2x05 Midnight at the Concord

[8.2/10] Another big winner from this season’s line-up. I like pretty much everything this one tried to do, to the point that it’s hard to know where to start. So let’s start where the episode does -- with the Maisels.

I love the arrival of Moishe and Shirley and the assorted mishegoss that goes along with them. In contrast to Abe Weissman’s well-oiled machine, the elder Maisels’ arrival is a hoot of disarray, with Moishe shoving piles of clothes into bellboys’ hands, Shirley complaining about the heat while wearing her fancy coat, the couple donating damaged clothing to the staff in lieu of tipping, and the rest of their corny, outsized chaos that tickled my funny bone.

There’s a purpose to all of this beyond just the yuks -- basically to explain why Abe would do anything to avoid sitting at dinner with them. Moishe’s hacky jokes about getting lei’d and pupu platters are trademark corny dad shtick, and Rose’s wry remarks about how good it would be for Shirley to be buried in Israel are a hoot. Even the exchange between Abe and Moishe, over the former’s shuffleboard precision and the latter’s conducting foulmouthed business on two phones, brings the funny.

But there’s moments of sweetness too, particularly the scene between Joel and his mother. Joel’s earned flirtations from various bowling lane groupies, but he’s clearly holding out for Midge. Shirely, for being a cartoon character up to this point, has a sweet little moment where she tells her son she doesn’t think Midge is coming back and tells him he’s her son and she just wants to be happy. It’s a very human moment between them, and may be my favorite non-comedic elder Maisel family moment in the show so far.

We also make some progress on Midge’s shedding of the Maisel moniker (in spirit, if not in legal fact). A triage-necessary promotion to the Revlon counter at the department store prompts Midge to need a ride back to New York and the only one available to offer it to her is Benjamin. It provides a nice excuse to put them into a car together for long periods of time, so she can riff on news radio and make her accidental chauffeur smile. It turns into a date, ad the sparks keep flying.

I like Midge and Benjamin together. Their repartee over the upcoming trial portion of a Lizzie Borden musical is a laugh and shows how they’re on the same page. The way Benjamin laughs at Lenny Burce’s act shows that he gets it, that he appreciates the things that Midge does (at least at this early juncture). Midge’s conversation with Lenny about it is very cute, and Lenny’s in rare form. You can just feel the two of them clicking, which is not always an easy thing for a show to pull off with a new character.

The big reveal that Midge feels something for this guy is that in a moment of chagrin, when another date is being discussed, she confesses that she’s a comedian. This secret she’s been trying to keep so closely is now out to a guy she doesn’t know all that well because she likes him and wants to start things off right. It was enough to scare Joel away, and she doesn’t want that to happen, or at least wants Benjamin to be OK with it before things progress. It’s a sign of hope from her, that this young relationship is worth dropping this sort of minor bombshell.
All Benjamin offers in response is a smile and a proclamation of “weird”, a quality we know he’s after, before heading back to discussions of the meatloaf at the Stage Door Deli. He takes it in stride, which is a nice sign that they’re compatible and, most importantly, that Benjamin gets her in a way Joel didn’t necessarily. That doesn’t mean this thing is built to last forever, but it’s still a good way to start.

There’s also some nice material with Susie. I like the fact that she meets Chester who’s pulling a version of the same “pretend to be an employee” shtick she is. His constantly mouthed “criss cross” is a delightfully goofy Hitchcock homage, and adds more laughs to the episode. At the same time, I like how rightly bewildered Susie is at how Midge lives out in the Catskills and how selfish it is for her to bolt back to New York without saying anything to Susie. Susie’s presence in the Catskills is a little outlandish, but she’s a nice reminder of all the privilege at play.

Most importantly, she gets Midge a gig at the titular Concord! It’s a fun riff from Midge on life in the Catskills, from the avalanche of food to the extracurricular activities that young men and women engage in at the equivalent of summer camp. A monkey wrench is thrown into that when she sees her father in the audience, having begged off from the Steiner Luau and unwittingly walking in on his daughter’s big secret.

It’s some great plotting and a wonderful way to blow up Midge’s deal with her parents at a less at just the right time with just the right (read: wrong) person. Abe, a serious man, is unlikely to take kindly to such an “undignified” display, particularly when it means spilling familial dirty laundry, and his daughter’s and wife’s virtue no less. Midge just keeps on going, and she kills, but there’s an audience of one that isn’t happy. Halfway through the season, it’s a great way to send a jolt through the status quo.

Overall, this is another great episode, and I’m excited to see the fallout from what’s gone down.