Inventiveness was one of the hallmarks of NewsRadio’s comedy. Like the above-mentioned gag from "Stocks," "Complaint Box" [3-14] contains a gag that fueled numerous remarkably original variations. In this episode, Mr. James goes on a fishing trip but stays in touch with the office through a headset and the Garelli 1000, a walkie-talkie system that is actually a cumbersome oscilloscope. One of the best variations on this gag involves Mr. James insisting that Beth take him (i.e., the box) for a walk. Beth leaves the box on the floor, makes loud steps with her feet, and imitates the voices of Matthew, Catherine and a sexy-voiced woman, the last eliciting a comically subdued reaction from Mr. James. Another highlight involves Beth losing Mr. James (i.e., the box); it turns out that a delivery boy has taken Mr. James (i.e., the box) to a movie, giving him a blow by blow account of the movie to an obviously sightless box. Also, when Dave explains to Mr. James that a ridiculous complaint has been filed against him for using the word "bitch," Mr. James’ silence is seen as a flat line on the oscilloscope. Perhaps the best variation involves Dave getting a reprimand from the company’s lawyer. The shot widens to reveal Dave’s own lawyer interjecting on Dave’s behalf. We then see Lisa, who explains that the whole thing is ridiculous because she filed the complaint as a joke. This shot widens to reveal Lisa’s lawyer. The absurdity builds even further when we see Jimmy’s box at the meeting. The coup de grace is that Jimmy’s lawyer, Roger, is also on speakerphone (and the two are actually fishing at the same lake). Finally, we have the variation where Beth serenades Mr. James (i.e., his box) to sleep with a lullaby, with a snoring Mr. James and oscilloscope readings to match.

Besides these gags, the two most brilliantly elegant and inventive gags that I want to mention are: (a) the way we find out about Dave and Lisa "doing it" in the office in "Inappropriate" [1-2] (which involves a twist so original that it caught me completely by surprise the first time I saw it); and (b) the group hug gag from "Rose Bowl" [3-15]. These gags are comparable in elegance of construction to Chaplin’s soup gag in Modern Times, his boot gag from Sunnyside, and his shaker gag from Idle Class.

An analysis of the "Rose Bowl" group hug gag follows. (My comments are in bold italics.) The scene begins with everyone glaring angrily at Lisa after discovering that the new evaluation system was her idea. After Lisa’s introduction, the dialog consists of voiceovers of each character’s thoughts.

The first reason why this gag is so brilliant is that it utilizes most of the cast, building comic momentum at just the right tempo and featuring not one but two ‘knockout blows.’ More importantly, the coup de grace is so economical that it does not cheat at all. All the information required for us to work out what is going on is there before our eyes within the frame, so when Bill is revealed as the culprit of the last part of the gag we are doubly surprised. If we consider that true perfection is achieving something without doing anything then this gag is perfection indeed. Even after we have seen the gag and know what is coming, the sheer elegance of its construction keeps us fascinated.

The uniqueness of NewsRadio’s physical comedy style becomes obvious when it is compared to the comedy styles of other popular television shows. Seinfeld, The Cosby Show, Cheers, Frasier, The Drew Carey Show, Roseanne, and Friends all practice or practiced primarily verbal comedy styles. Effective physical comedy is hard to accomplish. That an ostensibly weekly television show was able to do so on a regular basis is even more amazing.