Personality Dimensions® on TV: The Four Seasons

Netflix’s The Four Seasons, a reimagining of Alan Alda’s 1981 film with the same title, follows a group of longtime friends as they navigate the complexities of midlife relationships through their seasonal vacations together. Fair warning: this post contains spoilers, so if you haven’t watched the series yet, bookmark this and come back after you’ve binged all the episodes!

What makes this show so great for looking at through a Personality Dimensions® lens is that it doesn’t just show the characters when they’re happy and getting along; it also lets us see them stressed out, making bad decisions, and completely falling apart. Real life is messy, and this show gives us a front-row seat to how different personalities actually handle crisis, change, and conflict, which gives us a way better picture of how we work when things get complicated.

Kate, portrayed by Tina Fey, is a textbook Organized Gold who needs everything planned out and running smoothly. When the group plans their vacations, Kate is the one creating detailed itineraries, double-checking reservations, and making contingency plans just in case something goes wrong. Her planning obsession isn’t really about being controlling, she just feels responsible for making sure everyone has a good time and feels taken care of. You can really see this in how much she values their longstanding quarterly vacation tradition, which she sees as incredibly important for keeping their friendships strong and stable.

Jack, played by Will Forte, embodies the warmth and loyalty of an Authentic Blue. His empathy and caring nature shine through in moments like when Kate drives two hours to get him his favourite sandwich but messes up the order. Instead of getting annoyed, Jack just picks off the stuff he doesn’t like and eats the sandwich anyway, because he totally gets that she was trying to do something nice for him. His heartfelt toast about soulmates during dinner at the lake house reveals his unwavering belief in meaningful connections and his commitment to the relationships he cherishes.

Danny, played by Colman Domingo, is classic Inquiring Green; independent, thoughtful, and always looking for new experiences. As an architect with a globe-trotting lifestyle and impeccable fashion sense, Danny embraces innovation and new challenges while maintaining his curious nature. His deep, philosophical conversations with Kate show his analytical side, but it’s his struggle with health issues that really reveals his core personality, and his struggle between maintaining independence and nurturing close relationships. When Claude becomes overprotective, Danny gets frustrated because he needs his space and independence. It’s more comfortable for him to figure things out on his own than have someone else take care of everything for him.

Claude, played by Marco Calvani, is a great blend of Authentic Blue empathy with Resourceful Orange spontaneity. His Italian heritage and flamboyant personality bring vibrant energy to the group, often lightening the mood with humour and charisma. Claude has a great ability to bring people together and create a lively atmosphere. His empathetic nature comes to the surface in his relationship with Danny, where his deep emotional connection sometimes shows up as overprotective behaviour during Danny’s health challenges. Claude’s struggle to balance his caring nature with respect for Danny’s need for space perfectly shows how different personality types can easily clash in any relationship.

Nick, played by Steve Carell, is a Resourceful Orange who’s been stuck in the wrong life for way too long. His decision to divorce Anne after 25 years and quickly start a relationship with the much younger Ginny shows his spontaneous, action-oriented nature finally breaking free. While this changes the dynamic of the friend group, it reflects his need for new experiences and finding what actually makes him happy. You can see how adaptable he is when he deals with all his friends’ reactions and tries to fit Ginny into their tight-knit group.

Anne, played by Kerri Kenney-Silver, is an Authentic Blue who feels deeply and wants real, honest connections with people. Her breakdown during Nick’s eulogy, where she admits “I didn’t know him at all,” showcases her deep introspection and commitment to truth in relationships. Anne has a strong desire to maintain emotional harmony even in difficult circumstances. Despite the fact that she resented Ginny as her ex-husband’s new partner, she ended up comforting her after Nick’s death She could have stayed angry at the woman she once hated, but instead she chose kindness because that’s just who she is at her core.

Ginny, portrayed by Erika Henningsen, brings the energetic and adaptable qualities of a Resourceful Orange from the moment she shows up. Taking initiative to organize the eco-retreat summer trip, in ways that made Kate twitch, complete with yoga and vegan cuisine, shows her proactive and adventurous spirit. When she’s excluded from Nick’s funeral arrangements, her direct confrontation with the group shows her action-oriented approach to conflict resolution. Not being one to back down from a fight, her resilience made it clear that she had a place in Nick’s life despite the age and relationship differences.

Even though it is based on a move that is over 40 years old, the reimagining of The Four Seasons is timeless with the way it portrays different personalities in very real ways. While some characters share the same core personality type, like Jack, Claude, and Anne all being Authentic Blues, their preference for Introversion or Extraversion significantly changes how their personalities present. But also, life stages and circumstances have a big impact how our core traits present themselves. It’s oddly reassuring to see that no matter your personality type, everyone’s just doing their best, and occasionally failing spectacularly.