The second episode of season 3, and 26th episode overall of Showtime’s Masters of Sex does a remarkably good job progressing the storylines we were introduced to in last night’s premiere.
Brilliantly written by Amy Lippman and fantastically well directed by Dean Perisot, "Three’s a Crowd" picks up immediately where the season premiere closed - in the bathroom where Dr. William Masters suspected his colleague Virginia Johnson is pregnant.
As seen in the episode’s promotional photos, Masters is proven correct. The hour encompasses the entire nine month pregnancy, which is full of perilous twists and turns for both Masters and Johnson. With the stigma attached to women who give birth unwed in those days, Dr. Masters is very concerned with how Johnson’s pregnancy will reflect on the study they have done just as their book is due to launch.
The solution is a very interesting one, which I will refrain from revealing, but it produces several powerful and emotional scenes between the researchers. Lizzie Caplan’s performance is incredible in this hour, and Michael Sheen very much holds his own too.
Not to be outdone in concern for Johnson’s wellbeing, Dr. Masters' wife, Libby also kicks up a fuss on perfectly reasonable grounds. Libby is worried the media might misinterpret Johnson’s pregnancy as infidelity on the part of her husband. Enough said there.
Despite all this, Masters and Johnson reap the rewards of their research as a high profile couple from overseas seek a consultation for their fertility problems. During their treatment, Masters forces Johnson to cease working at the clinic for fear of her pregnancy being noticed. To protect his image, he hires another female doctor on a temporary contract, but friction between the pair festers throughout.
As with any birth scene, I was nervous to see how the creative team would pull Johnson’s one off. In my television watching experience, the best birth scenes are the ones which show the labour but not the birth. Fortunately, this is exactly what happens in this episode, but it is so well done it is above and beyond anything I’ve seen before. This is where Lizzy Caplan truly shines.
To spice things up further, Johnson's eldest daughter, Tessa, and ex-husband George feature prominently.
All this and so much more occur in next Sunday’s episode of Masters of Sex. It’s a fantastic hour of television which brings together some of the finest acting moments in the series to date alongside some wonderful scenes between the characters. The quality of the script and the directing is as good as you’ll ever see.
Thanks for reading! If you have any questions about next week's episode, I’ll try answering them in the comments below.
"Three’s a Crowd" airs Sunday July 19, 10PM ET/PT, on Showtime
