The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel Season 3 premieres December 6 on Amazon Prime Video.
By Elazar Abrahams
The prettiest program on television has returned to grace our screens. Seriously, Mrs. Maisel is just gorgeous. From the stunning sets to the posh outfits, this 50s set series is as sleek as ever as we enter our third year following Midge and her family. That’s not to say the rest of the show isn’t amazing – by all means, it is! Still, the visuals are where this show excels. Watch these eight new episodes on the biggest TV you can find and put away your phone to avoid all distractions.
If you’ve followed this site for a while, you’ll remember how I didn’t really love the first season. I definitely saw the appeal, but for some reason, Maisel just didn’t connect with me. With the stellar sophomore outing last December, I finally understood the hype. The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel is truly one of the best shows out there. This third season only confirms that belief. More Emmys are in star Rachel Brosnahan’s future.
From the five episodes provided for review, I couldn’t really get a sense of the direction the season is heading. Which is just perfect; Amazon successfully gave us critics a taste of season 3 but there’s still much more to binge come Friday. Midge is on tour this season which means a lot of travel. We’ve got two episodes in Las Vegas, and a couple in Miami. Some of these scenes are shot on location, and it shows. (It bears repeating, this show is GORGEOUS.) The hustling storyline gives us deeper insight into Susie and Midge’s relationship and ever-growing deep bond. Meanwhile, supporting characters Joel, Abe, and Rose keep us grounded in New York City.
Speaking of Abe and Rose, they have got to be the funniest characters out of the bunch, which is saying something. Tony Shalhoub and Marin Hinkle play the old married couple expertly, trading quick barbs and snappy one-liners. There is a scene in the premiere where they bicker with “Miriam,” and it is the hardest I have laughed in a very long time. It is just a perfect bit, and quintessentially Jewish. Overall, the dialogue on this show is almost otherworldly. I’d venture to say Amy Sherman-Palladino is second only to Aron Sorkin when it comes to writing TV. They have vastly different styles of course, but Sherman-Palladino crafts a vibe that is uniquely hers. Much like Gilmore Girls, Mrs. Maisel features a rapid-paced script with many jokes a minute.
To freshen things up, there are a few new faces present. Leroy McClain is serviceable as Shy Baldwin. Unfortunately, he doesn’t have much to do in the front half of the season. Sterling K. Brown makes the most of his guest-starring role. Let’s just say he is quite different from the character he plays on This Is Us. Finally, I was delighted to see Liza Weil, who played the iconic Paris Geller on Gilmore Girls, appear on Maisel. She plays a woman in Shy’s band on tour with Midge. Her character is able to help Midge figure out what she wants, which is a big theme this season. Just what does Midge desire? She can’t fully quit Joel and also wants to be home to raise her two children. Yet at the same time, the comedian’s path calls her. It’s seductive and she cannot pull away.
This season has so much in store: Abe joining student communists, Joel getting involved with the Chinatown mafia, Sophie Lennon coming back in the fold, and hats. Hats and hats and hats. There are a lot of different hats.
I give The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel‘s third season an A.
TV and City 