Life is Better when Pamela Adlon pops up on your screen. The Better Things co-creator/star/director/writer/etc. returns to action and introspection with the fifth and final season of her offbeat, on-point family sadcom centered on Sam Fox, single mom of three (but also mother to so many more).

Season 5 of the critically acclaimed, unblinkingly honest series (debuts Feb. 28 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on FX) is not set in the pandemic, but it does traffic in themes resonant to those who have strengthened, lost, or redefined connections in these messy, trying times. "My editors and I, we talk about the show like it's a portal," Adlon tells EW. "I was trying to figure out how I was going to make this season and I thought, 'Oh, am I going to put COVID in here?' Ultimately, I decided not to. But I addressed it in the ways that our lives were shifted and changed over the course of the past two years. I was able to put that into the show in simple ways, like getting back to basics and family, and going on walks and being content and comfortable with yourself. Hold onto what you have for dear life and be righteous and kind to other people and do the right thing. And when you don't do the right thing and you misbehave, you're not alone, and you can always get back on track."