This text comprises spoilers for “The Paper” episode 4.
“The Paper” is likely to be a spin-off from “The Workplace,” nevertheless it’s a free one at finest, that includes a brand new solid in a brand new workplace in a brand new metropolis. Actually, the largest hyperlinks between the brand new sequence and its predecessor are behind the scenes, with former “The Workplace” showrunner Greg Daniels spearheading the brand new sequence utilizing a number of of the identical writers and administrators. However there may be one main on-screen connection between the 2 exhibits (past the actual fact the identical documentary crew are stated to be capturing the employees on the Toledo Fact Teller): Oscar Nuñez’s Oscar Martinez. The previous Dunder Mifflin accountant is now doing the identical job in Toledo, and some episodes in, has been fairly adamant that he does not wish to be concerned within the new documentary (one thing that is showcased in the trailer for “The Paper”). However with episode 4, Oscar is handed the Arts and Leisure beat and can contribute to the Fact Teller as a critic going ahead. That is a big second for the character, who beforehand revealed his love for the humanities however by no means actually obtained to embrace it throughout his time on “The Workplace.”
After we final noticed Oscar within the 2013 finale episode of “The Workplace,” merely titled “Finale,” he was working for state senator towards his former lover and Angela Martin’s (Angela Kinsey) ex-husband Robert Lipton (Jack Coleman). However he was additionally nonetheless working at Dunder Mifflin, which had already seen a number of modifications of possession. When “The Paper” begins, we discover out the corporate was bought by the unfortunately-titled Enervate, which sells paper merchandise. When Enervate subsumed Dunder Mifflin, it introduced Oscar alongside for the experience, suggesting the accountant wasn’t profitable in his bid for state senate (or possibly he was, however returned to Dunder Mifflin after his political stint). Regardless of the case, Oscar stays a bean counter firstly of “The Paper.” However removed from merely bringing him alongside as a strategy to entice followers of the unique present, it appears showrunner and co-creator Greg Daniels has plans to provide the character a lot a much bigger and extra satisfying arc than some followers might need anticipated.
Oscar is the brand new Arts and Leisure reporter, and it fits him
On “The Workplace,” Oscar Martinez was one of many Dunder Mifflin accountants however his actual ardour was the humanities. He obtained a status for being a little bit of an aesthete, particularly after the season 4 episode “Department Wars” (one of many finest episodes of “The Workplace”), the place he began a “Finer Issues Membership” that included Pam (Jenna Fischer), Toby (Paul Lieberstein), and finally Jim (John Krasinski) — although Jim sabotaged his membership by failing to learn “Angela’s Ashes” and making enjoyable of the group. The Finer Issues Membership would meet at lunch to debate literature and artwork, and included E.M. Forster’s “A Room With A View” and Arthur Golden’s “Memoirs Of A Geisha” on its studying listing.
For the remainder of the sequence, nevertheless, Oscar by no means actually obtained to embrace his love of the humanities, and remained an accountant proper up till the ultimate episode, wherein it was steered he may embark on a political profession. We all know that did not pan out (at the least in the long term), nevertheless it appears “The Paper” will lastly give Oscar an opportunity to do what he loves for a dwelling. In episode 4, he is requested to overview the native highschool’s manufacturing of “Imply Boys” and writes a hilariously scathing overview which is barely seen briefly within the episode however begins with the headline “Cease Making an attempt To Make This Occur.”
This try to provide Oscar a personality arc is a nice addition to a present which, let’s face it, was by no means going to be a spin-off that was really higher than the unique present. Not solely does it show the writers are literally being attentive to the character reasonably than simply utilizing him as a strategy to bridge the hole between “The Workplace” and “The Paper,” it means we’d get to see some significant character improvement in a present that is additionally having to juggle its personal giant ensemble.
Oscar was all the time a little bit of a grouch, however that would change
There is no doubt Oscar Martinez was a beloved character on “The Workplace,” however he was additionally a pragmatist who may typically be an actual downer. He had an air of superiority about him and would steadily cite details and figures as a means of undermining his colleagues’ admittedly wild strategies. In a single notably humorous “The Workplace” scene, he’s heard saying that he finds Angela Martin’s cat poster to be “creepy and in dangerous style” and went on a rant about the way it was “the other of artwork. It destroys artwork, it destroys souls.” As such, he wasn’t all the time probably the most fun-loving member of the group, however maybe his new job on the Toledo Fact Teller may change that.
When “The Paper” begins out, Oscar is as grumpy as ever, refusing to go on-camera and working from the documentary crew. However after he is requested to overview the play in episode 4, he sits down for an interview with the crew (although he makes clear it is solely to advertise his new Artwork and Leisure beat). This already means that Oscar would possibly lastly discover some pleasure if he continues to contribute to the paper on this means, and implies he might be far more than a aspect character because the present goes on.
Talking to Selection, Oscar Nuñez characterised Oscar as a “pseudo-intellectual” who “desires to do his job and discover a boyfriend and go to some performs” and “desires to get pleasure from his life with out being in a documentary.” The “pseudo mental” half appears slightly dismissive of the previous Dunder Mifflin accountant, particularly contemplating Nuñez additionally posed a extra optimistic query: “Does [Oscar] simply wish to make a buck and be cynical, or does he wish to do one thing?” It looks like as “The Paper” goes on, we’ll get a solution to that query and maybe an entire character arc for Oscar, who by no means actually obtained an opportunity to beat the “pseudo mental” label the primary time round.
