The way “Shrinking” has been breadcrumbing us with fleeting highs and prolonged phases of lows, we are practically in a toxic dynamic with the Apple TV sitcom at this point. I mean, it would pretty much be a massive stretch to justify just how offhanded episode 7 was with a throbbing hangover analogy, but let’s just give them that if we have to sit around to watch it end anyway. Does anyone else feel that Apple TV’s exhausting cracks at making a “feel good” British comedy that fell face first with ‘Ted Lasso’ have sort of been rebranded and Americanized with “Shrinking”? And here I was, hyping myself up, knowing full well that the platform has never really had a good sense of humor. Although I try to count my blessings, I guess I’m grateful for the therapists’ red flags that the Sanctuary of Problematic Shrinks has been giving me. Allow me to whine through this episode’s happenings anyway.
Spoilers Ahead
Headaches And Heartaches
Starting off with the party, people waking up to the miserable acceptance of just how much they drank last night is all well and good. But wasn’t the commercial-like crispness of a single chip from a bag that has been open for at least half a day a bit much? Oh well. You can’t complain when the narrative has committed far grander atrocities. Alice has worse embarrassments to concern herself with than the amount of booze she might have indulged in. But being turned down by Sean isn’t what ails Alice. She would rather never see the sun again than face Sean, who hasn’t been handling it all that well either. In a scene that makes the otherwise occupied noise in my head scream out, “Why is everyone so annoying?” Sean is overtly jittery to even see Alice. But that is nothing if it’s placed up against the cringe-worthy exchange that’s taking place in Jimmy’s bedroom. That’s right. Last night’s lovebirds have awoken, and instead of fresh coffee, their day starts with reliving the outrage that was their drunken hookup. Jimmy seems to be having a harder time dealing with the feeling that he has cheated on his dead wife than Gaby is with the intrusive thoughts that are holding her accountable for doing her dead best friend dirty. Gaby is atypically cool with the drunken mistake, but she isn’t fooling anyone with the ruse. With the steady objective of hiding what he did last night from his daughter, Jimmy shows his face after the disaster of a night and completely butchers the awkward morning greetings. How Alice can’t see right through Jimmy and Gaby’s noticeably edgy demeanor is beyond me. But let’s just be thankful that the show didn’t dumb down a hungover Paul, even if his knowledge of the secret has to be a result of Jimmy nervously blurting it out. Paul has graver things to worry about than getting caught up in Jimmy’s dicey business. Meg is coming over.
Amends And Awkwardness
A lukewarm apology from Jimmy after he practically massacred his engagement party is taken with a surprising amount of compassion from Brian. Of course, Jimmy would need to sweeten the deal with a gift that’s not on the registry, but considering just how badly he screwed the pooch, I would say he got off easy. It’s an easy apology tour for Jimmy, with even Alice cutting him some slack for his behavior last night. But it isn’t because Alice has grown up overnight to become this exceedingly forgiving person who understands why her dad acts the way he does. She has her own set of troubles to worry about. Sean has been keeping an uncomfortable amount of distance from her. Gaby may be trying to diffuse the tension with her goofy humor at work, but since when has Jimmy been a person who can let sleeping dogs lie? Gaby has made genuine amends to her deceased best friend, Tia, and has convinced herself that she has been forgiven for falling drastically short. But Jimmy would rather sulk around and make Gaby feel worse than she already does if it means that he can deny the guilt of enjoying the night. The long-awaited father-daughter reunion at Paul’s house seems to be going much better than he could ever expect. Meg is kinder than most people would be to a father who checked out at his whim and didn’t bother trying to reconnect until it became increasingly necessary. Where’s Liz in all this, you ask? Well, she finally has a problem of her own to deal with. Being snarked by the soon-to-be-retired Derek, Liz is nudged to broaden her horizons and look for things to do outside.
‘Shrinking’ Episode 7: Ending Explained – Is Alice Likely To Forgive Jimmy?
Pobody is nerfect. But the obnoxious world of ‘Shrinking’ really makes you want to cling to your nihilism so as not to get your hopes up for humanity, doesn’t it? I’m sure this sentiment vehemently contradicts the one that the showrunners meant to invoke with their sitcom. But I’m far past unreasonable generosity at this point. A 17-year-old made an innocent move on the guy she had a crush on. Let’s make the guy who has repeatedly evinced heartfelt sensibility take an uncharacteristic 180-degree turn just to grant the episode a measly conflict to solve. What could be awkward about that? At least it gives Liz another chance to provide her sage advice to Sean and nudge him to be kinder with his treatment of Alice. If it isn’t scattered group therapy, where else would the sitcom find its footing? While Sean is being told to stretch his compassion out a little, Alice is comforted by Gaby, who seems to be alarmingly cool with the idea of an adult having an inappropriate relationship with a minor. Jimmy’s patient, yes, the one who leaned in for a kiss, is finding it hard to grin and bear it when she hears about how selfish Jimmy has been with Gaby. The patient’s disapproving words strike a chord with Jimmy, who then proceeds to acknowledge how he really felt about his sexual scuffle with Gaby; if you could only see how I smiled through the pain of witnessing this ridiculously convenient convalescence of Jimmy’s deep-rooted issues!
At least they don’t dip Paul and Meg’s conflicts in a tub of syrup. Meg and her husband have hatched a bulletproof plan for driving her mother-in-law out of the house so that Paul can move in. But Paul is stubborn like a mule. Unwilling to move away from the life he feels needed in, Paul turns his back on Meg’s kindly gesture. Meg would rather her son gets to know her grandfather in his sunset years than never meet the man at all. However expert Paul may be in scrutinizing the issues that trouble his patients and helping them, he hasn’t been able to understand what keeps him from being a good father, let alone mend his ways. For the sake of giving him the happiness of spending his old age with his family, Meg chose to bury the pain of being neglected by her father for the bulk of her life. Now that she sees him prioritizing everything else over her, Meg can’t stand around feeling like the second option all over again. As the relatively sharper therapist watches his daughter storm out while his Parkinson’s makes it impossible for him to take a step forward, the lesser therapist has found the courage to talk to a photograph of Tia and pour his heart out. If their relationship wasn’t strained beyond repair already, Alice overhearing her dad apologize to her dead mother for sleeping with her best friend is sure to do the trick. But it’s ‘Shrinking’ we’re talking about. They’ll find a way to conveniently maneuver the narrative, so Alice understands her father’s side and forgives him. If there’s anything ‘Ted Lasso’ has taught us, Apple TV’s expertise in fixing the unfixable is unparalleled. I hope you caught the sarcasm because I really wouldn’t want to give you the idea that I stand for it.
