MILD SPOILERS AHEAD!
We’re living in an era where there’s more good TV and streaming content than there are hours in the day to consume it all. But if you only had time to binge one show, I can’t recommend The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel enough.
The show is acclaimed for its unparalleled 50’s aesthetic, acting, writing, and the unique premise of a well-to-do woman, Midge Maisel, finding her true calling as a stand-up comedian is ripe for both dramatic and comedic potential.
But for all of the many good things that Mrs. Maisel accomplishes, its finest aspect may be the fantastic development of Midge and legendary comedian Lenny Bruce’s relationship and the, ahem, marvelous depiction of men and women mutually supporting each other in their endeavours.
Find a friend who looks at you like how Lenny looks at Midge.
From their first exchange, Mrs. Maisel quickly and firmly establishes the boundary in Lenny and Midge’s relationship and develops their rapport as one of mutually respectful friends and colleagues.
There are no dumb TV tropes like jealous looks or sudden realisations that they’re actually perfect for each other. Instead there are snarky yet affectionate exchanges, bailing each other out of trouble (sometimes literally) without expectation of getting anything in return, and being mutually supportive of each other in their journey to be successful stand-up comedians whenever they can.
As TV is wont to do when it comes to a relationship of any sort between a man and woman, the topic of whether they’re going to hook up will inevitably come up.
Mrs. Maisel beautifully sidesteps this perilous hurdle by having Lenny semi-jokingly ask Midge early on in their friendship whether he should’ve hit on her, only for both to laugh it off and leave it dusted and settled just like that.
And besides, the two are more entertaining as friends without benefits anyway.
Spoken like a true friend.
The rapport between Lenny and Midge isn’t the only well-written relationship in the show. Throughout Mrs. Maisel‘s two-season run, there have been multiple instances in which the men wholeheartedly support the women and vice versa.
The early season two plotline of Midge’s unsatisfied mother unexpectedly moving to Paris and her father going to get her back depicts a great story of compromise and newfound understanding between a couple who has been together for far too long.
There’s Midge’s father discovering her secret stand-up career and quickly objecting to it, only for him to gradually accept it after he realises how good and driven Midge is, all while she is fully in support of his academic career.
And of course, there’s Midge’s complicated relationship, which goes through the greatest development in the show, with her jerkass ex-husband Joel.
When the series begins, the dynamic between Joel and Midge basically involved her supporting him in his mediocre stand-up efforts while he took her efforts for granted.
Not when you deserve it, jerk.
After Joel left Midge for another woman because he was essentially bored in their marriage (yes, he really was a massive jerk), he proceeds to undergo one of TV’s best redemptive character arcs in recent memory.
While there is lingering feelings and resentment bubbling under the surface, the ex-couple’s dynamic gradually changes into one where both wholeheartedly support each other in their respective journeys. Joel goes from resentful bastard to one of Midge’s earliest and strongest stand-up champions while she helps him be a better person whenever she can.
(Okay, Joel and Midge hook up a few times post-separation but that gets a pass as their getting together manages to co-exist alongside the mutually supporting each other thing.)
Characters can make or break a show, and the well-written cast of Mrs. Maisel demonstrates that a great series can be elevated even further by simply having men and women respecting and supporting each other.
Hard to believe that such seemingly progressive ideas could exist so seamlessly in a show set in the 50’s but that’s what makes Mrs. Maisel so damn good.
Thank you and good night!