Put aside the horror that was season 3, the "meh" of season 2, The Big C had quite excellent seasons in the first and fourth run.
The first season snook up on me, I wasn't sure what to expect while watching a "comedy" about a woman with cancer. I didn't laugh a lot, I smiled a few times, I teared up several times, I sobbed like a baby once (Adam's tear-jerker scene towards the end), but I enjoyed a lot of it. It wasn't condescending like many cancer stories turn out to be, neither was it vain, it simply felt real, in line with the main character, and still heartwarming and thought-provoking. I absolutely adored Sean Benjamin Hickey as Sean. He was a true revelation, and he brought the only comic-relief moments for me.
I don't remember much about season 2 or 3, except that I stuck through them (especially the unbelievable messed up season 3), because I knew the show could be good - I owed it to the show to believe that it could get its shine back on.
However, for those who made it through those, Season 4 was a true "delight". It was a return to the roots for The Big C, with Linney at her best, the smart writing being back, and no more silly sexual storylines that deviate from the show's purpose. Adam was sweet again, Sean was funny again, Paul was caring and loving again. The selfishness of the previous seasons was gone, and Cathy was relatable, witty, and heart-warming again.
The Big C isn't really a comedy, nor is it a drama, it sits somewhere in between, and it's worth indulging in it, if only for the many questions it will make you ask yourself, for the discoveries you'll make, for the perceptions it'll change for you, and for the brilliant honesty that was seen in its first and fourth seasons.
Review by Rita El KhouryBlockedParent2013-06-26T14:33:00Z
Put aside the horror that was season 3, the "meh" of season 2, The Big C had quite excellent seasons in the first and fourth run.
The first season snook up on me, I wasn't sure what to expect while watching a "comedy" about a woman with cancer. I didn't laugh a lot, I smiled a few times, I teared up several times, I sobbed like a baby once (Adam's tear-jerker scene towards the end), but I enjoyed a lot of it. It wasn't condescending like many cancer stories turn out to be, neither was it vain, it simply felt real, in line with the main character, and still heartwarming and thought-provoking. I absolutely adored Sean Benjamin Hickey as Sean. He was a true revelation, and he brought the only comic-relief moments for me.
I don't remember much about season 2 or 3, except that I stuck through them (especially the unbelievable messed up season 3), because I knew the show could be good - I owed it to the show to believe that it could get its shine back on.
However, for those who made it through those, Season 4 was a true "delight". It was a return to the roots for The Big C, with Linney at her best, the smart writing being back, and no more silly sexual storylines that deviate from the show's purpose. Adam was sweet again, Sean was funny again, Paul was caring and loving again. The selfishness of the previous seasons was gone, and Cathy was relatable, witty, and heart-warming again.
The Big C isn't really a comedy, nor is it a drama, it sits somewhere in between, and it's worth indulging in it, if only for the many questions it will make you ask yourself, for the discoveries you'll make, for the perceptions it'll change for you, and for the brilliant honesty that was seen in its first and fourth seasons.