Review: Grace and Frankie Season 6
by Julie Perez
Grace and Frankie continues to get better and better with each season and the latest, Season 6, proves just that.
Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin have rooted their Grace and Frankie characters in the reality of their off-screen friendship and that chemistry shines on the show. While Season 6 attempted to focus more on Grace and Frankie trying to be independent, the show can’t help but be at its best when these two powerful women come together.
We find Grace and Frankie at the beginning of Season 6 as Grace breaks the news to Frankie of her elopement to Nick. We see Frankie struggle, yet attempt to cope with the news as Grace tries to begin her life with her new husband while living at his place.
The best part about Season 6 was the realistic portrayal of female friendship.
With a show like Grace and Frankie, never have two women over 80 felt more relatable. Their friendship is complicated and their trust in each other continues to get stronger. Though throughout the season we find Grace and Frankie struggling with their new and separated, reality; they still find a way to work through their issues and continue to come back to each other.
The comedic bits continue to have perfect timing. If you’re looking for a TV show that will make you laugh out loud, then you can count on Grace and Frankie. However, though the storyline seems to flow effortlessly; the side storylines can’t help but continue to feel forced.
In Season 6, we watch as Brianna struggles to reconcile her feelings about her boyfriend Barry donating his sperm so that a lesbian couple could have a baby. Maybe it’s the lack of character growth that they’ve allowed Brianna to have but I can’t help but continue to not care about the trajectory of her storyline. The show seems unsure of what to make of Brianna, I wish it would decide what to do with her. They seem dead-set on making a successful relationship out of Barry and Brianna, yet I find it hard to believe any of their interactions to be genuine.
One problem that seems to be recurring on every season of Grace and Frankie is the side characters. Though we’ve gotten enough insight into characters like Brianna, Coyote, and Mallory; I still feel like they haven’t been developed enough to truly make the audience care about their story arcs. That or my obsession with Frankie has made it so that I find it difficult to concentrate on anyone but her.
Grace and Frankie is truly a gem.
Grace is a reminder that you’re never too old to find yourself while Frankie serves as an inspiration to always go with your heart. In a world saturated with tragedy Grace and Frankie continues to be a happy place for those of us in desperate need of one.
