Category Archives: Apple TV +

Shrinking S2 E12

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“The Last Thanksgiving”

What a wonderful final episode of Shrinking.

However, I really thought this was going to end with a tragedy and I just did not want to see it happen. Thankfully, Jimmy arrived at the train station just as Louis, who had been rebuked by his friend who said that he “got drunk and murdered someone”, was about to step out in front of an oncoming train. I really thought this was going to happen and I could not handle the season coming to an end with such a horrible tragedy.

So many great things happened:

  • Derek forgave Gaby and brought her mother to Thanksgiving.
  • Brian and Charlie hired a nanny, and had Liz do two days a week. It was Derek’s idea at first.
  • Julie kidnapped Paul again… this time to go to Gaby’s Thanksgiving. He kept saying he was under duress.
  • Paul stood up and gave a beautiful speech about the people at the party being people that he did not have to hide his tremors from. It was an amazing scene and Harrison Ford knocked it out of the park.
  • Sean had a nice scene with his father *finger poke*
  • Summer called for help from Jimmy when she was shoplifting abortion medicine.
  • Jimmy worked with Paul to try and get better after admitting that he was not okay.

The scene with Jimmy and Louis at the train station was legendary as they sat and tried to guess what other people’s jobs were. It echoed back to the past when Louis and his wife used to do that.

This was a wonderful episode to wrap up a pretty solid season overall. Shrinking will be returning for a season three on Apple TV +.

Silo S2 E6

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“Barricades”

Silo streamed its sixth episode the other day and things continue to be happening. This episode spent most of the time in our original silo, with only a few minutes at the end of the episode with Juliette and Solo.

Sheriff Billings takes a stand after finally getting to be able to talk to Shirley, Knox and Walker. He showed himself that he was willing to follow the law and not worry about whose side he is on. He also seemed to discover that his shakes from the Syndrome were gone despite not taking his herbs for days. What does this mean for the people of the silo? Is it just one more lie that has been used to maintain the status quo?

Bernard is feeling like he is losing control of things as the revolt below him in the silo has been picking up steam and his attempt to starve them out has failed. He realized that he has lost the sheriff, who is going to follow the law and not just blindly follow what he says.

Things are going to go crazy when Juliette is able to return to her original silo. It’s coming…

Shrinking S2 E11

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“The Drugs Don’t Work”

A more emotional episode of Shrinking than we’ve had for awhile as both Jimmy and Paul had major events in their lives, causing each of them distress. Plus, Gaby’s personal demons began to throw a wrench into her relationship with Derek.

Thanksgiving is right around the corner and problems are welling up for everyone. However, there was a great moment when Brian received word that the woman who had rejected Brian and Charlie as adoptive parents for her baby, changed her mind.

Sean is also having issues that he does not want Derek to help him with, even though Derek had an awesome fix for.

Jimmy is quickly on a downward spiral as he realized that he was not doing better dealing with his wife’s death and that he really needed help. His reaction to Alice being friends with Louis has triggered the episode and Jimmy called Paul for help.

Of course, Paul’s medication is starting to fail him, as he had noticed more tremors than he had before.

At one point, I was unsure what this show was going to do because it felt as if the storylines had all wrapped up sufficiently. However, Shrinking has amped everything back up for a “finale?” next week.

Silo S2 E4, E5

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“The Harmonium”

“Descent”

Boy, some big things went down on Silo over the last two weeks.

I did not realize that I was a week behind when I pulled up the series on Apple TV +, but there they were. Then all the crap happened.

  • The Mayor killed Judge Meadows. Poisoned mushrooms. I knew fungus should not be eaten.
  • Solo is going crazy…okay, maybe he is already crazy.
  • Knox and Shirley framed for the murder of Judge Meadows.
  • An angry mob chased after Knox and Shirley.
  • The whole Juliette going underwater to go find a suit was tense and crazy.
  • Juliette collapses from her infected injury on her arm.
  • Is Solo the real Solo? Who is the Solo that Juliette knows?
  • Sims is made a Judge. Not Bernard’s shadow though.

Things are building for a really exciting second part of the season. I can’t imagine what is happening with this rebellion when Juliette makes it back to her home silo.

Shrinking S2 E10

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“Changing Patterns”

Okay, so perhaps this is not the season finale after all.

I really thought that this was the season finale. But when I pulled up the show on Apple TV +, I saw episode 11 listed for next Wednesday. So I guess this is not the final episode of the season. I do not know how many there are.

That does not bother me much because Shrinking is consistently one of the best written and entertaining shows on TV.

I had been wondering where this show was going as it seemed like most of the storylines were wrapped up over the last couple of episodes, but there were a couple that came raging back into the forefront.

In particular, the whole Louis/Alice friendship came back hard and heavy this week. Alice found out that Jimmy had told Louis to not see Alice again and that crushed her. Apparently, there are more legs to this as Alice told her father that he ruined another birthday.

Oh yeah, it was Alice’s 18 birthday. She was a little unfair in this situation in my opinion. I mean, Jimmy did find her a car just like his wife. Sure he can be blind in a lot of ways, but to say that he ruined the birthday felt a touch harsh.

There are some great development with all of the other characters too. Paul, Liz, Derek, Julie, and Gaby had solid arcs within this episode, but they all paled in comparison to the birthday escapades.

I wonder how many more episodes the season has for us?

Shrinking S2 E9

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“Full Grown Dude Face”

Another wonderfully charming episode of Shrinking. The writing on this in on par with some of the best writing on television.

However, next week is the finale of season two and I am not sure where this will go. There does not seem to be any kind of overarching storyline through the season. There was but it has been resolved a couple of episodes ago. And this episode felt like a wrap to a couple of more. At least, for the moment.

It was a great single episode with some excellent character work, as Jimmy as seemingly on fire this week, while dealing with Alice’s growing and becoming even more independent. We had some furthering of the search for a baby by Brian and Charlie.

I guess the theme of the episode is parenting, as everyone involved has some connection to being a parent and trying to understand the sacrifices and, sometimes, the outright lying, that goes with it.

Seeing Harrison Ford doing exercises that look to be twerking is a highlight for sure. There is not enough Harrison Ford this week even if every second he is on screen he absolutely dominates,

Silo S2 E3

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“Solo”

The best parts of this episode came from the interactions between Juliette and Solo. Solo is the person locked in the vault that we met last week. He told her that if Juliette tried to open the vault again, he would kill her.

However, we discover that Solo is not quite confident in his mental acuity. He was not sure if Juliette was real, so he put some soup out for her. When she gulped it down, Solo realized that she really was real.

Steve Zahn played the off-balanced survivor and he did a great job of spending most of the episode acting with his voice (and perhaps every once in awhile with his eyes).

Discovering the secrets of this other silo, Juliette wanted to get back to her own silo (Silo 18), to warn others of the dangers that brought this silo (Silo 17) down. She was stifled on how to make that happen since her own suit was torn to shreds.

This led to Solo exiting his vault when he feared that Juliette was going to not return. I am not sure where this goes, but Solo feels a little cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs to me.

The stuff happening back in the original silo was not as compelling for me. We get a bunch of trouble from a group planning a potential rebellion. We get questions about Juliette’s actual choice about wanting to leave. The Mayor continues with his machinations. Judge Meadow who is starting to figure out how she can leave the silo and The Mayor seemingly helping her (though I don’t trust him one bit).

Shrinking S2 E8

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“Last Drink”

A wonderful episode of Shrinking this week.

It started off with a flashback to prior to the car crash and gave us all the feelings about Jimmy’s marriage and the events leading up to the accident. (We also got to see a bunch of weird outfits and hats meant to make these people look younger).

We finally returned to the moment at the restaurant when Jimmy saw Alice, Brian and Louis together. It rocked Jimmy’s world and sent him into a spiral.

We also got a chunk of work on the relationship between Liz and Derek, and Derek went to confront the guy who kissed Liz. Derek worked on his own feelings and was able to see how some of this was his own fault. The fact that it appeared as if Liz and Derek were going to get past the kiss was really great. I did not want an extended fight between them and this gave us a chance to look at these important characters a little deeper.

Jimmy going to see Louis to tell him that he forgave him was undercut a bit by telling him that he never wanted to see him again, that he needed to be out of his life and to not see his daughter again. That did not feel as healthy as it could have been and it does not feel as if that story is done. I have some very frightening thoughts about what this could lead to.

Paul was beginning to have some more issues, such as not sleeping well and having some memory lapses, so he went to the doctor. That was a real healthy choice instead of just ignoring it. Turned out that the doctor recommended that Paul give up drinking, signaling that giving up alcohol would help with a temporary fix on some of those problems.

I think this might have been my favorite episode of the second season so far. It had those tough issues and the wonderfully funny writing that did not overpower the drama, but only helped to serve it more.

Silo S2 E2

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“Order”

I figured that this episode would be this way. After last week’s episode featuring Juliette exclusively and her exploring of the other silo she found, I assumed that this week’s episode would be focused on what was happening back in the silo we all had been introduced to in season one.

This technique was used a lot in other shows like LOST or The Walking Dead where we switch POV and tell the story of what was happening in a different location, but same time.

Back in the original silo, Mayor Bernard Holland was coming up with a lie to use to squelch the potential uprising among the people who saw Juliette climb over the hill in the finale last year. They made the assumption that the world outside was safe after all. The Mayor made an effective lie about tape used on Juliette’s suit to keep the people in control, but he knew that this was not going to last forever.

We also saw the beginnings of a revolution brewing among some of the people, especially those connected to Juliette. The seeds were planted and slowly began to see signs of growth.

Judge Meadows agreed to help the Mayor, but she wants to go out of the silo. He tried to keep her from saying such things, but she was feeling too oppressed by the silo lifestyle. Meadows is going to help him but she expects the Mayor to let her go. Not sure that is going to hasppen. I do not trust the Mayor at all.

Shrinking S2 E7

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“Get in the Sea”

Shrinking is one of the most consistently entertaining shows on any streaming service. It has both genuine laugh out loud moments as well as moments of deep drama and emotion. Both of which came out in “Get in the Sea.”

Jimmy spent the day with a patient of his. He took the man along with him through the entire day to show him that is is able to approach new things. However, at the end, Jimmy saw Alice, Brian and Louis laughing at a restaurant together. It was quite a cliffhanger and should bring some emotional fireworks next week.

Mac kissed Liz and sent her marriage to Derek into jeopardy. Paul convinced her to tell Derek the truth because secrets have a tendency to come out. Unfortunately and understandably, Derek does not take it well. Ted McGinley showed some solid work here with a characters that has always been a part of the comedy.

Brian and Charlie decided they were not ready yet to adopt a baby after they found out that they could have a child the next day. It sent them both into a panic mode. This is where the title of the episode came from as Derek2 had them all go into the ocean and work through their problems. Jimmy’s patient came up with a solid bit of advice, as he had to be out in the ocean too.

There was not enough Harrison Ford in this episode, but he steals every second he is on screen, I swear.

Silo S2 E1

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“The Engineer”

Apple TV + series Silo returned for its second season. The first season was an unexpected treat when it first came out on Apple TV + so I was excited to see what a second season had in store for us.

Juliette (Rebecca Ferguson) who was sent out of the silo in the first season finale, set up by those in power to get rid of her, went walking across the outside world. She discovered that there were more silos than the one that she came from. As she went to the nearest one, she had to walk through a field littered with skeletons and rotting corpses, belonging to a group of people we saw at the episode’s beginning, who were forcing their way out of their silo in a revolution. A revolution that did not go well. Looks like the air is toxic after all.

As Juliette entered the next silo, she discovered that it was abandoned and run down. She went into the silo, exploring the structure as we got flashbacks of Juliette as a child, learning to work the recycle center.

The episode had a ton of tension and nervous energy as Juliette made her way through the darkness and decay of this silo, picking up on signs as she went. Part of the reason these scenes were as unnerving as they were was that most of the episode was silent. Except for the flashbacks, of course, most of Juliette’s time in the silo contained little to no dialogue.

That is, of course, until she heard that music playing and went to find a big vault door, which she tried to open. Failing, she was ready to leave when she heard a man speak to her, telling her that he understood why she tried to open the door, but if she tried it again, he would kill her.

For me, I would say, sure thing… no problem… enjoy your life in there. I get a feeling that Juliette is not going to just let this guy live his life behind steel doors. Or at least her curiosity will get the better of her. Who is this guy and why did he respond to her in such a way?

We did not see any of the characters from the original silo we had been introduced to in season one, but there was plenty of story taking place here to satisfy. A solid season premiere from a solid sci-fi show that more people should know about.

Shrinking S2 E6

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 “In a Lonely Place”

Jason Segal and Harrison Ford are absolutely on fire in this episode. Jimmy and Paul are hilarious and the writing was spectacular. They were here as kind of the commentors on the things going down.

Lots of relationships were straightened out here. Gaby and her sister. Sean and his father. Alice and Louis, via Brian.

However, it seems as if Liz is approaching a major conflict that might affect her marriage. I don’t like that. I hope that this show does not take it in the way that it looks like.

I want to go back to Segal and Ford. When they paddled up in the boat to see Sean’s father, I thought I was going to lose it. They are such a fantastic pairing and they are written with such smart dialogue.

I wonder where this season is headed as it feels like a bunch of the story has been wrapped up. It was extremely entertaining, but not sure where it is going.

Shrinking S2 E5

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“Honesty Era”

Shrinking is such a great show every week. They have multiple storylines working for all of the major characters and they all feel real and relatable. It also has some of the best written dialogue on TV. For example:

“Little baby chicken bitch.”

As I said. This was said by Paul’s ex-wife, who came to have a frank discussion with Paul and Harrison Ford and Kelly Bishop, Gilmore Girl actress, were brilliant together. But one would think that line would have been said in anger, but instead it was weaved in beautifully into an honest and real discussion between them. It was one of the best scenes of the season.

Connor also happened to break and tell Summer that he had slept with Alice, and the anger of the ginger came out. This secret led to Liz’s meltdown on Jimmy in another wonderfully written scene. Jimmy responds with such a deadpan way, with small little comments that show off how funny he truly is.

There are storylines for just about everyone in the cast and they all are well written and make perfect sense. The show does not feel stuffed because the writing deftly handles the stories and their aftereffects, and the actors are all so excellent and seem to have a grasp of who these people are that they can portray the writing with some much humor and heart.

Shrinking is one of the best shows on TV.

Shrinking S2 E4

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“Made You Look”

Shrinking is such a good show.

Harrison Ford is outstanding every episode, and this one where he is concerned that he maybe losing a step because of the Parkinson’s Disease is even more excellent than normal. There were some of the best lines of the series in this episode. One, in particular, made me laugh out loud. It was:

“What, you want me to pull my pants down and make my ass clap?“

Just imagine that line in the typical, gruff Harrison Ford voice.

Later in the episode Jimmy tells him that they should be working together, like Batman and Robin. He said that Harrison could be Batman, because he already talks like him.

Funny stuff.

I am a little concerned that I look at him and I see Harrison Ford and not the character he is playing, which, for the record, is Dr. Paul Rhoades.

There are several sub plots that are slowly brewing that show promise. These include Sean’s father issues, Gaby and a second Derek, Alice-Connor-Summer triangle, Brian and Charlie’s conversation about adopting a baby, and the recurring Louis Winston- aka the drunk driver who killed Tia.

Shrinking is on Apple + released weekly.

Shrinking S2 E3

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“Psychological Something-ism” 

Shrinking continues to be one of the best shows on Apple TV +. This cast is just extremely strong with Jason Segal, Harrison Ford, Jessica Williams are fantastic. There are a bunch of exceptional secondary characters that worked great in this episode.

  • Jimmy and Brian’s friendship is explored as they reach a turning point.
  • Alice is still haunted by the idea of the man who killed her mom being in town.
  • Paul is looking for a new doctor and still worried about being a weight for Julie.
  • Gaby remains mad at Jimmy.
  • Grace gets out of jail… and goes back to her husband.
  • Thinking she was doing a good thing, Liz sold her part of the food truck to Sean’s father… and Sean was really mad.

We had a fun scene with Harrison Ford and Ted McGinley, which is an odd pairing, but it was really fun.

Shrinking has some of the best writing on television and the cast delivers this beautifully.