Watch Shrinking

Shrinking is a new Apple TV comedy that is centered around the story of Jimmy, a therapist and a recently widowed father to his 17-year-old daughter, Alice. Jimmy's character, played by Jason Segel, is someone who is undergoing a significant transition period in his life, and his relationship with his daughter is changing as a result of his grief. However, the show is much more than just Jimmy's story. The ensemble cast of characters in Shrinking is extensive and diverse, including his neighbor Liz and her husband Derek, his estranged best friend Brian, a young patient named Sean who is dealing with trauma related to his military service, and his colleagues Paul and Gaby, played by Harrison Ford and Jessica Williams, respectively.

While Shrinking shares two of its creators with Ted Lasso, Bill Lawrence and Brett Goldstein, the show is not solely about sports but shares some common themes with Ted Lasso, including pain and decency. The show explores the challenges faced by people who are trying to do their best for each other while struggling with their own problems. The cast of Shrinking is stupendous, and the show is packed to the gills with good jokes, making it a hilarious comedy-drama that is both thought-provoking and entertaining.

One of the show's themes is that even therapists have issues that they are dealing with. Jimmy's character is going through a significant personal crisis, and he becomes radically honest with his patients, telling them what he really thinks, including how he feels about their terrible spouses. While this is an intriguing premise, it is not the only focus of the show. Shrinking is an ensemble comedy-drama that revolves around a group of people who are dealing with problems of their own.

The show is quieter than Ted Lasso, and its themes are not as direct. Support and kindness take the form of everyday gestures, such as a talk between friends, a drive to work, a place to stay, an invitation, or an apology. Community is formed from people who choose each other daily. Unlike Ted, Jimmy is not the central character bearing the weight of working miracles or near-miracles, making the show less reliant on one person to be its emotional messenger.

Jason Segel is someone who has played sad men for a long time, and his character in Shrinking is no exception. However, what makes Segel stand out is how he takes his work seriously and portrays his characters with a significant degree of variation, including the highly sensitive teenager in Freaks and Geeks, the deeply feeling searcher in The Muppets, and the squishy-hearted married man in How I Met Your Mother.

In summary, Shrinking is a new Apple TV comedy-drama that revolves around Jimmy, a therapist and recently widowed father. However, the show is not solely about Jimmy's story but focuses on an ensemble cast of characters, each of whom is dealing with their own problems. The show is quieter than Ted Lasso, and its themes are not as direct, but it shares common themes, including pain and decency, and explores the challenges that people face while trying to do their best for each other. With an extensive and diverse cast of characters and excellent writing, Shrinking is a thought-provoking and entertaining comedy-drama that is well worth watching.

Shrinking is a series that ran for 2 seasons (22 episodes) between January 27, 2023 and on Apple TV+