Making a comedy series where everyone is unpleasant, cruel, or despicable isn’t easy. It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia has been doing it for most of recorded time. However, it is a risk because if you miss, you can only miss big. Regrettably, in the four episodes (of a season order of eight) given to critics, The Z-Suite misses big.

Creator Katie O’Brien’s idea is relatively sound. Boomer era George (Mark McKinney)—owner of Boppin’ Burger—has brought his business to the ad agency Atelier, owned by fellow Boomer Oliver. Paired initially with two Gen Xers at opposite ends of that generation, Monica Frazier (Lauren Graham, on the born in the late 60s side) and Doug (Nico Santos, born on the late 70s side), both owners quickly become disenchanted with the usually reliable duo. Ostensibly, the cause is a disastrous headphone campaign centered on the slogan “All Vibes Matter.” Still, the two’s inability to connect with the now coveted Gen Z meant they were likely on their way out anyway.

In their place, Oliver promotes the 24 (and half!) year old Kriska (Madison Shamoun) from Social Media to CEO. Coming along with Kriska for the ride are fellow Gen Zers Clem (Anna Bezahler) and Elliot (Spencer Stevenson). Despite the emphasis on generational conflict, there’s little made of office screwup Minnesota Matt (Evan Marsh) being the lone Millennial staffer. Oddly, despite the name, there isn’t much made of him being a Midwesterner among apparently longtime coastal city dwellers either.

Perhaps Matt is the lucky one. At least he dodges the obvious “this generation does this” jokes the show saddles the Gen X and Gen Z characters with. Writers can absolutely mine humor from generational divides, but The Z-Suite can only come up with cliches.

For instance, in the first episode, Kriska complains Monica is so self-centered before sharing her every move from her apartment to the office via photos on Instagram. It’s a clever “the pot calling the kettle” moment. When the show repeats the gag an episode later, it is not only without the accompanying thematic irony but is considerably less amusing. Similarly, when we first learn that Doug is obsessed with building Christmas-themed miniatures, it is a bizarre bit of personality shaking. However, when several other later scenes make mention of it, the strange becomes the mundane. Away go the laughs pretty quickly, too.

Far worse than weak jokes, however, is how implausibly bad the characters are at their jobs. Yes, it is easy to buy that a 24 (and a half!) year-old elevated from an entry-level position to CEO would be a bit overwhelmed. But Kriska, Clem, and Elliot’s total lack of familiarity with concepts like budgets, managing clients, or not offering alcohol to employees during the workday is impossible to believe. It doesn’t make them look like fishes out of water we can’t wait to see triumph. It makes them seem aggressively ignorant. The same goes for Monica not knowing that “All Vibes Matter” might be a bad call. She’s in marketing. Until the series starts, she’s apparently one of the best. There’s just no way that makes sense.

The final blow is that the show itself is behind trend. The term “cheugy” around two decades old. More importantly, it was the subject of a New York Times trend piece almost four years ago. That evaporates its coolness. I know this as an elder Millennial. And if I know it’s out, you should not have your Gen Z characters using it in 2025. The show references TikTok but still makes the characters firmly Instagram-oriented. Jokes about working from home and Millennial tech-era office renovations like a ball pit only make the point harder. At least, I suppose, the show recognizes how embarrassing it would be for a 20-something to still have a very active Facebook page.

All the above complaints undercut The Z-Suite severely. The rare moments that hit make it clear the performers are game and capable of making punchlines hit. Graham is especially successful at selling even some C-level material, and Stevenson is close behind her. Shamoun, Bezahler, and Santos also show enough spark that it seems likely they’d deliver with stronger material. There are also some signs of hope with the smaller players in the office. They include sad sack Bill (Richard Waugh), the anxious head of HR Natasha (Nadine Djoury), and possibly the only competent person in the room, administrative assistant Annabelle (Dani Kind). If anything, they are far better off with their briefer amounts of screen time.

Unfortunately, if the best you have to offer at a season’s halfway point is some signs of hope and the potential to deliver with better material, that’s not very good. Even the very bad at their jobs members of The Z-Suite could tell you that.

The Z-Suite is pitting X against Z on Tubi now.

The Z-Suite Trailer: