Shifting Gears (2025) s01e04 Episode Script

Grief

You'll never guess
what I made in robotics club.
A robot, yes, yes.
Watch this.
Huh? All right, Robot.
See, that's his name.
Who am I?
[ROBOT] Farter.
No, i-it's Carter.
Uh S-Still some
minor improvements to make.
Well, anyway.
Good job, Farter. [CHUCKLES]
You know, but good luck
keeping a job these days,
'cause in about ten years
the robots will take all the jobs
and probably kill us.
I'm glad you're in a club.
I was in the smoking club.
It was mostly me and my friends
outside the Del Taco.
Only thing your mom made
in school was you.
So, congratulations to both of you.
Mom, look what I found.
Oh, look at you.
Do you wanna gag me with a spoon?
- I googled '80s phrases.
- Ugh!
Your nana loved this jacket.
What jacket?
Where did you get that?
It was in Grandma's closet.
That's right, it was
in Grandma's closet.
I don't want you going in there.
- I know. But I was thinking
- Take it back upstairs.
I don't want you in that closet.
Okay. Sorry.
Georgia. Hey, hey, hey, hey. Listen.
I didn't mean to yell like that.
Georgia.
When Grandpa's stern,
it means he loves you.
He must love everyone then.
Dad, you were really harsh
with her. That's not okay.
I know. That's on me,
and I-I apologized to her.
Oh, wow.
You haven't gotten rid
of any of Mom's stuff.
And she was kind of a shoe queen.
Is that why I couldn't get a pony?
I just haven't had time
to deal with all this.
You watch The Godfather every week.
What is going on? Do you wanna
talk about what just happened?
No, I don't wanna talk
about what just happened.
I wanna talk about you sitting
in my bed in street clothes.
Have you ever been outside?
You're deflecting.
No. Now I have to do the
laundry, 'cause I sleep in this bed.
Deflecting.
Are we doing one word?
Is that what this is? Stop.
- Rude.
- Out.
- No.
- Fine.
Lame.
Oh! That's gonna be two words.
You!
Do you think my dad has grieved
about losing my mom?
Morning, Riley.
Yes, I am enjoying my birthday.
How are you?
Oh, my God. It's your birthday?
No. But what if it was?
Sorry. I'm just really worried
he hasn't processed his grief.
Have you ever seen him, like, sad?
Oh, yeah.
When the Dodgers announced
Kersh was out for the season,
your dad ate a whole apple pie.
Not technically sad,
but it was sad to watch.
So what did he do when he lost my mom?
He came to work the next day.
It was weird.
He just sat there very quiet.
But he was nice to everyone.
That's how we knew he was suffering.
I knew it.
He hasn't dealt with his grief.
Excuse me.
Is she about to go in there
and talk to him about feelings?
Well, it was nice knowing her.
Okay, Dad. You need to talk to someone.
Yeah, I am talking to someone.
About 5'4", dark hair,
doesn't know about knocking.
I'm serious. You have to
deal with your grief.
[SIGHS]
You know, aside from the experts
at "the Gram,"
it is possible to have a feeling
that you don't announce.
For instance, I don't
have to say that I'm annoyed
for you to know that you're annoying.
Riley, I have grieved.
Hey, there are smart people
on Instagram.
I've learned a lot about life
from Peanut Butter Mom.
But trust me,
you need to talk to an expert.
I found a grief counselor, and
she can see us tomorrow morning.
[SINGSONGY] My treat.
[SINGSONGY] You're insane.
Do you remember when I was nine
and I really wanted a Furby,
and you said no, and I never,
ever stopped bringing it up?
Yes, I remember that.
As a matter of fact, I think
you set your alarm in your room.
And every two hours you'd run
in the bedroom and yell "Furby."
I folded like the French Army
in World War
Well, actually, every war.
And I'll do it again.
- Riley, this ain't
- Therapy!
- Riley, please Riley, please
- Therapy! Therapy!
- Therapy!
- Stop. Stop.
Listen Um
I will go with you.
- Really?
- I really
I don't know what happened
with Georgia and I,
but I really don't like that.
It's funny, 'cause I
kinda like yelling at Carter.
Hey, Gabe. Gabe. Listen up.
I can't be here in the morning,
so you gotta be me, right?
This Corvair's gotta get out,
and you gotta sign off on it.
Happy?
He's going to therapy.
You got him to go to therapy?
I told him to get a flu shot,
and he called me a commie.
He's back to "commie"? Well,
good to know he's off "snowflake."
So you gon' be the boss tomorrow.
I'm the foreman.
I've been in charge before.
Yeah, but you never was
the last one to sign off on a car.
That's boss, Boss.
It's just one morning.
It'll be fine fine.
I don't know.
Matt is going to face his demons.
He may never come back.
My mom went to therapy.
She came home, kicked out
my dad and his girlfriend.
What kinda boss you gonna be?
Strong and silent?
Fake nice?
Come on, man.
You gotta have fun with this.
Ride a Segway. Wear a monocle.
Good question. Who is Gabe the boss?
For one thing, he doesn't wear a hat.
Or does he?
What do you think?
- I think
- Actually, a boss wouldn't wear one.
You know what?
I should see how it looks in the mirror.
- This is gonna be fun.
- Yeah.
Wait till I hide that damn hat.
Welcome. I'm Emma Foster.
I'm Riley Parker.
Thanks for getting us in
on such short notice.
Yeah. And I'm Matt Parker.
Her dad. And, um, is your mom here?
Just I'm kidding. I mean,
you're very young, you know?
I think I have breath mints
older than you.
I apologize.
He won't bite, but you might
have to let him sniff your hand.
Oh, so, uh
How did you become a grief counselor?
I mean, did you major in tragedy
and minor in sadness
at the University of Boo-hoo?
At your age,
how did you ever get a license?
Well, about that. Technically,
I am still a student.
But I'm working towards
getting my license.
So this is like the barber
school of mental health care?
You'd think that you'd practice
on, like, a caged animal first.
Or maybe a mannequin
could be standing here like this.
You'll be getting a lot of that.
You'll also get an earful about
what's wrong with people nowadays.
They have no work ethic.
They're entitled.
Let's not forget they bail on
anything that's really hard.
[LAUGHS] That is not true.
[PHONE CHIMES]
- Oh, my Uber's here.
- What do you mean your Uber's here?
- You wanted me to come here with you.
- And you did. Bye-bye.
Oh, no. No.
Clever. Clever.
I see what's going on here.
I apologize for this, but I have
to go have a little conversation.
I call it yelling.
Matt, do you think you might be
bailing 'cause this seems hard?
[CHUCKLES] Wow.
Damn it.
All right, Stitch. Focus on
the piping for the Corvair.
Bob, I want you to finish up on
replacing the window crank mechanism
so Frankie can install
the custom steering wheel.
Oh, and I brought doughnuts.
Two of them are gluten-free,
and I have no idea which ones.
Aw, man, you went with the boring boss
that think doughnuts make you fun?
No, I went with boss who wants
to reach deliverables on time
because punctuality is my love language.
Oh, Lord. Today's gonna be
as exciting as my
niece's basketball game.
They just a bunch of six-year-olds
just running around holding the ball.
Call a damn travel.
Don't get me started.
I'm banned from my nephew's games
for having too many opinions.
I also slapped the referee.
Okay. Let's get to work.
I can't do anything until
the steering wheel gets here.
What? It should have come yesterday.
- Nothing came yesterday.
- What do you mean nothing came?
You clearly know what I mean.
You just said it back to me.
Okay. I'm gonna get an ETA
on this thing.
Yeah. The UPS guy's
got a crush on me, so
The UPS guy has a crush on Stitch.
He only flirts with you
because you know him.
To get this car out,
I need the wheel now.
Okay. Okay. Um
Yeah. We'll, um um
Let's go with the classic style
that we have in the shop.
Whatever you say. You the boss, Boss.
Or do we wanna go with the custom wheel?
Custom wheel, yeah.
- It's Matt's design.
- You got it.
Actually, no. Classic wheel.
- Gotta meet that deadline.
- Good call.
No, custom wheel.
I mean, no. Not no to no.
But yes to the custom wheel.
Oh, God.
Oh, no, my hat.
[GROANS] Doughnuts.
What the hell's happening to him?
I'll tell you in your language.
He done lost his damn mind.
[MUFFLED] Don't look at me!
[PERSON ON RECORDING]
If healing is belonging,
grief invites us
to belong to the healed.
Hold your grief in your hands
and say, "I accept."
[INHALES] I accept.
[PERSON ON RECORDING] Very good.
Aw, thank you. You too, girl.
[PERSON ON RECORDING]
Now repeat the chant.
Om.
Om.
[PERSON ON RECORDING] Om.
Om.
[CARTER] Mom?
Mom.
Can I use your wine opener for my robot?
No. That's Mommy's
favorite kitchen tool.
You know what? It won't
need to impale anything
when it can shoot fire.
Where's the lighter fluid?
Oh, hey, Dad. How was the
I'm definitely gonna need
that wine opener.
- Dad?
- I gotta release. I've gotta cleanse.
I gotta start to throw it all out.
I'll start with this stupid T-shirt.
Just gotta throw it out. That's
what we gotta do. Throw it out.
You guys went to Aruba? Nice.
So, how was therapy?
Therapy was just great.
You want me to move on?
I am moving frickin' on.
That's what I'm doing. Oh, hell no.
[GASPS] My Furby!
Do you know what that
soon-to-be therapist asked me?
"What comes to mind
when you think about your wife?"
Oh. How dare the counselor
try counseling?
Who cares what comes to mind?
What comes to mind is all
the stuff she can't do anymore.
I know it's not fair
that Mom's gone, but
What is fair?
Fair is where pigs go to win ribbons.
You know what grief is to me?
It's anger.
Bad people live. Good people die.
Two more fentanyl deaths.
Kids are dead. Dealer's alive.
Some lady on Ventura got hit by a car.
She's dead. The drunk, he's alive.
Your mom's no longer here anymore.
The most wonderful person in the world.
Charitable, perfect person
Not here. Not here for her
grandkids. Not here for her kids.
Not here for me.
Not here for
[SIGHS]
Think that soon-to-be therapist
broke Grandpa.
Okay, lady. What the hell
did you do to my dad?
Hang on. Take a breath.
Maybe you've never dealt
with an old man before.
They have very delicate systems, okay?
You can't just crank 'em up.
You have to let the engine run.
But you didn't, and now he's broken.
Look, it's not uncommon for a patient
to have a reaction
to their first sess
Bup, bup, bup. Bup, bup, bup, bup.
You broke him. You fix him.
He's all I've got.
Undo your curse, witch!
When I learned about you guys
being thrown in rivers
and burned at the stake, I defended you!
I defended you.
Why are you writing things down?
Well, it sounds like maybe you
haven't dealt with your own grief.
[CHUCKLES] I know what you're doing.
You're trying to get in my head.
And I'm not mad at it.
Mm-hmm. Then tell me
what you are mad at, Riley.
Hey, Gabe. But
Dude, did you eat all the doughnuts?
Even the gluten-free ones.
They tasted like ass.
Dude, why are you acting like
you don't know how to do this job?
Man.
I don't wanna be the boss.
Why not? You could be real good at it.
Yeah, but I don't like it.
It's all the deadlines
and decision-making
and the doughnut buying.
It's not for me.
So you just wanna work on cars.
Exactly.
That's what I love.
I feel you.
But you know what I feel?
Your playlist. Way better than Matt's.
Dude, I don't miss listening
to that sad old white guy music
and having him say,
"Now, that's a song."
Better not be talking about Seger.
I don't know what that is.
But you are ready to be a boss.
Don't doubt that.
Thanks, man. Appreciate it.
Plus, Matt ain't gonna live forever.
110, 120, tops.
He is, like, weirdly spry.
Built like a greyhound.
Wiry.
Butt like a sprinter.
Have you ever seen him
in his Lululemons?
- We should get back to work. Yeah.
- Nah, dawg. I'm good.
Well, you were right.
That little baby counselor
is a full-on quack job.
You went back there?
You know what she told me?
She told me that my grief
might never end.
That's the TV remote.
Don't wanna give that away.
Never end?
I did all the stuff I'm supposed to do.
The best grieving stuff.
I read that book about grief.
I listened to that podcast about grief.
I made a wish at a lake.
Yes, a man-made lake.
Fine, it was at the Bellagio,
but water's water.
And that is my cell phone, so I
don't wanna put that in there.
[HUFFS] I just miss her so much.
I'm trying to be a mom with no mom.
[SIGHS] I have so many questions
every day, and I can't ask her.
Hey, you can ask me.
Probably gonna get an answer
you don't want, but you can ask me.
Mom just knew everything.
She knew how to make eggs so fast,
but they were still really good.
She knew how to make
my problems feel smaller.
Why isn't she here?
I don't think I can do this without her.
Hey, listen Um
Listen, you know what?
It's an old driving idea.
You can't drive
looking in the rearview mirror.
You're gonna run into stuff.
You wanna focus where you wanna
go, not where you don't wanna be.
Mom would've said something
so much better than that.
Possibly.
But to be truthful,
her eggs were horrible.
You were just way too young
to understand.
You gotta cook that white part.
[MATT GROANS]
Hey, Stitch. Come in here for a second.
I was thinking
about what you said yesterday.
Oh, that the aliens are real
but they just shy?
No. [CHUCKLES]
Maybe I could be a boss one day,
open up my own shop.
Designed my logo. Gabe's Customs.
You think you can leave Matt
and his Lululemons?
Yeah, you know, maybe.
I could get used to this.
- Get out of the chair.
- Get your ass up!
I was just
I was keeping it warm for you.
- How was therapy?
- I am cured.
- Yeah.
- Cured, cured.
- What What is this?
- Ah.
Oh, I don't know. Uh
This is good.
- Huh?
- Yeah. I love it.
What I'd do on the "Customs" part
is do a drop shadow in a darker color
and it'll stand out.
Yeah. Yeah, and if you ever leave
[HOARSE VOICE] you're dead to me.
Why are you talking like that?
[HOARSE VOICE] You gotta go.
Gotcha, Boss.
- Hey.
- Hey there.
I just dropped off a bunch
of Mom's clothes at the shelter.
- They were very grateful.
- Well, that's great.
It was one of your mom's
favorite charities,
and I'm sure she would be happy
that her clothes are being used.
Though it might be kinda odd
to drive by a homeless guy
wearing one of
your mom's miniskirts. Hey.
You know? But givers
can't be choosers, right?
[GASPS] Oh, your nana's jacket.
Georgia, you look beautiful.
Grandpa gave it to me.
I think Georgia should have that.
So let's take a look.
Well, it looks terrific.
Fits. Looks good.
I'm going for Rihanna
meets Martha Stewart.
[CHUCKLES] Well, you certainly
made that happen.
- Uh-huh.
- Okay.
Hey, you wanna hear
a cool story about that jacket?
Will it include your opinions
on renewable energy?
Sit.
Okay, so listen to this.
Way back in the
[RASPY VOICE] in the 1900s
Your grandma and I
went to see a performer
named Mr. Bob Seger, right?
And so in that very jacket,
she put olives and a little bit of vodka
to make classic martinis to surprise me.
And we, you know
We were [STAMMERS] We were happy.
You can say "drunk."
She's surprisingly mature.
We weren't drunk.
We were frickin' wasted, man.
Yeah. [CHUCKLES]
Which means, at intermission,
your mom was able to get us backstage
by flashing the security guard her
Smile.
Not that mature.
Anyway, she was
She was a lot of fun.
Grandma was a lot of fun.
She would love to see
you wearing that too.
I miss her.
So do I.
Mom, Robot got hit by a car.
He's dead.
[ROBOT POWERS DOWN]
[ROBOT, DISTORTED] Farter.
What do I do?
Well, here's the thing, Carter.
Grief can be a lifelong process.
And we know a good therapist.
Although, I think she's probably
two years younger than you.
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