Masters continues to break new ground with his study but at the cost of his gynecology practice. Libby is confronted by Coral's boyfriend, Robert, over her poor treatment of Coral. Betty reunites with her former lover and Johnson struggles to right her relationship with DePaul.
Everyone on Masters of Sex is trying to take back control over their lives after several emotional issues are revealed. Bill is looking to get his sex study back on track and finally finds a hospital in Buell Green that is willing to accept it for what it truly is. And yet, he thinks he'll just transition to the African American hospital without any kind of blowback. That's a pipe dream. He doesn't see his new colleagues or their patients as any different. He's ahead of his time. His patients on the other hand are from the 1950s and race relations are still extremely tense. Following an incident, the hospital even has to separate Dr. Masters' patients from the other doctors' in the waiting room. But Bill still has his study and now he once again has Virginia as his research assistant. All is right in Bill's world and yet it is completely not.Virginia doesn't even hear about Bill's firing from Memorial and his new hiring from Bill. She hears it from Libby - of all people! Bill's wife went at lengths about how she always learns everything about Bill secondhand from someone else. Now, Virginia too finds herself in the same exact position. She needs to make guarantees out of this job prospect because she has a family she needs to support. The diet pill gig on the side isn't something she took up leisurely. She needed the money and for Bill to just easily dismiss it shows that he's not in touch with Virginia as well as he thinks he is. Virginia's at risk of losing the friendship of the only other person she's close to as well in Dr. DePaul, who also learned about the affair from someone else. They have that big fight that forces Virginia to reexamine all of her recent choices. She rightfully is accused of having an affair - without thinking about Libby. It's all very much a roundabout way of getting Virginia and Bill to define the terms of their arrangement again. Both will say it's just about the work and the study. But we all know that's not true. When Virginia tries to treat Bill like any other participant in the study, she can't help but join him again. She's trying to be strong and then buckles under the pressure. It's difficult on her but she's always clearly making a conscience decision. She'll still be there for Lillian no matter what. But with Bill, she's finding it much harder to take back control. But then, she gets the approval she's always wanted. Bill notes that there are certain things that she is simply better at then him. That's huge for him to admit - and exactly what she needed to hear to keep working for him.
Libby, on the other hand, is trying to win back the affections of her husband again. Their dynamic is so peculiar because they've never seemed to be that close. They are husband and wife but they are rarely intimate. They sleep in separate beds. Sex doesn't just happen between these two. One of them has to mention it for them to even entertain the idea. Libby asks for it to try and prove Coral wrong that she is experienced in the world but all alone at home. But she doesn't enjoy the pleasures of sex like she wants to. She has to be quiet so as to not wake the baby. And then, she does what she thinks is best in handing the situation between Coral and her boyfriend, Robert. She only thinks she needs to apologize to Robert for washing Coral's hair last week because he's the one who made a big deal out of it. When that doesn't earn their acceptance, she thinks she can just throw out that her husband works for Buell Green Hospital. Libby is not a racist but she definitely is an elitist.
And then, there's the continued story of Betty and Gene. That has slowly become the major tangent story of this season. For Season 1, that right belonged to the Scully family. And now, the focus has shifted to Betty and her husband. And yet, it feels even more disconnected than any other story because there's no clear indication of how this story will connect with the main narrative of the season. It was a minor part of Bill's world when he was at Memorial. Gene got him the job there in the first place. But now, they are dealing with their own stuff that has nothing to do with what Bill and Virginia are doing. That stuff is great. However, it has the unfortunate circumstance of being compared to the Scully stuff from the first season. Comparatively it's not as special despite both plots being about a family unit trying to deal with one party secretly being gay. Betty has great love for past flame Helen (Sarah Silverman) but she only sees herself being happy and having a family by being married to Gene. That double date dinner was a great scene. The audience understands the subtext of Betty and Helen's actions and yet they still play as a way that won't raise the suspicions of either Gene or Al. It's heartbreaking seeing how easily Helen can make Betty laugh and cry. She doesn't want to feel that connection and yet it just comes so easy.
Some more thoughts:
- "Giants" was written by Bathseba Doran and directed by Jeremy Webb.
- Dr. Charles Hendricks is a visionary just like Bill. He wants to push his hospital ahead in innovative ways. He's willing to jump through hoops in order to secure the esteemed Dr. William Masters on his staff. And yet, just like the rest of the medical community, he's not that supportive of his actual sex study.
- Lillian has also now left Maternity Hospital. She'd rather leave before she is forced out by her superiors. She's scared of what's next but she also doesn't want to spend the time she has left being angry with Virginia considering she's her only real friend in this world.
- But now, Austin is the only regular character still at Maternity. I'm curious as to how he'll remain an important part of the season - considering he didn't even appear this week.
- Begs the question.
