From SRP author Mark Posey:
Tracy and I have been watching Shrinking, and I’ll be honest with you—I am exactly the target audience for this sort of thing. I’m already a sloppy, sentimental guy, so a show that can make me laugh one minute and quietly punch me in the heart the next doesn’t stand much chance of me resisting it.
What makes the series work so well is that beneath the humor, it’s really about grief, healing, friendship, regret, and the messy business of trying to become a better person while carrying all the baggage you picked up along the way. In other words: human beings being gloriously human. That kind of story always gets me.
And then there’s Harrison Ford. Harrison Ford! In a TV show! There’s still a tiny part of me that finds that wonderfully surprising. Watching him turn in a performance that’s funny, sharp, vulnerable, and completely effortless has been one of the real joys of the series. Some people just have it, and he’s one of them.
The dangerous thing about watching a show like this, at least for a writer, is that it stirs up ambition. It reminds you of the kinds of stories you’d love to tell if only there were a few more hours in the day and a few fewer things already on the to-do list. This is exactly the kind of heartfelt, character-driven story I’d love to write someday.
So fair warning: if one of these days a new Mark Posey book appears that makes you laugh, mist up a little, and immediately call someone you love… you’ll know where the inspiration came from.
Have you watched Shrinking? And has a TV show or book ever made you feel like it was speaking directly to your own heart?
–Mark