Superstore needed a few episodes to find itself, like most comedies do. But where lots of comedies spend their entire first season (or even longer) figuring things out, Superstore jelled quickly; halfway through its abbreviated first season (which is just 11 episodes long), the show left behind a shaky pilot to quickly zero in on what worked.
Superstore
NBC’s immensely charming workplace comedy enters season 4.
Eddy Chen/NBC
Emily St. James was a senior correspondent for Vox, covering American identities. Before she joined Vox in 2014, she was the first TV editor of the A.V. Club.
Ever since then, and now in its fourth season, the series has operated with a quiet, unflappable confidence. So much of making a great sitcom is about creating good characters and then putting them in a unique setting, and Superstore has managed both of those objectives handily. A big-box department store is the kind of environment that allows for lots of weird comedic hijinks, and the show’s characters comprise the kind of ensemble where almost any pairing has potential for big laughs. Add that to a well-done will-they/won’t-they core, and you have TV’s best workplace comedy.
“Throughout its run, the NBC sitcom has managed to surprise viewers without frustrating them and slowly built a legitimate romance between two characters everyone assumed would get together. ... And still, Superstore has made smart choices at every turn.” Ben Travers, Indiewire
Metacritic score: N/A (58 out of 100 for season one; TV critics need to revisit this show!)
Where to watch: New episodes air Thursdays at 8 pm Eastern on NBC. Previous episodes are available on Hulu.
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