If you don’t know, now you know.
I heard about The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel when listening to the now-defunct Collider TV Talk on YouTube. The Prime Video pilot had just aired and the Collider TV Talk crew was raving about it, but they lamented the fact that they had to wait to see if it would get a series order from Amazon. At the time, Amazon would only release pilots of prospective shows and would wait for viewer review and feedback to see which pilots were popular enough to become series. Luckily, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel was one of the shows that made the cut (average viewer rating of 4.9/5), and eight months later, season one premiere on Prime Video. I clicked play and was immediately enraptured.
The show centers around a 1950’s New York City housewife and mother of two, Midge Maisel who discovers she has an innate talent for stand-up comedy. She discovers this shortly after her husband leaves her for another woman with whom he as been cheating on her. Midge uses her real life predicament in her drunken (and successful) first act which eventually leads to her getting arrested for obscenity. One of the spectators, Susie Myerson, sees her potential and wants to become her manager even though she doesn’t have very many contacts of her own. Through all of this, Midge has to pick up the pieces of her previous life while also pursuing her dream.
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel fires on all cylinders from the very beginning. The performances, writing, directing, costume and production design are all exceptional. You truly feel like you’ve been transported to 1950’s Manhattan. Rachel Brosnahan is phenomenal as Midge Maisel. At first, she feels a little phony, but that’s because she kind of is. She acts like a prissy, gossipy, fake-laughing schoolgirl around her friends because that’s how she is supposed to act. However, you occasionally see through the facade in the early episodes when she’ll slip in bawdy comment or a dark joke and laugh to herself while everyone else in the room glares or gasps at what she just said. As she becomes more independent and confident in her comedy, she also becomes more outspoken and finds her voice mostly to her benefit.
The show centers around a 1950’s New York City housewife and mother of two, Midge Maisel who discovers she has an innate talent for stand-up comedy. She discovers this shortly after her husband leaves her for another woman with whom he as been cheating on her. Midge uses her real life predicament in her drunken (and successful) first act which eventually leads to her getting arrested for obscenity. One of the spectators, Susie Myerson, sees her potential and wants to become her manager even though she doesn’t have very many contacts of her own. Through all of this, Midge has to pick up the pieces of her previous life while also pursuing her dream.
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel fires on all cylinders from the very beginning. The performances, writing, directing, costume and production design are all exceptional. You truly feel like you’ve been transported to 1950’s Manhattan. Rachel Brosnahan is phenomenal as Midge Maisel. At first, she feels a little phony, but that’s because she kind of is. She acts like a prissy, gossipy, fake-laughing schoolgirl around her friends because that’s how she is supposed to act. However, you occasionally see through the facade in the early episodes when she’ll slip in bawdy comment or a dark joke and laugh to herself while everyone else in the room glares or gasps at what she just said. As she becomes more independent and confident in her comedy, she also becomes more outspoken and finds her voice mostly to her benefit.
The show’s greatest strength is its pacing. Midge doesn’t become an enormously successful comedian by the end of the first season. She has her successes, but she also has some very cringeworthy sets that completely bomb. The whole first season is primarily dedicated to Midge developing a “tight 10” - a solid consistent ten minute comedy set. She’s not performing an hour long special after eight episodes.
Midge is also easy to root for, but she’s not perfect. Sometimes, she doesn’t know when to hold her tongue which causes her to lose gigs and alienate the people she needs to excel her stand-up career. Her comedy career combined with her day job takes up so much of her life that she barely spends any time with her children which her parents are always quick to point out.
Midge is also easy to root for, but she’s not perfect. Sometimes, she doesn’t know when to hold her tongue which causes her to lose gigs and alienate the people she needs to excel her stand-up career. Her comedy career combined with her day job takes up so much of her life that she barely spends any time with her children which her parents are always quick to point out.
There’s never a dull moment in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel which can be attributed largely to the writers and the cast. The dialogue is quick and witty while also saving room for dramatic moments that remind the audience that every character’s decision has consequences. Tony Shalhoub and Marin Hinkle are remarkable as Midge’s parents Abe and Rose Weissman. Abe’s uber-analytical university professor is contrasted beautifully with Rose’s bored housewife trying to find purpose in her day-to-day life. This show somehow makes you feel empathy for Joel Maisel, Midge’s unfaithful husband. Even the static characters provide hilarious moments in the show. For example, Midge’s sister-in-law, Astrid, is very insecure about the fact that she was not born Jewish and is usually in a panicked state because she is trying to follow some obscure Jewish tradition that the family does not observe.
I could go on about this show for another 1500 words, but save me the time and just go watch this show if you can, because it is truly phenomenal. There are only 18 episodes across two seasons so it won’t take you long to catch up. There’s a lot of good television in this Golden Age but The Marvelous Maisel stands at the very top along with Game of Thrones.
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel is currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
I could go on about this show for another 1500 words, but save me the time and just go watch this show if you can, because it is truly phenomenal. There are only 18 episodes across two seasons so it won’t take you long to catch up. There’s a lot of good television in this Golden Age but The Marvelous Maisel stands at the very top along with Game of Thrones.
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel is currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video.