Shrinking S2, Episode 12: Vulnerability Works
Breakdown of the twelfth episode of the new season of Shrinking on Apple TV+
Note: This review contains spoilers for the final episode of Shrinking Season 2, The Last Thanksgiving. My previous breakdowns are here: Episodes 1-2, Episode 3, Episode 4, Episodes 5-6, Episode 7, Episode 8, Episode 9, Episode 10, and Episode 11. Now, let’s get into this final episode!
We have reached the end of the second season of Shrinking, and what a finale! I have to assume that Harrison Ford’s final monologue is what sealed the deal for the folks at the Golden Globes to add him to their list of nominees. I know it certainly was one of the moments in this episode that absolutely knocked me out while I was watching.
So for the finale, that’s what I want to write about. Not Paul’s speech specifically, but the ways that this season of Shrinking has shown how intensely we need to lean on each other. And how, in order to do that, we have to risk vulnerability.
Brian
The most obvious area where Brian’s vulnerability changes his life is with Charlie. Admitting that he is afraid of parenting but allowing himself to be open to it has resulted in them becoming dads. This show has done an excellent job discussing parenting in the first two seasons, so I’m excited to see where that goes in season 3.
But Brian’s openness this season has resulted in much more than might be evident at first glance. So many of this season's huge story beats are because Brian chose vulnerability. Grace decides to forgive herself because Brian shares the letters that he received as testimony for her trial. Louis and Alice develop a friendship because Brian decides to talk to Louis when he’s outside of the Laird home, which ultimately means that Jimmy’s relationship with Louis is, in part, because of Brian.
Yes, Brian will have his life changed because he’s exercising more empathy, but that decision has ripple effects that have changed the lives of others in the show.
Liz and Derek
This is one of the subtler versions of the theme, but it’s there. The idea of “purpose” has been something that has followed Liz through the entirety of the show. In season 1, Jimmy yells at Liz to find her purpose outside of his kid, and that clearly strikes a nerve with her because we see her struggle with that throughout this entire season. She tries to be a better person by selling her share of the truck to Sean’s dad, but that bites her when she understands that puts Sean in a difficult position with his dad. She tries to find purpose as a photographer for rescue animals, only to find that work is unappreciated by the people she is trying to help, including her husband.
Eventually, she finds herself trying to find purpose with another man, which causes pain for both her and Derek. That choice forces Derek to confront his behaviors and interactions with his wife.
Despite their struggles this season, we see that for them to come back together and build something stronger, they have to be vulnerable with themselves and one another. Derek needs to confront how he ignored some of Liz’s cries for help, and Liz needs to confront how her self-absorption led her away from the person she loves the most.
This vulnerability leads not only to a renewed sense of self for them but also to Derek's clarity in seeing and verbalizing Liz’s purpose so that she can help Brian and Charlie. By affirming that being a mom is Liz’s gift and purpose, Liz can embrace what she loves wholeheartedly while also being a good person. They both emerge better because they decide to be vulnerable.
Sean
Sean starts this season of Shrinking seeming to be in a pretty good place, but we quickly see that he is not. He moves from simply being angry to becoming a people-pleaser, wanting Jimmy to think he’s doing better than he is. When he begins therapy with Paul, he is forced to confront his relationship with his father. Initially, that vulnerability pushes him into a dark place, leading to the beating at the end of episode 5. It is a great reminder that when we start to confront some of the darker parts of our past, it won’t always immediately lead to healing. Sometimes, that confrontation will cause us to regress. The decision to move forward is one that we will have to continue to make all the time.
Fortunately, because Tim chooses a better path, Sean can also choose a better one. As we see in the finale, things aren’t perfect between Sean and Tim. They are still awkward and not fully able to be vulnerable with one another, but they are in a healthier place than they were before. And Sean’s choice to do the work for himself means that he can better help his friend find his way to healing as well.
Gaby
Gaby is both an open book and hard to read, and it is completely on display this season. But this season shows that being closed off leaves her struggling to find true connection.
By not being honest with herself sooner about her feelings for Jimmy, they had a tense start to the season. It took a lot for them to find their way back to friendship after the fallout from the uneven dynamic that they established.
She then had similar situations with her mom and Derek 2. She put off explaining to her mom that she didn’t want her moving in, which created a barrier between them. She was also non-committal and distant from Derek, which resulted in him breaking up with her.
I’ll be honest: I’m not entirely sure how much Gaby grew this season. I’m glad Derek and her mom showed up to Thanksgiving, but she only made moves to correct her mistakes after she experienced the consequences of those original decisions. She sees how her behavior is harming her—we see that in her conversation with Liz and Aliyah—but I will be anxious to see if she makes better choices in season 3 about how to deal with her caretaking tendencies. I love Gaby, and I want good things for her, but she will have to make changes rather than make amends.
Paul
Paul has some similarities to Gaby in that a lot of his decisions about vulnerability are the result of poor choices he makes and the consequences of those choices. The situation with his ex-wife happened because he put off talking to her about their divorce for decades. The situation with Meg happened because he let his guilt eat away at their relationship for decades. He almost allowed his walls to keep him from creating a friendship with Raymond. Similarly, he almost allowed things with Julie to go sideways because of his walls.
But his speech at Thanksgiving was a very public acknowledgment of his weakness and a huge display of vulnerability. Admitting that he needed the people in the room and standing in front of them while not taking his meds showed that he recognized that his remaining time could not be spent in his fortress of solitude. He has to open up if he wants to truly enjoy time with the people he loves.
Letting go of the patterns we build over a lifetime is challenging. It’s much easier to stay in those ruts and keep doing what we’ve been doing. But Paul shows us that we can make changes at any age and that we can and should be willing to expose ourselves emotionally to those we love and trust.
Alice
Alice is impressive because even though she has undergone significant trauma, she is open to learning and changing behavior. Obviously, she doesn’t do that perfectly. Sleeping with Connor when she had shown no interest in him and knew how much he meant to Summer was gross to both of them, but she was open to listening to her dad and seeing past her pain to look at what her best friend was going through.
Her initial response to Louis was loathing, but by opening up and sharing a story about her mom with him, she found the strength to forgive him and actually create a bond with him. Once again, she looked past her suffering to see someone else’s, which moved her to compassion. That act of vulnerability changed the course of Louis’s life, and in changing his life, it changed hers as well.
Finally, when Jimmy comes to her, she is able to acknowledge the ways that he has failed and see the ways he has been there for her, even in the worst times. She took time away to process her feelings, and when she came back, she was able to approach him with openness and some insight into what he was going through as well.
Her growth through the season is the most significant, and it is in no small part because she listened to what Paul said and started making decisions about how to behave before she became so set in her ways that it is harder to change. Honestly, I think it’s why the most significant changes we’ve seen have been in Sean and Alice. They are still young enough that even with the difficulties they’ve faced, they are the most open to change.
Jimmy
Ultimately, the show is about Jimmy, and when we left him last week, he was in a bad place. But by calling Paul, he was making the first step toward allowing himself the kind of vulnerability he needed to find healing. This week we once again see him pulling away from that openness when he tells Paul that he has no intention of making Alice feel like she is responsible for his mental health by being honest with her about how he feels like he screwed up.
The truth is, that could be a noble position to take. Sometimes, parents will unload on their kids in a way that makes the adult the primary person receiving comfort rather than the kid who may have been harmed by the parental activity. But saying that you’re trying to protect your child can also be a way to avoid dealing with something that needs to be addressed. Alice is bridging the gap between child and adult, but she is certainly old enough to have a conversation with her dad about her feelings regarding their relationship from a year ago.
But even beyond Alice, the person Jimmy struggled to be open to was Louis. As I wrote about in my Ted Lasso book, forgiveness isn’t always owed or necessary to give. But it often does allow people to move forward. Jimmy told Louis that he forgave him, but it was obvious to anyone paying attention that he had not. When he finally talked to Alice and was open and vulnerable with her, he could begin to forgive himself and grow closer to her. That closeness allowed him to see what that relationship meant to her and how maybe it could offer him a way forward.
Honestly, I wasn’t sure Louis was making it out of this season. I know that would be a dark way for the season to end, but there was a moment when I thought it might go that way. I am grateful that it did not and, instead, was a beautiful moment for the two of them to connect. In one of the last lines of the season, Jimmy says, “What a shitty couple of years.” Which is a simple, almost throw-away line, except that it is said to the man who killed his wife and is an acknowledgment that they have both experienced pain since Tia’s death.
Part of growth through grief is the ability to continue to feel empathy for others even when we are suffering. Jimmy is starting a new, healthier grieving process, and that simple line helps show us that he’s on a path with real healing ahead. He’s offering the same to Louis. And he’s showing all of us that it can also be possible for us.
Thanks for sticking with this VERY LONG Shrinking finale recap. And for sticking with me, even though when I say “recap,” I don’t actually do recaps so much as theme analysis, which isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. I love writing these, and doing this series definitely has me thinking about a new book project. In the meantime, whatever holiday you may celebrate right now, I hope it is filled with the people and things that you love the most.
This one was a three cry episode for me. Just hits you right in the heart 💙
This show is just so good.