Masters of Sex, S1E3
WARNING: This review contains spoilers.
Bill Masters is interested in sex research because he does not understand it. The flashback with Masters and Scully gave us insight into how and why he is driven to research a taboo subject in the 1950's.
Lots of stuff happening, leading to a scattered episode. We see an idealistic Bill Masters in the flashbacks, excited about his work and future research opportunities, contrasted with the present-day Masters, who is cynical, burned-out, and frumpy. The opening scene where a young bride-to-be comes into the office for some discrete advice about birth control reminds us that the 1950's was a stuffy place. This young woman is embarrassed talking about sex with her betrothed, and the look on her face when Masters shows her to apply a condom is priceless. Masters explains her alternatives, including a cervical cap, and the young woman asks, "Where's my cervix?" That's good stuff.
Virginia is busy this Bill Masters-heavy episode trying to win respect from Masters and the new doctor, Dr. DePaul. Virginia sees herself as a colleague of Masters, but she is reminded several times during the hour that she is viewed as a secretary. Masters is treating her coldly at work, and she finally rebels when she tells an upset Libby that the reason that Masters and Libby cannot conceive is not because of Libby's limitations, but Masters himself. This is knowledge Virginia gained carnally from Dr. Haas in the pilot.
Dr. Haas is also on a "respect" tour. He wants to gain a permanent position at the hospital and attempts to grab the headlines and credit when a pregnant lady comes to the hospital with quadruplets to deliver. Interestingly, Masters is the best candidate for the job, but he wants none of the publicity that Haas desires. And we see several times that Haas is in a similar state as Virginia, wanting to be respected but not receiving much.
Libby, Masters' wife is continuing her treatment with Dr. Haas, who successfully helps her and Masters get pregnant by the end of the episode. She has also found out that Masters has been lying to her about their difficulty conceiving. At first she is mad, but once Haas tells her she is pregnant, she quickly forgives Masters and begins to understand how deeply embarrassed Masters is for his inability.
Betty finally goes under the knife to have her tubal ligation reversed, but Masters finds that reversal is not possible because of occupational repetitive use injuries. Even though her injury is not geographically related to it, I must fight the urge to make a carpal tunnel joke here. But Betty decides not to tell the Pretzel King about her inability to conceive, and she intends to live a happy life as a snack baron's wife.
Finally, on the research front, Masters and Virginia are continuing their research at Betty's cathouse. Masters is concerned that the prostitutes are not good candidates for the study, since they are outliers of the general population. And he needs to bring in some men to research to improve the study. What he finds is that male homosexual prostitutes are the only ones willing to work with him, and he is very uncomfortable with the idea of homosexuality. Interestingly, one of the male prostitutes tells Masters that a certain university official is a client, and Masters uses this knowledge to try to get approval for a university-sanctioned study. Provost Scully, in one of the flashbacks, told Bill that in order to conduct his human sexual research, Bill would need to go into a respectable profession like obstetrics for at least 20 years. Then, the respected, experienced doctor could conduct his "deviant" research and hide in plain sight. Something that Scully has been doing with his own sexual proclivities.
Masters of Sex has been brilliant in the two previous episodes, but this episode meandered and lacked the focus we have seen previously. I look forward to the show getting back on track.
Random Thoughts:
- I didn't see the "Scully's in the closet" twist coming.
- Michael Sheen is owning his role.
- My heart sank when Betty was on the operating table and Masters could not reverse her condition.
- If you want to know Maureen's age, you have to count the rings on her hoo-ha.
What did you think?
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