‘The Gilded Age’ Finale Is All About Party Politics—Literally
Who knew parties with the rich were so stressful? Really raises the stakes for the upcoming Met Gala and their upcoming “Gilded Glamour” theme.
Spoilers for The Gilded Age season one finale.
The conflict between Mrs. Astor and Mrs. Russell was always going to reach its climax with a party, so in the season finale of HBO’s The Gilded Age, we see how far they will go to maintain their status. I’d mentioned in my post about Mrs. Astor that, in real life, she was forced to allow Alva Belmont, wife of William Kissam Vanderbilt, into her inner circle when the latter threw a party and didn’t invite Astor’s daughter. For the love of her daughter, a truce was made.
Once the friendship between Gladys Russell and Caroline Astor was set on the series, with the Russells very much playing like a fictional stand-in for the Vanderbilts, this was the outcome I expected. It is something to see how Mrs. Astor will bend for her daughter’s love, while Mrs. Russell seems very willing to see Gladys suffer it means getting ahead.
The stakes are very low, and that is what I love about the show and its predecessor, Downton Abbey. There is something very calming about a show that is about characters so disgustingly elite that their story can just be eaten like icing—no nutritional value, but the momentary satisfaction can feel great.
If you want a story with more depth, you’d have to look at Peggy’s story. Last week, we learned that she was previously married, with a child she believed died in childbirth, and her father forced the annulment of her marriage. Now, we find out that not only did her son survive, but that her father was responsible for separating mother and child.
While not explicitly stated on the show itself, due to the time period and the age of the characters, we should realize that Peggy’s parents were very likely formerly enslaved people. In the post-credits interviews, it has been confirmed that Arthur Scott is, at least.
For generations, Black mothers had their children ripped from their breasts or simply lived with the knowledge that they were not allowed to be mothers fully—that their babies were not their own. For Arthur to inflict that pain onto his child for the sake of avoiding shame and scandal is a monumental betrayal, not just because of the inherent despicable nature of the act, but for perpetuating that kind of racial generational trauma onto his daughter.
The Gilded Age is a very silly show. In one episode, we can have conflicts ranging from the French chef being revealed to actually be from Kansas, to the horrific reality of a child being ripped from their mother. The Russells are the worst kind of capitalists but have been thus far portrayed as sympathetic hard-working people who just happen to have lots of money. Greedy and decadent, but thus far not as horrible as the actual robber barons.
New York elites have been laughably out of touch, with only Mrs. Van Rhijin having a level of humor in her snobbery and, at the very least, showing full support of Peggy—well, until she can’t get rid of her maid, which is sadly very in character. I’m glad the show will have a second season to take the good and trim the fat. The sooner they realize that Marian Brook is not as interesting as they want her to be, the better. She’s no Lady Mary, Edith, or Sybil.
(image: HBO Max)
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