‘The Gilded Age’ Season 4 Insists “You Won’t Hear Me Beg”
"That’s all very well for Jesus, he didn’t have to make his way to the Upper East Side!"
It’s a bit hilarious how much can happen in an episode of The Gilded Age where...not that much technically happens. Sure, George Russell tracks down the guy who shot him last season, but outside of a trip to the opera, most of “You Won’t Hear Me Beg” is smaller character moments.
This isn’t a complaint, by the way. The Gilded Age is great precisely because of its characters, their complicated relationships, and the messy jockeying for social position among them all. But that also means we occasionally get an episode where one of its biggest dramatic arcs involves the purchase of curtains. Of course, on this show, the curtains also stand in for larger questions of tradition versus modernity and the discomfort many feel with change. But that’s how The Gilded Age rolls.
Thankfully, Bertha returns to New York from her time in England, with news of Gladys and the new baby for the whole family. There’s even a cute tiny photograph! (Being a duke has perks!) She’s ready to get her life (and, presumably, New York society) in order, but is hamstrung by the fact that her husband is a wreck who seems to be actively avoiding her.
