It's a joy to be back with our favourite golden-age couple.
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The girls are back, and on fine form. Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin continue to act their socks off in this quirky comedy, following two women unexpectedly thrust together in their golden years. Though their initial scrapping might be over, it’s never quiet in the lives of Grace and Frankie.
In case you’ve forgot, Grace (Jane Fonda) and Frankie (Lily Tomlin) ended up as reluctant housemates after their husbands Robert (Martin Sheen) and Sol (Sam Waterston) left them for each other. Two seasons on, and Grace and Frankie have made somewhat of a endearing if troubled friendship out of their situation, and have also decided to embrace their age in the most liberating of ways – designing vibrators to suit all the aches and pains of over-50s.
Season 3 opens with the dynamic duo pitching their business plan to a horrified banker, who rejects their loan largely on the basis of their age. Undeterred, Grace and Frankie continue to stick two-fingers up to ageism by giving their menagerie of a family – consisting of their now married cheating ex-husbands and their various children – the cold shoulder over their harsh comments on their business.
Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin are a blissful blend as the leading ladies, and it’s great to see them respecting their differences as loveable quirks. Indeed, where Grace is uptight and bossy, she’s equally fiercely loyal, and while Frankie is scatty and infuriating, she’s equally carefree and kind. After two seasons of big fallouts, Grace and Frankie finally feel like a real unit – though something tells me they’ll be back at each other’s throats before we know it.
Martin Sheen and Sam Waterston are beginning to stagnate as the real ‘love story’ of Grace & Frankie, with the mundanity of Robert and Sol’s marriage highlighting their more dislikable characteristics. The show is definitely at its best when they take a back seat or are paired with their ex-wives, but seeing their domestic bliss constantly rocked by little niggles is getting tiresome. June Diane Raphael steals every scene she’s in as Grace and Robert’s daughter Brianna – her immense wit makes for real laugh-out-loud moments which complement the more wry style of comedy in the rest of the show. Her struggles with love present a welcome humane and endearing side to the ‘man-eater’ she’s previously been presented as.
It’s great to have Grace & Frankie back on our screens, and binge-watching the next thirteen chapters of their domestic mayhem will be a joy to watch. Though, maybe, a little less of the Robert & Sol show, okay?
Grace & Frankie‘s three seasons are now available to watch in its entirety via Netflix.
1 Comment
I loved the first two seasons, but so far Ive seen five episodes of Season three and Im depressed. There is SO much arguing all the time!!! Instead of making me feel happy, sad or laugh it gives me anxiety. I had to switch off after episode five because I couldnt bear how heavy it got. Constant fights. 🙁 What a shame they totally spoiled it.