At the start of the season 3 premiere of Masters of Sex we skip ahead to 1965. It’s time for Bill Masters and Virginia Johnston to present their findings in their book, Human Sexual Response. This is their second time presenting their findings, and we all know that last time things didn’t go very well for them. Will they have better luck this time? As we watch it seems that critics so far are leaning towards believing this book is too much ahead of its time.
Before this big moment for Bill and Virginia we are shown what happens four months earlier. Bill receives the first copy of the book and he is extremely protective of it, almost to the point of obsession. I don’t blame him though as it was the product of over a decade of work. Nonetheless this does cause some problems as he, Libby, Virginia, and all the kids are supposed to be spending time having a relaxing week at the lake. That’s the last thing that this mini vacation ends up being. I would even say it might have made things worse for everyone. Bill and Virginia are fighting over Virginia taking time off to finish her schooling. The kids are getting under Bill’s skin, and things between Libby and Bill definitely seem strained. They seem more distant then ever, and we even see Bill sleeping on the lawn furniture rather than in his house with his wife.
Meanwhile, Virginia is dealing with Henry acting out. He has been sneaking around with a local girl and quit his job at the ice-cream parlour. When Virginia and Libby are in town they spot Henry and things don’t go well. He ends up getting hit by a car. He’s alright, but they took him to the hospital to get checked out anyway. While there, Libby freaks out about the whole thing. She definitely isn’t dealing with some of her own stress. She has been taking pills for depression that don’t look to be helping much. When asked about it she says that she’s been thinking about the south, the people fighting for Dr. King’s cause. In this episode nothing was mentioned about Robert, the man Libby was having an affair with. Did something happen to him? We go back to Henry in the hospital waiting room, and Virginia learning that Henry is wanting to join the military. This is very devastating to her. She turns to George to blame him for Henry wanting to enlist. Their fighting leads to confronting each other.
It seems like Henry isn’t the only troublemaker in the family. Tessa has been acting out as well, but that responsibility somehow landed on Bill to deal with. She’s been smoking and getting into the liquor cabinet. I would say that she was trying to get attention. Early on in the episode when I was watching the interaction between Bill and Tessa I was worried. I could see where it was going and it went there. Tessa threw herself at Bill when she was drunk, and of course Bill’s oldest son, John sees this. He gets so mad that he grabs the copy of the book and throws it into the water. Bill nearly punched John in the face for this, but he managed to stop himself. It was a sad moment to see, Bill’s inner battle of not wanting to be his father.
Libby and Virginia have an honest conversation where Libby admits that she’s been trying not to feel, and that’s why she’s taking the medication. She also states that she understands how things are between everyone but all she wants to do is keep her family intact. Virginia informs her that she doesn’t have to worry about that and that she understands.
At the end of the episode we go back to the press conference about the book. It goes over really well and they even get applauded! That wasn’t much of a shocker, but learning Virginia is pregnant certainly was! How could this be? Is it Bill’s? It can’t be!
Parliament of Owls was a great start to season 3. It was very emotional and showed that not much has changed between Bill, Libby, and Virginia. Virginia’s pregnancy should certainly stir things up though. I’m looking forward to what happens next. What did you think about this episode?
About the Author - Alexandra
Alexandra (Ali) is an avid TV, film, and music fan from Canada. She attended film school and was a camera operator for a local sports show. Growing up she watched shows like Due South, Pretender, X-files, Early Edition, and Frasier. Her favourite shows are Bates Motel, The Mentalist, and The Closer. Alexandra will be reviewing Proof and Masters of Sex.
