Previewing Masters of Sex: Season Two

Back in the earlier days of the internet when message boards were a big part of going online, I was a big spoiler reader. That was up until the sixth season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer when I was spoiled very early on that Willow would end up being the season’s Big Bad which ruined my enjoyment of that season as I waited for her heel turn (sorry to those not caught up, but the season aired twelve years ago and Evil Willow does appear on the DVD cover art). Since then I unbookmarked all the spoiler sites I subscribed to and pretty much stay out of comment sections of non-spoiler sites because there are always a few trolls. And I have been much happier watching television ever since. With one exception: historical dramas. It took a lot of willpower to not go to Wikipedia while watching Deadwood to see what exactly happened to the real Seth Bullock and Al Swearengen (it was somewhat satisfying when the show ended premature to see what really happened to the characters after the show ended).

So after William Masters got fired at the end of the first season of Masters of Sex for his graphic sex study, it again took a lot of willpower to not go to Wikipedia to see where he went next or if maybe he was able to get his job back. I did make it the six months without peaking (thankfully the show is premiering earlier this year, a trend I hope continues next year when it premieres during the spring). For the spoilerphobes like me, I will not tell you where he end up, but of course Dr. Masters does find a place to continue the sex study by the end of the season premiere.

This season Annaleigh Ashford, who was the best part of the early episodes as one of the prostitute Masters observed before moving his study into the hospital, has promoted to the main cast and surprisingly plays a role in Masters ability in continuing his study. Despite being stuck on crappy CBS sitcoms, Beau Bridges and Allison Janney managed to find time to film a couple scenes for the premiere so you will not have to wait long to see if Barton decided to go through electroshock therapy (the youngest Scully also returns for a couple episodes even though she also booked herself a zombie show on The CW which may be the worst fate of all the Scullys).

Aside from homosexuality, this season also tackles some other taboo subjects from the fifties, some that are still talked about only behind closed doors today including nymphomania, abortion and birth control, and ambiguous genitalia in a newborn. Television geeks will undoubtedly enjoy the third episode of the season which is a bottle episode. But really anyone who likes television should continue to enjoy the new season of Masters of Sex, the best new show of last season.

Masters of Sex airs Sundays at 10:00 on Showtime.