Shrinking: Season 1 (Apple TV+) - Review 

Rating: 4 out of 5

THERE are many good reasons to watch Apple’s Shrinking, from the warm hearted glow it usually delivers to the disarmingly poignant reflections on loss, grief and the struggles of parenting it also does.

An amiable ensemble cast also helps, given the easy-going chemistry that so effortlessly exists between them.

But my favourite reason for tuning in to the first season was Harrison Ford. Shrinking marks only his second foray into TV but it was well worth the wait. The veteran action star may be more commonly associated with his Indiana Jones and Han Solo characters and the larger than life exploits they partake in.

But some of his most interesting work has come when he - by his own admission to me once in interview - fucks with expectations: his killer turn in What Lies Beneath; his vulnerable cop in Witness; his romantic professor in Sabrina or his replicant hunter/killer in both Blade Runner and its sequel.

Latterly, he has also deconstructed his own macho persona, in line with his age, to reflect on the cost of his past adventures and deeds. His Han Solo in Star Wars: The Force Awakens was more reverential to the mythology of The Force and his own role in his son’s journey to the Dark Side, while in Indiana Jones: The Dial of Destiny he confronted his own mortality. Even with Captain America: Brave New World his US President sought to right the wrongs of past misdeeds and navigate a reconciliation with his estranged daughter.

The complexity and world weary experience he brought to those latter examples are evident in abundance with Shrinking, in which he plays a therapist named Paul, who runs a psychiatry practice and serves as something of a grumpy father figure to those he employs. But he also demonstrates a finely honed capacity for comedy: his sardonic put-downs and dry delivery a masterclass in understatement.

And that’s not even mentioning the chance to see him stoned on edibles or discussing sex with his colleagues or grand-daughter. Ford is clearly enjoying himself here, while also flexing some considerable dramatic muscle. His battle with Parkinson’s is sensitively realised and gives rise to some tear-jerking monologue moments, as is his attempt to reconcile with another daughter.

Ford is a gigantic presence in Shrinking and arguably the biggest reason for seeing it.

But that’s not to detract from the other positives, of which there are also many.

Much like Netflix’s A Man On The Inside, Shrinking successfully treads a fine line between comedy and drama, offering laughter one minute and something painfully poignant the next. It is prone to the odd moment of overcooked schmaltz or contrivance - but more often than not it pulls itself back from the brink and for every life lesson delivered towards the end of an episode, there’s another calamity or challenge just waiting in the wings.

This is a show, after all, that deals with broken people - the joke being that those leading the cast are shrinks who are just as prone to human error and poor judgement as the people they are supposed to be advising.

Jason Segel co-heads the cast as Jimmy - an emotional wreck of a human being only just really beginning to pull himself from the brink after the loss of his wife almost a year ago. Segel is the epitome of niceness, even when being selfish or goofy or irresponsible. You root for him to get things right throughout - celebrate his successes, accept his faults and cry along with his sorrow and guilt.

Just as Ford gets a few emotional highs, so too does Segel.

Strong, too, is Lukita Maxwell as Segel’s daughter Alice, doing a credible job of struggling with her own grief, her complicated relationship with her dad and teenage growing pains (inappropriate crushes et al). Her chemistry with Ford, with whom she shares some pivotal scenes, is also terrific, the two playing off each other (sometimes spikily, sometimes affectionately) brilliantly.

And Jessica Williams as Gaby, fellow shrink and Jimmy’s wife’s best friend, is a blast, combining highly energetic confidence and feistiness with, at times, something surprisingly vulnerable.

Luke Tennie’s Sean also registers strongly as the client of Jimmy’s who comes to stay with him - channelling charisma and edge as a veteran prone to violent outbursts whose sessions afford him a shot at getting his life and PTSD in order.

But then the whole cast works well, which adds to the overall charm and enjoyment of Shrinking. It’s high class comfort viewing - glossy, sun-soaked and generally optimistic about life and the people attempting to navigate it.

The laughs are genuinely funny, the tears well earned and the lessons learned not too simplistic or patronising. And the fixes don’t always hold, much like life itself.