The Gilded Age Season 3 Review

The Gilded Age (2022-)

Season 3 - 8 episodes (2025)
Rent The Gilded Age on Amazon Video (paid link)
Created by: Julian Fellowes
Starring: Carrie Coon, Morgan Spector, Louisa Jacobson, Denée Benton, Taissa Farmiga, Harry Richardson, Blake Ritson, Thomas Cocquerel, Simon Jones, Jack Gilpin, Cynthia Nixon, Christine Baranski
Rated: TV-MA
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Plot
A young woman entering 1882 New York City's rigid social scene is drawn into the daily conflicts surrounding the new money Russell family and the established van Rhijn-Brook family, who are neighbors across 61st Street near Fifth Avenue on the Upper East Side of Manhattan.

Verdict
I like this season the most of any season, though it still feels scattered as it tries to follow so many characters. Focusing on the Russells would give this direction, and they are the most important family. Bertha has always been a social climber and this season creates a rift between her and her daughter. Bertha arranged a marriage. She claims she did it for her daughter, but we know Bertha is cementing her own legacy. There are plenty of other side plots and characters though it ranges from more dramatic to comic relief. I suppose this wants to create an encompassing portrait of life at the time, but that often feels like distraction. While I like this season the most, watching this show is more chore than enjoyment.
It depends.

Review
In season two, Bertha (Carrie Coon) continued to claw for position by starting an "opera war" and pushing for her own prestigious box at the Metropolitan Opera House. She won the war, but the implication is that she might have promised the Duke, who gave her the win,  her daughter Gladys (Taissa Farmiga) in marriage. Meanwhile her husband George (Morgan Spector) deals with issues at the railroad, eventually reaching an agreement with the union at the ire of other railroad tycoons.

Ada (Cynthia Nixon) loved and lost but became rich in the process, swapping her position in the hierarchy with her sister Agnes (Christine Baranski) who lost her wealth due to her son's mistakes and was on the brink of selling everything.

This season has more drive. I like it more than prior seasons. The goal is more human, relatable. What do i care about opera houses? Bertha is living vicariously through her daughter, trying to give Gladys the position Bertha always desired. Gladys doesn't appreciate the shortcut because that's not her desire. Bertha did promise Gladys to the Duke, but it's also a huge social boost for Bertha too. Did she do it for Gladys as she claims or for her own gain? George tried to argue for Gladys, but he can't change Bertha's mind. This entire season is largely about how far Bertha will go for status. Gladys argues that Bertha had the opportunity to marry for love, but Bertha dismisses it. It's all about the status climb.

E2: Matt Walker, Taissa Farmiga play Billy Carlton, Gladys Russell 

Meanwhile Agnes and Ada argue over the household. The servants don't know whose orders to follow. Ada is paying their salary, but they've always been given orders by Agnes. Their footman Jack Trotter is trying to invent and market a clock. He's at a weird juncture between footman and aristocrat. He doesn't know what to do, and none of the other servants like his new found wealth.

Bertha claims she wants her grandchildren to be "important." Bertha has always been a social climber, new money desperate to prove she belongs. George urges her to reconsider the marriage, but Bertha tells him she doesn't advise him in the board room and he doesn't get to advise her about the family. We know Bertha promised the Duke Gladys. George doesn't. He even asks Bertha if he knows everything. She states yes, but he later discovers that's a lie. George draws the line at family, Bertha doesn't. She thinks she can fix everything when it comes to her children. It's easy to dislike her, but you at least understand the why. This show has so many characters that steal focus from the Russells. If it focused on them it would be more compelling.

There's also the ongoing question of who leaks information to the press about the Russells. Whoever it is seems to know everything about the entire family.  

Bertha is planning the wedding, but I have to guess she's planning her dream wedding, not Gladys's. Bertha's sister Monica (Merrit Weaver) comes to town. Bertha didn't want her to come and didn't think she would. Monica doesn't care for social climbing which irritates Bertha. She doesn't want her family embarrassing at this big event. There's still the question of whether Gladys will go through with the wedding. Even as the ceremony starts, the question remains whether she'll run out.

My favorite moment of the season may be in episode six. Gladys is adjusting to life in England and her husband's snooty sister who obviously dislikes Gladys. That or the sister doesn't like relinquishing control over her brother. Gladys is being pushed into a corner. If she had the confidence and resolve of her mother she could manage, but she doesn't. The Duke's sister wants to wear Gladys down. She's a villain for Gladys to overcome. When Gladys finally stands up to the sister, it's a great scene. I hoped for more of that in the season. As Gladys and the Duke start to genuinely like each other, the tides may be changing for Gladys.

Tensions boil between George and Bertha in episode seven over Gladys. George is mad he didn't do more for her, and he doesn't want to make the same mistake with his son Larry and his new fiancee Marion. George is also facing yet another dire financial situation. He gets a deus ex machina that solves everything, but episode seven provides quite the cliff hanger for George and his business with yet another obstacle.

The events at the end of episode seven bring everyone together. I thought the drama might play out longer, but George is back to business soon enough. While everyone is coming together and making friends, George and Bertha still haven't reconciled. For the most part this season reaches a reasonable conclusion for the arcs with plenty of potential for next season, and season four has already been confirmed.