Mrs. America
Episodes and My Ratings:
Ratings are IMDB scores
1. Phyllis (8.1/10)
2. Gloria (8.0/10)
3. Shirley (8.0/10)
4. Betty (8.3/10)
5. Phyllis & Fred & Brenda & Marc (8.1/10)
6. Jill (8.1/10)
7. Bella (8.1/10)
8. Houston (8.7/10)
9. Reagan (8.5/10)
Percents are my opinionated score
My Rankings
1. Reagan (95%)-The last installment in the limited series is by far the best as we are met with a great combination of all the characters we love from the entire show and are given an outstanding story that is so impactful, I was shook up after watching it especially that mind-blowing ending. The acting is the best it has been for the entire season and the whole meaning of the show becomes more apparent and the idea of no one winning this ERA war is very powerful and incredibly connected to our current society especially involving division. This seems like a great climax to all the episodes before and gives some stunning moments to the show but really digs deeper into relationships and personalities of Bella, Gloria and Phyllis. Each character is given a grand ending (some better than others) and will either make you sob or make you laugh out loud with joy. But the stylistic and artistic writing stood out to me as we see Phyllis' internal struggles and transformation in an indirect way that conveys the message in a rarely quiet but influential way. That final scene though is one of the best on television and connects this entire story to our current times and really describes the purpose of the show, using its chopped up and eccentric pace with real life clips and events that makes it something unforgettable and conveying the risk of division. The story of back-stabbing Phyllis and Bella shows their similarities and empowerment of women which is the best choice the show has made all season and breathtakingly amazes any audience in a respectable and aggressive yet gorgeous way. This episode is what audiences were waiting for all season as it conveys the powerful message, yet continuing its unbiased ways in some of the best writing from the show and artistically ending the story-arks for each character in the strongest and most influential way they possibly could. That last scene is killer though and will shock any audience to their very core!
2. Houston (92%)-This episode is a big improvement for the show especially in how beautifully artistic the directing and writing can get. As the National Women's Conference in Houston commences with full speed, the supports of the ERA including Bella, Betty, Gloria and the others use their full force to take control and this is met with continued fantastic acting from each of these supporting roles. In addition, this episode finally dug deeper into Sarah Paulson's character of Alice in which she expertly plays the character and adds so much depth that when the character is conflicted over her views, she provides so much emotion that you feel immersed in the conference and can connect to a character that most people would disagree with finally. Adding to the extremely deep acting, when Alice experiments using some interesting things in the convention and is partially aware of what's going on, it is the best representation of how stylistic the show can be as everything moves in different paces and is so artistic, it is truly raw storytelling at its best in a more mysterious and contradicting tone. Consequently, this acting allows us to see the superb writing and directing as well as the development for not only the character but the overall storyline as it grows so much rapidly and wastes no time in conveying its purposes and elaborating on one of the most crucial moments for the feminist movement in history. The absence of Phyllis was risky, but really paid off as it gave the supporting characters the standout performances (acting is flawless) they needed and allows us to see deeper into their thoughts in a very meaningful way that changes our views on characters in an expertly written and acted way, making this one of the best episodes of the show.
3. Bella (88%)-"Bella" begins to take things up a notch for this show as the stakes increase and we are introduced to some of the side characters with greater details than before. Obviously, the main central plot is about Bella Abzug and her being in charge of the National Women's Conference that is the first government supported women's feminism organization. The character development for Bella is substantial in this episode and definitely gives a magnified look into a character that has been present all throughout the series while also conveying some of her struggles especially involving family and structure. This exceptional writing is greatly met with Margo Martindale's wonderful acting that adds the powerful idea to the character, making her look like a true symbol for women's rights, but also adding this emotional and personal side to the character that seems so realistic and is one of the best performances in the show as it delivers everything and extends it more to have some connection with Martindale's acting in a great way. The side story of Phyllis is what brings this episode down for me as it could have meant something more, but was too one-dimensional and lacked any purpose for most of the episode until the end which shows how much Phyllis has changed. I did feel like the show broke its belief on being unbiased at times in this episode which is one of the strongest things about the show especially in how they chose to display Phyllis in this episode as it becomes less entertaining for the audience and leans too much to the informative sides of the storytelling. Nevertheless, it still is a fantastic episode that rises to new level and is so powerful it will inspire audiences in an entertaining fashion while also conveying some of the most important moments in history.
4. Gloria (88%)-This episode had so much potential to be stellar and lived up to the majority of the expectations set but was also plagued with broad storytelling and an inability to match tone with the pilot episode. I was very impressed however with the acting from Rose Byrne as one of the most powerful woman in history, Gloria Steinem because the way she acts is so held back in all the best ways that when she explodes and lets it all out in this episode, it is extremely connectable and magical acting that takes the idea of acting to a whole new level. The realism and heartbreak from Byrne as Steinem is something special for this show and adds a whole new layer onto her story in the show as we learn secrets such as her abortion or her true motives that never involve politics which helps create a very intently developed and most importantly humanizes this icon to match with the current times better. I especially loved how this story drifted away from politics as it was a needed break and helped make it more entertaining and connected to all the other side ideas happening and be almost weaved together. The cons for the episode set it back below the "Bella" episode as Phyllis' storyline in this episode overshadows Gloria's and feels too much of a flawed continuation of the pilot as we never see Gloria's storyline reach the full potential, but see it reach about 3/4 of the way there. This leads to very vague writing as it doesn't find its footing and struggles to keep the consistent beat from the first episode and takes the story in a whole different direction that mostly works, but is confusing and makes the tone hard to describe and affects the show in a very negative way as audiences are unable to connect or find the purpose of the show in the earlier episodes. I especially love Gloria's character and found it the strongest and most similar written one to the actual person and thought this episode did a great job in introducing the character, but struggled to tell a captivating and strong storyline as it doesn't have a strong beat but comes off unnecessary and more of a filler episode for the most part which almost stalls the story.
5. Betty (87%)-This episode is a wild and aggressive one that somehow works for the most part and becomes one of the most personal and influential one of the entire show. Betty Friedan was a strong leader for the women's rights movement and an incredibly strong activist that is absolutely shown with perfect clarity throughout this episode and leads an epic storyline. Tracey Ullman gives a heartbreaking but inspiring performance as Betty and does her best to stand out which she does greatly compared to other supporting cast members as she uses all her aggression, strength and pain to play this role that seems almost built for her due to how greatly she plays Betty. The storyline is mostly good as the character development is fantastic and the writing easily reflects the many sides to Betty especially after the debate for Phyllis where we see the emotional side in contrast to the powerful side we are used to seeing. It was a remarkable way to pass on her legacy and convey this fantastic character and her legacy she left off. The problem with this episode is also not a huge deal as it mainly just involves an unsteady pacing because the idea revolves around a single storyline mainly which can work if done right and I felt like it was done in a decent way, but I never understood if the pace was moving too fast or too slow. However, I could understand it never felt right. It skipped over some key details about Betty and also dragged on in others while once again creating a brand new tone for the show that provides variety, but confuses the audience over its connection to the other episodes in the season. Even with these errors, it is an empowering episode that showcases the legacies of one of the most influential icons for the feminist movement in all the best ways while being profound and unique.
6. Shirley (87%)-This next episode promotes so many things and conveys a multitude of political ideas but does them each in an unbiased and clever way to avoid any backlash which greatly brings this episode up in the rankings and kind of saves it from itself. The way they convey everything and don't lean to one side when it comes to Shirley's political views or Phyllis' social views in this episode is mind-blowing and a result from delicate writing that shows how strong it is in this series. I understand some of the criticism for this episode and the underdeveloped character of Shirley, but I think it was crucial in explaining the storyline and how Shirley fit in because it aids the unbiased telling of the story and allows everything to unravel in the ending in a stunning display of television. The acting from Uzo Aduba is great and matches up with Shirley, but is probably to the weaker side of the supporting cast due to how great everyone else is, but believe me, it is still a perfect and stunning performance for any actor. She is admirable due to how emotional and built up she is in a great way. The main problem with this episode is the depiction of Shirley's historic run for president as it is greatly underwhelming and doesn't use how much potential it had for this plot and abstracts it down to fit in with the ERA, but I believe that to fully explore Shirley's character and its inspiration to the women's rights movement, they needed to dive deeper into her run and make it clearer to the audience about the purposes and events. Finally, the Gloria story is superb and greatly written as it displays the trouble with politics, but again the story of Phyllis promoting her organization feels rushed and doesn't fit into the episode, creating some sloppy writing and less content that brings this episode down and makes it even more underwhelming (the opposite problem of some of the other episodes). But, it is still purposeful and displays in a creative way another powerful event in the movement and another great, powerful supporting character.
7. Phyllis & Fred & Brenda & Marc (85%)-This is finally the episode where I felt the show broke out of the normal and extended to new boundaries that changed the show in a risky yet mostly successful way. This episode dives deep into the gay and lesbian rights movement which is something that was missing from the show that should have been emphasized more as it was a major part of the time, therefore I have great respect for how this episode was handled and thought the writing was the best it could be to display this theme, however was weaker than some other episodes. This episode specializes in character development and grows the character Phyllis (in a way that some will be unhappy about that contributes to the unbiased display of the show) as we see more about her motives and beliefs against the ERA that will definitely spark outrage between some, but is a representation of how unbiased this show is. I also felt like Brenda's introduction was mostly purposeful and thoughtful in this episode, but was seriously missing from the rest of the show and she should have been a more major presence in the later episodes due to the wonderful acting and crucial storyline. This part of the season also connects to society more and offers an almost comparison to how times have changed in terms of women's rights and gay/lesbian rights that makes the tone more heavy and significant compared to other episodes. With this huge importance to the show, I felt like the storyline dragged on greatly and didn't support the fast moving pace that was previously occurring and was more of a failed filler episode that didn't leave as big of a mark as it should have in the rest of the season. However, it still was a very society-connected yet unbiased, inspiring and significant episode that makes a good point on our current politics and beliefs especially with the increased role of Phyllis' differing ideas.
8. Phyllis (82%)-This introductory episode is interesting and a solid start to what will be a great limited series as it goes against everything the audience expects and tells an unconventional story in the most entertaining way possible. This episode really doesn't highlight the supporting roles which does make it too one-dimensional and weak, but also allows full attention to be on the main character, Phyllis Shlafly who is greatly played by Cate Blanchett. Blanchett gives a stellar performance that in my opinion is some of the best of her career as we see her take a darker turn that molds into a very unlikeable character that she somehow captures and expands even more of. Her acting is impressive especially for such a difficult role and is the standout for this episode. However, while this episode introduces the character, it has very little connection to how the show will run as the tone is never consistent throughout and the storyline varies for each episode so it creates a false expectation and idea for the rest of the series. However, the plot is different and the perfect thing to release right now as its connection to society will shock some and rise to new limits. But, it is very slow for the first episode and can come off boring and un-eventful that really sets it back to the lower side of the list especially since the only character development we have is slightly towards Phyllis while barely providing a backstory and side information, making this episode weaker and a rather unusual and peculiar start to what will be a great show.
9. Jill (75%)-Despite the dwindling plot in the pilot episode, I still think this episode is by far the weakest in the entire series as it never finds its meaning or purpose and ends up creating a boring story that lacks in most of the things the other episodes succeed in. It's not that it is bad, but just doesn't impact the season and was excessive to the show and could have easily been left out or combined with another episode to save some time and use this episode for something else. The first thing though I would like to complement in Elizabeth Banks' acting which has been very minimal up to this point, but stands out and is fantastic in this episode as she poignantly conveys the struggles and excitement in the character, continuing the legacy of amazing supporting actresses in this show. But, the plot is probably the slowest in the entire series as we explore Jill's experience in the White House and attempts to increase support for the ERA that obviously puts her in conflict with Phyllis. This episode feels unbiased which is good and tells an interesting story in a way that most shows would struggle to do which highlights some of the successes of this show and makes them standout especially involving the acting. But, the episode doesn't serve a big purpose and the story feels unbalanced as it centers on one thing, but doesn't fully explain the story to the audience, making it confusing and overall just not as impactful and powerful as others. Jill's role in this show always felt lacking to me and should have been highlighted more and with this episode, they were still unable to describe her well and show her major potential. Therefore, mainly they just displayed her involvement in the ERA which is fine, but should have been emphasized and extended to develop the character and help her fit in better with the other supporting roles. It is definitely not bad, but is weaker than other episodes and struggles to match with other powerful episodes in this series
Cast/Crew
Cast:
Cate Blanchett......................Phyllis Schlafly
Rose Byrne............................Gloria Steinem
Margo Martindale.......................Bella Abzug
Uzo Aduba.........................Shirley Chisholm
Sarah Paulson...........................Alice Macray
Elizabeth Banks...................Jill Ruckelshaus
Tracey Ullman.........................Betty Friedan
John Slattery.............................Fred Schlafly
Ari Graynor................Brenda Feigen-Fasteau
Kayli Carter........................................Pamela
Melanie Lynskey..............Rosemary Thomson
Jeanne Tripplehorn.................Eleanor Schlafly
Ben Rosenfield...........................John Schlafly
Brendan Cox..............................Bruce Schlafly
Niecy Nash..................................Flo Kennedy
Teresa Pavlinek............................Ann Patterson
Melissa Joyner..................Audrey Rowe Colom
Marcia Bennett...........................Dadie Stewart
Novie Edwards..................................Willie B. Reed
Bria Henderson.................................Margaret Sloan
Melinda Page Hamilton.......................Mary Frances
Cindy Drummond..........................Lottie Beth Hobbs
James Marsden.........................................Phil Crane
Samantha Espie...............................Jacquie Davison
Annie Parisse...................................Midge Costanza
and many many more:
Click Here for a Full list:
Crew:
Anna Boden........Director/Executive Producer
Ryan Fleck...........Director/Executive Producer
Amma Asante........................................Director
Laure de Clermont-Tonnerre.................Director
Janicza Bravo.........................................Director
Tanya Barfield............................Writer/Producer
Joshua Allen Griffith..................................Writer
Sharon Hoffman..........................................Writer
Boo Killebrew..............................................Writer
Micah Schraft.....Writer/Co-Executive Producer
April Shih....................................................Writer
Dahvi Waller...............Writer/Executive Producer
Cate Blanchett.......................Executive Producer
Coco Francini.........................Executive Producer
Ebony P. Jones..................................Co-Producer
Stacey Sher............................Executive Producer
James W. Skotchdopole......Co-Existing Producer
April Smith..........................Consulting Producer
Kris Bowers..........................................Composer
Jessica Lee Gagné.....................Cinematographer
Chris Teague.............................Cinematographer
Pepe Avila del Pino...................Cinematographer
Todd Drowning...........................................Editor
Emily Greene..............................................Editor
Robert Komatsu..........................................Editor
Carmen Cuba..............................Casting Director
Mara LePere-Schloop...........Production Designer
Bina Daigeler...........................Costume Designer
and many many more:
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Storyline:
"Mrs. America captures the complicated life and times of Phyllis Schlafly with poise and style to spare, brought to vivid life by a superb ensemble led by another masterful performance from Cate Blanchett and the powerful supporting cast. "
-rotten tomatoes https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/mrs_america/s01
" Conservative activist Phyllis Schlafly leads an unexpected fight against the Equal Rights Amendment movement during the 1970s"
Mrs. America displays the fight for the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) as the powerful feminist movements supporters including Gloria Steinem and Bella Abzug push to get the last supporting states for ratification, however when Phyllis Schlafly creates the Stop ERA movement to counter, open conflicts occur both politically and personally. This aggressive and incredibly impactful tale conveys an unbiased view on the fight and connects greatly to our current society and politics making it the perfect informative and entertaining show currently.
Would I Recommend?
Mrs. America is a very entertaining and mind-blowing insight into one of the most crucial political battles of the 70s involving the ratification of the ERA. It is told in an unbiased way for the most part and is very fun to experience and honestly just fascinating to learn more about especially with the forgotten character of Phyllis. The supporting roles are amazing and filled with great actors that each bring a fresh aspect to their character and Cate Blanchett stuns as Phyllis in this heavy and eye-opening show. I think the beginning and middle episodes are very slow and you should probably be quite aware of just getting through those as the show is overall very well-made and crafted greatly. Therefore, I would recommend this show especially to history lovers as it conveys a tale of a different time and modernizes it to match with society now and informs some shocking events that will definitely make your head spin in a good way. It has its flaws, but is overall a mostly entertaining, at times fun and very engaging show to watch and become immersed with.
Overall/Review:
Mrs. America is a very insightful outlook into a different time that offers a surprise connection to our current society and tells a fascinating tale in the most professional and mature way possible that will impress most audiences with its energy and livelihood. The rhythm of the show feels great as each episode explores a different character and goes into their struggles, feeling all connected and as if they are weaved together which is greatly supported by the stunning last episode that brings them into a vague combination and grand yet subtle closing for each of them. The first thing to discuss is the acting as it truly is unlike any other show as there are a variety of supporting woman that steal every scene they are in especially with the solo episodes that stress one of them which was the perfect thing to do for an extremely delicate and powerful, influential show like this. Sarah Paulson rocks as Alice and brilliantly shows the confusing and conflicting views she is experiencing with great proficiency and accuracy in one of the best of the bunch especially in the last two episodes. I would probably choose her and Rose Byrne as the standout performances of the show as Byrne plays a major inspiring and extremely influential icon for the movement who is Gloria Steinem. Byrne brings all her relaxing energy and transfers it into something truly great and powerful as she expresses the character with full clarity or energy and brings a unique twist to this packed show that allows her to stand out. Margo Martindale as Bella Abzug is also great and provides an interesting take compared to the other supporting role, adding more strength and emotions to the character. Similarly, Tracey Ullman who plays Betty Friedan really does it all and shows the incredibly aggressive, powerful and emotional sides to the character in some of her best work yet. In similar fashion, Elizabeth Banks provides an entertaining performance that is missing for most of the show, but when she is in a scene that is meant for her, she dominates it and uses all of her passion for the character to make it seem more realistic. Uzo Aduba also brings a stellar twist to Shirley Chisholm and gives such a strong performance based on her struggles and goals that those two could almost be identical as the acting is top notch amazing. Finally, the lead performance (but it doesn't always feel like that) Cate Blanchett gives a stunning performance as Phyllis Schlafly and expresses the conflicting views to today's world with full confidence and realism that is generally hard to do, but Blanchett brings everything she has to portray this character and all of her unstable legacy or blind wishes with full empathy, power and some of the best acting in her career.
Moving aside from the acting that greatly carries the show, the overall storyline of the show is shaky and doesn't seem to ever have a set idea on what it wants to do, but conveys its message in the most efficient way possible that often appears fragmented and more isolated than other shows. The idea of separating each episode except the last to focus on one character is risky and benefited the acting, but did flaw the plot of the show as it seems like each story is on its own and doesn't connect well to the others and consequently causes the plot to move not flowingly and more slow, confusing and wildly. However, I do think that each episode's storyline is amazing and does its own unique thing to convey some message involving equal rights or the ERA which is really a product of some truly exceptional writing that is not found as much on TV these days. The writing is so passionate and greatly elaborates on each idea in a clever way that doesn't hold back, but also manages to hide some key details that will move the show to be unbiased and more relaxed and partial. But, even with this unbiased details, it conveys its influential message to our society and finally relates it back to our current politics and world in one of the most beautiful scenes in television as the last scene shows our division in a way that most shows don't dare to risk. Finally, the product to this show displaying how no one wins from this division keeps up the partial decision that lasts for most of the show and helps provide almost a cautionary tale for what this division can lead to in an important and very powerful move from the writers that makes this show all the more original and vital to today's world.
The directing of the show is also superb and artistically displays each of its motivations and characters to their fullest extent and tries its best to overcome the plot difficulties. I still feel though that the story is so slow at times and doesn't match up with the audience to a point where the directors can't even save it, creating a slow and mainly uneventful beginning and middle. The show's legacy is something I respect and found very interesting as it differed from the normal political shows and just wanted to display some information from two opposing sides and let people interpret it on their own which is very exceptional storytelling and somehow works for this show. It's a beg for peace almost as they are trying to show people the warnings of being divided more and are insightfully trying to display one big and awful fight that resulted in pretty much nothing, but was more of entertainment than anything else. It also interferes with politics in all the best ways and mutates itself to match with Reagan and Carter in some of the most stunning transitions that exist from a show and increases in its stakes and rises up to be something so much more than what it originally started that will greatly impact the views of anybody who watches it. It has several more deeper meanings and builds a very multi-layered plot that is so substantial and high-quality, I don't think there is a more complex show out there which helps the difficult tasks of the writers to craft this show and stand out. But, this complexity works against it and almost makes this show go to a place of no return as it is struck by its own confusion and fact or fiction idea that it really never recovers from, but only confuses the audience as the storyline develops which does set it back a lot. Finally, I just want to highlight the main title sequence as it is so artistic and conveys everything that will happen in the show and contrasts the two opposing views with perfect clarity and through an interesting style that is some of the best symbolism on television right now and beautifully paints an illustration for all of us about the ERA and its many fights. Plus, the makeup, hairstyling and costume design all makes them look close to exactly like their characters and in their time which helps the audience feel more immersed and connected to each of the characters and makes it all feel more real and influential. Overall, Mrs. America isn't perfect and has its standout flaws that honestly were always going to be hard to avoid based on its interesting structure, but it conveys its powerful messages and interpretations in an unbiased way that remains captivating, contains some sloppy but powerful character development and has the best acting on television both supporting and lead. It does all this while conveying a true and fascinating storyline with an excessive but crucial amount of characters that will shock anyone and convey a multi-layered theme to a variety of audiences that all have their different beliefs in some of the most clever and unique ways in television currently.
Rotten Tomato Score: 96%
IMDB Score: 7.6/10
Rating: 90%
*Mrs. America is available to watch on Hulu and is rated TV-MA
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