From ‘The Office’ to ‘Abbott Elementary’: The 10 Best Workplace Sitcoms Of All Time
If there’s one thing necessary to surviving in the modern world, it’s money. And unfortunately, you can’t get money without a job. Work can be many things to many people. A lot of people don’t enjoy their work. But on TV, it can be whatever you want it to be.
That is part of what makes the workplace sitcom one of the most popular TV formats of all time. People want to imagine they could spend eight hours a day in a place where wacky shenanigans happen and office romances bloom. It’s aspirational entertainment.
‘Derek’
Ricky Gervais has created several great sitcoms, like The Office and After Life, but Derek is a really special part of his filmography. The show follows Gervais as Derek, an employee at a nursing home, as he improves the various residents’ lives. As the budget for the nursing home gets smaller, his co-workers stress out, but Derek tries to remain positive.
Derek’s positivity is the show’s greatest strength. He’s sweet and kind, a change of pace from your typical Ricky Gervais character. It’s a kind of show we don’t get enough of. Nowadays, many TV shows try to out-think kindness and prefer darker characters with an edge to them, but sometimes it’s nice to watch a show that reminds you that the world isn’t all doom and gloom. When you’re nearing the end of your life, maybe you’ll have someone like Derek there to take care of you.
‘Scrubs’
Scrubs was created at the peak popularity of medical dramas like Grey’s Anatomy and ER. Working at a hospital can be intense. Messing up could actually mean life and death. It’s easy to let the stress of the job be the focus of a medical show, but Scrubs doesn’t do that. Instead, the show focuses on how the workers deal with their stress: humor.
Scrubs follows the interns and doctors of Sacred Heart Hospital as they treat the many patients who come there for help. The show’s tone is incredibly wacky, with quick cutaways, sound effects, and an inner monologue narrating the episode. But the show isn’t trading in its heart for humor. When the story calls for it, Scrubs can get serious. Sad things happen in hospitals, and the way that Scrubs doesn’t shy away from it is very impressive.
‘Brooklyn Nine-Nine’
In the history of television, there have been tons of cop shows, but none quite like Brooklyn Nine-Nine. While most cop shows focus on the importance and danger of being a cop, B99 takes a lighter approach and shows the fun that can be had while protecting the public.
The show stars SNL alum Andy Samberg as Detective Jake Peralta, a cop who always finds a way to annoy his co-workers with his wacky antics while still getting the job done. Like many workplace sitcoms, what audiences are drawn to is the ensemble. The cast of characters of the 99th Precinct of the NYPD is beloved by fans of the show. Each character has their fans, from Terry Crews’ muscular Terry to Stephanie Beatriz’s aggressive Rosa. Much like a real-life workplace, the more you get to know the cast of Brooklyn Nine-Nine, the more you start to like them.
‘Mythic Quest’
Mythic Quest is not for everyone. Even putting aside the sometimes raunchy humor brought to the show by creators Charlie Day, Rob McElhenney, and Megan Ganz, the show is a satirical look inside the world of video game development. If you’re not a gamer, there’s still plenty to enjoy, but the show has even more to offer to those who are familiar with the lingo and inside jokes of video game culture.
Set in the offices of the studio behind the biggest game in the world, Mythic Quest, the show follows the creative director, Ian Grimm (McElhenney), and his staff as they work to put out more content that will take the game to the next level. Disagreements in terms of direction and the ego of Grimm cause problem after problem, but the heart of the show lies in how each of these people wants to make a game for people to enjoy. It’s a show about the comedy of making art and the business that comes along with it.
‘Cheers’
Cheers is one of the most iconic workplace sitcoms of all time. Its impact can be felt in the generations of workplace sitcoms set in a bar, Cheers follows the lives of the patrons and employees as they share their lives with each other. It’s one of the ultimate classic sitcoms.
Cheers’ biggest strength is the cast, including Ted Danson, Rhea Perlman, George Wendt, John Ratzenberger, Kelsey Grammer, and Woody Harrelson. Their interplay and character dynamics play a large role in making the program a comfort show for millions of people.
‘Ted Lasso’
Ted Lasso is a rare show in the modern TV landscape. It’s a show that puts kindness at the forefront and doesn’t undermine its positivity with cynicism. That same quality is what has given the show such a large and devoted fan base. With how stressful the real world can be, it’s nice to watch a show where co-workers overcome their differences to stand together as a team.
Based on a series of NBC advertisements, Ted Lasso follows the titular character who travels from the US to the UK to become the new head coach for the AFC Richmond football club. In a place he’s not used to, coaching a sport he’s not familiar with, you would think Ted Lasso (Jason Sudeikis) would collapse under the pressure, but instead, he smiles in the face of adversity and pushes forward. It’s a show that hit at the right time, debuting during the COVID-19 pandemic and giving people an outlet of positivity at a time when negativity comes naturally.
‘Abbott Elementary’
Abbott Elementary just wrapped up its first season on ABC, and yet it’s already made a big enough impact to be considered one of the all-time great workplace sitcoms. Created by and starring Quinta Brunson, the show takes place in an inner-city Philadelphia elementary school with too little funding but a lot of heart. The show’s genuine care and affection for educators, who have never gotten their due respect, makes it so resonant.
While touching upon the many issues of the underfunded education system in America, Abbott Elementary is also one of the best-written sitcoms on TV, hitting joke after joke out of the park. The writing is only enhanced by the wonderful cast led by Brunson, including Tyler James Williams, Lisa Ann Walter, Chris Perfetti, Janelle James, and the legendary Sheryl Lee Ralph. If you haven’t seen Abbott Elementary, now is the time to get in on the ground floor because it will only get better.
‘It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia’
It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia is a great workplace sitcom because it barely has anything to do with the workplace. The show takes place in Paddy’s Pub and follows its owners as they do reprehensible things and refuse to feel bad about them. The show barely has anything to do with the intricacies of running a bar. Instead, a typical episode is about the gang devising some evil scheme to take advantage of people for their personal gain.
The cast of characters known as the Gang includes Dennis (Glenn Howerton), a raging egocentric and possible serial killer, his sister Dee (Kaitlyn Olson), an aspiring actor and the gang’s punching bag whose low self-esteem has transformed into utter delusion, Charlie (Charlie Day), a simple man who lives a life of so much absurdly disgusting behavior it’s surprising he’s still alive, Mac (Rob McElhenney), a man whose almost always in denial of something, and Frank (Danny DeVito), a man so rich he can’t help but commit heinous crimes.
’30 Rock’
30 Rock is a very meta take on the workplace sitcom. Created by former Saturday Night Live head writer Tina Fey, 30 Rock takes place in the same building as SNL, 30 Rockefeller Plaza in New York City, and stars Fey as Liz Lemon, the head writer of a popular weekly sketch comedy show on NBC. Fey used her work experience to create an incredibly specific show while still feeling relatable to a general audience, thanks to its characters.
30 Rock quickly became one of the top shows on TV thanks to its extremely quick wit, pop culture commentary, and a lovable cast, including Alec Baldwin, Jane Krakowski, Tracy Morgan, and Jack McBrayer. The show is full of references to the entertainment and shots at the show’s parent company NBC. It was refreshing to see such a modern take on a format that traditionally appeals to people of all ages.
‘The Office’ (U.S.)
The Office is at the top of the mountain for workplace sitcoms. It’s the show that every other workplace sitcom aspires to be. Based on a British sitcom of the same name, The Office took the cringe-worthy humor of the original series and infused it with a lighter tone and characters you can’t help but love.
What makes The Office so beloved by generations of people is the sincere heart at the show’s center. While Michael Scott (Steve Carell) may be a needy, inappropriate boss, you can tell that he means well and truly cares about his employees like they’re his family. Jim and Pam’s (John Krasinski and Jenna Fischer) office romance is one of the sweetest relationships ever put to screen. Even though they all have their differences and feuds, every employee of the Scranton branch of Dunder-Mifflin will always be closer and more intimate than friends and co-workers.
