shrinkage

Made you look

Season 2

Episode 4

Editor's Rating

4 stars

****

Photo: Apple TV+

It's now common knowledge that Harrison Ford is the best part of it shrinkageso pretty much any big story that revolves around Paul should be good. Aside from the rare pleasure of conveying Ford's seriousness in a sitcom grumpy role, Paul also serves an important role as a foil to Jimmy. Of course, Jimmy's behavior as a therapist tends to be highly unethical and unrealistic, but Paul helps us engage with the reality of the series by presenting a level-headed and matter-of-fact counterpoint.

But the writers also understand very well that this show doesn't work if Paul is always right, as we saw when he met Jimmy in the middle a few episodes ago by pursuing a technically unethical friendship with Ray (a friendship that which he unveils this week). “Made You Look” continues this path and shows Paul in an even more vulnerable state than in previous weeks, in the nightmarish emotional state jealous of Jimmy.

The truth is, as much as Jimmy screwed up by going too far with Sean (to say the least), they had (and still have) a very real connection. Sean feels comfortable opening up to him about his issues with his father, and he's not quite there yet with Paul. Jimmy does his best to resist his old patient's therapy – well, sort of – but in the end he doesn't have much choice. As they run an errand together, Sean becomes agitated by the taunts of some aggressive contractors remodeling the neighbor's house, causing him to pass out and almost start a fight. At home, he emotionally explains the root of his resentment toward his father: Tim downplayed Sean's depression and post-traumatic stress disorder when he returned from Afghanistan, then kicked him out on the grounds of “tough love.” Maybe on the surface their relationship is in better shape now and Sean is still quick to defend his father so he doesn't sound ungrateful. But the peace between them is tenuous and is maintained by Sean repeatedly swallowing his feelings, while Tim carelessly takes the credit for his success.

Compared to our chaotic protagonist's usual antics, Jimmy didn't do much wrong here. When Paul snaps at him, it's clearly coming from a deeper place – he's worried that Parkinson's disease will seriously affect his abilities as a therapist, and he's hurt by the idea that this younger therapist can do a better job. After his daughter Meg confirms that Paul does indeed have a big ego, he becomes unusually open with Jimmy and admits his fears. Jimmy reassures him that he's still great at what he does, even if it's harder to take notes now. He will stand right by him when it's time to stop.

It's a solid story for the two characters that continues to balance Paul's status as a voice of reason well with the struggles that bring out his imperfect side. And it's always helpful to have a reminder of Jimmy may be competent.

With Jimmy and Paul taking the central bromance position in this episode, Brian needs other people to lean on during his own crisis. Suddenly his husband insists that he wants a baby, something they had never seriously discussed. When I accompanied Liz on a trip to take photos of shelter dogs on death row (this woman has one much of available free time), Brian reveals the real reason for his hesitation: he thinks he would be a bad father. Charlie's earnest request to meet with an adoption advocate doesn't completely change his mind on the matter.

Part of me wishes that Brian would stick to his original desire not to have children, just to see what drama might ensue. But of course the story ends on the most heartwarming note with everyone reassuring him that he would be a great father. Still, it's nice to see Brian in a confident mode, describing himself as vain, narcissistic, mean and judgmental as he reflects on his own father's problems.

So far, the second season does a good job of keeping the dynamic fresh and switching up which characters are making mistakes at any given time. For once, Alice is the worst of them all, desperately hiding what she and Connor have done from everyone. (Her panicked escape from his house is due to the Strokes' “bad decisions,” an obvious but good decision.) This can not Come back to summer, which means it's definitely coming back to summer sooner rather than later.

At least Gaby is on the rise! A new love interest has just dropped: Derrick, played by Damon Wayans Jr., one of the best guys you can have on a sitcom. This time, Derek is the wingman and introduces his old colleague to help Gaby get back into the swing of things after Jimmy. She's hesitant at first, but after a nice flirtation with Derrick and some positive encouragement from Derek, she texts him. Not much is shown of the actual date – Gaby has to give up everything to visit her mother in the hospital after a car accident – but the mood seems promising.

It was a good move to make Ted McGinley a series regular this year. It's great to see Derek develop different dynamics with each of the other cast members. My only concern is that the character strays a little too much from his true madcap qualities as he becomes an unlikely beacon of wisdom. Characters like Josh Segarra's Lance on The other two have shown that the wise, self-possessed himbo can be one of the most entertaining character types in comedy, but this episode takes the “Derek is the best” spiel a little too far for my liking. I prefer the Derek spying on Jimmy from his deck.

It feels like the conflict is on the verge of heating up this season, even without the obvious foreshadowing of Paul's warning that “there's some bad shit on the way here,” accompanied by the image of Tim depicting Sean's strange living situation discovered. In the final scene, Louis, also known as Double D, makes contact with another character, Brian, who immediately recognizes him and even goes after him when he sees how desperate Louis is. It's a somewhat incredible choice, but I think that's why the script made a point of featuring other characters that highlight Brian's empathetic nature, right?

I'm more curious than ever about what exactly happened after Tia's death. As others have pointed out, despite the seemingly straightforward nature of what happened, Louis was somehow able to avoid prison time. With eight episodes left in this extended season, there's still a lot we don't know, but I'm excited to see what happens next.

• The Liz and Sean beef breaks down pretty quickly when they go to therapy together, so that's nice. But it's not like she's working on the truck again, so we might see them together a little less in the coming episodes.

• Harrison Ford says, “What – do you want me to pull down my pants and make my ass slap?”

• “Maybe we should give them a second.” “Why? This is such an intimate moment.” “That's why, Michael.”

• “Who’s having a baby?” “Brian.” “You’re not even showing it!”

• I wouldn't have minded seeing more of this adoption advocate, who was pretty funny in his brief appearance. “I want it to be fun.”

• “We also know her as Racist Pam” is probably the line from the episode.

• “When you deliver the baby—or, in your case, unwrap it…”

• “Can you take the maple bacon out of the oven and then open all the windows so the house doesn't smell like maple bacon?” “You can just say 'bacon' – you're in a hurry.”