by Adam Ritchie, Contributing Writer
Physical is set in the early ’80s at the beginning of the home video revolution, which will become more apparent as you read on. Rose Byrne stars (and star she certainly does) as Shiela Rubin, the put-upon, down-trodden housewife of her university professor husband, Danny Rubin (Rory Scovel).
This series grabbed me from the start for many reasons. The ’80s aesthetic being one, but the tone of what this show is about is established early. Often we hear that tiny voice inside Shiela’s head deliver a cacophony of hate filled diatribe’s against not only the other characters, but most tellingly, herself.
Danny’s contract is not renewed at the university and all seems lost until local businessman John Breem (Paul Sparks) proposes the development of the local water front. Danny decides to run for state assembly under the prescient and important campaign platform of environmental protection. Naturally, Shiela supports her husband, because that’s what life was like for married women in the ’80s. The expectation that wives raised the kids and kept the house while husbands worked is placed very upfront in Physical.
Through her inner monologue, we learn of Sheila’s body image issues that have resulted in an eating disorder, subsequently leading to a spending disorder. Sheila’s regular trips to burger joints and motels to eat and purge have eaten into and purged (pardon the puns) the family savings. Danny is none the wiser, but when he wants to use their savings to help fund his political ambitions, Sheila is forced to do anything possible to attempt to cover up her destructive behavior.
Sheila’s only outlet to feel alive comes to her when she discovers an aerobics class at the new mall, which is coincidentally owned by John Breem, and ruining local small businesses in the area. It is a story that is all too familiar across the world for the last 40 years.
Sheila manages to build relationships along the way. She worms her way in with the Aerobics class teacher Bunny (Della Saba) and her surfer boyfriend Tyler (Lou Taylor Pucci), eventually getting to host her own classes. She also reluctantly becomes friends with Greta (Dierdre Friel), meeting at her their daughter’s day care centre.
During a visit to Greta’s home, Sheila discovers that Greta is wealthy and steals her husband’s video camera, a rare household item in 1981. Bunny’s boyfriend happens to make surfing films and has the rest of the equipment Sheila needs to make an aerobics tape.
One of the great things about Physical is how organically the major plot lines develop. While Sheila is off making her tape, Danny hires his old friend Jerry to be his campaign manager, despite Sheila having a natural flair for it. Jerry (Geoffrey Arend) is a masochistic A-hole stoner that pretends he knows far more than he does, and condescends to Sheila at every opportunity. It is painful watching her tolerate him just to keep the peace and support her ungrateful husband.
Needless to say, a lot happens over the 10 episodes of this first season. You will find the true source of Sheila’s eating disorder, the election result, the money problems, the aerobics tape, and much more. All the performances are solid. Friel is fantastic as Greta, and Arend is frustratingly brilliant as Jerry. Unsurprisingly, Rose Byrne is stellar, and I would be surprised if she doesn’t manage an Emmy nomination. She demonstrates a range we have seen glimpses of, but never had the chance to show in full-force with her previous (mostly) comedic roles.
I love the concept of Physical. I love the aesthetics, and the set and costume design is pitch perfect for the turn of the decade. As a white male, I found Sheila’s inner voice scarily eye-opening and frankly, heartbreaking. As the son of a single mother that raised my two older brothers and I during the same era, I have nothing but empathy and love for her character and the real women who lived in such oppressive times.
Overall, Physical reached for the stars and almost gets there. The side themes of environmental protection and female empowerment are still extremely relevant today. The minor negatives are some character plot lines that fall a little bit flat, and maybe seem a bit forced. In short, they don’t fit with the naturally organic flow the other 90% of the show has.
Grade: B
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