WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Season 4 of Atypical, now streaming on Netflix.
Throughout the four seasons of Netflix's Atypical, many characters have had double standards. Keir Gilchrist's Sam stands out as he's neglected others while craving emotional support for his autism, as seen with his relationship with Paige. There's also Casey, his sister, who lashed out at their mom, Elsa, for cheating, only to do the same to Evan. However, as the series wraps, it confirms Michael Rapaport's Doug deserves the tag of Atypical's biggest hypocrite.
The father had quite a turbulent journey, with fans hating how he abandoned the family for a few months when Sam was diagnosed. It was selfish, but he returned and mended his ways, only to push Elsa away. She got tired of having her identity as a caregiver being brushed off and taken for granted, which caused her to have an affair, garnering sympathy for Doug.
As the couple patched their marriage up, Season 3 revealed that Elsa's mom, Lillian, had msitreated Doug in the past. He wasn't as rich, popular or good-looking as she envisioned for her beautiful, cheerleader daughter years ago, so Lillian abused and bullied Doug. This made him feel insecure, resulting in Elsa banishing her mom from the family. It's why Elsa took Doug's initial betrayal to heart as they were supposed to have each others' backs.
However, Doug follows the same path Lillian took when Izzie and Casey strike up a romance in Season 4. Doug hates the drama Izzie brings to Casey's life, affecting her academics and track career. But while he's concerned as a caring parent, he makes the mistake of berating Izzie and telling her she's not good enough for his daughter. The thing is, he doesn't know her personality, what she's going through at home with a neglectful mom or how she has to drop school at times and care for her siblings.
It's tough balancing all this, which Elsa understands. So she treats Izzie well and wants her to stay over as much as possible, but Doug lacks empathy and compassion. He's presumptive, snobbish and his cold demeanor fractures the girls' relationship, causing Casey further distress.
It's Lillian all over again, and as the girls break up, one really would have expected Doug not to dish out the same ignorance he once received. It leaves Casey wondering where her loving dad went, made even worse by the fact she was closest to him through Atypical's run.
Created by Robia Rashid, all four seasons of Atypical are available on Netflix.