Even at this early stage of the series, it's easy to see The Shrink Next Door's Dr. Isaac Herschkopf (played with diabolical glee by Paul Rudd) is an absolutely terrible psychiatrist. If he was a purely fictional character, his clear manipulation of his patient would still be disturbing, but the entire series is made all the more unsettling since it's based on a true story. As a result, you might expect the show to end with Dr. Ike being punished for the way he treated his patient, Marty Markowitz (Will Ferrell), but in reality, the celebrity therapist's punishment doesn't entirely fit the crime.

The Apple TV+ series is based on a hit 2019 podcast of the same name, and it follows Herschkopf and Markowitz across three decades, as the psychiatrist slowly infiltrates every aspect of his patient's life. In real life, Markowitz alleged Herschkopf manipulated him into cutting his family out of his will (and his life), giving his Hamptons home to the doctor and his wife, Becky, and creating an organization called the Yaron Foundation, which the Herschkopfs had direct access to. Ultimately, Herschkopf's manipulations led to Markowitz including members of his therapist's family in his will, and making Herschkopf a joint signatory on his Swiss bank account.

At the same time, Markowitz was losing total control of his life. Under the influence of Herschkopf, he became little more than a caretaker for his therapist. Given the level of emotional and psychological manipulation he went through before he ultimately broke ties with the doctor in 2010, it's shocking Herschkopf hasn't faced more serious repercussions — especially since Markowitz isn't the only patient who has made allegations of undue influence against the therapist.