It’s also a celebration of the kind of setting – a conservative rural town – we’re more accustomed to seeing characters escape from, rather than lean into. Joel and his mostly queer friends, led by the perpetually upbeat Fred Rococo (drag king Murray Hill), a trans agriculture professor, have created a community into which Sam, despite her reticence, is wholeheartedly welcomed.
Loading
This season is about change: Sam has a job at a bar, and her friendship with her sister Tricia (Mary Catherine Garrison) is thriving. Fred has married Susie (Jennifer Mudge), and with Sam’s parents living in another state, the family farm has been rented out to a man she and Tricia call simply “Iceland” (Olafur Darri Olafsson), as he’s Icelandic. Then Joel announces that he’s moving in with Brad, and it feels like a final straw for Sam; her loneliness threatens to overwhelm her.
But at a Thanksgiving gathering, she has a quiet epiphany (nothing happens loudly in this show), and by the final episode – which I won’t spoil – Sam accepts her vulnerability, and opens herself up to taking risks. Nothing is wrapped up neatly – Somebody Somewhere is far too naturalistic for that – but it’s an ending that fans of Everett’s funny, infuriating and nuanced character will love. Ready your tissues.
Find out the next TV, streaming series and movies to add to your must-sees. Get The Watchlist delivered every Thursday.
