Masters of Sex - Finale Recap: Lost in Space

Episode 12 of Season 1 of Masters of Sex, “Manhigh,” was the series’ first finale. With Bill (Michael Sheen) stressed over the looming presentation of what is sure to be his life’s work, Virginia (Lizzy Caplan) both enjoyed and envied the hoopla from afar. Meanwhile, Margaret’s (Allison Janney) confrontation with Barton (Beau Bridges) over his “problem” led her to do some digging regarding his plans to “cure” himself. As the events at the hospital transpired, a very pregnant Libby (Cailtin Fitzgerald) continued to pitch in. That is, until yet another unexpected complication arose. Here is the Recap and Review of Season 1 Episode 12 of Masters of Sex, the finale, “Manhigh”!

Showtime "Masters of Sex"

Episode 12 paired the launch of Virginia and Bill’s sexuality study with the exciting developments of Project Manhigh. Manhigh, for those unfamiliar, was a military project in space study in which several men over the course of a few years were sent into the the depths of Earth’s atmosphere via balloon. Needless to say, Henry (Cole Sand) was enthralled with the televised footage. The fact that Ethan (Nicholas D’Agosto) was on his way out of town to visit California for prospective job opportunities had freed up Virginia’s quirky son’s schedule for all the T.V. he could stomach. It's interesting that Season 1 of Masters of Sex has continuously returned to the theme of groundbreaking space exploration as a comparison to this study on human sexuality. Space always serves as a great symbol for the mysterious and slightly terrifying unknown.

Word of Masters’ controversial and exciting breakthroughs began to spread as the beginning portion of Episode 12 played out. With a little help from Libby and Jane (Helene Yorke), Masters organized his ideal speaking environment, complete with martinis to help quell each doctor’s anxiety over all the sex talk. It was interesting that Bill selected the martini as the cocktail of the choice, mostly because he did so to set a specific tone. In a sense, the tone was overly masculine. This study, of course, would not have been possible without help from Virginia and her feminine touch. Meanwhile, Dr. DePaul (Julianne Nicholson) found herself even more frustrated with Bill Masters and his unfair deal with the hospital as the man’s highly anticipated presentation approached. What was interesting to watch in DePaul’s conversations with Chancellor Fitzhugh (Garrett M. Brown) was that DePaul merely wanted an equal option as a doctor at the hospital. Essentially, she was fighting for the same unfair advantage she criticized Bill for having but to no avail. Bill brings in countless of patients so his extra cut seemed entirely appropriate. Lillian, on the other hand, was a hard sell to female patients who, oddly enough, preferred a male gynecologist to the idea of another woman, even a professional doctor, examining their privates. If DePaul wanted to be seen, she’d have to find a new way to make waves in the hospital.

Showtime "Masters of Sex"

The elephant in the room during the first half of the finale regarded whether or not Bill would swallow his pride and invite Virginia to witness the reception of their partner project. Jane, never one to shy away from what’s right, made sure to poke the bear if it meant starting Masters in motion towards reconciling with his former protégé and partner. We realize, at this point, that Bill is usually in dire need of a woman's touch to pressure him out of his rigid comfort zone. In the end, it was none other than Libby who intervened and unknowingly went over her husband’s head to insist that Virginia attended. Virginia, as Bill continued to practice his speech, was busy with her own work alongside Dr. DePaul. Ginny has a new vision to start an open forum within the hospital to educate women on the health advances regarding the female body. Everything from birth control to breast cancer research was shot down by Lillian, who refused to dedicate any of her precious time to anything other than her own life’s work, the Pap smear project.

Bill’s presentation started without a hitch. Jane organized professional copies of the study for listeners to take and share once Masters finished his speech, yet our eyes as viewers were consistently brought back to the plain flyer that had been used to advertise the event in the first place, an advertisement that neglected to mention Virginia’s work by name at all. Still, Ginny snuck into Bill’s seemingly seamless speech and did, inevitably, witness the positive reception from men in the crowd. Bill’s opening notes, the research on penis size that he’d somewhat fudged on the penultimate episode, did nothing but entice his fascinated male audience to continue listening. Perhaps the best part of Bill’s opening, though, came when Dr. DePaul interjected during his sharing of the facts.

Who’s “we,” Dr. Masters?

Masters, refusing to credit Virginia as she stood filled with hope in the back of the room, wimped out and noted that he’d simply been speaking in the “royal” tense. Virginia’s disappointment was nothing compared to what came next. Footage of Jane’s masturbation was shown, much to her dismay, followed by Virginia’s full-body self-stimulation tape. We, of course, were privy to the fact that Bill had filmed her face for his own selfish and creepy viewing pleasure, so most of our attention was placed on whether or not this simply slipped his mind. What was so great about this particular part of the scene was that the crowd began to rumble, prompting the Chancellor to rise to his feet and head for the projector. It was a matter of whether or not he’d make it there on time to shut down Bill’s “smut” showing. We should have been rooting for the study to be an incredible success, but not at the expense of Virginia’s respect. Thus, Bill’s inevitable failure was an unknowing blessing to those who know and love Virginia. That slip truly would have destroyed Bill’s career, along with Virginia’s entire well-earned credible reputation. Later, Libby and Bill sat alone in their living room as the only party guests to show up to Bill’s celebratory evening. Libby, admitting that some doctors around her had jokingly guessed that the woman in the video was Virginia, began questioning Bill, who refused to give her a name out of “confidentiality.”

The fallout over Bill’s overwhelming failure saw his true supporters coming out of the woodwork. Barton, who’d nearly always opposed Bill’s controversial work, promised to stand by his friend during his time of need. While the rest of the hospital seemed to be conspiring to shut down Masters’ research, Scully was tired of swimming with the current as more and more of his time to build a legacy seemed to slip away. Barton shared his decision to undergo electroshock therapy with his wife this week. Margaret, who took it upon herself to do her own research and meet with Barton’s doctor, found herself appalled by the absolutely primitive and torturous procedures her husband faced in his efforts to please her as a man. In the end, she pleaded with him not to undergo the procedures, recognizing that the decades she’d spent married to and loving him, current problems included, were still memories, and those special moments could inevitably end up as unfortunate casualties to the awful electroshock process. Was it worth erasing the little things that truly count in order to correct Barton’s perceived “problem”? Living in 2013, we’re aware of the fact that electroshock therapy is a barbaric and unsuccessful means of attempting to “cure” homosexuality, so this arc is particularly heartbreaking to witness from all angles.

Ethan’s time across the country in California was well spent. Of course, a job opportunity out west meant his relationship with Virginia would be put to the test. Virginia doesn’t seem very interested at all in a truly passionate romantic relationship with Ethan. I think she loves him for how he treats her children, but whether or not she’ll actually take him up on his offer of marriage is unknown. Masters of Sex is a strange drama in that I can’t very well recall the last time a show offered so many wrong choices as partners for its lead with absolutely no positive alternative. Virginia has both Bill and Ethan wrapped around her finger, and neither one of them seems to be anywhere near the right choice for her. Clearly, she's meant to be single for now. The point of her relationship with Ethan is, at least from my perspective, that he’s blind to their lack of chemistry. Chemistry is a must in an on-screen romance. Both actors do a fantastic job of conveying this couple as they are supposed to, in my opinion.

With a heads up from Barton, Bill and his friend were called into the Chancellor’s office with the expectation of a dual termination. The Chancellor, who was happy to sap up the income driven in by Masters’ impeccable work prior to this study, refused to budge on his decision to punish the two. Bill, who consequently refused to allow Barton to take the fall for his work, threw himself under the bus in order to save his friend’s career. In the end, the ploy worked, and the two found themselves subsequently drowning their sorrows over Bill’s lost job at a local bar. There, Barton admitted to going ahead with his therapy in secret, refusing to allow Margaret to stress over the possible side effects.

It was interesting to watch Bill mourn the loss of his study and reputation alongside the likes of Jane and Lester (Kevin Christy). The biggest supporters of Bill’s innovative ideas have been normal progressive individuals, like Virginia, rather than doctors and medical professionals. Thus, it was also interesting to see them question their own decisions after the medical community refused to buy the findings as professional. For example, Jane wondered whether or not her filmed session was, indeed, “smut” rather than science.

I think your vaginal walls are beautiful.

Leave it to Lester to set the whole thing straight! I’ve said it before, but I really enjoy these two together. I also appreciated Lester’s surprisingly appropriate point in comparing Bill Masters to Elvis Presley, and I liked that Masters appreciated it as well.

Showtime "Masters of Sex"

As Bill drank away his sorrows with Scully, Libby’s second pregnancy faced yet another terrifying complication. Fortunately, the woman who’d swung by to pick up some donations from the Masters household offered a lift to her nearby hospital. Though the process was a bit horrifying as we remembered the terrible end to the first pregnancy, Libby eventually gave birth to a healthy child in a local African American hospital. This was exactly what she needed, of course, because the introduction to the baby she’d always wanted seemed to give Libby that final push away from her seemingly unhealthy attachment to her callous husband. Bill Masters wouldn't even find out about the birth of his child by the finale’s close. It seemed Libby simply didn’t find phoning Bill to be all that necessary, and considering all that she’d suffered through over the course of Season 1, I found that ending for her arc after twelve episodes to be quite fulfilling as a viewer.

Showtime "Masters of Sex"

Showtime "Masters of Sex"

Episode 12, the finale, closed with a drunken Bill hurling a fire extinguisher through an office window before exiting the empty hospital for the last time. Virginia, who sat at home reading the printed study while she continued to witness the groundbreaking work of Project Manhigh on her television screen, was pleasantly shocked to find her name included on the front cover after all. Bill had, in the end, treated her as an equal. I’m not sure she was ready at all, though, for Masters to appear on her front doorstep in the pouring rain. With everything that mattered stolen from him, Masters confessed his love for Virginia, the one thing he can never lose.

What did you think of the finale of Masters of Sex, Season 1 Episode 12, “Manhigh”? Did you think the footage of Virginia’s face was going to air during the presentation? Were you happy that Libby spent the first moments with her child alone? Will Ginny take Ethan up on his proposal? Will Barton move ahead with the treatment? Where does this leave Bill, Virginia, and the study?

Thanks for reading my Recap and Review of the finale of Masters of Sex, Season 1 Episode 12, “Manhigh”!