Jay Mohr: Why watching Love on the Spectrum on Netflix is essential
According to the CinemaDrame news agency, the comedian spent years habitually smiling politely whenever others recommended certain shows to him, while inside he felt boredom and frustration. But now he has abandoned that old habit for a very different reason: watching people fall in love for the very first time.
“You have to watch this…”
That sentence has been repeated throughout my life over and over again—only the titles change. The Sopranos. Deadwood. Seinfeld (well, I’m of a certain age). Breaking Bad. Game of Thrones. For decades, someone has always been there to remind me what I’ve supposedly missed in my free time.
Each time I heard it, I would smile and respond politely, while inside I felt boredom, irritation, and even resentment toward the person taking up my time. (People and their shows, you know how it is!)
Unlike the protagonists of those famous series, the people in this program were not created through writers’ rooms or actors.
The central figures here are ordinary people living with autism who are portrayed in a brilliant and beautiful way. They are brought to life not through acting, but through something real—something like the magic of unconditional love and family. None of them are performing. They are simply being themselves, the only way they know how to be. In a world that has become fast and superficial, this series focuses on people who have spent their entire lives waiting simply to be accepted as they are. The result is nothing short of magnificent.
The premise of the show is simple and, at first glance, may even seem a little cruel: we follow individuals on the autism spectrum going on dates—often their very first dates ever.
To be honest, watching these first dates was painful for me. Conversations are halting and irregular. There is a lot of silence. Social anxiety is present. Sometimes inappropriate things are said. Panic attacks even occur. It is genuinely difficult to watch.
But then… something emerges. Something that many of us have kept buried as a kind of old, nostalgic feeling: a real connection. A connection that feels almost impossible, like snow in summer. And for the viewer, it brings a strange, almost selfish sense of relief.
We are not usually comfortable with silence. When we experience social anxiety, we tend to escape it. But when the people in this show find that spark and genuine connection, they unintentionally free us from the constraints we carry ourselves. Watching them find their “missing half” feels like watching flowers grow through concrete.
And it takes time. For them, it has taken a lifetime.
While watching the series, I realized I was experiencing something I had never felt before while watching television: a sense of triumph. I cried, but out of gratitude. Triumph. No one but these newly formed heroes could have made me feel this way. And I am truly grateful to have had the chance to watch them.
You have to watch Love on the Spectrum.
Jay Mohr is a writer, actor, stand-up comedian, and podcast host. In one recent episode, he spoke with Connor Tomlinson, one of the figures featured in the show.
