It was never a question if Midge Maisel would become famous and successful as a comic–it was always question of how quickly her star would rise and how big she would become. Despite getting kicked off touring shows and, ahem, several brushes with the law, it was never an option for Midge to fail. We have witnessed Midge sling brisket and entertain friends at parties before getting a job or hocking Tupperware in order to keep her head above water. In Prime Video’s breathtakingly gorgeous final season of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, the world is finally introduced to the Midge we have loved ever since she stepped on stage at the Gaslight. For a show that dissects how society thinks women should behave and how one woman fights to be able to say whatever she wants on her terms, creator Amy Sherman-Palladino delivers on the promise of Midge’s talent and unleashes her on the world. It solidifies itself as one of the most ambitious shows in television history.
Throughout the last four seasons, we have seen Midge start, stop, and then restart again as she combines the life she thought she wanted with the unpredictable realm of stand-up comedy. The fifth season picks up after Midge trudged through the snow after Lenny Bruce’s show at Carnegie Hall and she has a revelation. Was it a hallucination? Was it destiny? Either way, she saw it as a sign (a literal sign) to get out of her own way to ensure her own success.
After Reid Scott’s Gordon Ford sees her perform at the Wolford, he hires her as a writer for his late night show even though Midge insists that she is not a writer. Susie encourages her to take the job, learn as much as she can, and, in time, she will be able to perform on television in front of millions. She is on the right path, and the “the break” will come, they say. With a new environment, Midge must navigate the perils of literally being referred to “the lady writer,” but, as always, Midge’s panache and tenacity wins out. It happened at the B. Altman. It happened at the Wolford. And it will happen to the millions of rooms she steps into as her career progresses.
Some fans would expect to see every step of Midge’s ascension, but Sherman-Palladino throws out the rule book, and shows us very early on just how huge Midge becomes (the top of episode 2 shows us sizzle reel of an upcoming 60 Minutes episode). By taking away the curiosity of the destination, the season shifts into a time bomb of anticipation. Learning how successful Midge becomes is rousing for those of us who want nothing but fame for Mrs. Maisel, but it raises the stakes for this batch of nine episodes. In season one, it was a wake-up call for Midge when she realized that she needed time to hone her act and get to know every audience, but, for season five, Sherman-Palladino and Dan Palladino play with time like a pink rubber band. The creative team has never had the opportunity to play with time so freely, and there are so many scenes that will tickle audiences. Every scene is whip-smart and carefully written–it’s truly a gift.
With the pitfalls of fame, relationships are tested. Michael Zegen’s Joel proves once and for all that he will do everything to atone for cheating on his wife, and he will always love Midge. When Midge and Susie bicker, they know how to dig at the best and worst parts at one another, and it’s more satisfying when they put their differences aside for the good of the set. We hurt the ones we love the most, because we are privy to those unspoken feelings and those deep secrets.
Brosnahan is a tour-de-force this season. She has never disappointed us when it comes to Midge’s verve and determination, but when her dream is so close, Midge is hungrier. Go back to season one or two and watch how her delivery is even more confident now than when it was in those early sets at the Gaslight. When we see Midge older, there is a refinement in how she speaks–we see Rose immediately. Brosnahan rightfully won the Emmy for the first season, but it would be such a deserving end if she repeated. She has never shied away from Midge’s petulance or selfishness (but please, straight guys, tell me again how Walter White is the greatest character of all time), and that refusal to be anything but authentic is one of the reasons why we love her.
As much as Mrs. Maisel has been about Midge’s rise to fame, it’s also been about Susie’s too. In Borstein’s hands, Susie is a true underdog, but she has just as much talent as Midge does when it comes to recognizing something in someone else on stage. With every season, Borstein peels back another layer of defensiveness (or Midge does it for her against Susie’s will), and Borstein has drawn one of the most compelling comedic characters of the last twenty years. She can make you laugh with the raise of an eyebrow or a quiver in her voice. That toughness, though, lends itself to Susie’s remarkable success, and Dan Palladino’s tribute to Susie Meyerson’s gumption in episode six is one of the best episode of the entire series.
Tony Shalhoub’s Abe Weissman is a man of the mind, but every time he is surprised by his own emotions, it makes for great television. Abe’s revelations about gender politics are some of the most essential for the character’s own survival, and Marin Hinkle proves, yet again, that she is learning from her daughter without realizing it. As a married couple, they are a great foil to Kevin Pollak and Caroline Aaron as the Maisels. Of the new cast members, Reid Scott (who briefly appeared in season four) fits into this world like a glove as he flirts with Midge but lords power over the staff writers of The Gordon Ford Show. As Gordon’s wife, Hedy, Nina Arianda feels like she belongs in this Maisel world. There is a way that she punctuates her lines or coos as she looks in a character’s direction.
Donna Zakowska’s costuming continues to amaze. In that 60 Minutes sequence, the lights come up on a collection of Midge’s clothes, and the kaleidoscope of pastels will blind you. It’s almost as if Zakowska has discovered new shades of pink strictly to fit Midge’s persona. Production designer Bill Groom deserves every accolade and award in the book (he’s never won an Emmy for his work on Maisel), and, somehow, he outdoes himself yet again. Since the offices of The Gordon Ford Show houses the collective wits and hidden dreams of writers and performers, every inch of those walls are full of character. The new songs from composers Tom Mizer and Curtis Moore (episode four is an absolute musical theater fever dream) continue to raise the bar with their period songwriting. Every plink of the piano and every crescendo is an homage to the time period while retaining a vital excitement of the here and now. They have been nominated for two Emmys (for “One Less Angel” and last year’s “Maybe Monica”), and their writing only gets more sophisticated with every outing. Even though Mrs. Maisel is a comedy series, it should be heralded alongside some of the greatest television of all time. It’s as beautifully crafted as Mad Men, Downton Abbey, or Game of Thrones
Sherman-Palladino isn’t bringing Midge’s story to an end but to a thrilling beginning. There is a romantic finesse that she has brought to the direction of every season of Mrs. Maisel, but what she does with the series finale is nothing short of spectacular. With all of its beauty and nerve, this show should be heralded for its decadence, but also for its honesty. It takes guts to tell the truth, and Sherman-Palladino hones in on the most important thing: to use one’s voice to harness the power that we all have within us. And tell some great dick jokes. There are no words to truly capture the tremendous way that Sherman-Palladino uses her words.
We have those moments where we are scared to make a huge leap, because we don’t know the outcome. What Midge–and Brosnahan, Borstein, the Palladinos, and company–have taught us is that you can’t succeed without a lot of risk. Tits up…and make that leap.
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel drops weekly starting April 14.
