The Office UK Vs US: Which Characters Are Best?
5. Ricky Howard vs Ryan Howard
This is a tough comparison as the two characters diverge majorly after the first few seasons.
Indeed Ricky is only in the UK show’s first season, acting as the audience surrogate but providing something of a counterpoint to Tim - another smart young man but one who’s not afraid to ask for what he wants, and has no intention of sticking around a midsize paper company with no prospects.
Ryan starts his US Office life in the same position, but from there he is put on a rollercoaster. He takes a job at head office, and allows the power to rush to his head immediately.
He then crashes and burns, winds up working at a bowling alley, then returns to Scranton with his status dented but his confidence as ill earned as ever.
It could be cartoonish, but actor BJ Novak manages to sell it so well that Ryan becomes one of the highlights of the show’s final few seasons. For that reason, he is the better character - he takes on a multitude of forms, but sells them all as the natural evolution of a dreadful person.