REVIEW: ‘Shrinking’ Season 2 Outdoes Itself

Shrinking Season 2 is a step from its first in many ways. While Season 1 was charming and engaging to watch, it wasn’t memorable long after the finale aired. This is despite quite a literal cliffhanger when one of Jimmy’s (Jason Segel) patients pushes their abusive boyfriend off the side of a cliff mid-hike. However, Season 2 strengthens the series’ greatest attributes while bringing together what makes the best Bill Lawrence (Scrubs, Ted Lasso) series sing — the camaraderie of a great ensemble.

While Jimmy wasn’t doing it alone in Season 1, Segel was relied on often, even with the terrific cast of characters, including Harrison Ford as his long-suffering friend/boss/mentor, Paul. In Shrinking Season 2, the cast is given much more to do as their threads and storylines both weave independently and together. Like many a great Lawrence jaunt, Shrinking is a fantastic hangout series. Even if the hangouts often involve some level of cathartic healing or discussions of mental health.

Shrinking Season 2 continues to pull at the thread of Jimmy’s style of therapy, even if there’s more doubt surrounding it following Grace’s (Heidi Garner) actions against her boyfriend. While Jimmy has seen success in his new methodology as a therapist, which requires him to be more hands-on, there are diminishing returns. From Grace’s outburst to Sean (Luke Tennie) being largely dependent on Jimmy and his friends as a support system, every success comes with a hindrance. Jimmy and Paul must learn how to meet in the middle regarding their best approaches to helping their patients.

One of the more moving threads of the season is Jimmy’s announcement that sometimes people need more than what an hour of therapy session can give. People sometimes need more grace, compassion, and time to heal. Jimmy realizes that not everyone thrives under the same regulated systems and practices. However, the series smartly keeps him in check because even while he’s onto a good idea with solid motives, the execution is often clumsy.

Jimmy isn’t always likable, though that’s certainly by design. A big hurdle for the character in Season 1 was his journey to earning the trust of his daughter, Alice (Lukita Maxwell), following the death of his wife, Alice’s mother. His floundering is much more reined in here, but his capacity for selfishness still rings true, which we see throughout the season in his dalliances with Gaby (Jessica Williams). It can be frustrating to watch him exist, but that makes him so human. Not even therapists have all the answers; they just have greater, built-in tools to implement them.

Again, however, the series succeeds so much in its second season by allowing the entire ensemble to thrive. We want to hang out with these people, or at least some variation of this group. Williams is as winsome as always and brings a necessary vibrancy to any scene she’s in. Ford remains hilarious yet poignant as Paul, his gruff exterior at war with those he’s let into his life.

As Jimmy’s best friend Brian, Michael Urie gets more to do in a significant storyline that’s pivotal to the series as it tackles themes of compassion and forgiveness. And Ted McGinely, as the unflappably content Derek, remains a quiet MVP of the series. His line delivery to his son in Episode 1, “You can live near a girl and not make it weird,” is a standout.

However, Tennie and Christa Miller, Jimmy’s neighbor Liz, really steal the season. Sean has always offered a beating heart to the series as he works through his past anger and trauma to become the person he wants to become. He faces notable setbacks in Season 2 that open up a discussion on what healing entails. It’s not linear, and no matter our best efforts, sometimes the pain from the past can rear its ugly head even when we’re “meant” to be our happiness.

Miller’s Liz is just as fascinating but for wildly different reasons. The series does well in honoring our ability to change and shift throughout life regardless of age. Paul’s romance with Julie (Wendie Malik) is as significant as Brian’s marriage to his husband. Liz has always been a lonely character who finds solace through her friends — especially those like Gaby, who see her as a complicated woman. However, Season 2 expands on this idea as she tries to find meaning beyond what’s expected of her.

It’s a testament to the skill of creators Lawrence and Brett Goldstein that the series continues to push and challenge viewers on our limitations of compassion. This is introduced through Goldstein’s character in Season 2 as the driver who drove drunk, resulting in the death of Jimmy’s wife, Tia (Lilan Bowden.) How they handle the story — indicated in the first two episodes — beautifully sidesteps our expectations. Instead of trying to get the audience to like the character, they try to make us think about the repercussions on all sides. And they do so without ever preaching to us.

There are shortcomings in terms of pacing. Grace’s story at the start is rushed, and Garner never seamlessly fits the tone of the series. While it’s nice to see every character get their moment to shine, the series also suffers in adequately giving them their own separate stories. This is especially true since the show is at its best when the cast bounces off one another rather than solo. But still, with quick, relatable humor and strong performances, it overcomes.

Shrinking Season 2 clears the bar it set for itself. Emboldened by a strong ensemble cast with palpable chemistry, the hilarious and heartfelt series remains a bright spot as it continues to challenge its characters and us.

Shrinking Season 2 Episodes 1 and 2 are out now on Apple TV+.