One Day At A Time is a much-beloved family sit-com that now airs on One Day At A Time has managed to connect with a wide audience thanks to its clever and fun humour, and the real and serious social issues they cover on the show. The show features an ensemble cast of Rita Moreno, Justin Machado, Isabella Gomez, Marcel Ruiz, Todd Grinnell, and Stephen Tobolowsky.
Todd Grinnell and Stephen Tobolowsky play Schneider and Dr. Leslie Berkowitz respectively. These are two characters who are not Alvarez's. They are not technically part of the family, but they are family. Here are some moments when these two characters outshine everyone else with their niceness.
Schneider: The Ally
Schneider just wants to be useful and helpful to everyone. He wants to be seen as an ally to the LGBTQ+ community and is invested in Elena's and Syd's relationship. When they struggle to come up with a term to call Syd, Schneider takes the task upon himself spending the night making a list of potential names they can use to call Syd who is non-binary. They finally hit upon "significant other" and, in a cute twist, Schneider converts it into "Syd-nificant other."
Dr. Berkowitz: Platonic Companion
Lydia lost her husband, who was the love of her life, a while ago. She is quite old-fashioned and cannot see anyone in that way after her husband ed away. But, she genuinely enjoys Dr. Berkowitz's company, and it is clear how jealous she gets when she sees him spending his time with another woman.
To Dr. Berkowitz's credit, he is completely understanding of Lydia's feelings and is perfectly fine with just being "platonic companions." Even though he wishes for more, he understands why it is difficult for Lydia, and, therefore, they continue to remain "platonic companions."
Schneider: Helps Penelope
Schneider literally has his doors open to Penelope and the rest of the Alvarez's all the time, and especially with Penelope, their friendship is so strong that she relies on Schneider to talk and vent. Schneider is even equipped to deal with Penelope's anxiety attacks, and this is truly a mark of their friendship.
He sends her cute pictures of dogs in wigs to get her to relax and calm down. This is just one of the instances on this sitcom wherein he lends his complete to Penelope.
Dr. Berkowitz: Teaches Elena To Drive
Leslie has an infinite amount of patience. While Penelope finds it tiresome to teach Elena to drive, also considering the fact that she doesn't have enough time, Dr. Berkowitz very kindly offers to do the same. Elena needs a teacher like Dr. Berkowitz who is as thorough as she is, and it is extremely cute to see them jamming together to Sapphic folk music as Elena finally acclimates to being behind the wheel.
Schneider: Uses His Money To Help The Alvarez's
While the Alvarez's are middle-class, Schneider is the rich son of an even richer father, and he is not stingy at all—he's ready to use his money to help the Alvarez's in any way that they would accept. This includes flying out Elena's friend Carmen to her Quinces because he knows how much that would mean to her.
He goes about helping them using his money and other resources without batting an eyelid because he considers them to be his own family and loves to help them in any way they would be allowed.
Dr. Berkowitz: Takes Lydia To Cuba
Leslie wants to give Lydia the perfect gift for their one-year "non-iversary," which is their one year anniversary of Lydia saying she had no romantic feelings for him. Alex offers to show him Lydia's "bouquet" list, which is technically her bucket list, and Dr. Berkowitz decides to fulfil her wish of going to Cuba to spread Berto's ashes there.
Lydia is hesitant initially, but they finally do end up going there, and it is Dr. Berkowitz who helps Lydia check off such a big thing from her "bouquet" list.
Schneider: Is As Overprotective And Crazy About The Kids As Penelope Is
Schneider is super excited about Alex making it to the Travel Team. When Penelope says that she can't afford to miss work for that, Schneider jumps at the opportunity to be the chaperone. Penelope and Lydia get into his head about the many terrible things that could happen. When the boys' race maid carts in the hotel, Schneider brings Alex back home instantly because he is so worried that Penelope won't trust him until she saw for herself that no actual harm had occurred. It's adorable to see how much he cares about the kids and what all he's willing to do for them.
Dr. Berkowitz: Says He's Proud Of Schneider
When the Alvarez's are out of town, Schneider and Dr. Berkowitz feel sort of lost without them and ends up in the Alvarez apartment. They cook together and talk about things and bond very easily over their mutual love and affection for the family. Schneider tells Leslie that he's been sober for almost eight years, and Leslie appreciates and praises Schneider for the strength and courage it must have taken for him to do the same.
He goes on to say that he's really proud of Schneider, which makes Schneider tear up because he has finally gotten the validation he so clearly craves from a male authority figure.
Schneider: His Non-Toxic Masculinity
Schneider feels no need to express himself as any sort of alpha male or impose his masculinity. He is quite comfortable in his own skin and isn't insecure about performing his masculinity in any way or proving it to anybody.
Every such occurrence is such a positive reflection of how men can be, and Schneider comes across as the perfect white, straight man who makes an actual effort to make sure he is comfortable with himself, and the others around him are comfortable with him, as well. It is a wonderfully sensitive portrayal of a man on a sitcom.
Dr. Berkowitz: Believes In Penelope
From the very first season, viewers can see how much Dr. Berkowitz relies on Penelope to keep his office going. When she decides to become a nurse practitioner, he is completely on board and even plans to expand his office to make more space for her. He believes in Penelope's ability to push ahead, even when Penelope feels like she's struggling. It is quite funny to watch him give her encouragement by saying things like "you are Superwoman," as well.