Better Things is a show about a working mother who cannot stop talking, and that is exactly why it works. Sam Fox, played by Pamela Adlon, is a divorced actress raising three daughters — Max, Frankie and Duke — in Los Angeles, and she wears all the hats: mom, dad, referee and the cops. The series ran for five seasons on FX, from 2016 to 2022, and it remains one of the sharpest portraits of parenthood ever put on screen.
Adlon created the show with Louis C.K., and it premiered on September 8, 2016. The ten-episode first season was received warmly by critics. Four more seasons followed, in 2017, 2019, 2020 and 2022, all to critical acclaim. The show concluded on April 25, 2022, after 52 episodes across those five seasons.
Trailer, via FX Networks.
Sam Fox’s Filter Problem
Sam is the kind of person who speaks everything she thinks. She tells her daughters she is ugly. She insults her ex-husband. She argues with her mother, played by Celia Imrie as Phil, and she argues with herself about her career. Her lack of filter is the engine of the show, and Adlon plays it with a precision that makes the chaos feel real.
The show is a comedy-drama, but it rarely feels like a genre blend. It is a drama about comedy, and a comedy about grief, disappointment and the daily grind of being a parent. Sam’s work is a constant reminder of failure. She takes small parts, she gets fired, she gets hired back. She is a professional who is also a mess, and the show never lets you forget either side of her.
The Three Daughters
Max, Frankie and Duke are the anchors of the show. Mikey Madison plays Max, the eldest, a teenager with her own sharp tongue. Hannah Riley plays Frankie, the middle child, who is often the emotional center of the family. Olivia Edward plays Duke, the youngest, who is still figuring out how to exist in the world. Each daughter gets her own moments, and each moment lands because the show trusts its young actors to carry weight.
The show does not smooth over the friction between them. They fight. They compete for attention. They blame each other. And through it all, Sam tries to hold the family together, even as she struggles to hold herself together.
Celia Imrie as Phil
Celia Imrie plays Phil, Sam’s mother, and she brings a quiet menace to the role. Phil is a woman who has made her own way in the world, and she is not impressed by Sam’s failures. Their scenes together are some of the best in the series. Phil’s criticisms are delivered with a deadpan that makes them sting harder than any yelling could.
Kevin Pollak plays Marion, a recurring character who appears across multiple seasons. His presence is a constant source of tension for Sam, and their interactions add a layer of complexity to Sam’s life beyond the domestic sphere.
The Writing
The writing is the heart of Better Things. Adlon writes with a specificity that is rare in television. The conversations sound like actual conversations, full of interruptions, half-thoughts and unfinished sentences. The show is built on monologues, and Adlon delivers them with a timing that makes them feel improvised even when they are scripted.
The humor comes from the gaps between what Sam says and what she means. She tells jokes to cover for her sadness. She makes snide comments to hide her fear. The show knows that comedy and pain live in the same room, and it never pretends otherwise.
The Peabody Award
In April 2017, Better Things received a Peabody Award. The board stated: “this searingly funny and beautiful show is an at-times raw examination of the vicissitudes of working motherhood, crackling with feminist verve and energy, that consistently cuts new ground.”
That description captures the show’s ambition. It is not a sitcom about a mom who wins. It is a show about a mom who loses, and wins anyway. Sam’s feminism is not performative. It is a lived reality, one she battles with daily.
Season by Season
The show’s five seasons follow a loose arc, but it is not a traditional narrative. There is no big story arc that spans the entire series. Instead, each season is a collection of standalone episodes, each one a snapshot of Sam’s life at a particular moment.
The first season introduced Sam and her daughters. The second season deepened the relationships. The third season dealt with the fallout of a major event. The fourth season brought new challenges. The fifth season brought closure, though the show never fully resolves anything.
| Season | Year | Episodes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2016 | 10 |
| 2 | 2017 | 10 |
| 3 | 2019 | 10 |
| 4 | 2020 | 10 |
| 5 | 2022 | 12 |
The Final Season
The fifth season, which aired in 2022, was the last. It ended the show on its own terms, with Sam facing the future without knowing what it holds. The final episode does not offer a happy ending. It offers a moment of peace, and that is enough.
Adlon was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in 2017 and 2018. That recognition is deserved, but it undersells the full range of her performance. Sam is not a one-note character. She is angry, funny, sad, proud and exhausted all at once, and Adlon plays all of it.
Why It Works
Better Things works because it refuses to simplify Sam. She is not a saint. She is not a victim. She is a person doing her best in a world that does not always reward effort. The show understands that parenthood is not a heroic journey. It is a series of small decisions, most of which are made while tired.
The show also understands that comedy can be a form of resistance. Sam laughs at her own failures because it is the only way to keep going. The laughter is not a mask. It is a survival tool.
What Stands Out
Here is a brief rundown of the elements that define Better Things:
- Sam’s unfiltered voice, which makes every scene feel immediate.
- The three daughters, each distinct and fully realized.
- Celia Imrie’s Phil, a mother who is both loving and terrifying.
- The Peabody Award, which recognized the show’s feminist edge.
- The final season, which ended the show without wrapping it up.
Better Things is a show about mothers who do not get enough credit. It is a show about daughters who see their parents clearly. It is a show about failure, and about the strange grace of accepting it. The show is imperfect, but its imperfections are part of what makes it honest.
It is a show that deserves its reputation. It is a show that rewards repeated viewing. It is a show that will stay with you long after it ends.
Better Things earns an 8 of 10.
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