When Langham sees Masters and Johnson exiting a hotel room, he shares his suspicions with DePaul, who is forced to revise her opinion of Johnson and make plans for her work to continue without Johnson's involvement. Masters tries to bring Johnson aboard as his assistant at his new post. Meanwhile, Betty attempts to conceal her infertility from Gene.
Well that was a bit unexpected, wasn't it? Bill and Virginia have already been caught at their hotel rendezvous and Bill's employment at Memorial Hospital is over as soon as it began. It was an hour of immense emotion revelations. It feels like the show is gearing up for a big shift. The beginning of the season has largely been about the emotional connection between Bill and Virginia as wonderfully showcased in last week's stellar episode. They're still separately working on other projects. Bill started work at a new hospital and Virginia was helping Lillian with her pap smear program. But now, both of those things seem to be over. Bill punched Dr. Greathouse in the face because of his treatment of the sex study while Lillian has passed her work off to the medical colleague she named it after. Furthermore, both Bill and Virginia are reexamining their relationship because of Austin seeing them. That leads to a big talk between Bill and Austin about how similar they are. But more importantly, it leads to Virginia doing work by herself. I have no clue what's next for these characters. Right now, life is in flux. Bill has a new gig lined up at the African American hospital for both him and his partner. Hopefully, that leads to an interesting discussion of racial politics on top of everything else Masters of Sex does well. I can't wait.Bill has such a high opinion of the work he's doing with the sex study. He has great reverence for the subject. A quality that's simply not shared by his colleagues at the workplace. He was labeled a pervert and shunned at Maternity while at Memorial he was championed for the work. But his new colleagues don't respect it as a scientific study. They see it as entertainment for their own personal viewing. Bill wants to understand the body and how it reacts in various sexual settings. The other doctors just want to watch a naked woman masturbate in front of them for pleasure. Bill demands that Virginia be brought in as his research assistant and it's quickly seen why she is in fact necessary. No one else can see that though. They believe Barbara is suitable enough for his needs although she has no clue how to do basic secretarial duties. This disrespect is slowly getting Bill worked up the more and more his needs are easily dismissed. He's trying to do work and they are not creating an environment for him to best do it. Bill is often not a physical man. He can be dominate and angry in bed but he's not the guy who will just go around punching people in the face. But he's deeply connected to this study and will act impulsively when it gets disrespected.
So now, Bill is out of a job yet again. It only took him four episodes this time to completely ruin his standing at the hospital. But he's still got the work. That's what he keeps telling himself and why he keeps coming back to Virginia. And yet, it's not with Virginia when he has the emotional breakdown in the end. He's with his actual wife, Libby - the woman who's been trying her best to care for their new baby, discipline the new nanny and help his standing at the new hospital. She's just about reached her limits. This study has slowly been tearing their family apart. How much is he willing to risk for this study? His family? His credibility? Like Austin says, he needs their support and he does honestly want her by his side. But then, in the end, he's calm and collected yet again pitching the study to a new hospital. It's starting to feel like a cycle that will have to break sometime soon.
Elsewhere, Austin connecting the dots between Bill and Virginia also effects her standing with Lillian. A big surprise on the series has been just how easy and natural the Virginia-Lillian dynamic has been. But at times, it does feel like a one-way street emotionally. Lillian will open up about her life but Virginia doesn't do the same. Virginia is by Lillian's side as she continues getting cancer treatments. When Lillian pleads for some emotional honesty after brutally learning the truth from Austin over drinks, Virginia simply can't. She declares that she isn't really that interesting - which everyone knows is simply not true. She continues to be all that anyone can talk about. Lillian initially viewed her as a leach willing to attach herself to any big project in order to advance her standing in the medical world. To an extent, that is very much true. Over time, she has proven to be invaluable to Bill and the sex study. But she's also fighting for other people's work. She prompts the discussion of Lillian's work being considered for a major award. She is assisting Bill on the sex study. The only project that she has all for herself is selling the diet pills. I love how this little plot thread from the premiere has slowly morphed into something much larger. She's working for herself now. She's still chasing her dreams but now recognizes that she needs to fall in line, sell and collect the money. She won't read word-for-word from a script but she will follow it in order to boost sales. It may not be comfortable for her or what she really wants to do in life. But it's money and it's all about her. Right now, that sounds very good.
Some more thoughts:
- "Dirty Jobs" was written by Steven Levenson and directed by Michael Engler.
- I generally think Caitlin Fitzgerald is really good when it comes to the emotional dynamics between Libby and Bill. The housewife side bits are boring but a necessary hassle. She was wonderful in the big accusation with Bill - although perhaps too much hand action.
- This week also saw Gene learning that Betty is sterile and can't have a child for him. He's obviously devastated but we also learn how deep that relationship actually is. Having children wasn't the only reason he married her. He honestly believes they were meant to be together because of their ability to talk one night at the brothel that she just forget about over time. I'm intrigued to see how this marriage evolves now that this emotional hassle has been crossed.
- With Bill being fired from Memorial, does this mean we've seen the last of Betsy Brandt as Barbara the secretary? If so, it seems like a waste of her talents.
- Bill's new boss is being played by Courtney B. Vance which I always support seeing in things.
- I love the recurring bit of Lillian sharing drinks with someone out of mugs!
- I also quite enjoyed Bill's various attempts to stop Dr. Greathouse from attending his sex sessions. Old men masturbating! Transference!
