TV Recap: Masters of Sex - "Mirror Mirror"

Left to right: Michael Sheen, John Billingsley, and Lizzy Caplan

Welcome to the weekly recaps of the Showtime series Masters of Sex that follows the history of Dr. William Masters (Michael Sheen) and Virginia Johnson's (Lizzy Caplan) actual studies of sex. Make sure to tune in every Wednesday for a dissection of the week's episode as well as thoughts of the show in general as well as potential thoughts of where things are headed. Also, please feel free to check out my recaps on Orange is the New Black every Saturday.

Plot: Masters and Virginia are eagerly looking for funds to back their research on sexual impotence. During this time, Virginia raises suspicion that maybe females have a similar dysfunction to that of males. The campaigning goes well. While out on errands, Libby Masters (Caitlin Fitzgerald) sees a hate crime happen. When she is approached by someone to come forward with information to help them have a case, she denies everything. Virginia tracks down Barbara Sanderson (Betsy Brandt), who in return becomes attached to spilling information to her about her own dysfunctions and failed marriage that resulted from it. Masters doesn't like that too much. Dr. Langham (Teddy Sears) becomes an expert on female anatomy and rises to the top of his field. Lester Linden (Kevin Christy) is trying to come up with a great eulogy for his deceased father and seeks the help of Masters and Libby. He ends up making a slideshow where he discovers that he isn't in a lot of the pictures because he was taking them. As things wind down, Frank Masters (Christian Borle) tells William Masters about his mother, who needed surgery to look better. He wants to make things work out.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

After awhile of worrying about situations, it appears that the sex studies are back and the central focus. After some delay, Langham is also looking to stick around for awhile as well. However, what makes it particularly interesting this time around is that everyone is left disappointed by something. The most notable is Libby, who continues to fall into a more racial side of the series. If there is one thing different about the series, it is hitting its subjects with a lot more importance this time around. With segregation being what it was, it seems bizarre that Libby is somehow in the middle of it all. Her reluctance to do anything is also interesting and unless it is building to some conclusion by the finale, it does seem to be a little ridiculous. Yes, I am aware that these moments are based on actual events, but that's all that Libby has done lately. She has complained about not being in Masters' life enough, but also doesn't do much to improve her situation. She is in a lull and perfectly happy to be there. 

Meanwhile, there's dissatisfaction for Masters and Virginia regarding their study. While they are in the middle of exploring sexual dysfunction, they are in desperate need of funding. They call out for people and it is only proving to backfire at every turn. They have some great ideas, but there is a desperate need for some funding to back things up. If not, everything that they worked for would be premature. Even Lester's issues regarding the funeral seem quaint by comparison. Despite being great at their jobs, when it comes to baring all, nobody is exactly the best at it.

While it initially seemed like Betsy Brandt would be a temporary guest star early on, it appears that she's back as Barbara. She embodies the issue that Virginia is looking to study. Barbara is a suffering woman whose inability to reproduce has caused her to have many horrid nights. For some reason, she feels comfortable opening up to Virginia, and that makes her seem like the replacement of DePaul and her cancer. I am sure that Barbara will continue to become a central focus, but for now, her manic desire to be understood is a rather intriguing plot that allows Virginia to open up about her own eating disorders.

When all is said and done, "Mirror Mirror" is an exploration of how we disappoint ourselves. There's an image of where we want to be and where we actually are. This doesn't make us bad people, but it is hard to not think that way. We hold standards on ourselves and whether it is not coming forward with valuable information or feeling helpless to those in need, the episode's exploration of these grander themes allow a poignancy to click about sexual inadequacy. We want to be great in every way, but sometimes we end up failing. We'll never fully understand why that is or how some people get it. Nonetheless, it is important to keep trying to understand and maybe one day, there will be a better society that comes from it.