Day 435
I never really hear of the show Parenthood getting much buzz, but I've been watching it over the past couple of weeks and I really like it a lot. It's not what I'd call groundbreaking, but it's a very solid family drama with interesting and believable characters. I'm particularly partial to Max Burkholder's portrayal of the Adam and Kristina Braverman's son with Asperger's syndrome. Although I must admit I'm not an expert on the subject, I feel that Max's character is pretty fascinating in its singlemindedness and unflappability. His relationship with Hank in later seasons (portrayed by none other than Ray Romano) is also pretty interesting as it causes Hank to reexamine some facts about himself which he had never considered.
The series as a whole is centered around the Braverman clan, which consists of elderly couple Zeek and Camille, their four children, and their families. The aforementioned Adam and Kristina make up what I feel is the "main" family, but that's probably just my perception. Their son Max is a major plot point especially in early seasons, but their daughter Haddie, who is 15 at the start of the series, plays an important role as well. Most plots centered around Haddie tend to follow her various relationships. She is unfortunately completely absent from the fifth season due to being in college, but I can only assume the actress left the show in reality.
Crosby Braverman (Dax Shepard) finds himself grappling with unexpectedly becoming the father of a five-year-old son named Jabbar in the very first episode and much of the rest of the series' plots regarding him expound on that fact--and how he royally screws up his responsibilities over and over. However, he goes through a lot of growth as a character as the series progress until he finds himself experiencing fathering an infant with his partner Jasmine--an experience that he had been denied the first time around. Jasmine herself is a very bubbly, likable character who tends not to sweat the small stuff but has strong convictions.
Sarah Braverman is a single mother of two who seems to still be having troubles dealing with her responsibilities late into her 30s. Her relationship with Zeek and Camille is somewhat strained early in the series due to the nature of her relationship with her ex-husband, whose drug use had driven a wedge in the family many years before. Sarah is portrayed by Lauren Graham of Gilmore Girls and her two children are Drew and Amber, the latter of which is played by Mae Whitman. I recognize her most as Ann Veal from Arrested Development, but she also had a memorable appearance in Scott Pilgrim vs the World as one of Ramona Flowers' "evil exes." Drew is reserved and shy whereas Amber is emotional and independent.
Julia Braverman-Graham is the last child of the Braverman clan and probably my least favorite character. The actress doesn't necessarily do a poor job in portraying her, but her mannerism and tone of voice get under my skin in ways I can't even fully explain. Her tendency to lose herself in her work and overlook the concerns of her husband Joel is also troublesome. I frequently find myself rooting against her, particularly when her and Joel are having trouble in season 5. Both parties are at fault, of course, but I am (perhaps unfairly) more willing to give Joel the benefit of the doubt considering the character's past behavior.
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