The Mrs. Maisel Appraisal: Episode 6

I was going to write about how I didn’t really like this episode all that much, but after thinking about it a little more, it has its positives. Don’t get me wrong, there are some deeply unpleasant parts, but I think it was balanced out by some exceptional new characters and interesting themes.

It starts with hungover Lenny Bruce waking up in Midge’s apartment after she had picked him up drunk off the street to let him sleep in her house. Instead of being gracious and cracking a few jokes like the Lenny we know and love, he got angry and lashed out at Midge. This definitely deducted a few points off of him in my book. But on the other hand, I do appreciate the character depth that this scene created and how it alluded to the real-life Lenny Bruce, who grappled with addiction and died of an overdose at age 40.

Another unpleasant part of this episode was Midge’s money troubles. I never like seeing my favorite characters struggle, and Midge is no exception. Midge is so desperate for money that she accepts a job on Sophie Lennon’s (who has magically risen to stardom again) new game show, but she and Sophie end up having a sort of a stand-up/roast/brawl at the end of the episode, which ends it on a very bad note.

But on the positive side, I thought that some of the new characters on this show, namely Susie’s new secretary Dinah and a journalist who has written a few scathing reviews on Midge named L. Roy Dunham (Hari Nef), added some great personality to the show.

I always think that “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” does a really good job talking about deeper themes, and this episode is an example of that. This episode focused on the theme of internalized misogyny and women sabotaging or putting down other women for their own gain. We see this with L. Roy Dunham and her awful reviews and also with Sophie at the end, sabotaging Midge’s set on her game show. I really appreciate when shows like this make you think further than the obvious storyline, which bumps this episode up a little bit in my book.

Midge’s quip corner: “Wow! Look at all the ladies in the audience tonight! You do realize the Bergdorf’s sale is 15 blocks north of here, right? The dresses here are also half off… but probably not in the way you’re thinking.”