Five Reasons to get excited about Amazon Prime’s The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel premiered on Amazon Prime as a single episode during their pilot season in March of this year. Rachel Brosnahan (House of Cards) plays Midge Maisel, a New York housewife during the 1950’s, who becomes a stand-up comedienne after her husband leaves her, a struggling comic himself. The show was picked up for two seasons and after watching the pilot, I can see why. Here are the reasons I’m looking forward to the show:

 

Amy Sherman-Palladino

Sherman-Palladino is the show creator and executive producer. She also created Gilmore Girls- enough said. Her modus operandi of writing fast-talking dames is perfect for a show about a witty female comic.

The music

I love oldies- especially pop-y tunes from the 50’s and 60’s. The soundtrack for the show consists of up-beat music from the era. In the pilot episode Peggy Lee, Barbara Streisand, and “A Wonderful Day Like Today” play in the background as Maisel and her husband whirl around New York and through their quirky domestic life. It’s the perfect, ironic lead-up to the climactic end when Midge goes from housewife to performer.

The costumes and the set design

The 1950’s fashion and decor throw you into Midge’s glam world as an upper-middle class New York housewife. Her home life happens to juxtapose perfectly with the rundown, artsy comedy club, where she gets her comedic start.

 

Alex Borstein

Yep, Mad TV‘s Miss Swan is a cast member. Not a huge surprise that Sherman-Palladino cast Borstein, as the actress had a recurring role on Gilmore Girls for several episodes. Funny-woman Borstein also voices Lois on Family Guy. Her character in Mrs. Maisel is a no-nonsense bohemian, working at the comedy club.

The unanimously positive reviews

While reviews mean nothing when it comes to individual enjoyment of a show, it is still impressive that the show has a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, 8.7/100 on IMDB, and 95% from “google users”. While only one episode has been released, I think we can continue to expect good things from Mrs. Maisel, especially considering Sherman-Palladino’s previous success. I’ll go ahead and give it 5 out of 5 stars to top it off!