What Shrinking Gets Right
It's been a hot minute, but I can't let 2024 come to a close without talking to you about this one.
One of the reasons I started (pop)cultured—which has been poorly maintained due to *gestures to the world*—was in large part due to my love of television. Despite being a serial rewatcher, I love discovering new television shows, and I especially love talking to people about them.
When I consume most art forms, I sit with things for a while to try and formulate my own thoughts. Then, I love to dive into discussions with others and see if my perspective is either going to be reinforced or shifted. Pop culture discourse is one of my favourite things.
And there’s a show currently airing which I firmly believe is one of the greatest shows in existence.
But first
But before we get there, let me take you back in time for a moment. Allow me some nostalgic indulgence.
Almost everyone who knows me knows my love of Grey’s Anatomy, but the first medical show that stole my heart was Scrubs. When I was in high school, there was a group of us who took turns sleeping at each other’s houses for the sole purpose of binging Scrubs. I still have all seasons (minus Season 9 because it doesn’t count) on DVD and revisit it.
It was also the show that introduced me to Bill Lawrence as a creator/showrunner. His ability to mix humour and sadness. There has been well-deserved love for arguably his most famous series in recent times, Ted Lasso. You can read how I felt about that show coming to an end here.
After Ted, I didn’t think there was a show that would hit me quite the same again. Until there was Shrinking.
Then there was Shrinking
Created by Bill Lawrence, Jason Segel and Brett Goldstein (can we take a millisecond for how freaking incredible this man is), Shrinking has fast become my favourite show currently on the air. It is a true ensemble cast, with everyone delivering an incredible performance. In a rarity, I care about every single subplot.
I’ve seen plenty of comparisons between Shrinking and Ted Lasso, and look, I get it. But I can’t compare them as they’ve both brought something different to the table while both inexplicably looking at the human experience.
The reason Shrinking hits so well for me personally is due to the exploration of grief. Note: there might be some small spoilers for the series ahead, if you haven’t watched and don’t want it to be spoiled, click away now. But also, please watch Shrinking.
When the series starts, we meet Jimmy (Jason Segel). He is a shell of a person, dealing terribly with the unexpected death of his wife, and effectively ignoring his teenage daughter, Alice (Lukita Maxwell) who is cared for by the family living next door, Liz (Christa Miller) and Derek (Ted McGinley) who just quietly might be one of the best fictional characters going.
You find out Jimmy, despite being a hot mess, is a therapist. He works with Paul (Harrison Ford) where you see the older man/younger man desperately seeking a mentor dynamic Bill Lawrence writes so well, and Gaby (Jessica Williams) who was best friends with his late-wife.
It’s an interesting premise, seeing someone whose job is to help others be such a train wreck in his personal life. Throughout the show’s two seasons, we see Jimmy and Alice repair their fractured relationship and explore the complexities of grief.
Shrinking is the kind of show which has me laughing out loud and sobbing within the span of 35 minutes. Much of it was deeply relatable, even though my Dad was the opposite of Jimmy after my Mum died. After such an incredible first season, I approached season two with an air of caution. How could it possibly live up to the first season?
If it’s even possible, season two was better.
Season two
Shrinking is humour mixed with sentimentality and one of the most accurate portrayals of grief, and it’s continued into season two with the introduction of Louis (Brett Goldstein), the man responsible for the car accident that killed Jimmy’s wife and Alice’s mother.
If season one can be summed up as an exploration of grief, season two explores forgiveness, both of others and of yourself.
Season Two, Episode 12, The Last Thanksgiving, and the final episode of the season, will go down as one of the best episodes of television. Harrison Ford delivers arguably the best performance of his life (fight me on this if you want) and the final moments of the episode had me on the edge of my seat in anxious anticipation and then in tears long after the credits stopped rolling.
Everything in this show, in my humble opinion, is done just right. Not too over the top, not too understated. From the acting choices, the framing, the soundtrack, all the way down to the nuanced word choices in the script, Shrinking understands the messiness of the human experience in a way that feels both relatable and a subtle call out for your own poor behaviour.
The show is a gift. It is worth signing up to Apple+ just to watch it.
Have you watched Shrinking? What do you think of it? I’d love to talk about it with you!
Couldn’t agree more! One of the most underrated shows and I wish more people discovered it.