In five seasons, we became fond of Midge Maisel, her family, her loves, and her difficulties. I also complained, especially in season 5, of the delay in witnessing the success (or failure) of the comedian. Midge had the same talent for making people laugh and self-sabotaging when she was on the verge of getting ahead in her career, which became predictable after a while. The alternative was to open the final season by assuring us that everything would work out, but the comings and goings in time did not solve the belly. The last two episodes, however, were great. The series says goodbye to applause and will be missed.
We open the episode in a sad tone, with Lenny Bruce in his final downfall, which moves us with the award-winning performance of Luke Kirby. Midge and Bruce’s fictional relationship was important from the beginning, it couldn’t be different in the end. Lenny’s performance on San Francisco’s Basin Street West in 1965 actually took place, right with him talking about his legal troubles before dancing onstage. It was his penultimate performance, a year before his tragic death in August 1966, aged 40. Luke sensitively captured the sadness that permeated his final days.
Susie, at Midge’s request, tries to help him, but it’s too late. By the way, it’s late, but no less exciting to see Susie and Midge having a long, intimate, and sincere conversation in which the agent talks about her past with Hedy Gordon, about how this relationship destroyed her romantically. Just as we see that Joel and Midge love each other but know there’s no way they can be together. We see how Midge, tired of all machismo, kicks the rules into the air (following Midge’s advice) and makes the four ‘stolen’ minutes her breakthrough as a star. We see that whatever the reason Joel was arrested and the two friends stopped talking to each other for 30 years, it didn’t mean anything, because they end the story rich, famous, and … alone.
There is no perfection in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, it’s true, but the ending was emotional. And giving Lenny and Midge that final, especially emotional, confidence scene. The award-winning series ended well, and yes, we will miss Midge, but it was time for her goodbye.
MiscelAna 