Atypical: Season 1, Episode 1- Antarctica

“People on the spectrum date, you know."

This is a series on Netflix that Mrs Llamastrangler and I are going to be watching once a week, one or two episodes at a time- expect the next episode's blog in the morning. It's a comedy-drama about an autistic teenager, his family and, well, the comedy and the drama that ensues.

Now, neither Mrs Llamastrangler nor I are autistic, and those people we know are all at the Asperger's end of the spectrum- as, I'm guessing, is Sam. It's with mentioning that people we know who are on the spectrum are very different individuals, and by no means defined by the fact that they are autistic. There's also nothing wrong with being autistic; it's part of the world of neurodiversity, encompassing all sorts of things. Autism is not a mental illness.

So it's also worth questioning whether it's appropriate to use this subject matter for comedy. So far, though (and I'll keep reviewing this) this is a balance of humour with drama that seriously explores the issues f how the world treats autistic people. Humour can be a very effective way of making a serious point, and there's a balance to be struck in any case between nasty humour that punches down and being overly pious. Personally, I'm a hearing aid wearer, and I laugh at my own comedy mishearings all the time.

Anyway, Sam lives with his overprotective mother Elsa, who is exactly the sort of person I wouldn't like very much in real life, and his long-suffering dad Doug. The two of them are worn out from years of caring for him, and their relationship looks fragile, held together only by routine and worryingly endangered should the nest empty. And it's worrying seeing Elsa with that bloke behind the bar...

There's also Casey, Sam's wonderfully cynical sister, and both teenage siblings are slowly exploring relationships. Finally, there's Julia, Sam's therapist, who is handy for driving the plot and giving a reason for Sam to have his humorous and counterpointing monologues. This aspect is very Sopranos. But Sam is funny, likeable, and frankly adorable. And he knows a lot about penguins.

It's good stuff so far, well written and set up nicely for various things to develop throughout the fairly short season. Do Americans really say "twat" like that though?