What do Suits and Gilmore Girlshave in common? They both experienced a massive surge in viewership and popularity after landing on Netflix. Similar to the 2023 addition of HBO’s Six Feet Under, Showtime’s The Big Cwas recently added to the streamer and has consistently ranked among its Top 10 TV shows since. Running for four seasons and a total of 40 episodes, The Big C earned its lead, Laura Linney, a Golden Globe and Emmy win. The dark comedy-drama was created by Darlene Hunt, who more recently helmed the Mayim Bialik-led Call Me Kat. Beyond Linney, the cast includes the likes of Oliver Platt,Gabriel Basso, and Gabourey Sidibe, as well as guest spots by Cynthia Nixonand Idris Elba. Made up of mostly half-hour episodes, The Big C is the perfect binge-watch for those looking for a dark dramedy that will have you laughing and shedding tears in more than a few moments.
What Is ‘The Big C’ About?
The Big C follows Cathy Jamison (Linney), a Minneapolis high school teacher, wife, and mother who gets diagnosed with stage IV melanoma. Instead of telling her family, Cathy decides to keep her diagnosis a secret and finally start living life on her own terms. That means kicking her husband (Platt) out of the house, forcing her son (Basso) to skip soccer camp and actually spend time with her, and befriending her curmudgeonly neighbor (Phyllis Somerville).
After years of putting everyone else first, Cathy’s terminal diagnosis becomes a strange kind of permission slip: a chance to be selfish, honest, and fully alive before it’s too late. The Showtime series is darkly funny and profoundly moving, and asks what you would do if you knew your time was running out — and whether it should take a death sentence to finally start living.
‘The Big C’s Strongest Relationship Is One Unlikely Friendship
At the beginning of the series, Cathy decides that she’s always wanted a pool in her backyard and decides to hire a contractor who insists that her backyard is too small. Once she does convince the contractor, her neighbor, Marlene, calls the police on her to stop the noise. The friendship that blooms between terminally ill Cathy and angry but lonely widow Marlene is one of the series’ shining moments.
What does a cynical and isolated woman do when faced with someone much younger who is likely to die before she does – does she dig deeper into the isolation or reach out and support her? This juxtaposition between the two women is hilarious but also deeply moving. How they subtly support each other, and how Cathy slowly tries to win Marlene over. The way Marlene slowly becomes part of their family and a key part of their own dynamics is a masterclass in intentional writing.
‘The Big C’ Is Dark Comedy at Its Best
Cathy is dying, and there typically isn’t anything funny about that — butthe writers of The Big C don’t pull any punches. They know how awful the situation is, and they don’t shy away from it. Instead, the series offers a blisteringly dark but honest depiction of a woman who is terminally ill and how she deals with that sickness and how that diagnosis affects all those around her. Illness doesn’t just impact one person, but also the lives of those around them, and The Big C does an exemplary job of depicting that reality with a big side dose of humor.
Whether it’s canceling her son’s soccer summer camp or hanging out with her unhoused and eco-advocate brother, Sean (John Benjamin Hickey), Cathy’s life is ending, and she refuses to have any more regrets. The laughs don’t stop, even when it makes her oncologist, Todd (Reid Scott), incredibly uncomfortable, but also absolutely enchanted by her — so much so that he comes along on a road trip to get a “bee sting treatment” by a specialist, played by none other than Liam Neeson. The “Bee Man” deeply believes in his treatment and loves his bees, much to Cathy and Todd’s bemusement.
In 2005, a perfect satire of white upper-middle class America premiered on Showtime and was in many ways ahead of its time.
Rather than dwelling on that insurmountable grief of the future,The Big C walks a thin line between morbidity and humor. While you laugh, you may be shocked to be laughing at such dark jokes from a person who is clearly trying to find light in a dark situation. As you watch more, you find yourself getting attached to Cathy and dreading the inevitable conclusion, just as her family and loved ones do. Thanks to a fabulous performance by Linney, you don’t doubt the character’s authentic feelings for a minute. Linney never comes across as overdoing it or tasteless; her portrayal is always pitch-perfect. She grounds a series that could easily fall flat but leads it with empathy, while supported by a splendid cast.
Despite critics not loving the entire series equally, there is no doubt that the show stands out for creating a complex, dynamic family dealing with the effects of a significant life change. Instead of being a one-dimensional protagonist, Cathy is not perfect. She isn’t a victim, she isn’t always kind, and she isn’t the best friend, mom, or wife – but this is precisely what makes her human. That’s exactly why The Big C deserves its second life on Netflix. More than a decade after it premiered, the show’s honesty about mortality, family, and living authentically still resonates. The Big C reminds us not to wait to start living. We don’t need a diagnosis or a tragedy to jump-start our new future; we can choose to click play at any moment.
