Gypsy - 309 *

With Michael and his secretary discussing her Tinder dating life, Jean can't stop thinking about Sidney, so she continues her covert rendezvous with the barista/singer, but how long can this go on before the secret's out. And can Jean just cavalierly operate outside the scope of her therapist duties, continuing to visit those close to her patients, without any of their knowledge?

I just felt 309 was a tale of two stories: Sidney (which takes incredible precedence) and Jean’s efforts to help rehab her marriage and clients. I decided to separate the two just so my mind could give each enough attention and devotion.

I wanted to start with Sidney because this is the main story arc (as it alternates with her conflicts in the real life as opposed to the persona she’s cultivated in relation to her romance with Sidney) that really captivated and transfixed me. Jean sits at home, sees her husband and child, and really has what many might consider the ideal family life.

 

After watching the second episode I was curious about the critical reception of the show, learning that it was not at all a darling, disregarded and ultimately canceled with no fanfare. But after watching 309, I am one of its few defenders. If just for the irony alone, I consider this episode a real gem of the series’ lone 10-episode run. I’ll look back at Gypsy, even as few will remember it or give it a second thought, recognizing there’s some real good work here by Watts and Crudup, as a married couple secretly chafing at what is missing or not said. Jean’s really an unorthodox therapist. There are some included/introduced details in this episode involving another apartment Jean has a key to at the very end and during a dinner conversation with therapist friends mentioned is a patient that ended up in an institution after supposedly developing an obsession with her shrink. I admittedly looked ahead and scanned the episodes (if anything I try to remain honest), and these two details will provide details to Jean not anticipated necessarily prior to 309.

As a therapist, Jean sure appears to be playing fast and loose with the ethics of her profession. Instead of “keeping it in the room”, Jean goes out to meet those associated with her patients. Claire Rogers (Brenda Vaccaro), overbearing but means well, a bit too hands on and overwhelming, has lost track of her daughter, Rebecca (Brooke Bloom). That is because Rebecca has made the effort to avoid her altogether. Rebecca has a hair appointment and Jean uses this as a way to speak to her without revealing how she is tied to Claire, hoping to convince her to contact mom as not to leave her worried sick. Jean finding this salon and working her conversation skills on Rebecca, she learns of her joining a “group”, seemingly happy with the direction her life seems to be heading. The irony of this is Jean’s own miserable relationship with her mother…maybe she should take her own advice?

And then there is Jean’s creation of Diane, made up to impress and develop a potential romance with Sidney. Sam speaks about Sidney, Jean is curious of what she’s like, unable to dispel the urge to see firsthand. Sidney becomes an infatuation she cannot shake. Sidney is on her mind in 309 when Jean is relaxed on the coach, with a seat space that might as well be a mile away from her husband and their child, both engaged in father/daughter time. On her mind, despite efforts to keep her eyes and focus on her family is Sidney, returning to a previous night when she left the house after a fight with Michael. Near the Rabbit Hole, as The Lady Eve (Henry Fonda and Barbara Stanwyck in a memorable dialogue scene) was projected on the building wall, with scattered patrons cozy in seats watching intently, Jean/Diane eyes Sidney, invested in the movie until she turns to notice her, and the two have a seat next to each other. The film might be ongoing but Jean’s attention is on Sidney’s face, hand (fingers crawling carefully towards Jean’s hand), lips. The series is indeed adept at provocatively and seductively capturing Sidney. Sophie Cookson continues to remain a figure of sexual interest, as lovers come and go, including Sam (Karl Glusman), Jean’s patient. Cookson is quite photogenic and the camera adores her. Especially her face, but the show hints at her just being some pretty barista who sings on certain nights in clubs and leads on lovers, discarding them when she grows tired of their presence. Jean knows all of this from Sam, in 309 calculatingly working to convince him to not meet up with Sidney, hoping to keep him as far away from her as possible…because it seems Jean wants her all to herself! Sidney is a piece of work, too. You can see the wheels turn when working over Sam during their counseling session, trying to maintain the separation that had been rather difficult for him. Sidney indicates to “Diane” later that she just wants to amicably end things with Sam, who has considered the pipedream of getting back together. That is certainly not what Jean wants.