9 Great TV Shows Set in the Workplace
For when you miss the office, but don’t necessarily want to go back just yet.
Working from home is great. Since Metro Manila was placed under various levels of community quarantine throughout the past year, work-from-home setups and remote work have grown increasingly popular, allowing much of the world to cut down on traffic and emissions, while preventing the spread of Covid-19. I enjoy working from home, and I’m lucky enough to be able to do so.
Still, there are a few things I miss about the office, both the physical space and the customs surrounding it—afternoon coffee breaks with coworkers, the feeling of knowing that you’re surrounded by people who are more or less going through the same thing as you, turning around and knowing that there is always someone ready to help you. And of course, nothing beats the feeling coming home after a long day of work, or arriving at a restaurant from some post-work merriment.
It’s no surprise then that I love TV shows set in workplaces, because putting together the concept of found family and office politics, I think, makes for good television. You never know what you’re going to get, because episodes can range from serious people doing their jobs seriously to the little things we do to make working a bit more bearable.
Below, 9 great TV shows set in the workplace, if you, like I do, miss the office, but don’t necessarily want to go back just yet.
9 Great TV Shows Set in the Workplace
9 Great TV Shows Set in the Workplace
Start-Up
Metro.Style fave Start-Up follows the lives of three of South Korea’s own version of Silicon Valley — called Sandbox — as they fall in love, create apps, and invest in worthy start-ups.
Parks and Recreation
One of the past decade’s most successful shows, Parks and Recreation follows big-hearted Parks Department employee Leslie Knope who wants to convert a construction site into a community park. Set in the fictional town of Pawnee, Indiana, Parks and Rec is a cure for the blues — just make sure you skip the first season.
Sports Night
A little-known show from the late 90s, Sports Night has grown to become a cult favorite among television enthusiasts. It follows the inner workings of an ESPN or SportsCenter-type show from a fictional network called CSC, focusing, of course, on the professional and personal lives of its staff, from anchors Casey McCall and Dan Rydell to executive producer Dana Whitaker.
The West Wing
Aaron Sorkin, one of the foremost purveyors of the workplace dramedy genre, started work on The West Wing during Sports Night’s run. In the end, Sports Night got cancelled, and The West Wing became one of the most popular and beloved shows of the century. It follows White House staffers running the country and politics in an America helmed by fictional Democratic President Josiah “Jed” Bartlet.
The Bold Type
The Bold Type follows three millennial women — Jane, Sutton, and Kat — as they navigate life, love, career, and friendship in a world that is becoming increasingly politicized. They work at a fictional magazine called Scarlet, similar to publications like Teen Vogue and Refinery29. It’s earnest and heartfelt, with absurd and over-the-top scenarios guaranteed to remind you of something similar that’s happened to you at work. (Or not.)
The Good Wife
The Good Wife follows Alicia Florrick, the wife of a disgraced state’s attorney who returns to her career as a litigator. It explores America’s legal and justice system, while also providing us generous workplace drama content. Best of all, its sense of humor is understated and barely there, which makes funny and comic scenarios all the more hilarious.
Just Shoot Me!
Just Shoot Me!, like The Bold Type, is set at a fictional fashion magazine called Blush, and follows owner and publisher Jack Gallo, his writer daughter Maya, and the rest of the staff. Hijinks, naturally, ensue each episode.
The Office
This list of course would not be complete without The Office, a workplace comedy, filmed like a documentary, that follows the life of office employees in the Scranton branch of the fictional Dunder Mifflin Paper Company.
Younger
Younger follows Liza Miller, a 40-year-old single mom who pretends to be a 20-something to get a job back in publishing, which she left just before she became a mother. She becomes the assistant of Diana Trout, the marketing head of Empirical Press, and finds her days filled with calls, schedules, chasing after (and trying to appease) authors, and so much more.
Photos from IMdB
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