'The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel' Season 3 Episode 4 Review: Midge's nightmare Vegas wedding and Susie's masterstroke will keep you hooked
The review contains spoilers for 'The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel' Season 3 Episode 4 — 'Hands'
Confidence. If you have it, you can make anything look good. For Midge (Rachel Brosnahan), it is one of the most beautiful things she wears in episode 4. Titled 'Hands', the episode casts light upon the gala affair at the Las Vegas tour with Shy Baldwin. With witty punchlines on food habits, her stand-up opens to whistles and thunderous claps. Susie, too, is impressed with her natural flair and confidence while she is on stage.
Back at the Maisel residence, Rose and Abe are tired of being guests at the Maisel home. Woken up early, they are asked by the host, "You both wear pajamas. What are you, girlfriends?" Abe comments, "This has been the longest month of my life." Rose remarks, "It has only been a week."
Midge's first paycheck arrives. Joyful, she wants to celebrate the moment with Susie. "You take care of the money, I get money, I spend money," she tells her. However, the cheque is a little short and to sort out the issue, Susie goes to talk to Angie Calibresi. As Susie looks on, she is scared to see him getting another man slapped. To her surprise, he is really sweet to her and compliments her, "Your girl, she's been a fire." Fearful, she tries to dismiss the fact that she had a "problem" but he himself asks her if it is short. Overwhelmed, Susie leaves it with him and heads to New York to meet two producers to get Sophie on board for a Broadway play named 'Miss Julie.'
The moment Susie utters Sophie Lennon's name, the two burst out laughing. Like a cunning manager, she offers them a deal they cannot refuse. "You'll make a lot of money. You like money? I like money," she lures them. They get ready to strike a deal but on one condition to convince Gavin Hawk to play the leading artist. "If you get him on board, we'll talk." Susie sets up a meeting with Hawk and asks him to sign the deal saying he will be the anchor.
"You will be the —" He cuts her short and says, "Expensive." Later, when Susie tells Sophie they got Gavin Hawk on board, she is skeptical. "What if I'm not sexually attracted to him? Did he have a trim butt?" Susie then puts in more effort to convince her.
Meanwhile, May comes to meet Joel and he introduces her to Archie. To help him get settled in the new place, she gets him a jukebox. "It's free. My uncle had it in his alley and he sold the alley." She makes him listen to the music and all three of them love it. In that very instant, the two embrace and enjoy a slow dance. Midge makes a phone call to Joel and invites him to witness her taking the stage on fire. "Come on, check the flights."
He comes to Las Vegas and is welcomed with the best services. At the stand-up night, Midge jokes, "My ex-husband is here, right here at the table. Now I promised I wouldn't talk about him," she says and then cracks jokes one after another. He loves her performance and chuckles at her witticisms. After the performance, she makes Joel meet Shy Baldwin. The two spend a good time and talk all night.
The next morning, they wake up together. "What time is it?" Joel asks, to which Midge says, "Kill me-o-clock!" The two try to recollect the events of the night and realize they got married in Vegas. Both have a different reaction to the scenario. While Midge laughs about it, Joel is worried he has a new girl to date. In a state of panic, he says, "I've got a —. I'm kinda seeing someone. It's very new."
Moreover, he wonders if Midge is having an affair with Shy Baldwin. "Whose shorts are these," he quizzes her. "It's Susie's." In a huff, Joel leaves and tells he will get on the case with his lawyer. Right after, Abe and Rose call Midge and complain about their tough time. Midge is flustered with all the pressure.
"I got married," Midge confesses to Susie, adding, "To Joel." "Joel who?" is Susie's reaction. When Midge tells her it is her ex-husband, she tells her, "You just got divorced. I saw it." Midge asks for her help to sort out the entire fiasco and shifts the blame on her for not being there. Susie agrees to help and asks, "I assume you wanna divorce?" "Of course," says Midge, still confused. Stuttering, she says, "Great is a good word to describe everything is going on."
"Funny lady" Mrs. Maisel goes on stage again. "Who here has married their ex-husband?" her joke erupts the hall with boisterous laughter. Complexity takes a new shape in this episode and it is peppered with more dramatic twists and turns. However, the entire getting-drunk-and-married-in-Vegas is quite a cliché. Instead of the couple, Alex Borstein steals the spotlight with her performance. She acts wonderfully in all the scenes where she has to cleverly outwit the producers, get an actor on board and even she has to portray the dilemma and uncertainty about the future.
The episode is a sly take on the comedy of errors and how complex relationships can get. But, honestly, the concept of Las Vegas wedding is too overused in sitcoms and it makes the plot a little too drab. Midge should make up her mind once and for all about her feelings for Joel. Of course, he will remain the most important man in her life, but she needs to draw a line. Written by Daniel Palladino, the one-liners bring out an intriguing aspect of those three little words to the show.