Four paper girls residing in Stoney Stream, Ohio (a small town just outside of Cleveland) in 1988 find themselves in the middle of a war being waged across time when they are thrust forward into the year 2019. There Erin (Riley Lai Nelet), Tiffany (Camryn Jones), KJ (Fina Strazza), and Mac (Sofia Rosinsky) meet the older version of Erin (played by Ali Wong), who they enlist to help them find their way back to their rightful place in time, all while being pursued by the Old Watch, strict enforcers of timeline integrity who will go to any lengths to prevent any time travel whatsoever.
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The set-up for Paper Girls is intriguing enough. Much like Stranger Things, the story focuses on sci-fi elements as seen through the eyes of 80s pre-teens. However, this being a group of girls, the entire tale is given a fresh perspective that is sorely lacking in other media. All four characters are well-defined from the get-go, even if their stories don’t always serve them all that well, and the central performances help to keep the show more interesting than it might otherwise be.
Mac, in particular, is given the most satisfying arc through the eight-episode season. Sofia Rosinsky turns in a performance that is both tough and vulnerable, revealing how Mac hides her feelings behind the veneer of a bad attitude (and some unfortunate opinions regarding people of color and the Jewish religion that sometimes make it hard to sympathize with her). Mac’s story is most closely intertwined with KJ’s, and Fina Strazza does some excellent work as well in portraying the complicated feelings that can accompany the journey into adolescence.
Unfortunately, the depth given to these two characters doesn’t always extend to Erin, and it’s truly unfortunate. While Riley Lai Nelet works well with what she is given, Erin’s journey often feels like an afterthought, even though she is the first character introduced in the premiere episode, and serves as the audience surrogate into the world of paper delivery. By the middle of the season, it feels like Erin’s story is put on the back burner so that the show can devote more of its focus to the other characters. Tiffany fares better, with Camryn Jones finding the right balance between the book smarts and tenacity that define the character. Unlike Erin, Tiffany’s development over the season is more clearly defined, with a change in perspective arriving just after the halfway point.
Where Paper Girls really shines is how it explores the theme of time, particularly in how drastically things and people can change over the course of years. Much of the conflict in the show comes from how the characters grapple with the future and the revelations of their fates. Growing up can be difficult, and seeing what the future holds can make it far more complicated. What the show falls short on is tying those themes more clearly into its plot, which is the weakest element overall.
Paper Girls may stray too far from its source material for old-school fans to really engage with it, and even for those coming in fresh, the show may fall flat. However, what it lacks in imaginative sci-fi elements and plotting it makes up for in its core characters, who really carry the show. Even if the finale leaves something to be desired, this is a series that deserves at least a second season, if only to try and course-correct some of the shortcomings present in its premiere. Being able to see where Erin, Tiffany, KJ, and Mac’s stories go would be worth it just to see the young actors continue in their roles. However, if the show does carry on, it needs to address its errors and try to overcome them. There’s no going back and fixing what’s already been done. All Paper Girls can do is move forward and try to be better.
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