Larry (Harry Richardson) and Marian (Louisa Jacobson) only became a couple at the beginning of The Gilded Age season 3, but it’s as if we’ve been shipping them forever. Five episodes into the new season on HBO Max this month and Larry has now proposed, meaning Larian (their fandom name, obviously) is officially on.
Their friendship has always had a healthy dose of chemistry, but now they are a couple, Marian doesn’t actually know everything about Larry’s fairly scandalous dating history. Back in season 2, he had an affair with Susan Blane (Laura Benanti), which they had to keep a secret even though neither of them were married. Susan was an older widow, giving Larry something of a reputation, and we still don’t know how – or if – this could affect Marian.
Even with all this Larian excitement, I’m not convinced this was the most exciting news to come out of The Gilded Age season 3 episode 5. If nothing else, I’m a huge fan of being a hater, and the HBO Max show delivered that to me on a plate perfectly in the form of Maud Beaton (Nicole Brydon Bloom).
Maud Beaton’s Haymarket double bluff was so much juicer than Larry and Marian’s proposal in The Gilded Age season 3 episode 5
While Larry and Marian are blissfully in love in episode 5 of The Gilded Age season 3, the groom-to-be seemingly lies about his plans, choosing to celebrate the good news in a less-than-reputable establishment called The Haymarket. It’s essentially the New York version of the Moulin Rouge, so you can imagine the kinds of behaviour we’re likely to see there. Out of the corner of his eye, he spots Maud, the woman who conned Oscar (Blake Ritson) out of his entire family fortune.
When Larry confronts Maud about who she is, Maud denies it, introducing herself as Dolly Trent. The next day, Larry tells Oscar about what happened, who comes to the conclusion Maud no longer has the money she previously stole. While Oscar still wants answers and some kind of revenge, John (Ben Ahlers) thinks Maud’s new circumstances are punishment enough. Basically, it’s now up in the air whether Maud will come back into the bigger picture for her just deserts.
For me, that’s a much more exciting prospect than watching two lovely and sweet people get married. Sure, everybody loves a Pride and Prejudice moment for a happy ending, but what The Gilded Age has always done best is dripfeed its drama in the classiest of ways. If someone stole your family’s money and coincidentally reappeared back on the scene, you’d probably still be holding a grudge no matter how much time has passed. Instead of calming down, new episodes now have the potential to become a lot more chaotic, and I’m all here for it.
Seeing Maud will potentially get Larry in some trouble, meaning there could be some trouble in paradise when it comes to Larian’s wedding. As I’ve touched on, Larry is withholding details of his personal life from Marian as it is, so the extra gut punch of lying about his whereabouts and running into Maud isn’t likely to go down too well either. It only takes one small straw to break the camel’s back, and this could be a delicious one.
Don’t get me wrong – I’m not wishing ill will on the newly engaged couple. But isn’t the show so much more fun when disaster is imminent? There’s nothing more tantalising than things going wrong in the Victorian upper classes, and God, The Gilded Age does it so well.
