Meanwhile, in a good but disjointed subplot, an old flame of Betty’s arrives to stir the pot of her now-dysfunctional relationship with Gene. Her name is Helen (yet another Mad Men character name thrust into Ashford’s series) and is played by Sarah Silverman. Known for her stand-up comedy that is often a no-holds-barred take on female sexuality, Silverman was an intriguing casting choice for the show in the off-season. Thankfully, Masters of Sex emphasizes the freshness of her delivery more than the filthiness of her humor.
Helen was the love of Betty’s life (mentioned but not seen last season) and her sudden appearance in Gene’s home startles Betty. Betty has shown an eagerness to move on from her past, but we can see how this is going to turn out. While this story felt distant from the rest of Masters of Sex this week, both Silverman and Annaleigh Ashford have a beautiful chemistry that made the C-plot worthwhile, even if it didn’t fit much in the space of the episode.
On another note, there are some beautiful shot compositions in this episode – its director, Jeremy Webb, previously worked on Downton Abbey, a show also concerned with social disparities – and many have to do with the framing of characters’ offices. Notice how the camera shifts away from Virginia and Dr. DePaul’s argument about privilege and job security to an overhead view of the secretaries typing away next door, overhearing their muffled yelling through the glass panes. We are so focused on Virginia’s plight to become a woman who can support her family and DePaul’s resolve for her work to make a difference that we have hardly realized the women crowding their office, hoping for a morsel of the pay or rank of their superiors.
Similarly, there is a careful camera placement between Bill and Virginia’s offices. When they discuss office matters, the camera is far back, emphasizing the posts of the doorway between their rooms. When they discuss more personal matters, the camera is in a medium close-up, positioned in that gap so that the barriers do not show. While women and men still have fissures to work though in the office, they can share dominance in the bedroom.
Virginia shows that power when she gets the chance to examine Bill in the hotel room as he strips and masturbates. He is quite vulnerable at first and then strokes with more conviction after he explains that he is thinking about her. As much as this scene should arouse, it does the opposite, perhaps because it keeps feeling wrong that this unhealthy affair is continuing under the pre-tenses of the study. (This season is somehow making us root against a woman whose husband is knowingly engaging in an extra-marital affair.)
What could have made this scene better is full-frontal nudity. Despite its cable pedigree, Masters of Sex has resisted showing male genitalia. Women, on the other hand, are fine to pleasure themselves in close-up on camera. It would have been a small but significant gesture for the network to finally give some equality on gender nudity. We have seen plenty of Lizzy Caplan’s body, but almost none of Sheen’s. It may be uncomfortable for some men to watch full-frontal nudity in entertainment, but Hendricks would assert that it is significant.
