Michael Schur co-created both, four years apart, and the second is built from the first's working parts: a public institution staffed by people who care too much about it, an enthusiast protagonist whose competence is hidden under their eagerness, a deadpan superior who withholds approval as a running joke, and a house style that lets characters be kind to each other without the show becoming soft. Both series also make a point of refusing the cynicism their setting invites.