REVIEW: ‘The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,’ Season 4 Episodes 7-8

We’ve arrived. The fourth and final week of The Marvelous Mrs Maisel Episodes 7-8, and we’re at the finale stage of Season 4. After two years of waiting between seasons, we must say goodbye once more hoping that Season 5 will be upon us before we know it. Let’s get into it though, and find out my thoughts of the season finale episodes.

Previously, episodes 5-6 dealt with the conflict as Miriam (Rachel Brosnahan) came face to face with Shy Baldwin (LeRoy McClain), and Sophie Lennon (Jane Lynch). Two very different confrontations, but two highly explosive scenes with incredibly different outcomes. The episode left with Midge finally seeing her hard work pay off at the strip club, as the changes she implemented has begun to bring in an unexpected clientele.

The final two episodes, however, cover a barrage of topics, that plows forward with a rather fast pace and create an odd through-line for the plot, and ultimately the season’s conclusion. The big talking point is that Joel (Michael Zegen) finally tells Moishe (Kevin Pollak) about Mei (Stephanie Hsu), and someone ends up in the hospital. Meanwhile, Lenny (Luke Kirby) plays Carnegie Hall and which leads to some unexpected consequences for Midge.

Of the two episodes that aired the final episode had far more of an impact with some big moments for the series. One aspect that really stood out were the moments of dialogue. While on stage Miriam talks about the roles of men and women in the family, and it was so cleverly devised because it feels like such a timeless reflection of the dynamics of a household.

The household experience is explored further following that when Abe (Tony Shalhoub) and Moishe share an incredibly sweet moment that brought a tear to the eye of this cold English writer’s heart. The weight of the situation lands so well given the history between the two families has always been somewhat tumultuous, and even with the separation of Joel and Miriam, they’ve continued to forge a path forward together. So when these two men share a heart-to-heart, it hits with the full force of the history behind it.

Speaking of history, the pivotal scenes are reserved for character exploration between Midge, and Lenny. Now I won’t go into detail because it encroaches on spoiler territory, however, wow. The contrast in those two periods of interaction is so polar but so necessary. Lenny’s speech to Midge is her call to action and it’s brutally honest. With it, it carries the weight of honesty, caring, and with a big old dollop of bluntness. The exchange sets up a clear path with where the show will be headed into its fifth and final season.

This also seems like the perfect time to discuss how bloody brilliant Luke Kirby has done with the depiction of Lenny. His timing and comedic delivery are so captivating pairing well his facial reactions the emphasizing the punch line in his humor. Kirby’s character also has been the constant figure of the series that can stand head to head with Midge as equals, and one of the few men she respects. Lenny is such of a delightful character, and while I wish we had more of him, the choice to hold back on his emergence in the story makes it all the more potent when he does pop up.

While episode 7 didn’t land with as much impact and felt like it had a bit more fluff, I’ve got to give a shout out to Gideon Glick as Alfie, his particular style of adding color to the magical performance of his character is so peculiar, but so enchanting which also adds to his charm. I do wish that Stephanie Hsu would get some more screen time, because not only is she a fantastic actor, but her character has some great untapped exploration. She had a fantastic scene in the previous episodes as she holds no punches in laying out the reality of racism, and the discrimination of Asian Americans to Joel, which sadly is still very relevant today.

The Marvelous Mrs Maisel Episodes 7-8 finishes off Season 4 in a similar fashion to the previous season finale, in that it leaves Midge with a giant gut punch to her ego, and a big old reality check. The dialogue from Amy Sherman-Palladino in the finale episode shines in so many spots that will leave you with a variety of emotions. The actor portrayals were all on point to reinforce the writing with Rachel Brosnahan, Luke Kirby, Kevin Pollak, and Tony Shalhoub all bringing their A games. The subplots were a little wishy-washy, but overall, what a wonderful series. I’m not ready for Season 5!

The Marvelous Mrs Maisel Episodes 7-8 is available now exclusively on Amazon Prime.