The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel- Season 4, A Review

She’s back!

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel Seasons 1-3 Review.

The fourth season of The Marvelous Mrs Maisel follows Midge (Rachel Brosnahan) in the aftermath of getting dumped from Shy Baldwin’s (Leroy McClain) tour. Feeling humiliated and angry, Midge is forced to return home and start over, also having to find a way to pay Moishe (Kevin Pollak) back all the money he loaned her. No longer satisfied with being an opening act, Midge instructs Susie (Alex Borstein) to only book her gigs were she can be 100% herself, massively limiting the places she can perform at. Despite this Midge pushes on, becoming an MC at a local strip club ran by manager Boise (Santino Fontana, Crazy ex Girlfriend).

Susie meanwhile buys a new apartment and begins properly going into the management business, begining to hire more talent as well as dealing with the crazed Sophie Lenon (Jane Lynch). Joel struggles with introducing girlfriend Mei (Stephanie Hsu) to his parents, especially as she isn’t Jewish, a problem which only gets worse when Mei falls pregnant. Abe (Tony Shalhoub) continues writing reviews for his old paper but comes under fire after publishing a particularly begative review and Rose (Marin Hinkle) comtinues matchmaking but soon comes across from some fierce competition.

Mrs Maisel continues to be as funny as ever both on and off the stage and Midge’s stand up was brilliant this season. No longer wanting to limit herself on what she could say, Midge begins completely being herself in her routines, which is when she is always at her best. The strip club location offered a whole new clientele to act off, allowing for some great new material. Then off the stage Midge’s own home life continues to be as chaotic as ever, featuring some hilarious family arguments and scenes.

I really loved the continuation of the Shy Baldwin storyline and getting to see Midge rebuilt her career from the blowback. Getting literally abandoned on the tarmac was a massive set back, prompting Midge to change her business style and only do acts where she could be completely herself. For most of the series Midge is regularly asked and humiliated about getting dumped by Shy so I really liked the wedding episode where she got to see him again. The conversation between the pair is one of my favourite scenes in the show to date and I like how, despite her anger Midge still refuses to out Shy and instead apologises to him but still refuses to reconcile with him. Midge is such a kind person that she wouldn’t ever share his secret but at the same time she’s strong enough to not be dazzled by him anymore, it felt like a great turning point for her.

I really liked seeing Susie properly going into business and opening up her own agency, it felt like a big step for the character. With her own talent company we also got to see more talent, including more of Sophie Lennon as well as bar magician Alfie (Gideon Glick). The new dynamic of Susie’s office and working life made for some great comedy and the barely working office was hilarious. Susie partnering up with her mobster friends is surely going to have some backlash in the future so I’m interested to see where this leads as well.

The chemistry between Midge and Lenny (Luke Kirby) was off the charts this season and I continue to love every scene we get between the two of them. Lenny has always acted as a mentor for Midge but at the same time she takes care of him as well, resulting in a really nice bond and friendship. This season the pair do finally sleep together, with Lenny then encouraging Midge to not be afraid in her career and aim for better things. With next season being the last I can only assume Lenny’s words are going to result in big things for her and I’m excited (but also nervous considering what happens to the real Lenny Bruce) to see what happens next with the pair’s relationship.

Overall I enjoyed this fourth season of The Marvelous Mrs Maisel. Midge ended season 3 on a real low note so I liked seeing her pick up the pieces here and eventually realise her self-worth and start going for the big gigs. The comedy was as funny as ever both on and off the stage and the supporting cast were all brilliant. Mrs Maisel continyes to be a brilliant piece of art and I eagerly await the fifth and final season next year.