The first ep does a great job in showing us the family dynamics and who each character is. Great at giving us a preview of what the rest of the show will be like.
Sam is a sweet kid who has austism, is the "typical" case of what we would consider on the spectrum: has trouble with nonverbal communcation, is literal about everything, has obsessions, has trouble with physical touch, and has a hard time socializing. But he is also a typical normal teenager, trying to figure out who he is and where he fits in a world he feels he's not a part of.
Love the glimpse we see of Sam and his sister, Casey. She is protective of him while at the same time loving to annoy him and tease him.
Their parents are struggling to figure out how to help their son fit into a world that isn't made for him. And also how much this struggle causes strain on their relationship, with each other and with their children.
Overall, good first episode that gives a great introduction of who the characters are, what the premise is about, and what to expect of the storyline and tone in the rest of the season.
It was good. Except for the fact that they keep hiring people who are 10 years too old to be playing teenagers. Either get younger actors or make the characters older. I don't get the stubbornness of getting adults and try and pretend they can pass for HS kids.
A couple episodes in, and I've come back to comment on each episode one-by-one.
I didn't exactly have high hopes in starting this series because Hollywood likes to overshoot the topic of autism and has time and time again. From the first half of the pilot I thought I was exactly right, but it deserves some credit: Immediately, Elsa is annoying, overprotective, and cheesy; she goes so far out of her way to protect her son that she ends up being counterproductive. Further so, she seemed terribly written in that she was so--for the lack of a better phrasing and comparison--boomer... But in hindsight, that is perfect, because the only other characters who are like this are the other boomer women in her talk group. Just like reality, I guess. I'm still not 100% on liking this series, myself, but I see it's pros as some light-hearted TV drama, it's just a touch dated at times. I hope there are more characters in future episodes who are autistic to explain the spectrum better.
Shout by BogexBlockedParentSpoilers2022-02-01T15:18:45Z
Elsa is a big yikes - not with the overprotection thing but with going out to drink in a long time and basically immediately flirting with a guy when she's married. Not sure if her marriage is bad but judging by only this first episode, especially the dinner time, it should be okay.
Casey is a badass sis, I already like her a lot. Protecting the "weak" while also not treating her autistic brother differently than she would a "normal" brother. I also already like her budding chemistry with Evan. He was really sweet with Sam at their house, and you can tell it wasn't (only) because he likes Casey and wants to impress her.