It’s been a while since the popular comic by Brian K. Vaughan and Cliff Chiang’s enthralling comic Paper Girls got the TV greenlight treatment. The hilarious, heartbreaking, and thrilling comic follows four 12-year-old girls living in fictional Stony Stream, Ohio. They are working early morning paper routes in 1988 when their lives change forever. An encounter with time travelers thrusts them into a conflict that spans the ages. Fans fell for Erin, KJ, Mac, and Tiffany as they got to examine themselves, hurtle across time, and build a friendship unlike any other. Now Prime Video is giving us our first look at the Paper Girls TV show in a teaser. And it does a great job of capturing the girl’s distinct personalities as well as the comic’s aesthetic.
In the brief teaser, we meet our paper girls. First, there’s Tiffany Quilkin, who is simply trying to get done with the route in one piece. She’s got better stuff to do instead of, you know, potentially dying. Then, we meet MacKenzie “Mac” Coyle, who says that not all people get to live in a JcPenney catalog. Fans of the Paper Girls comic are well aware of Mac’s cynical nature and this teaser is a taste of it. Karina “KJ” J. comes in next, showcasing her sensitivity. And last but certainly not least is Erin Tieng, whom the comic’s initial story centers on. She’s the new girl, the rule follower, and shouldering some serious things. The end of the teaser shows of the color scheme of the Paper Girls comic’s cover art (for the first few issues) along with its retro title.
Of course, many people will want to compare this story to Stranger Things. It is about bike-riding kids in small town ‘80s America getting into all sorts of mess, right? Yes, that is true. But that is where the comparisons end. Paper Girls is an expansive ride spanning far past what a reader (and soon the viewer) expects from it. There’s a litany of characters and a lot of pragmatism, hope, humor, badass moments, and a very nuanced look at the coming-of-age experience for girls.
Right now, we don’t know the premiere date for Paper Girls. It is set to arrive sometime later this year. But this is a great time to devour Paper Girls and get ready for Prime Video’s TV show take on this wonderful saga.
Editor’s Note: Nerdist is a subsidiary of Legendary Digital Networks.
