Summary
So we say goodbye to Atypical, which was not canceled as the sensational headlines always suggest but has given the audiences an idea of where our characters will end up.
This review of Netflix’s Atypical season 4 does not contain spoilers. This is the final ever season.
I love yet hate final seasons. Sometimes it’s easy to tell when a story has reached its peak, and you have that feeling it needs to end. Atypical has a massive following, yet that doesn’t excuse the necessity to end, even if Netflix does favor shows that only do well from the first season. But a good ending always brings that sense of “what if?”. What if Sam and his friends continued their arcs?
And strangely enough, season 4 of Atypical does not feel like a definitive ending in general. The writers chose a more agnostic view of where the characters may end up. And I think that type of writing makes it even more painful. After finishing the fourth and final season, I didn’t get any sense that it couldn’t continue, rather it felt like a new era could be opened. Maybe Netflix and the production company behind the series decided that it was best to keep the door open for a reason.
However, the final hurrah is a well-approached goodbye, with Sam, his friends, and his family all having to make unique life choices. College is advancing, relationships are questioned and Sam has a dream that he’s eager to take despite making the leap to move in with his best friend. It’s certainly not a rushed story to close up shop. The writing is patient up to the last second.
While Atypical has had flack from some quarters of the autism community, I’ve always felt that the intention of the story has always been kind and well-informed, with a genuine approach. The story of a teen on the autism spectrum deciding to voyage independence and self-discovery is an earnest story and one that goes full circle in the final season.
But it will be missed; the writers have got the character development spot on — Casey battling with her identity, Elsa relieving her anxiety over her son, Doug bettering himself as a father, Paige being the well-versed and understand partner, and Zahid…well, being Zahid, provides a good mix.
So we say goodbye to Atypical, which was not canceled as the sensational headlines always suggest but has given the audiences an idea of where our characters will end up.
