The Paper
Every mockumentary spinoff carries the same curse: it has to prove it isn’t just cosplaying as its famous parent show. “The Paper” spent its entire first season answering the question “wait, is this actually funny, or are we just nostalgic for Jim and Pam?” Season 2 answers back with something close to confidence, and honestly, it’s about time the Toledo Truth Teller got its own personality instead of borrowing Dunder Mifflin’s.
All ten episodes dropped on Peacock on September 9, and critics have responded well, though the reception is more mixed than the early buzz suggested. As reviews have settled, Rotten Tomatoes currently has Season 2 sitting at 85%, matching Season 1’s score exactly. That’s still a solid result for a spinoff trying to escape the enormous shadow of The Office, even if it hasn’t quite cleared the bar its predecessor set.
A Newsroom That Finally Knows What It Is
To my eye, the biggest shift in Season 2 is tonal, though not every critic agrees on how big that shift actually is. Season 1 spent a lot of energy figuring out who these people even were, which made for a slightly wobbly watch. This year, the show at least stops introducing itself and starts committing. Editor Ned Sampson, played by Domhnall Gleeson with exactly the right blend of earnestness and delusion, is no longer just “the new Michael Scott.” He’s his own particular brand of well-meaning disaster, and the show finally trusts him to be funny without constantly winking at his obvious predecessor.
Sabrina Impacciatore continues to be the show’s not-so-secret weapon. Multiple critics singled her out as the season’s comedic engine, and it shows in nearly every scene she’s in. She has that rare sitcom skill of making a raised eyebrow feel like a whole monologue.
And yes, Oscar Nuñez is back as Oscar Martinez, quietly doing accountant things in the background like a guy who wandered in from a better-funded show and decided to stay. His presence isn’t just fan service; it’s the connective tissue that lets longtime Office fans exhale and think, “okay, we’re still in the same slightly unhinged universe.”
The Jokes Land Harder, the Stakes Feel Bigger
Season 1 was, by most accounts, pleasant. Season 2 wants to be more than pleasant, and mostly succeeds. Reviewers have pointed to the show taking bigger comedic swings this year, pushing past the smaller, more observational humor of The Office into moments that are broader and occasionally verge on farce. One especially talked-about storyline involves the staff banding together to write an obituary for someone who, plot twist, turns out to have been a genuinely terrible person. It’s the kind of dark, slightly uncomfortable comedy that “The Paper” only flirted with before, and it works.
There’s also more room for the supporting cast to actually register as characters rather than background extras refilling the coffee pot. Melvin Gregg, Gbemisola Ikumelo, Ramona Young, Alex Edelman, and Chelsea Frei all get moments this season that, at least to this reviewer, let their characters exist as people with actual interior lives rather than punchline delivery devices. Chelsea Frei in particular gets pulled deeper into the emotional core of the show alongside Gleeson. Lisa Gilroy is another one worth watching for several critics have called her out as one of the season’s genuine standouts, and it’s easy to see why once she gets going.
Where It Still Trips Over Its Own Shoelaces
No season is without its wrinkles, and this one has a few. Several critics flagged that the show leans a bit too hard into romantic entanglements this year, enough that it occasionally feels less like a sharp satire of struggling journalism and more like a soapy will-they-won’t-they drama that happens to be set in a newsroom. Individually, none of these relationship threads are dealbreakers, but stacked together across ten episodes, they start to crowd out the workplace comedy that made the show worth watching in the first place.
There’s also the classic ensemble-comedy problem: too many good characters, not enough runtime. Tim Key’s Ken Davies gets singled out repeatedly as a character who deserved far more screen time than he actually got. It’s a strange complaint to have about a comedy “please give us more of this guy” is a nicer problem than most shows face but it does mean a few episodes feel unevenly balanced, spending time on subplots that matter less than the ones sitting on the bench.
Not every critic came away fully convinced, either. Richard Roeper’s review described the season as breezy but uneven, and clever without quite reaching the precision comedy of shows like “Veep” or “Arrested Development.” At least one other outlet went further, calling the season oversanitized and underwhelming despite praising the cast. Those are fair notes. “The Paper” still isn’t interested in letting its characters be truly terrible people, which keeps things a little safer and a little less bitingly funny than the genre’s best so if you’re hoping for consensus-level raves, temper your expectations. The overall response leans positive, but it’s a “good, occasionally uneven season” rather than a unanimous triumph.
How Does It Stack Up Against The Office?
Comparisons are inevitable and, frankly, invited this show exists specifically because “The Office” left such a massive comedy-shaped hole in NBC’s lineup. The good news is that, in my read, Season 2 is the first real stretch of episodes where “The Paper” feels like it could survive a conversation about its own merits without immediately bringing up Scranton. It’s not there yet in terms of sheer character density or quotability, but The Office also had nine seasons to build that kind of depth and cultural shorthand. Give this newsroom time to grow into its own legend.
What’s clear is that the creative team, led once again by Greg Daniels alongside showrunner Michael Koman, understands the assignment better this time around. The mockumentary format is used more purposefully, the “talking head” interviews land with sharper timing, and the show finally seems to trust its cast enough to let them be weird instead of merely likable.
Final Verdict: Should You Watch The Paper Season 2?
Short answer: yes, especially if Season 1 left you cautiously optimistic rather than fully sold. This season smooths out some of the growing pains, gives parts of its ensemble more to chew on, and edges toward a comedic identity that isn’t just “The Office, but journalism.” It’s not flawless the romance subplots could use some editing, a few standout characters deserve more airtime, and not every critic is convinced it’s actually better than Season 1 but on balance, this reads as a solid, occasionally uneven step forward rather than a stumble.
With all ten episodes available in one binge-ready drop on Peacock, there’s no excuse not to catch up before this becomes the show everyone’s quoting at the office (pun very much intended). The Toledo Truth Teller might be a struggling print paper in a dying industry, but as far as television comedies go, it’s very much still in circulation.
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