The Boroughs is also, intentionally or unintentionally, a commentary on the way elderly people are treated and respected. The fact that many older people in care homes are abused, constantly gaslit, or treated as little more than commodities to make money from is not fiction, it’s a very real social issue tied to the private elderly care industry in general. And so is the paternalism and condescension with which they’re treated, as if they were children instead of fully functional adults.
The Boroughs really emphasizes this point: they’re treated like oversized children when in reality they’re simply retired professionals who are still fully capable, and it’s precisely those skills and experiences that allow them to move the story forward. Judy is an experienced reporter, a Black woman who fought her way into a professional career in the 1970s and obviously isn’t going to sit quietly in the face of a mystery or an injustice. Sam is an aerospace engineer. Wally is a doctor with decades of experience. Renee spent her whole life as a manager and knows exactly how to deal with assholes.
These are skilled, intelligent professionals in their respective fields, and they don’t stop being those things just because they get older. If anything, they’ve spent an entire lifetime specialising and building that expertise. I think the series reflects this beautifully, and honestly I find it really important because, yes, your grandparents were people who raised entire families before you put them in a nursing home, and that’s something people should remember. They’re not idiots. They’re just old.
