TV Review: "The Gilded Age" (S3, Eps. 1-3)
The costume drama returns for a third season that is better, more poignant, and more complex, than its predecessors.
Hello, dear reader! Do you like what you read here at Omnivorous? Do you like reading fun but insightful takes on all things pop culture? Do you like supporting indie writers? If so, then please consider becoming a subscriber and get the newsletter delivered straight to your inbox. There are a number of paid options, but you can also sign up for free! Every little bit helps. Thanks for reading and now, on with the show!
Warning: Spoilers for the series follow.
When it comes to historical melodrama, no one does it quite like Julian Fellowes. Though The Gilded Age got off to a bit of a rough start in its first season–it’s somewhat hard to feel sorry for or have an interest in the foibles and struggles of the wealthy in this, the second Gilded Age–the series has grown stronger with each season. The third outing is without a doubt its strongest yet, with storylines that have real weight and meaning, some terrific performances from all the members of the cast, and some actual engagement with the complexities of the 19th century.
As has been the case from the beginning, Peggy’s storyline continues to be the most fascinating and layered, particularly the third episode, in which we get to meet the family of her new beau, Dr. Kirkland. During a fateful encounter with his family, including his redoubtable mother, Elizabeth (Phylicia Rashad), we learn a great deal about both the Kirklands and about her father, namely that Elizabeth essentially aspires to Whiteness while Arthur is an emancipated slave who made his money after he was freed. This is the most information that we’ve gotten about the normally taciturn Arthur and, just as importantly, this whole exchange reveals the complicated layers of Blackness in 19th century American life. I’m looking forward to seeing how, or if, the series continues to grapple with this complicated and vexed question (and, to be honest, I’m hoping we’ll get to see more of Rashad, who’s always amazing).
The younger members of the cast continue to grow and flex their acting muscles, and this is particularly true of Louis Jacobson. I’ll be the first to say that I wasn’t a huge fan of either Marian Brook or \ Jacobson’s acting when this series first began but, like so much else in this series, she has matured and grown with each season. Like Peggy, Marian is quite simply a good soul, someone who wants what’s best for everyone, whether upstairs or down. She’s also increasingly willing to challenge both of her aunts, but particularly Agnes, when she thinks that they’ve done something wrong.
Speaking of Agnes…oh, Christine Baranski, how do I love thee? She plays imperious dowager with such effortless bitchery, and yet she also has a knack for capturing the vulnerability that lurks beneath that snappy exterior. This season has made it abundantly clear just how much losing her fortune has affected her, and not just because she misses having money and has to depend on Ada’s charity. Losing her wealth knocked away one of the cornerstones on which she had built her identity and her sense of self and, though she would never admit it aloud, it’s clear that she’s frightened and frustrated at the possibility of being forgotten. Agnes, like everyone else in this series, is a character of many different layers and contradictions.
Indeed, one of the things I find refreshing about this season of The Gilded Age is that it isn’t afraid to grapple with ambiguity, and no character is all good or all bad. Even Mrs. Armstrong, the curmudgeonly lady’s maid, has her own moment of tenderness with Jimmy. For all that she says that she hadn’t intended to make him feel better or have hope, I’m not sure that I entirely believe her. Even the dashing Russell men aren’t quite as good as they might appear to be. Larry, our beloved twink, seems to see Jimmy, not as an equal, but instead as a junior partner, despite the fact that it’s the footman’s know-how regarding his clock that could make the difference between getting investors and being turned away. His father George is even more complicated, for while he’s a devoted family man, he’s also a ruthless businessman, someone who is willing to do whatever it takes in order to bring his railroad dreams to completion. (No matter how hot Morgan Spector is, we can’t quite shake the feeling that George isn’t quite as good of a man as we’d like him to be).
When it comes down to it, though, The Gilded Age is what it’s always been: a series about powerful women and their relationships with one another and their families. These first three episodes give us three indomitable matriarchs, all of them trying to make their way in a world that, as Ada reminds Marian, isn’t made for or particularly friendly toward women. Nixon continues to astonish in her role as Ada, bringing new layers to this woman who has gone from being the overlooked and dismissed spinster sister to the source of wealth and power in the house. Though she has a good heart, she has her blind spots, particularly when it comes to the temperance movement and her not-so-subtle desire that the staff bend to her will and sign a pledge stating they won’t drink. Agnes, as we’ve already seen, has become increasingly viperish as her former prominence in the household has been taken over by Ada. Watching Baranski and Nixon strike sparks off one another continues to be a highlight of the season.
It probably goes without saying that Carrie Coon continues to be nothing short of electrifying as Bertha, but I’ll point it out anyway. She’s one of those actresses who simply commands any scene in which she appears, and that is true in these first three episodes, in which she continues to try to get her daughter, Glays, to marry the Duke of Buckingham, no matter what Gladys or George might have to say about it. The thing about Bertha is that she really does believe that she is doing the right thing for Gladys. She wants her daughter to have all of the things that she didn’t have, and such is her indomitable will that she will see it done, no matter what the cost, to her, to George, or to Gladys. And, because of Carrie Coon’s formidable presence as an actress, we cheer for her, even as we wince at the potential consequences of this match, both intended and not.
These three episodes are truly extraordinary, and there’s so much to love about The Gilded Age, from its melodramatic plots to its superb guest stars (continued hats off to Ashlie Atkinson, who continues to shine as Mamie Fish). This is shaping up to be another extraordinary season, and I can’t wait to see what’s next.