It is unsurprising that AppleTV+’s hit new comedy, Shrinking, is made by two of the same people who produced Ted Lasso. From its protagonist to its fluffy tone, Shrinking truly feels like Ted Lasso’s cruder younger brother. While this doesn’t necessarily have to be a negative — I for one adore Ted Lasso — it does lead to the severe drawback of an uneven main character. The rest of its brother show’s tone lends itself well to the supporting cast and the writing, but the characterization of Jimmy (Jason Segel) is Ted Lasso-esque to a fault. 

While Ted Lasso eased you into its hard-hitting themes, Shrinking introduces you to its deeply flawed main character’s issues right off the bat. In fact, the opening scene has our leading man blasting music at an ungodly hour as he does drugs with hookers. You see Jimmy at one of his absolute lowest points and then promptly witness how his mental state rubs off on his therapy techniques. He is clearly a troubled character with a lot of growth still yet to come, but he often feels too much like a manic pixie dream therapist to come across as authentic. His struggles could be relatable, but the writing fails to do much more with him outside of making him “endearing.” Unlike Ted, Jimmy doesn’t get many episodes like “Tan Lines,” “Man City,” or “No Weddings and a Funeral” that really dive deep into his problems and treat them with respect, heart, and authenticity. Instead, he’s mostly a wacky therapist, a silly dad, and a terrible friend! Hijinks ensue! Ironically, this failure to acknowledge his flaws and toxic traits as serious issues made me less inclined to like him for most of the show. He gets some growth and development near the end, but his writing needed to be more focused for him to be a consistently enjoyable character. While I don’t dislike him anymore, he is still fairly easily my least favorite part of this show. Jason Segel is good in the show, but his role is just too haphazardly written for him to shine.

The supporting characters, however, are all lovable and incredibly easy to root for. Harrison Ford has been rightfully praised for his turn as Jimmy’s mentor figure Paul, as he is the most consistently funny and heartfelt character of the cast. Ford’s comedic timing is exceptional, and his chemistry with the entire cast is incredible. However, the two standouts for me had to be Christa Miller as Jimmy’s nosy neighbor Liz and Jessica Williams as his spunky coworker Gaby. Liz can be overbearing, but her genuine desire to take care of others makes her endearing. Miller instills this self-aware charm into Liz and makes her one of the most sympathetic characters in the show. Meanwhile, Gaby is an absolute hoot, and is easily the most fun and energetic character to watch. Her dynamics with each main character (especially with Liz) are endlessly entertaining to watch, and Williams’s charisma only adds to this. She is such an absolute delight to witness on-screen. 

While the writing of Jimmy is somewhat confusing due to its inconsistency, the writing of the rest of the characters more than makes up for this. I found myself deeply attached to everyone else in the cast, and my emotional investment in their happiness is what got me to tune in every week. Shrinking isn’t quite phenomenal enough to be Apple’s “next Ted Lasso”, but the potential certainly is there for it to reach the heights that show did. I just hope that next season, the writers aren’t afraid to distance themselves from Ted Lasso and let the show have a tone that suits it. The ending in particular has me excited for that possibility. Shrinking is already quite good, but if it was able to carve its own identity tonally and narratively in the future, the show could be fantastic.

8/10