Masters of Sex - Asterion - Review : "Time Has Passed"

Please note: English is not my first language.



I'm very sorry for posting late, but I've been busy (I'm moving 200 miles away). Now let's talk about this episode! To my knowledge, no show in the history of television has ever done similar time jumps (in an episode). Of course, I'm talking about traditional episodes, not series finales and last episodes of a series. The episode begins five months after the events of Blackbird, a brilliant episode. It was obvious there would be consequences, but I didn't expect things to turn up that way. 3 years have passed in 55 minutes, yet, I wasn't lost at all. First of all, don't watch this episode if you're tired, because it requires attention. As it stands the episode is very dense and shows the characters trying to pick up the pieces of their shattered lives. Some of the characters are reconciled, and others are separated. Life is depicted as a continuous challenge and an unending struggle. The episode is very fast-paced with stories being told in and out the scene; it feels very different, but is nicely done and is the same in the sense of survival.
Comparisons between Masters of Sex and Mad Men are hard to avoid, and I can understand why. They’re both character-driven period dramas, but Masters of Sex has a feminist story, which is not Mad Men focus. Fight is to Masters of Sex what The Suitcase is to Mad Men.



Before all, the story of this episode was very human that I impressed very much!. Indeed, the series reminds us that we are in a world where everyone suffers. This is a recurring theme on the show. We see it, for instance, in Fight, when Virginia and Bill fight against themselves. In Blackbird, the characters' world had collapsed. And, here, in Asterion, they try to pick up the pieces of their lives. There is hope.
This season is more focused on its two main characters. The study has been put on hold, while the show develops itself. It really delves into the psychology of the characters and I think that's what makes the show stronger. This season feels different, last year, we had a lot of secondary characters, all very fascinating. The show still has many characters, but Virginia and Bill are in most of the episodes; they really are the star of the show. This episode allows us to see the inner struggle of Bill and Virginia. They both face a dilemma.
We also have a new Libby Masters. She's the season's breakout character on the series' breakout season. This week, she wasn't hateful. She proved she was strong, and capable. She's no longer naive and idealistic. Libby needs Essie in her life, and though Bill says, she will see her. It was a pleasure to see Ann Dowd back on the show. Her role is less exciting than the one she had on The Leftovers, but she's a very talented actress. In this episode, we follow Bill and Virginia opening their own clinic for their work, with Betty's help with paperwork.



The clinic seems to work financially, but we later learn that Essie was behind such lucrative income. It was a total surprise to me, and it leads to a great confrontation between BIll and his mother. Bill is a broken character because of his family and self-destructive behavior. Accepting his mother's money might be the beginning of a fresh start for him. Virginia is the only one to understand him. At the birthday party, Bill acts like an asshole. I'm sorry for the vulgarity, but I was shocked. He almost calls her a slut and wants her to apologize to him for dating other people. It’s obvious that Bill is in a lot of pain, his world has collapsed - but his behavior remains inappropriate. As Libby points out to him : "Point to one person in this entire world who isn’t suffering!" Throughout the episode, Bill seems to grow up and acts normal again, thanks to Virginia. They are like two magnets, they need from each other. Without Virginia, Bill is powerless (in bed, as in life). The prostitute storyline was very interesting. The approach is quite original. Bill needs an antidote to get over Virginia, and prostitutes are his healing cure, but it doesn't work out the way he wanted. This proves once again that they are meant to be together. Seen like that, it may seem big, but the show did it with great subtlety. Sheen gave a knockout performance. He was brilliant and touching.
This episode is brilliant in a lot of ways : the performances are superb, the dialogue sparkles, and the direction is original and subtle. Throughout the episode, the characters evolve. It's a fresh start for them and the show. Lester's omnipresent camera was one of the best moves of the show.



Masters of Sex is a character-driven show. This season the characters are mainly looking at big changes in their lives. The character development through the plot is what makes the show brilliant. The second half of the season promises to return to the study. I'm curious to see how the storylines converge.
This jump in time revitalized the show.
I enjoyed Lester's role in this episode. He's the one who paces the episode and makes the transitions. The time jumps with his camera. Using Lester's nascent documentary about the clinic as a through-line to hold the story was very innovating. It was interesting to see the show surging into the 1960s. Though I should note that while I usually don't care about hairstyles or costume choices, they did a fantastic job this week!


Note: 7/10 - It was such an innovative episode, allowing the show to explore the lives of its characters with subtlety and depth.


Now, it's your turn! What did you think of the episode? Hit the comments!

About the Author - FrenchAmerican9

This is Michael (aka FrenchAmerican9), he lives in Lyon, France. He is a sophomore in college, majoring in Political Science and minoring in English. He is an avid TV watcher, watching shows from US, UK, Australia, Canada, France and Denmark.
This season, on SpoilerTV, he will review American Crime, Black-ish, Cristela, Dallas 2012, Empire, Fresh Off The Boat, Married, Playing House, Red Band Society, The Fosters, The Mindy Project and You're the Worst. His favorite TV shows are Fargo, The Ice Cream Girls, Black Mirror, Breaking Bad, Happy Endings, Friends, Buffy, LOST, Everwood, The Good Wife, Revenge, Hannibal, The Americans, American Horror Story, Grey's Anatomy, Masters of Sex and The Mindy Project.
Some of his other interests include politics, reading, music and writing.

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