Mrs America
BBC TWO, 9.00PM & 9.50PM
There have been some complaints about the veracity of former Mad
Men writer Dahvi Waller’s take on 1970s feminism and the Equal Rights Amendment – most notably by Second Wave icon Gloria Steinem, who said recently that it overplayed the role of conservative activist Phyllis Schlafly – but it’s hard not to get swept along when a series is this well acted and this cleverly told. Waller’s best move is the way in which different women take centre stage each episode even as Schlafly (Cate Blanchett) and Steinem’s (Rose Byrne) compelling and very different stories bubble alongside.
Tonight’s first episode focuses on Brenda Feigen Fasteau (Ari Graynor), who appears to be part of a feminist power couple alongside husband Marc (Adam Brody). Yet, as Mrs
America repeatedly shows us, appearances can be deceptive. And even as Brenda agrees to debate Phyllis alongside their husbands, she finds herself drawn towards the free-spirited Jules (Roberta Colindrez) a photographer who offers an entirely different way of life. The second of tonight’s double bill moves to one of the few Republican feminists, Jill
Ruckelshaus (Elizabeth Banks) who ends up in a fierce confrontation with Phyllis.