"The conceit behind Grace and Frankie is the sitcomiest of sitcomy concepts," says Kevin Fallon. "Wild circumstances forcing cohabitation between polarized personalities is perhaps the most common elevator pitch in comedy. In this case, the wives of two law partners have no choice but to move in together after their husbands reveal they’ve been lovers for years. The women, who despise each other, grow to become unlikely best friends. But the Netflix of it all meant that there could be raunchier content and more expletives, the latter finally allowing for the kind of cathartic dialogue these powder-keg sitcom setups realistically need. No running time restrictions meant a deeper exploration of tone and emotion, skirting the 'get to the punchlines' hamminess that plagues so many comedies while allowing storylines that actually feel meaningful. And then there’s the fact that the titular Grace and Frankie aren’t the latest young blondes to emerge from pilot season, but two of the industry’s most talented actresses, who both happen to be over 80 years old."
TOPICS: Grace and Frankie, Netflix, Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin