The final episodes ofGrace and Frankiedropped last weekend, and it forced us tobid farewell to Netflix’s longest-running original series.Since its premiere in 2015, the half-hour comedy series has been a hit with the older “boomer” generation and young audiences alike. The show has generated many accolades, including 13 Emmy nominations. Much of the show’s success goes to the stars of the show, Jane Fonda (Klute), Lily Tomlin (Nashville), Martin Sheen (Apocalypse Now), and Sam Waterston (Law&Order). And while it is a bitter-sweet goodbye for the series, the final episodes of season 7 have been noted to be a touching culmination of the years we’ve been invested in the lives of these two ladies who we’ve cried and laughed with.
Forced to live together after their husbands, Robert (Martin Sheen) and Sol (Sam Waterston), announce that they’re divorcing them to marry each other, Grace (Fonda) and Frankie (Tomlin) grow from disliking each other to becoming best friends. Watching these two navigate starting their lives over again as septuagenarians has been both uplifting and emotional. Co-creator Martha Kauffman didn’t want to only cater this show to older folks but also to anyone who would love it for its characters and messages on embracing life and new beginnings. She toldEntertainment Weekly, “I hope they feel like they’ve been on a fulfilling journey. I hope they all still love all the characters by the end. And more than anything, I just hope they don’t say, ‘It’s over, and I’ll never watch it again.'”
Grace and Frankie’sexploration of self-discoveryat an older age has opened up many discussions on the realities of aging. But openly talking about continuing to feel empowered as a woman in her 70s who still wants to feel sexy has been something that hasn’t been touched on before. As well as what it’s like to come out to your family in your 70s. For this reason, this show will not be forgotten long after its finale because of how it speaks to an older generation.
Female Empowerment
Grace and Frankie’s friendship is wholesome, honest, and hilarious. And quite frankly enviable because who wouldn’t want a friendship like theirs? For a friendship that has expanded for nearly 50 years, Fonda and Tomlin first met in 1977, backstage at a theater in Los Angeles. The two then starredin the popular hit,9 to 5(1980), and then reunited in this show to star as polar opposite women forced to live together after their husbands divorcee them. The real-life friendship between Fonda and Tomlin carried over to the fun and loving friendship between Grace and Frankie. And their friendship has endured quite a lot, from learning to be a grandparent to dealing with health complications, those two have always had each other to fall back to.Grace and Frankiehas also helped revive the careers of these two as well as financially. Tomlin toldThe Hollywood Reporterthat the show gave her financial stability, saying, “Well, I had a steady job for a long time on a hit show. And that was beneficial to me financially because I never really accumulated any real money in all the years I worked.”
Related:The Best Movies About Finding Love in Old Age
Grace and Frankie allowed Fonda and Tomlin to play these fun martini-drinking, pot-smoking roles and make a statement about what it’s like being an older woman. In season 3, the ladies decide to go into business together to make adult toys for older women with arthritis. The topic of female pleasure alone hasn’t been discussed much on television. And adding older women to the mix only makes it more interesting and entertaining. Toys and self-pleasure can be uncomfortable for some women to talk about, and this show expertly tackles this topic by helping women to embrace their independence and open up shamelessly. Grace and Frankie are helping older women feel empowered. They’re also showing them that they can rediscover themselves the way they did when their lives were upturned.
The Realities of Aging
Season 7 ofGrace and Frankieexplores the good and the bad of getting older. The final episodes that premiered last week show Robert and Sol getting their lives back together after reconstructing their house. However, their lives begin to take a turn when Robert starts losing his memory. The topic of memory loss has been touched on a few times through the show but seeing it happen to Robert makes it all the more heartbreaking. But it’s the support of his husband, Sol, that makes those moments heartwarming as he helps him remember their first date. It’s not easy watching your loved one’s health decline but the encouragement and love that Robert and Sol show to each other is admirable and touching.
Related:Grace and Frankie Ends With Highly-Anticipated Cameo
A long-time friend of the ladies, Arlene, has been an integral character in the show. In season 3, Arlene demonstrates “senior moments” that Grace brushes aside at first because she does not like the idea of living in a"senior home" where her independence will be taken away. Eventually, she learns to understand the gravity of Arlene’s health and why she’s living at Walden Villas. Grace is always adamant in proving that just because she’s in her 80s doesn’t mean she cannot take care of herself. She and Frankie don’t want to be coddled by their children. They don’t want to end up at a place like Walden Villas. Their fight for independence inspires their older audience, as they see themselves in Grace and Frankie.
Never Too Late to Start Again
Coming out at any age is difficult. And while it’s no longer rare to see same-sex couples on television, it’s still monumental to see a septuagenarian gay romance on screen. Robert and Sol sacrifice a lot to be openly in love with each other after all the years they’ve been hiding together. Even though it brought initial pain to both Grace and Frankie, they still deserve to have their own happy ending, for this show embraces the notion of not letting life pass you by.
This is shown through Grace and Frankie starting their lives over again too. Throughout all seven seasons, we see them forming new relationships all while rediscovering themselves.Grace and Frankieshow that it’s never too late to come out, nor is it ever too late to start your life over again because, in the end, everyone deserves to be happy.
