Guys. Guys, this show.
I'm a pretty big fan of Gilmore Girls, and have been for years, and when I heard that Amy Sherman-Palladino was finally doing the show she was destined to do, about a fast-talking Jewish girl from New York, I was so, so excited. In fact, my anticipation may have been a bit too high, enough that I could have been disappointed if it wasn't perfect.
Thankfully, it was.
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel follows the smart, quick-witted, mile-a-minute talker Miriam "Midge" Maisel as she tries to re-orient her life after her husband leaves her on Erev Yom Kippur. Twist one: the show is set in 1958, meaning there is a whole different set of societal standards she has to abide by that don't exactly make it easy. Twist two: the husband that leaves her moonlights as a mediocre stand-up comic - after he does the leaving, she drunkenly stumbles into doing really, really fucking good stand-up comedy.
Visually, the show is a delight, from the detail of the period sets - filmed both on a soundstage out at Steiner Studios and on some of the actual streets of New York, with some clever disguising of obviously modern buildings - to the lush costumes. Honestly, just give me all of Midge's clothing. Especially her coats. And her nightdresses. God, I love those vintage nightdresses. The soundtrack is also curated to perfection; from standards to showtunes to of-the-time pop, it all frames the show the way a good soundtrack should.
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| This is me trying to show you as much of that clothing in a short review as possible. |
There is a truly wonderful revolving cast of characters that fill out the show, from the pitch-perfect Tony Shalhoub and Marin Hinkle as Midge's put-upon parents, Abe and Rose Weissman, to Luke Kirby's cynical, acerbic Lenny Bruce, with whom Midge, by some stroke of fate, is friends, to Susie Meyerson, manager of the Gaslight cafe and of Midge's comedy career, played with aplomb by the always wonderful Alex Borstein. Even Joel, the sad-sack husband, is played brilliantly by Michael Zegen (who was in the original off-Broadway cast of Bad Jews!). But it is Midge herself, played by Rachel Brosnahan as if she'd been a Jewish comedienne her whole life, that steals everyone's hearts on the show. She is the image of the perfect 1950's housewife, but when her housewife life is completely and totally blown up, she finds that her sense of humor and vivacious energy can do more for her than just make her the life of the house party. Suddenly things that weren't even a passing fancy to her, despite the fact she was already funnier than her mediocre-in-every-way husband, are something she yearns for, and she begins to carve a path that a woman of the time would likely not have had the chutzpah to typically carve.
I don't want to spoil anything about this show, but if you're anything like me and cry at the drop of a hat, be prepared - about two seconds after the finale ended, I burst into tears out of pure joy. Honestly, it was a little embarrassing, but at least I was in the privacy of my bedroom. I'm thrilled that it has already been renewed for a season two, as I am definitely not ready to let go of this show. I can't wait for more adventures with what is truly a Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.
