S05.E07: A House Full of Extremely Lame Horses

[Pallas]

Abe takes Midge’s place at Parent-Teacher Day.

[EtheltoTillie]

So that’s where Hank Azaria and Sutton Foster appear. 
We still don’t know who the narrator was for last week. 

Edited May 12, 2023 by EtheltoTillie

[millennium]

This one was more creative and heartfelt than usual.  It's almost like the writers thought, we're getting close to the end, maybe we should make an effort.   

Hank Azaria could have stolen the show (I would actually watch the Danny Stevens Show) but Midge still shone brighter.

Something about Gordon Ford -- his delivery, maybe -- reminds me of George Clooney.

Was Midge saying that Rose is terminal in the 1970s sequence?

[bybrandy]

It certainly felt like Rose was terminal in the 1970s segments (maybe more foreshadowing for people who think Midge is terminal in he 1990 segment.  And it is a very Wiseman way I feel to pay for all of Rose's dreams but doing it by booking an extended Australian tour rather than by just spending the time with Rose.  

And if Midge is terminal in the end does Suzie coming back into her life means Suzie pulls all he strings to give Midge another momet on stage outside of Kansas?

Like many bits with Moishe and Shirley the not understanding that Midge is successful goes on to many beats every time they play it.  I don't even need them to get it I just need them to stop referencing it multiple times in every single line. 

I enjoyed Hank Azari here but that segment went on way too long at the end. 

  

[EtheltoTillie]

My main takeaway from this week was the theme of how women are mistreated and devalued.  It all started with Abe and his preposterous history book of the Weissman first-born males.  No wonder Midge has always struggled to achieve and be recognized.  But as usual I couldn't stomach Abe's cartoonish narcissism.  Puh-leeze.  This was the Palladinos on steroids.  Do you think Abe was proud of his granddaughter when he discovered her talent?  Will we learn the follow up?

I also had enough of Marin Hinkle's imperious commands about getting the apartment ready for her "event."  Interesting how the matchmaking enterprise turned out to be a money drain instead of a money maker.   Not only was Midge supporting Susie's gambling indirectly, she was supporting her mother's vanity project.

Back to Susie:  I did not expect her to pull that stunt on her other comic (forgot his name).  She was gambling with both her clients' futures.  She just can't stop. 

 

Edited May 12, 2023 by EtheltoTillie

[millennium]

2 hours ago, bybrandy said:

And if Midge is terminal in the end

I hadn't heard these suspicions.   But every time she lights a cigarette, and especially with her cleaning out the vending machine in this episode, I can't help but think about impending lung cancer.   I look at her and think she's so pretty on the outside but her lungs are black with tar. 

[EtheltoTillie]

There were a few more gestures toward the Joan Rivers story in this episode.  First, her famous feud with Johnny Carson, where he would never talk to her again after she got her own talk show. And that giant house was similar to Joan’s real life ornate Manhattan mansion. 

[shapeshifter]

4 hours ago, bybrandy said:

Like many bits with Moishe and Shirley the not understanding that Midge is successful goes on to many beats every time they play it.  I don't even need them to get it I just need them to stop referencing it multiple times in every single line. 

Moishe and Shirley's doggedly ignoring Midge's replies to their query as to whom was getting them tickets to their favorite show was definitely annoying, but I think its going on too long was the point. And they were giving her chances to reply differently, even if Midge was the one who got the tickets, because they would rather boast about their ex-daughter-in-law's connections than her power.
Like @EtheltoTillie posts:

2 hours ago, EtheltoTillie said:

My main takeaway from this week was the theme of how women are mistreated and devalued.  It all started with Abe and his preposterous history book of the Weissman first-born males. 

this episode was about women being undervalued, with the climax being Rachel Brosnahan's believable sobs behind the bathroom door.
So, although, yeah, Hank Azaria singing "Nancy With The Laughing Face" may have "went on way too long," @bybrandy:

4 hours ago, bybrandy said:

I enjoyed Hank Azari here but that segment went on way too long at the end. 

--I guess that's the point? That women too long were only appreciated for superficial reasons? 
IDK, Hank Azaria was genuinely loving in his delivery, and his Dad character did care about his daughter.
And, hey, the song made us stick around for the real show's credits, including all the women's names.

 

2 hours ago, EtheltoTillie said:

Do you think Abe was proud of his granddaughter when he discovered her talent?  Will we learn the follow up?

I think Abe can't ignore Esther's talent and will soon be boasting about it -- managing to take credit for it himself -- maybe even boasting about how forward thinking he is regarding Womens Liberation, and how his influence is why Esther reached her full potential.

So much to unpack in this episode. More later.

Edited May 12, 2023 by shapeshifter

[Suzn]

5 hours ago, bybrandy said:

Like many bits with Moishe and Shirley the not understanding that Midge is successful goes on to many beats every time they play it.  I don't even need them to get it I just need them to stop referencing it multiple times in every single line.   

 

1 hour ago, shapeshifter said:

Moishe and Shirley's doggedly ignoring Midge's replies to their query as to whom was getting them tickets to their favorite show was definitely annoying, but I think its going on too long was the point. And they were giving her chances to reply differently, even if Midge was the one who got the tickets, because they would rather boast about their ex-daughter-in-law's connections than her power.
Like @EtheltoTillie posts:

It is beyond annoying that Moishe and Shirley are so stupid that it never registers that Midge is successful and that she is the one who gets the tickets.   I mean, how dumb do you have to be to  not understand the repetition that Midge gets the tickets?  It's not funny, just ridiculous.  They could show them as mystified and not fully understanding without total denial.

That does fit with the theme of undervaluing women in this episode though.  I would like to see a little pushback on that attitude.  Women's liberation didn't spring out of a vacuum - there women who were aware and frustrated.

[AriAu]

Wow.....this episode really showed a few things:

1. Last week's episode was really, Really, REALLY great, particularly by making this basic Maisel episode seem so blah.

2. And its hard to make any episode with Hank Azaria doing impressions and voices along side Sutton Foster (how do you have her on and NOT have her sing) seem blah.

3. Moishe and Shirley are not particularly nice people, but they are saints compared to Abe and Rose, a toxic combination of self-absorbtion, self importance, pettiness,  rudeness and cruelty.

4. It is no surprise that the Maisel kids have a messed up relationship with their Mother....and are messed up in general, altho Ethan at least knows how to be happy. No surprise that Esther is messed up since the only one she could talk to (according to the first episode of the season's flash forward, is her grandfather Abe.

5.  Gordon Ford is NOT funny-his lines while Mike had them at the bannister  worked to make Mike comfortable but just were not funny. On the other hand, Danny Thomas (I mean Stevens) IS.

Random thoughts

1. Are we supposed to believe that Midge and/or the staff wrote Danny Stevens lines, or did he come up with them himself based on Midge's premise of tell your life story and make it funny.

2. How do you have a musical number with Hank Azaria singing and NOT Sutton Foster.

3. Based on last week's episode, the Hawaii Wedding was 1973, as was the scene of Rose shooting take 197 of the commercial. I would have thought they would have put some time between them since Rose looked pretty bad in this episode.

4. Poor Janusz..... I know he was aggravated about the Maisel's and Zelda's helping them, but I was surprised he didn't greet the kids since he said how much he loved caring for them.

5. A little heavy handed on the equal pay comment-true, but heavy handed.

 

Edited May 12, 2023 by AriAu

[kwnyc]

1 hour ago, AriAu said:

On the other hand, Danny Thomas (I mean Stevens) IS.

Yes, that was definitely a take on Danny Thomas. I agree with Midge, he wasn't hitting on her (that was Gordon projecting). I almost wish Midge had taken the gig...I think she could have been a good writer. But that would be a whole different show. (And Hank Azaria is always a pleasure to see! The character did not come across as being anything but honest. Presumably, he goes on to found St. Bude's Hospital!)

I'm glad that we had that earlier flash-forward that showed that Esther at least had her grandfather to talk to. I was worried Abe would not acknowledge a GIRL with the "Weissman knowledge." And Midge and Joel have always acknowledged that Ethan's not the brightest kid, and they are okay with it.

We're also seeing self-destructive Susie when she tries to convince James not to take the Paar show. She manages him, too! And Midge actually held her tongue and acted like a pro when she interacted with Pete from Parr. It's one of the first times we've seen her do it. And going into the bathroom and crying is a perfectly valid at-home reaction.

 

[EtheltoTillie]

1 hour ago, AriAu said:

1. Are we supposed to believe that Midge and/or the staff wrote Danny Stevens lines, or did he come up with them himself based on Midge's premise of tell your life story and make it funny.

 

I thought it was that he came up with it himself. 

[shapeshifter]

1 hour ago, AriAu said:

3. Based on last week's episode, the Hawaii Wedding was 1973, as was the scene of Rose shooting take 197 of the commercial. I would have thought they would have put some time between them since Rose looked pretty bad in this episode.

Thanks for pointing out that both the Hawaiian non-Wedding and fading Rose shooting the commercial were the same year (1973). 
I'm going with Midge's comment about "196 takes" being hyperbole that expresses how everyone feels about the number of takes by that point ― including Rose, who has to sit down.
Cancer can be like that. One day you're just a little thinner than you used to be, and 6 months later you're dead.
Kudos to Marin Hinkle, the lighting people, the makeup people, and the director for subtly conveying Rose's physical state
― which also makes the credits at the end over "Nancy With The Laughing Face" a valid choice.

[Oosala]

OK, I'm about 8 minutes into this episode and I HAD TO POST THIS.  Rose looks positively stunning while trying to turn on the stove to make tea.  The color coordination of her dress and her necklace is SPOT ON.  I want that necklace so much I'm going to throw up.

[Crs97]

1 hour ago, shapeshifter said:

I'm going with Midge's comment about "196 takes" being hyperbole

Except the clapper said, “Take 197” at the start of the next filming.

[Carolina Girl]

5 hours ago, Suzn said:

I mean, how dumb do you have to be to  not understand the repetition that Midge gets the tickets?  It's not funny, just ridiculous.

It was funny the first couple of times - with the "okay tell a joke" at the Yom Kippur dinner.  At the Button Club, however, it was obvious from the reception she received from the patrons when she took the stage that she was very well known and liked.  How that crowd didn't tell those two to shut the fuck up when Midge was trying to do her set is beyond me.

Now their refusal to understand what she does is simply annoying.    

[shapeshifter]

Just now, Crs97 said:

Except the clapper said, “Take 197” at the start of the next filming.

Huh. So Rose might just be weary in that scene rather than being terminally ill? 
But soon after (right?) Midge states:

• "We will continue to tell her business is great, and we will make as many commercials as she wants, because that's all I can do for her in the brief time she's got left."

And then Midge and Rose:

• [ROSE] We film all my great success stories and do a series of commercials with them. I mean, it may affect everything we just did today, but, push come to shove, we just do it again. What do you think?
• [MIDGE WITH A CONCERNED BUT LOVING LOOK] I think that's a great idea, Mama.

Whether it's cancer or heart disease, if Rose only has a "brief time...left," I just can't imagine her doing 197 takes. 
Or maybe it was a burst of adrenaline and life before dying? Is that a thing sometimes?

[millennium]

6 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

IDK, Hank Azaria was genuinely loving in his delivery, and his Dad character did care about his daughter.

In only about 15 minutes onscreen Hank Azaria's character showed more concern for Midge and his TV daughter than Abe Weissman has exhibited in five seasons.   In fact, Abe was immediately distracted by what he thought was his grandson's long-awaited epiphany even as his daughter was breaking glass and weeping in the bathroom.  Fuck you, Abe.   You're not funny.   You're not endearing.  You're an obnoxious and entitled narcissist without the creds to back it up.

 

5 hours ago, Suzn said:

That does fit with the theme of undervaluing women in this episode though.

Especially in the scene where Jack Paar's booking agent pushed for James over Midge.   James and Midge both represent groups (Blacks and women) discriminated against in the 1960s, but what apparently gave James the edge was his Y chromosome.

 

[debraran]

5 hours ago, Oosala said:

OK, I'm about 8 minutes into this episode and I HAD TO POST THIS.  Rose looks positively stunning while trying to turn on the stove to make tea.  The color coordination of her dress and her necklace is SPOT ON.  I want that necklace so much I'm going to throw up.

It is nice, looks a little like one I got at a fair trade store years ago. She looked great but I hate how helpless they always make her. I'm glad Midge is more self-sufficient even if no one understands she works. ; ) I liked her blue dress too. Very pretty.

I like how when Moishe and Shirley kept saying they were glad they didn't have a girl and telling their grand daughter not to listen to them, when Midge leaned over to her daughter and said "Let's just make that a standing order" Those lines aren't laugh at loud but they make me smile. Even with Ethan, as unmotherly as they try to make her, she always makes breakfast and the conversation about whether she told him about stuffing things down drains has gone on in many households. I ignored how obnoxious they make  "There is no possible way my grandson is happy!!" Abe Weissman. : )

I don't  think I ever teared up with Midge but I did when she cried in the bathroom. We all were there in some way once at least.

Edited May 12, 2023 by debraran

[luvthepros]

18 hours ago, millennium said:

Was Midge saying that Rose is terminal in the 1970s sequence?

That is how I took it.

[debraran]

2 minutes ago, luvthepros said:

That is how I took it.

Little time she has left did seem ominous. I hope they don't do that to Midge too, too sad of an ending. I hope she is just thinking of how many die too young especially in her business. 

[Dianaofthehunt]

Didn’t they say that Jack Paar was going to be *at* the showcase? If he had seen Midge’s set, he would have hired her on the spot.

Oh, what a great reveal of the Mozart piece! Take that, Abe!

 

Edited May 13, 2023 by Dianaofthehunt

[greekmom]

All the adults are horrible, horrible people.  They are worse than the people in GG.  So obtuse.

Why doesn't the Weissmans (and Midge) get a new maid?

So Ethan doesn't have the Weissman genius gene but Esther does.  

 

[wonderwoman]

7 minutes ago, greekmom said:

All the adults are horrible, horrible people.  They are worse than the people in GG.  So obtuse.

Why doesn't the Weissmans (and Midge) get a new maid?

So Ethan doesn't have the Weissman genius gene but Esther does.  

 

they are awful, which is why i’m not going to miss this show. i get that the audience has to suspend disbelief, but in the past, amy would take us to the edge. now she just pushes us over the edge.

[txhorns79]

6 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

•  

Whether it's cancer or heart disease, if Rose only has a "brief time...left," I just can't imagine her doing 197 takes. 
Or maybe it was a burst of adrenaline and life before dying? Is that a thing sometimes?

They were playing the Love Story-theme music with her commercial.  Perhaps Rose has whatever unnamed disease Ali McGraw had in that movie, the kind that left her looking great and seeming fine right up until death.  

 

42 minutes ago, greekmom said:

Why doesn't the Weissmans (and Midge) get a new maid?

Because then they can't do an episodes worth of running jokes where Zelda has to rescue the Weissman's from their own stupidity.  More seriously, yes, once it became clear Zelda was going, they would have gotten a new maid because apparently it's too much for these grown adults to even use the stove, much less clean up after themselves.    

[DrSpaceman73]

16 hours ago, EtheltoTillie said:

My main takeaway from this week was the theme of how women are mistreated and devalued.  It all started with Abe and his preposterous history book of the Weissman first-born males.  No wonder Midge has always struggled to achieve and be recognized.  But as usual I couldn't stomach Abe's cartoonish narcissism.  Puh-leeze.  This was the Palladinos on steroids.  Do you think Abe was proud of his granddaughter when he discovered her talent?  Will we learn the follow up?

I also had enough of Marin Hinkle's imperious commands about getting the apartment ready for her "event."  Interesting how the matchmaking enterprise turned out to be a money drain instead of a money maker.   Not only was Midge supporting Susie's gambling indirectly, she was supporting her mother's vanity project.

Back to Susie:  I did not expect her to pull that stunt on her other comic (forgot his name).  She was gambling with both her clients' futures.  She just can't stop. 

 

We know how it turns out for the granddaughter. They showed us the first episode this season.  She turns out just like her grandfather due to his influence.  Highly intelligent driven and heavily into academia. She literally tells us all this in the flash forwards earlier in the season.  

1 hour ago, Dianaofthehunt said:

Didn’t they say that Jack Paar was going to be *at* the showcase? If he had seen Midge’s set, he would have hired her on the spot.

Oh, what a great reveal of the Mozart piece! That that, Abe!

 

He was there.  No speaking parts but he was at the showcase. The booking agent said he saw her and didn't 'get' her

As for hank Azaria the man is amazing. Did he learn that accent and voice just for this one small part?  

[DrSpaceman73]

7 hours ago, millennium said:

In only about 15 minutes onscreen Hank Azaria's character showed more concern for Midge and his TV daughter than Abe Weissman has exhibited in five seasons.   In fact, Abe was immediately distracted by what he thought was his grandson's long-awaited epiphany even as his daughter was breaking glass and weeping in the bathroom.  Fuck you, Abe.   You're not funny.   You're not endearing.  You're an obnoxious and entitled narcissist without the creds to back it up.

 

Especially in the scene where Jack Paar's booking agent pushed for James over Midge.   James and Midge both represent groups (Blacks and women) discriminated against in the 1960s, but what apparently gave James the edge was his Y chromosome.

 

James did have a movie coming out too. And Midge is a joke writer on a competing talk show.  

Based on the stand up performance Midge deserved a spot .....I guess I mean we only saw her do pretty standard fair stand up intro jokes.   Wish we could have seen more of a set where she 'killed it'.   

But James is up and coming with a movie set to premier.  It does make more sense.  

 

[Carolina Girl]

52 minutes ago, txhorns79 said:

Perhaps Rose has whatever unnamed disease Ali McGraw had in that movie,

Leukemia.  And surprising as we would find it today with the HIIPA laws, back in the day, in many cases they would literally hide it from the one suffering from terminal illness but tell the husband/wife instead.  Rex Harrison kept a leukemia diagnosis from his wife Kay Kendall and in Love Story Oliver knows and doesn't tell Jenny - she drags it out of the doctor one day when she's feeling "absolutely shitty."  .  

[shapeshifter]

9 hours ago, millennium said:

in the scene where Jack Paar's booking agent pushed for James over Midge.   James and Midge both represent groups (Blacks and women) discriminated against in the 1960s, but what apparently gave James the edge was his Y chromosome.

I assumed Midge didn’t get booked on Jack Paar’s show because Gordon Ford somehow got Paar’s people to not hire Midge after Midge had gone to Gordon Ford to give him a heads up that she was doing the Paar thing (12 comics getting to do short sets, with, apparently, the best one winning a spot) but Midge and Gordon started arguing about Midge not being good enough and Stevens only wanting to shtup Midge rather than hire her to write, and then Midge got in Gordon’s face and told him she’d prove him wrong. 

[EtheltoTillie]

9 hours ago, DrSpaceman73 said:

We know how it turns out for the granddaughter. They showed us the first episode this season.  She turns out just like her grandfather due to his influence.  Highly intelligent driven and heavily into academia. She literally tells us all this in the flash forwards earlier in the season. 

Yes, sorry my question wasn't clear.  I knew this, but I don't think we know how Abe will react to this earthshaking revelation. 

6 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

I assumed Midge didn’t get booked on Jack Paar’s show because Gordon Ford somehow got Paar’s people to not hire Midge after Midge had gone to Gordon Ford to give him a heads up that she was doing the Paar thing (12 co

Yes, didn't even think of this idea.  More Machiavellian plotting. 

Edited May 13, 2023 by EtheltoTillie

[greekmom]

13 hours ago, debraran said:

I like how when Moishe and Shirley kept saying they were glad they didn't have a girl and telling their grand daughter not to listen to them, when Midge leaned over to her daughter and said "Let's just make that a standing order" Those lines a

Their son isn't much of a prize. Divorced, failed business and now running a club.

On 5/12/2023 at 6:43 AM, EtheltoTillie said:

I also had enough of Marin Hinkle's imperious commands about getting the apartment ready for her "event."  Interesting how the matchmaking enterprise turned out to be a money drain instead of a money maker.   Not only was Midge supporting Susie's gambling indirectly, she was supporting her mother's vanity project.

Too ahead of it's time? I mean the woman in Jewish matchmaker is making a ton of cash.  Guess she was investing too much in getting the women ready with a proper venue, dance and social classes and not charging extra for these things. 

[AuntieMame]

18 hours ago, Oosala said:

OK, I'm about 8 minutes into this episode and I HAD TO POST THIS.  Rose looks positively stunning while trying to turn on the stove to make tea.  The color coordination of her dress and her necklace is SPOT ON.  I want that necklace so much I'm going to throw up.

I’m going to rewatch anyway and I will take a closer look at the necklace. I’m a maker and now you’re making me wonder if I could reproduce it, lol. 
 
I loved Midge’s blue dress too, even though it was simpler than things she usually wears. I love things that show the whole line of the torso. These styles are great for petite women too, makes them look taller. 

17 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

Whether it's cancer or heart disease, if Rose only has a "brief time...left," I just can't imagine her doing 197 takes. 
Or maybe it was a burst of adrenaline and life before dying? Is that a thing sometimes?

This is actually a thing. I’ve seen it happen more than once. The terminal person rallies to get their affairs in order, see everyone they want to see and sometimes heal old wounds and breaches with other people. Those watching can sometimes almost believe that this will be a permanent improvement. But it usually isn’t. 
 
Im surprised that Rose’s matchmaking business is a loser. Yes, by that time formal matchmaking was on the downturn, but dating services and matchmaking have always been a thing. This doesn’t track with the other matchmakers taking mafia level defensive measures when Rose came on the scene. You don’t roll out the big guns for someone who isn’t a threat. But okay. Midge is a good daughter. 
 
The Weissman’s helplessness is overdone. Especially in American society at everything except the very highest levels. Rose isn’t what passes in America for an aristocrat. Her family money is three generations old with her being the third generation. Plus it was lucky strike oil. Do you really think that grandmama didn’t know how to turn on the stove? Or would have allowed her progeny to be not just spoiled but beyond idiocy? Meh. 
 
I’ve never watched Gilmore Girls (I know, I know) but has anyone ever accused the Palladino’s of being ham-fisted and heavy handed when it comes to both melodrama and/or when they’re virtue signaling? And that they often accomplish the opposite of what they intended? 

[jrzy]

On 5/12/2023 at 5:43 AM, EtheltoTillie said:

My main takeaway from this week was the theme of how women are mistreated and devalued.  It all started with Abe and his preposterous history book of the Weissman first-born males.  No wonder Midge has always struggled to achieve and be recognized.  But as usual I couldn't stomach Abe's cartoonish narcissism.  Puh-leeze.  This was the Palladinos on steroids.  Do you think Abe was proud of his granddaughter when he discovered her talent?  Will we learn the follow up?

I also had enough of Marin Hinkle's imperious commands about getting the apartment ready for her "event."  Interesting how the matchmaking enterprise turned out to be a money drain instead of a money maker.   Not only was Midge supporting Susie's gambling indirectly, she was supporting her mother's vanity project.

Back to Susie:  I did not expect her to pull that stunt on her other comic (forgot his name).  She was gambling with both her clients' futures.  She just can't stop. 

 

I am so over Susie, it's fine to sabotage yourself, but not your clients.  She is ridiculous.  I wish that Abe and Rose weren't quite as cartoonish as they are,  they are kind of my favorite characters in the show, nobody can toss off a line like Tony Shaloub.

 

[Crs97]

1 hour ago, AuntieMame said:

And that they often accomplish the opposite of what they intended? 

I don’t want to speak for others, but I don’t think the Palladinos realize how much people disliked Rory by the end of GG.  It wouldn’t surprise me if they still think these characters are all quirky and lovable.

Edited May 13, 2023 by Crs97

[chessiegal]

13 minutes ago, Crs97 said:

I don’t want to speak for others, but I don’t think the Palladinos realize how much people disliked Rory by the end of GG.  It wouldn’t surprise me if they still think these characters are all quirky and lovable.

Oh, I think the Palladinos did - they wrote Rory to be a failure.

[debraran]

2 hours ago, greekmom said:

Their son isn't much of a prize. Divorced, failed business and now running a club.

 

Very true but I thought it was more the girl dating etc. Even today parents don't treat the boys the same way, teaching them values etc. All in all though with the cheating incident being pretty big and starting Mrs Maisel off, he was a good dad for the time and still loves Midge. I think he is that in spite of his parents.

[shapeshifter]

2 hours ago, greekmom said:

Their son isn't much of a prize. Divorced, failed business and now running a club.

Hey! That's my uncle you're trash talking!🤣

[Suzn]

1 hour ago, jrzy said:

I am so over Susie, it's fine to sabotage yourself, but not your clients.  She is ridiculous.  I wish that Abe and Rose weren't quite as cartoonish as they are,  they are kind of my favorite characters in the show, nobody can toss off a line like Tony Shaloub.

 

Both sets of parents are just awful.  I don't understand how they all  can be so oblivious and really stupid  No one gets what Midge does and no one can follow simple directions, even when repeated multiple times. Moishe and Shirley can't understand that Midge can get tickets and Abe and Rose don't understand that TV shows have writers.  And Rose can't light a match or understand that Zelda wrote a book of instructions.  I mean, really, can anyone be that dumb and survive?  I can almost like Abe at times, but that is solely due to the likeability of Tony Shaloub.  To be fair, I have some tolerance for Moishe, due to Kevin Pollak, too.  Dumb and inept is not funny.

[amarante]

Is it me or did most of the characters go from being somewhat funny/eccentric characters to veering off into the completely obnoxious pathological territory.

Abe Weissman's child rearing advice was literally abusive - not charming or eccentric

Shirley and Moishe have gone from being a bit boorish as a counterpoint to the Weissman's UWS pretensions to being obliviously annoying - heckling and being completely oblivious to Midge working at the show. I mean even if they don't realize she has a somewhat high level position, no one is stupid enough not to realize that even a receptionist is able to get tickets to watch a show with an audience

 

[quangtran]

Quote

Is it me or did most of the characters go from being somewhat funny/eccentric characters to veering off into the completely obnoxious pathological territory.

I'd say that were ALWAYS like that. People complained about how annoying the Maisels were since their introduction in episode 2.

[SoMuchTV]

15 hours ago, txhorns79 said:

They were playing the Love Story-theme music with her commercial.  Perhaps Rose has whatever unnamed disease Ali McGraw had in that movie, the kind that left her looking great and seeming fine right up until death. 

Oh!  I thought that was from The Godfather.  And my mind went on a little walk through "why is that significant?" to "wait, was The Godfather even out in 1973?" to "how old was I in 1973?  Did I see it when it came out?" Then my attention span ran out and I was back to the show.

And that dress that she was saying was so special - I thought it looked, well, comfortable.  Like the equivalent of a stylish jogging suit, compared to what she normally wears.

[EtheltoTillie]

I decided to rewatch the very first episode today, because it's always enlightening to go back to a pilot and see how much of what comes later was set up at the beginning.  (Fun fact: I rewatched The Americans pilot minutes after finishing the finale, and it was uncanny what was foreshadowed.)  So in relation to the questions about were the parents always like this,

Abe was imperious and dense, Rose was a domineering status-conscious housewife who was wearing a really beautiful Chanel suit.  Midge was not incompetent--she kept making the delicious brisket.  Ethan was an absolute doofus. Little Esther was very young.  Rose was encouraging her to be happy.  Girls should be happy, boys should be smart!  This mirrored what happened in this week's episode, where Ethan was a happy child and Esther was the smart one, and no one was happy about that except Midge and Joel.

I wanted to see Midge's breakout routine again and see if she was a good comedian, and she was--more like a real standup than in her later appearances that we have mocked.  Joel sucked.  You got to meet Lenny Bruce and Susie.  Midge told Joel to make jokes about something personal--the holes in his shirt--and he was unable to handle it.  Totally foreshadowing her advice to Hank Azaria in this week's episode. 

Joel was such a cretin in the pilot episode, but he redeemed himself later. 

Gilbert Gottfried had a small cameo as an MC at the club where Joel and Midge saw Lenny Bruce when they were in college. 

Edited May 14, 2023 by EtheltoTillie

[Oosala]

 

On 5/12/2023 at 12:43 PM, millennium said:

In only about 15 minutes onscreen Hank Azaria's character showed more concern for Midge and his TV daughter than Abe Weissman has exhibited in five seasons.   In fact, Abe was immediately distracted by what he thought was his grandson's long-awaited epiphany even as his daughter was breaking glass and weeping in the bathroom.  Fuck you, Abe.   You're not funny.   You're not endearing.  You're an obnoxious and entitled narcissist without the creds to back it up.

I cannot stand Abe Weissman, the character.  "You're not funny.  You're not endearing.  You're an obnoxious and entitled narcissist..." indeed.  I've been known to mute him when he's on one of his irritating rants.

On 5/13/2023 at 9:31 AM, Suzn said:

And Rose can't light a match or understand that Zelda wrote a book of instructions.  I mean, really, can anyone be that dumb and survive?

Rose can't even remember that Zelda WROTE that book.  It remains untouched by any of those zany Weissmans.  I'm on Zelda's husband's side.  Cut Them Loose so we can begin OUR lives.

It has become impossible for me to watch this show all in one go.  I watch a bit, get bored or pissed off, then go do something else.  Back to the show, stop, do something else.  Lather, rinse, and repeat.  NOTE: This didn't apply when Lenny Bruce was onscreen.  Then it was watch the show, rewind, and repeat!

Crap.  I forgot to mention Nancy With the Laughing Face.  I first heard this song being sung by Adrian Dunbar in the movie Hear My Song, which is based on the true story of Irish tenor Josef Locke and his return to the British stage after self-imposed exile in Ireland to avoid tax charges.  This is off topic, but I highly recommend this movie.

Edited May 14, 2023 by Oosala

[txhorns79]

2 hours ago, Oosala said:

Rose can't even remember that Zelda WROTE that book.  It remains untouched by any of those zany Weissmans.  I'm on Zelda's husband's side.  Cut Them Loose so they can begin THEIR lives.

Seriously.  How did these people not die the day after Zelda left?  They find the use of matches in lighting a stove to be too complex a task!  This is something that always bugs me.  I don't mind the characters being eccentric.  I mind when the characters are written as too dumb to function.

 

9 hours ago, AuntieMame said:

This doesn’t track with the other matchmakers taking mafia level defensive measures when Rose came on the scene.

I can see how it is possible that Rose is good at matchmaking, but can't really handle a full scale business. 

[Pallas]

Rose's biggest competition may have been the 60's. 

[shapeshifter]

1 hour ago, txhorns79 said:

Seriously.  How did these people not die the day after Zelda left?  They find the use of matches in lighting a stove to be too complex a task!  This is something that always bugs me.  I don't mind the characters being eccentric.  I mind when the characters are written as too dumb to function.

I can see how it is possible that Rose is good at matchmaking, but can't really handle a full scale business. 

4 hours ago, Oosala said:

Rose can't even remember that Zelda WROTE that book

Possible explanation:   
Midge made a reference to Rose not having much time left, which I assumed was due to cancer or heart disease because everybody smoked. But then Rose shouldn’t have been able to do 197 takes of her matchmaking commercial. 
So:   
Rose must have some form of dementia, such as Alzheimer’s.

[DrSpaceman73]

9 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

Possible explanation:   
Midge made a reference to Rose not having much time left, which I assumed was due to cancer or heart disease because everybody smoked. But then Rose shouldn’t have been able to do 197 takes of her matchmaking commercial. 
So:   
Rose must have some form of dementia, such as Alzheimer’s.

I thought those two things, zelda leaving and the commetcial shoot, were several years apart.  

[shapeshifter]

19 minutes ago, DrSpaceman73 said:

I thought those two things, zelda leaving and the commetcial shoot, were several years apart.  

Even so, that could be it.  
I guess we’ll find out soon. 
Just 2 episodes left.

[SummerMouse]

8 hours ago, SoMuchTV said:

Oh!  I thought that was from The Godfather.  And my mind went on a little walk through "why is that significant?" to "wait, was The Godfather even out in 1973?" to "how old was I in 1973?  Did I see it when it came out?" Then my attention span ran out and I was back to the show.

And that dress that she was saying was so special - I thought it looked, well, comfortable.  Like the equivalent of a stylish jogging suit, compared to what she normally wears.

I thought for sure she meant that she was going to change into a special dress! That looked like a sweater and skirt set that she would wear bowling. 

[Eureka]

18 minutes ago, SummerMouse said:

I thought for sure she meant that she was going to change into a special dress! That looked like a sweater and skirt set that she would wear bowling. 

I was surprised because she always performs in a black dress.