Shrinking [Apple TV]
Charming, heartfelt comedy that the Americans are very good at.
Stars Jason Segel - nor normally a fan, but this suits him - with great supporting role from Harrison Ford.
They're dripping it out, so we've only watched the first 3.
Thoroughly recommended.
I absolutely love this show. The latest episode made me laugh out loud more than any single episode of a new sitcom since the first series of The Goes Wrong Show. The characters are so well drawn and they cram so much into half an hour. Jason Segal's best role since Freaks and Geeks.
Caught the pilot episode. Overly melodramatic scenes with the dead wife aside, I enjoyed it. Probably won't be hanging on every new episode, but I'll binge the rest at some point once they're all released.
Thought Jason Segel was comfortably the worst part of it tbh, which wasn't great for a main character. Jessica Williams and Harrison Ford were great though. And Jordan from Scrubs as the neighbour lady.
Also, Harrison Ford looks old. Old enough that he really, really shouldn't have filmed another Indiana Jones movie last year.
Also, between this and Severance, I'm concerned that Apple blaming the weak pound for me having to pay £200 more for my new phone is actually an elaborate lie to cover for the fact that they're spending $5 billion a year on opening credits animations.
Quote: Crindy @ 12th February 2023, 10:26 PMAlso, between this and Severance, I'm concerned that Apple blaming the weak pound for me having to pay £200 more for my new phone is actually an elaborate lie to cover for the fact that they're spending $5 billion a year on opening credits animations.
😄
They do seem to be going gung-ho on the opening credit sequences. I LOVED the Severance titles.
I can take a little mawkishnes - I think the Yanks handle it better than we do.
Oh yeah, I love a good credit sequence. Thought it was a shame that they were starting to die out. Though crafting these pieces of art and also having to stick a big 'Skip Intro' button on top of them because our attention spans have withered and died in the age of mindless content consumption is a bit of a shame.
And I'm fine with a bit of mawkishness in US comedies, and sometimes think some of the broader UK comedies could do with a soupçon of that every now and again. But long dramatic scenes of Jason Segel staring at the empty sofa where he used to tickle his wife while some Bon Iver (or emotive equivalent) plays in the background felt like it was a bit much for a comedy pilot. Preferred the little arc with his daughter for my mawkish 'I learned a lesson today' fix.
Agreed.
They seem to have rowed back on the flashbacks - a good thing
IMHO
I've rejoined Apple TV (been meaning to and done it now since Ted Lasso is back, I want to watch the new lot of Slow Horses and there's new stuff on soon), and watched the first episode of this today. Really liked it and will stick with it. Great cast, and felt they did a solid intro for the characters. Yeah there's a bit of the mawkishness but it works.
Think I'll binge it at the weekend, seems this season finishes this week or next.
Great final episode, so glad it got a second series.
Gave this a binge now all the episodes are out. I got into it a lot more than I was expecting from the first episode tbf, and my thoughts are much the same. I still don't really like Jason Segel. Harrison Ford should do more comedy. Jessica Williams was great. And Ted McGinley just edged out Ford to become my favourite character by the end. I like that guy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=asISWDliXFQ
Lot of tonal whiplash. I get that we're dealing with a comedy drama, but it really did keep jumping around from dick jokes, to PTSD, to the best husband/wife double act for years, to the main character tearfully staring at photos of his dead wife, to a really long and not especially funny projectile vomiting bit, to a fabulous gay wedding, to spousal abuse. Not sure it all worked for me. But that's the curse of the dreaded 'dramady', I guess.
Also, it depicted a California where it was possible for anyone to get from point A to point B literally instantly. I lost count of the amount of times that Harrison Ford's Parkinson's-afflicted, banned-from-driving character just rocked up at someone's house by himself out of the blue. I'd have appreciated a pullback gag in the final episode where it turned out every location used in the entire show was just on the same street, like in Eastenders.
Also, they really mined the 'Person C accidentally overhears Person A and B talking about something bad without them realising' bit for about 95% of their dramatic twists. If people just checked who else was in a room before they started talking, the series would have lasted two episodes.
Also, I think Apple might have got a tiny bit of product placement here and there in return for funding the show, but it was so subtle it was hard to tell.
Derek/Liz spin-off series when?
Someone's finally put a Derek supercut on YouTube and now my life is complete.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zMQIfukEtxM&ab_channel=BourgDotOrg