Reboot-ing My Dad Story for Father's Day

Reflections on a show about a weirdly relatable father/daughter dynamic.

Hi, it’s me.

I’m still here. Or maybe you didn’t notice I haven’t written in a couple of weeks? I’m kind of on a writing break (unplanned!), but I noticed Father’s Day is coming up so I reached back into my archives for a dad related story. I have several to choose from, but for today we’ll go with my reflections on the Hulu show, Reboot, a 2022 series about rebooting a fictional show that had been off the air for 15 years.

The premise of Reboot is that it’s a show within a show, kind of like 30 Rock, which was a show about an SNL-type variety show. The main character, Hannah, has created a reboot of the hit TV sitcom, Step Right Up, but the original show’s creator (Gordon) catches wind of it and weasels his way into this new project. The story twist is that the old showrunner is the new showrunner’s dad, and they have a complicated, estranged relationship. Gordon’s original version of the show was based on his family—not the family he had with Hannah, but a new family he started after leaving Hannah and her mom.

Ouch.

Hannah’s rebooted version of the show was going to be a reckoning, where the TV family discovers their TV dad has another kid they never knew about. Within a few episodes, Reboot became a multi-layered, relatable childhood fantasy—Hannah’s dream of rebooting a family within a show about a family, of rebooting history and writing a new story.

Paul Reiser as Gordon, Rachel Bloom as Hannah. Photo found on the internet.

This story hit me in the feels.

My own father left our family when I was around seven to marry his best friend’s wife, who became a step-mom with whom I was supposed to be pleasant. I was not. Maybe some day I’ll write stories about all the ways I antagonized that woman—paid subscribers will receive a bag of popcorn to munch on while they read. I regret nothing, by the way. I was a kid living with the consequences of adult decisions.

As a young, aspiring writer, I often crafted alternate universe stories about my dad making different choices, stories about happier endings, about having a relationship with my dad instead of a series of transactions. Hannah’s mission to re-write her family’s story felt as familiar to me as Sunday pot roast. I fantasized about writing a revenge memoir about my dad well into adulthood.

But I no longer have revenge on my mind—these few paragraphs are the sum total of what I’ve written publicly about my dad’s behavior, and even this amount of energy invested in the telling feels undeserved. I’d rather write stories about people who showed up and stayed.

Watching Reboot, I was especially moved by Hannah's skepticism, yet openness at working with and learning to trust her dad again. You could tell she was deeply angry at him, yet hopeful that maybe he had changed. There were points when trust was built, and then he'd let her down. As an adult, she had a voice she couldn’t access when she was a child—she could express things to him that she didn’t have the words for while growing up.

I’ve been there. I allowed myself to get close to my dad again for a season, to explore that relationship and leave myself open. But my dad is a lot like Paul Reiser, who presents as a pleasant, cardigan-wearing, charismatic dad you want to love. After all, it’s Paul Reiser! A super lovable guy! My dad is also very charming. Brilliant casting all around.

But Paul Reiser’s Gordon employs well-oiled avoidance tactics that quickly start to grate on you. I started off rooting for them both, hoping for a father-daughter reconciliation. But by the end of the season, I started crying and shouting at the TV that Hannah is a goddamn magical unicorn and Gordon will never appreciate what he missed out on.

I know this, because I lived it (project much, Jen?!). At some point a decade or so ago I finally came to terms with the fact that my dad was just not that into me, despite all of his words to the contrary. Words were not actions, and for years he’d been showing me who he was, but I wanted to believe the words.

Now I feel sorry for him, because I’m a goddamn magical unicorn, and my kids are amazing and funny, and my husband is a national treasure. My dad doesn’t even realize what he’s missed out on for all these years, and to me, that’s very sad.

After all, everyone loves a Zug.

Despite all the seriousness, though, Reboot is silly. I laughed! It hits that sweet spot of being poignant and funny—laughter through tears. But maybe I’m the only viewer who shed tears and found it relatable. To everyone else, the show’s premise was probably a bit too out there, because it was canceled after one season.

I wonder now if Reboot had continued, would a multi-season story arc see Hannah and Gordon reconciled? Would Gordon finally own up to his family betrayal and seek redemption? Would Hannah finally get the dad she missed out on for all those years?

Probably! It was a sitcom, and in comedy, everyone gets what they want.

(Must be nice.)

Thanks for being here. I might need you to hold my hair for the emotional hangover after sharing this deeply personal, untold story. 🤢

Until next time,

Jen

p.s. Have you ever had an art imitating life experience? I’d love to hear about it. Leave a comment or reply to this email.

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What’s Happening In My Garden This Week

My pepper starts are tiny—I started them a month late, but at least they are healthy! Very pleased with my thriving romaine lettuce and delighted (as usual!) by the curly garlic scapes I harvested this week. I’m also picking chamomile flowers for tea, watching my spaghetti squash begin to grow, and anticipating my dahlias blooming in the next few days!

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