Review: ‘Shrinking’ Season 3, Episode 2 “Happiness Mission”

Another day, another round of therapy sessions. Gaby is asked to take on a new client because she is seeing a couple who are worried about their friend, so she accepts this request. 

Sophie, the woman who sold Jimmy the car for Alice’s birthday, stops by Jimmy’s house to see how he is doing. She then revealed that she tried to come to his house the night before, but she was too shy. She also admits that she was wearing all black and looked like she was going to rob his house. Jimmy invites her in for a cup of coffee. Sophie is portrayed by Cobie Smulders. 

At Liz and Derek’s,  Paul notices that Matthew is taking advantage of them. Paul advises both of them to be tougher and not jump in right away to fix Matthew’s problems. Liz decides that she needs fresh air, so she goes outside where she sees Jimmy and Sophie having their coffee. It is painful for Liz to watch as she really wants Jimmy to ask Sophie out. However, Jimmy has told Paul that he doesn’t think he’ll ever date or remarry, as Tia was his one true love. 

Jimmy then meets Louis for coffee to check in on him. Louis then reveals that he can’t seem to get happy after what he did to Jimmy and Alice. The father-daughter duo is then determined to give Louis a happy memory. Louis is seen at the office, which Gaby is not happy about at all. This affects her performance as a therapist for this new client, and she immediately scares her away because of her attitude. 

Jimmy and Alice take Louis to a museum, where he then pictures himself with his ex-fiancée. She was his favorite person in the world; he knows he has to do something.

As Derek seeks Paul’s advice on Matthew,  Liz and Gaby have lunch at Sean’s truck to destress. They learn that  Sean has a crazy ex-girlfriend who is trying to get in contact with him. Liz and Gaby want Sean to give her another chance, as she is gorgeous and seems so nice, despite the craziness. 

Gaby sees Louis at Jimmy’s house. She angrily yells at him, saying how Tia was her best friend in the entire world and that Louis took her away from everyone. Jimmy and Alice are permanently scarred because of Louis’s actions. Louis was the one who made it out alive, and Gaby demands that he start living his life because Tia can’t. Louis decides to meet up with his ex-fiancée for the first time since the accident. She is doing well, and she even has a new boyfriend in her life. 

Derek takes the next step and tells Matthew that he is being kicked out of the house. Liz is very proud of him for doing that. Later, everyone decides to go on a hike for Paul, and Louis says goodbye to Jimmy and Alice as he feels the need to move on and get out of their lives. The episode ends with Louis applying for a graphic design job, Sean reaching out to his ex-girlfriend, and Jimmy going to Sophie’s house to try to talk to her; he bails. 

This episode was absolutely incredible for multiple reasons. One of the main reasons is the casting choice of Cobie Smulders. It is very interesting because she is most known for portraying the role of Robin Scherbatsky on the sitcom How I Met Your Mother alongside her co-star Jason Segel, who is the lead in Shrinking. The two actors have known each other for decades, but in this show, they are portraying potential romantic interests who have known each other for minutes. Jessica Williams’performance was outstanding. The monologue that she performed regarding the character of Tia was incredibly emotional and one of the best performances in the entire show thus far. The storylines are getting more serious as the characters come across s life-changing moments, and the acting can portray this very realistically.  

Rating 9/10