I attended my first AA meeting in 1995 when I was 15. In my 25+ years of moving in and out of various recovery spaces, I can assure curious individuals that there is just as much humour as heavy stuff in “the rooms”.

Truthfully, the biggest laughs generally stem from the most normal everyday things: a tense exchange with a stranger in the grocery store, the hair-pulling frustration that comes from being on hold while trying to get to the root of a problem with one’s Rogers bill.  I have never attended a sharing circle where the only snack is devilled eggs (not that I’d mind), nor have I been to a meeting where someone has peed in a bucket (very unlikely), but I admire that comedian Mae Martin isn’t afraid to play in the recovery space, pushing audiences to see addiction presented differently on screen. 

“A lot of the time when we see addiction on TV, it’s shown as this really dark and harrowing experience, which it can be, but a lot of us have had the experience of doing something compulsively despite it having negative consequences,” said the Toronto-born comic. “I think it’s important to show the mundanity of addiction and the universality of that experience.” We’ve all got our own shit; those of us in a 12-step group aren’t any different than anyone else trying to muddle through life. 

Lisa Kudrow, Mae Martin, Adrian Lukis

In Season 1, we fell for the sweet romance between Mae (Mae Martin) and George (Charlotte Ritchie). Both are good people with good intentions who, like all people, inevitably fuck up and cause hurt. We’re rooting for both of them, and I think most of us can find bits of awkward or insecure selves in them (I’m more Mae than George). 

“I’m beyond excited to be able to return to the world of Feel Good, and to see Mae and George’s love story through to the dramatic conclusion we had always planned. Having spent most of 2020 speaking only to my kettle and my television as I watched the world burn on the internet, I’m euphoric to be around other human beings again,” said Mae, before reuniting with the beloved cast. “Seeing Joe Hampson’s and my dumb jokes come to life is heaven.”

Charlotte Ritchie and Mae Martin

Feel Good is a feel-good show for Pride month, and beyond. It will have you chuckling, but be warned: it also might inspire you to send a heartfelt text to an ex. Watch it on Netflix tonight.