the character was overwritten and excessively broad, undermining the workplace reality and lacking redeeming qualities compared to classic 'chaos agents' like Dwight ("The Office") or Ava Coleman ("Abbott Elementary").

"With Esmeralda, she's a bad mom. She is sabotaging everybody at the paper. And she also... generally doesn't care about journalism."
— Ronald Young Jr. [11:10]

• Ned and the Rom-Com Thread:
  • Ned’s earnest, clumsy attempts at leadership resonated more with Linda.
  • The slow-burn romance with Mare is consciously developed, with the show acknowledging the sensitive power dynamics at play.

"[Ned] is both kind of a little bit buffoony, but he's also kind of your... leading man. He's very earnest. He clearly means very well and is not bad at his job. He's just kind of prone to bumbling kind of stuff."
— Linda Holmes [10:12]

• Supporting Cast:
  • Oscar Nunez’s return is warmly received but feels underused; references to "The Office" are rare, subtle, and appreciated.
  • Alex Edelman’s always-beleaguered family man gets a special mention as a supporting highlight.

Strengths, Weaknesses & Structure

• Strengths:

  • Potential for meaningful exploration of local journalism.
  • Glimpses of "heart" and personal investment distinguish it slightly from its predecessors.
  • Specific episodes, like "Scam Alert," show what the ensemble is capable of.

• Weaknesses:

  • Season one focuses too heavily on a few characters, neglecting the ensemble's full potential (parallels to early "The Office").
  • Attempts to replicate successful formulas (central romance, quirky supporting staff) sometimes feel forced or unoriginal.
  • "Binge-watching" the series feels repetitive; watching in shorter stints is recommended.

"I actually don't recommend binging it necessarily. I would watch it a little bit at a time. I'm not sure it's a binge-y show."
— Linda Holmes [16:44]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

Esmeralda’s Sabotage

"Yeah, that was supposed to be a surprise, but, yes, I canceled it."
— Esmeralda (Sabrina Impacciatore) [04:02]

Ned’s Journalistic Dream

"When I was a kid, I didn't want to be Superman. I wanted to be Clark Kent. Because 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."
— Ned (Donal Gleeson) [09:57]

Meta References to ‘The Office’

"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."
— Ned (Donal Gleeson) [16:37], (tongue-in-cheek reference to franchise fatigue)

Thoughts on Ensemble Neglect

"This show makes the mistake that season one of 'The Office' made, where it was like, we are really only going to invest in these few characters storylines at the expense of all of these other character storylines, even though we have an amazing ensemble cast."
— Priya Krishna [15:00]

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• 02:29 – Introduction of guests and premise
• 04:51 – Ronald Young Jr. critiques and "mid" assessment
• 06:02 – Priya Krishna on character dynamics and ensemble issues
• 08:34 – Debate over Esmeralda’s impact on the show
• 09:57 – Ned’s heartfelt moment and commentary on the “Clark Kent” ideal
• 10:44 – Mare and Ned’s developing dynamic
• 14:44 – Ensemble cast discussion and Alex Edelman’s role
• 15:00 – Ensemble neglect and potential for future growth
• 16:44 – Binge-worthiness and episodic recommendations
• 17:18 – Rethinking romance angles and series blueprint
• 18:18 – Reflections on the show’s future direction
• 18:50 – Final roundtable thoughts and takeaways

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Tone and Conclusion

The discussion maintains the show’s classic blend of warmth, honesty, and wry humor. The hosts agree that "The Paper," while pleasant and brimming with potential, struggles under the pressure of its heritage and needs to carve its own identity—especially by developing its ensemble cast and refining its more outlandish elements.

Final Word

"We all landed somewhere in the middle, but for really different reasons... If they don't tone down Esmeralda, which they still might, then I'm going to eventually lose interest in this show because I can't do that this much."
— Linda Holmes [10:57]

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Listener tip: If you’re expecting the instant comfort and cohesion of "The Office" or "Parks and Rec," adjust expectations for "The Paper." It’s not quite there yet, but it might find its footing as the newsroom—and its staff—settle in.

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This summary skips ad breaks, introductory credits, and promotional content, focusing exclusively on the episode's main discussion.

Transcript

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[Linda Holmes]

The paper is a comedy told in a mock documentary format about a workplace that's facing financial and cultural headwinds. If that sounds a lot like the Office, well, it's a spinoff of the Office, just barely. And this time, the industry in the crosshairs is local newspapers. I'm Linda Holmes, and today we're talking about the paper on Pop Culture Happy hour from npr.

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[Linda Holmes]

Joining me today is Ronald Young Jr. He's the host of the Film and Television Review podcast Leaving the Theater. Hello Ronald.

[Ronald Young Jr.]

Hello Linda.

[Linda Holmes]

And also with us is New York Times food reporter and author of the bestselling cookbook Indian Ish. I recommend it. I have cooked out of it. Priya Krishna, welcome back, Priya.

[Priya Krishna]

Hi Linda.

[Linda Holmes]

All right, great to see you both. The Paper was co created by Greg Daniels who developed the US Version of the Office alongside Michael Komen who co created Nathan, for you, which makes, like, a weird kind of sense to me, I have to say. The conceit is that Dunder Mifflin was devoured by a paper conglomerate, and that conglomerate has lots of businesses that use paper. And in Toledo, Ohio, one of the things it has ended up owning is the Toledo Truth Teller, a local newspaper that has become sparsely staffed and mostly cuts and pastes wire stories, or, on its digital side, clickbait stories. But a new editor in chief named Ned, played by Donal Gleason, comes in with determination and pluck, only to find that there's not a lot of determination and pluck left in the Truth Teller. The most powerful person there is an editor named Esmeralda, played by Sabrina Impacciatore, who you might recognize as the hotel manager in the Italy season of the White Lotus. Esmeralda does not want to share power. She likes things how they are, and. And so she seeks to undermine Ned at every opportunity, like cutting the wire service.

[Donal Gleason (as Ned)]

Sorry, I'm a little distracted. The wire's not working.

[Esmeralda (played by Sabrina Impacciatore)]

Yeah, that was supposed to be a surprise, but, yes, I canceled it.

[Donal Gleason (as Ned)]

You cut the. You. You cut the wire?

[Esmeralda (played by Sabrina Impacciatore)]

Yes, from my little office.

[Linda Holmes]

There are allies to be had, though, especially Mayor, played by Chelsea Frey, who gave up a while ago, but would like to be doing real journalism. This setup allows for stories about chasing down local stories, trying to survive in a hostile media environment, local politics, and, of course, the ins and outs of the personal dynamics among the staff. And one member of that staff binds the paper to the office. Oscar Nunez is back playing Oscar Martinez, who is now a jaded accountant in a whole new messy situation. There are 10 episodes of the Paper streaming now on Peacock. Ronald, I want to start with you. What did you think?

[Ronald Young Jr.]

So I came to this show very interested as a super Office fan and expecting, you know, I love the mockumentary format. There's so many other examples of this that have gone well of the quirky office comedy. You have Parks and Rec, of course, which is like a direct descendant of this. So I came in eyes wide open, ready to enjoy something else. I also came in as someone who loves Abbott Elementary. I think this is a mid show. This is very mid. Having all of those examples set before it. I think this show could be a lot bigger. That being said, the bones of this show are very good, and we know that historically, Greg Daniels stumbles out of the gate. He stumbled out of the gate with The Office Season 1, and he stumbled out of the gate with Parks and Recreation Season 1. This also feels like Another stumble out of the gate. Because there's stuff and storylines and people that I like here, but they're all being used incorrectly, in my opinion. So I did laugh, but the laughs I even had felt out of sequence. So I'd say I'm, like, middling on this.

[Linda Holmes]

Yeah, I think you make a good point that both the Office and Parks and Rec are shows that I think for a lot of people, they're like, well, you know, the first couple are a little weird, and they don't feel like the show feels later. Priya, where did you come down? How'd you like it?

[Priya Krishna]

I largely agree. I love all of the shows that you listed. I think I've watched the Office and Parks and recreation at least 10 times, dozens of times, beginning to end. And I think people who are coming to this show are going to be expecting the same type of sort of cozy, all enveloping comfort watch that a show like the Office and Parks and Recreation can be. And I would say it, like, sort of provides that. I think the premise is great. You know, as a journalist, the premise that, like, a paper company owns a local newspaper is very funny to me. I just found that it, like, just didn't quite get there. Like, just in terms of the storylines, in terms of the humor, the characters don't fit together as a unit in the way that they do with these amazing ensemble casts. If you think of a show like Parks and Recreation, each of those characters could have had their own spinoff show. And I think that's kind of what made that show so good. I don't feel that way about this. I feel like some characters are shortchanged for others. I'm very surprised at just how much they're really trying to just reuse what has already worked. We've got a grumpy guy. We've got the absurd caricature. We have the budding romance between two young, white, straight people. Dom hall doesn't quite work for me as a leading character. It might be because I can only think of him as his character from Ex Machina, but I'm not getting the, like, pluck and spirit that I sort of want from, like, the Amy Poehler type of figure in this show. I will say the thing that worked so much for me was Sabrina Impaciatore. I feel that she is, like, a scene stealer in this show, and I want to watch anything with her in it. There is an episode called Scam Alert that I think is the best episode in the entire season where that character is sort of Being scammed by someone pretending to be Josh Holloway, the actor from Lost. And. And it is so funny. And it reminded me of, like, the best episodes of the Office. I would love to see more of that, but I agree there's, like, potential here, but it just didn't land for me.

[Linda Holmes]

It's so interesting to me. Cause I came down roughly in the same spot as both of you. But Priya, for me, Esmeralda is the thing that keeps the show from working.

[Ronald Young Jr.]

I agree.

[Linda Holmes]

I think she is way too broad. There is way too much of her. It is impossible for me to understand how she would still have a job. She is incompetent, and she is also kind of trying to undermine everyone who works there. I don't understand. I think you can go up to a certain point, and they found this sometimes with the Office as well. I think you can go up to a certain point with people being absurd, and then it just becomes, like, too absurd. And I think, out of the gate with her, she's too absurd. It's nothing against the actress. I really liked her in the way at Lotus. I don't think she's doing anything other than exactly what they've asked. But I think she has written way too broad. I do think this show, I started out feeling like, yeah, you know, the notes are obviously very familiar. And I don't necessarily think that's a terrible thing. I think when you see spinoffs like, you know, angel and Buffy or, you know, I mean, every James Bond movie has similar elements. It's like, you can go back to what makes your thing work. That's fine. But I was feeling kind of mid about it, and I was like, I don't know if this really has me. But then I would say the last two episodes of the season, I was like, oh, they did get me, actually. I actually do care about this, and I actually do like these people. And I think Donal Gleason, I liked him in this. I thought he was very charming in this.

[Donal Gleason (as Ned)]

When I was a kid, I didn't want to be Superman. I wanted to be Clark Kent. Because 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.

[Linda Holmes]

It's an interesting. He's the boss, but he's not. He's both kind of a little bit buffoony, but he's also kind of your. Your leading man. He's very earnest. He clearly means very well and is not bad at his job. He's just kind of prone to bumbling kind of stuff. I really enjoyed him a lot. And I really like Chelsea Frey in this. I think she's got a really grounded quality that I really felt like it kept. I felt like she kept kind of bringing it back down to earth a little bit when it would get extraordinarily silly with the Esmeralda stuff. I have an idea.

[Esmeralda (played by Sabrina Impacciatore)]

Oh, my God. How long have you been there? The whole time. I thought you were a pair of shirts.

[Priya Krishna]

No.

[Donal Gleason (as Ned)]

Yes. Mir.

[Linda Holmes]

I think we all landed somewhere in the middle, but for really different reasons. Like, my feeling has been like, if they don't tone down Esmeralda, which they still might, then I'm going to eventually lose interest in this show because I can't do that this much.

[Ronald Young Jr.]

I think the issue with the Esmeralda character is that she is written too broadly. I agree with you, Linda, but I also agree with you, Priya, that she is seasoning to the entire show. She brings that kind of chaos agent that we need for a show like this. If you look at Abbott elementary, if you look at Ava Coleman, who is kind of this agent of chaos, but she also cares about. She has some sort of heart of gold that kind of endears you to her. If you look at Dwight Schrute, he is an agent of chaos, but he also is a very good salesman, and you actually like him. There's a lot of parts about his character that make him extremely likable. He has this moral code that makes sense to him. With Esmeralda, she's a bad mom. She is sabotaging everybody at the paper. And she also, like, she generally doesn't care about journalism. And so when you put all of those on her and then also try to make us laugh at her jokes, there was stuff that she said that I was like, I don't think that's funny because you're being a jerk. And I'm hoping that in season two, they realize what they have with Esmeralda and kind of hone it down or at least narrow the focus a little bit.

[Priya Krishna]

I think that's why I liked the Scam Alert episode so much, because the end really healed her.

[Ronald Young Jr.]

Yes.

[Priya Krishna]

You know, you feel really bad for her. You understand why she is this big, larger than life character. And, yeah, I hope to get more of those moments.

[Linda Holmes]

Yeah, I think that's fair. And I do think that that episode is funny. I enjoyed the Scam alert element of that, and I enjoyed the Josh Holloway element, which, like, good job, Josh Holloway.

[Ronald Young Jr.]

You got him for this.

[Linda Holmes]

Yeah. And it's probably not gonna surprise anybody given me and who I am and what I am known to like, that I was sort of drawn to the rom com elements of this kind of sort of flirtation between Ned and Mare that takes a long time to kind of start to be anything. And at first I was like, oh, I don't. I don't know if I really want to watch this. Cause of course he. Her boss, which he's super, super conscious of, which at least that helps a little bit that, you know, this is not something that is unspoken or unacknowledged or, like, nobody cares about it. As they got to the end of this season, I was like, I actually did feel like their ability to kind of learn to cooperate with each other. And I think one of the things that I. That I think works in this show that wasn't part of the Office is that one of the things that made the Office genuinely a melancholic show was that nobody there cared about anything they were doing, except for the purposes of like a kind of a very detached, like, I believe in being good at my job, like, which is sort of how some of them were. It's kind of how Michael was. It's kind of how Dwight was. It's important to be good at your job. These people actually are trying to do something that they think is meaningful, and I think that potentially does give the show some more shape and some more depth. And I think they start to get into that close to the end of the season when you realize that these people are sort of afraid to admit that they have pride in their work because they feel like if I admit that I have pride in my work and that I care how other people receive my work, it's going to just disappoint me in the end. Right. Because it's just easier to not care about your job. Which is, I think, something that a lot of people have felt at different times. So, like, by the end, when it started to pick up those threads a little bit more, I did like it. One of the things that the Office has in common with this show also is that there is a large group of kind of people who work in the Office who don't do a lot, who aren't brought into a lot of stories.

[Priya Krishna]

Right.

[Linda Holmes]

Alex Edelman is in this and I think is excellent and very funny as this guy who just kind of sits at his desk and thinks about all the kids he has at home. And I like him very much. I think he's sort of the supporting one who's working the best for me.

[Priya Krishna]

But I do think that this show makes the mistake that season one of the Office made, where it was like, we are really only going to invest in these few characters storylines at the expense of all of these other character storylines, even though we have an amazing ensemble cast. And then I think part of what made the Office so great is that it started to realize, oh, my God, like, our ensemble is amazing. We need to invest in all of these characters.

[Linda Holmes]

I think that's right.

[Priya Krishna]

I also am, like, charmed by the Mare Ned romance, but I'm also just like. I feel like as a result, the Nicole Dietrich romance, I'm sort of stuck being like, what is happening here? Who are these people? But I feel like maybe that's just like a Greg Daniels signature that we have to wait until season two to see Untangled.

[Linda Holmes]

It's another reason why, if they had had 22 episodes, like a broadcast season, I feel like maybe you would have seen more of those characters start to get more shape to them, because they do have a lot of promise. You know, you mentioned Melvin Gregg as Detrick, who I think is really funny, and Ramona Young, who plays Nicole. And the two of them kind of have. It's not a flirtation exactly. It's like a whole other weird kind of works for them, kind of maybe sort of thing going on. And I did like them. I'm always happy to see Oscar Nunez again. I think he still understands how to make this exact guy funny. Yeah, he's the place where they allow him to indulge in a little bit of occasionally kind of callback humor.

[Donal Gleason (as Ned)]

God, not again.

[Ronald Young Jr.]

I'm not agreeing to any of this.

[Donal Gleason (as Ned)]

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.

[Linda Holmes]

They don't do a lot of direct referencing of the Office, except for the occasional, like, Oscar will occasionally say something and he'll be like, oh, he's talking about Michael. Those things were fun to me. But I do share your sense that, like, it's in the middle, it's pleasant, it's fine. I actually don't recommend Binging it necessarily. I would watch it a little bit at a time. I'm not sure it's a Bingey show. I think as a Bingey show, it kind of started to get a little. Yeah, okay, I got it. I got it. Whereas when I would sit down to it again, I would be like, oh, okay, this is fun. This is cheerful.

[Ronald Young Jr.]

I agree with the episode count. I think the benefit that a lot of that any other television show has is that and especially if you go to the office, in particular, if you go back and rewatch it, reward you for saying that. We thought about this. We thought about these slow burns, like, if you just go back and watch Jim and Pam and just look at Jim's face every time Roy is around, they thought about that. Look how Jim feels in this moment and this one. I did like the Ned and Mare romance, and towards the end, I did like it because he directly addresses the fact that he is her boss and there's some conflict in him struggling with that before, you know, they continue exploring or deciding what they're going to do at that point. It also feels like it's forced. It feels like they're making me deal with this romance because every other show that is like this has a romance at the center, and I don't mind that being there. I like romantic comedies, but I feel like when you put them in the paper in the very first episode, you could. Those two. There it is. That's what it is.

[Linda Holmes]

Those two.

[Ronald Young Jr.]

We're gonna watch that. But then it also feels unfocused in a way because, like, there's no Roy. You know what I mean? There's no way that we're pulling them apart except for these kind of false obstacles. So looking at it in that way, it makes me say, what is your plan for the paper beyond season one, especially with all of the knowledge that listeners and us all have now, knowing what happens in subsequent seasons of these shows, I don't know what it is for the paper, especially, because they really didn't spend enough time talking about reporting.

[Priya Krishna]

Yeah, right.

[Linda Holmes]

Like I said, I didn't think they had me. And I got to the end of the season and I was like, oh, you did have me. Actually on a couple of fronts. I got to the very end of it and I was like, yeah, I actually do care about this. I enjoyed this. I'm with these people. I want them to be happy. And I appreciated that. So let us know what you think about this. The paper. Find [e-mail] PCHH that brings us to the end of our show. Priya Krishna, Ronald Young, Jr. Thank you both for being here to talk about our favorite thing, journalism. Thank you both.

[Ronald Young Jr.]

Thank you, Linda.

[Priya Krishna]

Thank you, Linda.

[Linda Holmes]

This episode is produced by Janae Morris and Mike Katsif and edited by our showrunner, Jessica Reedy. And hello. Come in provides our theme music. Thanks for listening to Pop Culture Happy Hour. From NBC npr. I'm Linda Holmes and we'll see you all next time.

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