My Take on How the Marvelous Mrs. Maisel Reveals Why Divorce is so Prevalent Today (Spoilers Season 3)

Season 4 of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel has been confirmed! This however, is my personal take on Midge continuing to make poor decisions on her romantic life. *WARNING: There are spoilers of season 3 ahead.

We all love Midge Maisel. She’s smart, pretty and witty as hell. However, no hat in the world can hide the fact that her love life is a mess. She’s got her choice in fine looking men, of course. But her decisions showcase what a lot of us do wrong today.

First, lets take a look at the ex-husband, Joel Maisel…

Joel is a hardworking man who steps up to take care of his kids. Kudos, Joel! There should be more of that in the world. But when we take a deeper look into Joel’s ability to love, that’s when things get little wonky. Joel was married to Midge, living the American Dream: A beautiful family, a fabulous apartment in the societies of NYC and he had an executive job. He also had a supporting wife, who not only encouraged him to proceed with his adoring hobby for comedy, but also provided briskets to make sure he got good time slots.

However, poor Joel is still missing something.

There’s a hole in him he can’t explain, so it must be Midget’s fault he doesn’t feel complete—We’ve all seen Jerry McGuire, right? So, like most humans, who are feeling worthless and choose to blame others for their lack of self-worth, Joel decides an affair with his secretary, Penny, will fill that void.

Spoiler alert, after leaving his family for Penny, Joel still has a hole and wants Midge back.

Joel is like so many people. He refuses to look inward to discover what’s really missing. So, until he does that, Joel will continue to be the guy who is always missing the ‘one who got away’. Don’t believe what I’m saying? Look at my quick cliff notes of Season 3…

• Joel has a box of unclaimed lipstick next to his bed.
• He pines over missing Midge, even when he meets Mei.
• Joel starts dating Mei, but flies off to Vegas to be with his ‘true love’, Midge.
• Joel marries Midge again while dating Mei. The next morning, he tells Midge they’re going to have to get a divorce because he’s got a girlfriend.
• Goes home, he and Mei break up, to where he is now free to be with his ‘wife’, his true love, Midge. But instead, he tells Midge he and the kids can’t come to Miami for the weekend. Then, Joel proceeds to walk downstairs into the underground casino and give an awkward confession on how much he cares about Mei.

Yes, just like Susie said to Joel in Season 3, Joel will always love Midge and will want to make sure she is taken care of. That is undoubtedly true. He wants to make sure she and his kids don’t struggle in life. But by the end of the season, Joel is practically cheating on both Midge and Mei, if we’re getting technical.

Moral: It’s not you; it’s Joel.

If I had a PhD, I could totally get away with blaming his behavior on something that happened to him as a child. I could hold accountable Joel’s mother, Shirley, and her erratic behavior or negligent trust issues, but since I’m not, I’ll just leave diagnosis to the professionals. Here’s what we do know, Midge is Joel’s forever ‘one that got away’, but until he can love himself, he has no business trying to be in a committed relationship.

Next, we will take a look at Lenny Bruce…

The sexual tension is high when it comes to Midge and that man. We’ve all been there. That’s why we all love Lenny so much. A sexy bad-boy type that draws you in and can make chemical reactions happen within your body. What’s completely unique and unusual about this type of guy is the fact that they can look unkept, un-showered and underachieving and still have this magnetic pull on you, …and half the population.

1. They have the talent to be abrasive, without being too cold.

2. They have enough sense to make you feel wanted for the night, but don’t get any other ideas, please.  

3. They have perfected ‘love’em and leave’.

But every once in a blue moon… these primal creatures of habit, fall in love. Hence, Lenny Bruce appears to have fallen head over heels for our dear, Midge. And why shouldn’t he? She bailed him out of jail. She held his hand, twice, when he was filming those TV shows. Midge makes Lenny a better person. But I ask this question… what does Lenny do for Midge?

After seeing the responses trend on Twitter for Midge and Lenny to become the ‘it’ couple, I realized, so many hopeless romantics still believe they can be ‘the one to change him’. Or in this case, Midge can change Lenny.

Spoiler Alert: She can’t change him.

Only Lenny can change himself. Lenny is an inspiration to Midge in the sense of comedy. But here’s the hard truth… That’s probably it. What else can Lenny offer Midge but a good time and heartbreak? I may be speculating, but Lenny, also like Joel, is missing self-worth. He drinks like a fish, enjoys getting arrested and has no intentions of the white picket fence lifestyle. Plus, he hasn’t given Midge any other reasons to question that.

The moral: Lenny is a great guy; people like this usually are.

But it’s important for Midge to know herself. She likes expensive things and needs to be kept in a certain lifestyle. Expecting Lenny to be willing and able to keep up with her and her expectations is probably unfair of her. Lenny’s a one-of-a-kind, friend. He’s the type of guy that you will love completely from a distance, and perhaps, in a parallel universe, you could have possibly been together.

But if you look at it face value, it’s probably better to love from afar than to hate up close. Opposites do attract, but too opposite can cause division. I love Lenny. I know a handful of Lenny’s. But I will love them from where I stand because I know myself and know, maybe from experience, that I’m not the one who’s going to be able to change them.

And finally, Benjamin…

Every mother’s favorite man for their daughter to be with. But like most daughters, Midge doesn’t want him. Why? He’s good-looking, has no money issues and has a really great job. Well, this is where I suggest Midge needs to take a look at herself—Not because Benjamin looks good on paper, or because her parents liked him, but because she did.

And let’s not forget, Benjamin supported Midge with her career. He believes she’s amazing at what she does. He thinks she’s the funniest woman on earth. Besides Susie, Benjamin was one of her biggest fans. He didn’t mind being material for her comedy. But instead of talking to him about her worries of future resentment, Midge leaves him without the courtesy of a face to face conversation—Bad job, Midge.

As humans, things that are good for us, scare the living crap out of us. People are always waiting for the other shoe to drop. What if you found out, there is no shoe?

Spoiler alert: You’ve been worried about things, this whole time, and there was never a shoe that could possibly drop to begin with.

Moral: Someone recently tweeted, ‘Benjamin deserves better’.

Yes, we all deserve better than what we’ve been aiming for when it comes to matters of the heart. Whether you’ve been married to your partner for decades or you’re still swiping to find your soulmate, this pertains to all of us. Like Benjamin, we deserve that person who will have the conversations with us, instead of predicting they already know how the conversation will go. We also deserve to be thatperson for someone else, as well—Some of us forget to look in the mirror sometimes when picking out other’s faults.

The lifelong question of ‘Does life imitate art or does art imitate life’

This question swirls in everyone’s mind, from time to time. But these hidden, or not so hidden, love-life issues showcased in the Marvelous Mrs. Maisel hit very close to the real factors that cause an increased number of divorces today. It’s not about her own personal women’s movement, or the climb to success and having to choose one thing or another… It’s about knowing who you are, having self-worth, having self-love, giving love, receiving love and communication.

Sure. It’s all very hard to do at first. If it were easy, everyone would be doing it. And there would be no one with these impossible love-life issues. The only thing we can do as humans is keep trying to better ourselvesevery day. Practice makes perfect. So, why not? Go buy a hat or invest in some drop-less shoes. But while you’re doing that, take a look inside yourself and see what needs your attention. You can certainly do that while you wait for the next season of Mrs. Maisel.

Tia, and TipsfromTia.com  is trying to keep you looking good and
feeling good, from the inside out. If you’ve got a problem or a tip email me! Be sure to Like and share on Facebook or Follow on Twitter or Instagram.