WARNING: SPOILERS
I watched the final episode of the marvelous The Marvelous Ms. Maisel last night. It was exhilarating, not exactly what I expected (in a good way) and a fitting end to a fantastic show.
The dialogue was, as usual, sharp and frequently hilarious. The acting was excellent. And there were some genuinely touching moments (I especially enjoyed the scene a couple of episodes before the final episode where Abe, talking to Arthur and Henry, a pair of Millers, realizes that he has never really respected his daughter; kudos to Tony Shalhoub, who reminded us that he was much more than comic relief).
Since the start of the season, the show has been moving backwards and forwards in time, showing us how Midge’s drive to succeed was a poisoned chalice that led to her to become alienated from her children, and the machinations that put Joel behind bars and caused Midge to stop speaking to Susie. This created an ambivalence in the audience: should we cheer for Midge in her ascent to stardom, knowing what it would cost her?
The finale did a lot of little things right. Talking with another fan of the series last year, we wondered if the show would portray the decline of Lenny Bruce. Sure enough, there was the scene of the infamous gig where he read from his court transcripts (and badly at that).
There were some suggestions in the last few episodes that Midge might get back together with Joel (whom she refers to at one point as possibly the only man she ever truly loved). I thought that would be trite, so I’m glad that didn’t materialize. In fact, the series ends decades later with Midge and Susie watching Jeopardy together, which suggests that the main love story in the series has been between the two of them all along.
I could have kept watching this series for several more seasons. I’m grateful for having had it for five.