Alex Borstein: 'Maisel' will be remembered for its funny, feisty females

NEW YORK, April 14 (UPI) -- Emmy-winning actress Alex Borstein says she hopes her Prime Video comedy, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel -- which kicks off its fifth and final season Friday -- has changed the television landscape in its "own little, small way" forever.

"The show not only has one beautiful woman at its heart -- but five, six, how many? -- really interesting, strong female characters leading the way. That is what I hope it's remembered for," Borstein told UPI in a recent Zoom interview.

"That and the Susie-Midge dynamic -- the whole show is about two women making their dreams come true and achieving the success that they want for themselves, not for how anyone else perceives it. That's really rare."

Set in the late-1950s, early-1960s New York City, the celebrated series follows the adventures of unconventional standup comedian Miriam "Midge" Maisel, played by Rachel Brosnahan, and her relentlessly supportive, brutally honest manager, Susie (Borstein).

Michael Zegen plays Miriam's ex-husband, Joel, while Tony Shalhoub and Marin Hinkle play her disappointed parents, Abe and Rose.

Rounding out the cast are Alfie Fuller as Dinah, Susie's receptionist, and Kevin Pollak and Caroline Aaron as Moishe and Shirley, Joel's parents.

Fuller thinks the show -- which finds humor in Midge's act, her family's horror at her life choices and Susie's outrageous tactics for getting her booked in clubs -- will stand the test of time, not just be forgotten as viewers sink into their next binge.

"You can revisit it over and over and over again. It's just one of those classic shows that you can come back to year after year or let a few years pass and visit again, see things you haven't seen before or don't remember," Fuller said.

"It still touches you in different ways, still makes you laugh. That's what I hope -- that 20 years later we will still be revisiting Maisel."

The show exquisitely demonstrates the myriad ways women can be funny.

While the talented Midge is blatantly trying to get laughs when she is on stage, the other women in her life are naturally hilarious, even though they are not performing for crowds.

"Humans are funny," Fuller said. "You have good writing for full, complex human beings, they are going to be funny with their own little quirks and idiosyncrasies."

Borstein agreed.

"Susie delivering a 'Rose' line is just not going to have the efficacy that Marin brings to it and that that character holds," she said.

"It's all of these women enduring the same experience in the 1950s of being a woman, and it oozes out in different ways," the actress added.

"Shirley's character is really big and really bawdy, and yet she is very happy being at home, running her household, doing the books at the shop. She doesn't feel the need to get out there, stand on a stage and be seen. She feels seen in her own space."

Borstein -- a MADtv alum also known for her work voicing matriarch Lois on the adult cartoon Family Guy -- said it has been difficult letting go of Maisel, the full-time job she has held since 2016.

"For me, I'd say it was mostly bitter. Maybe I'll feel the sweetness when I see it," the actress said about filming the final episodes.

Show creator Amy Sherman-Palladino tried to make those last days as painless and meaningful as possible, however.

"She saved scenes that were big ensemble pieces, so a lot of us got to be on set together, and that was such a beautiful thing because we were going through a lot of emotions. Wo got to just be there together. It wasn't easy," Borstein said.

The actress said she expects Susie will stay with her forever.

"I don't have a choice. She's in there and she's just a part of my makeup now," Borstein said. "There's probably a lot of me in her and her in me to begin with, but then it got even more squished together. It's a little mess inside me right now."

One of the things she was most excited to explore this season before everything wrapped up was Susie's relationship with Dinah as they run a chaotic talent-management office.

"Midge paved the way for Susie to trust another human being," Borstein said.

"I don't know that Susie has ever done that without Midge and without that relationship, I don't think she would have been capable of letting Dinah in. She first hires her to be a secretary and take care of business, but, little by little, they kind of get under each other's skin and kind of become family."

Fuller was excited to see Dinah getting more responsibility in Season 5.

"I knew that she and Susie were going to be in each other's lives. I just didn't know in what capacity and for how long, so it was lovely to explore that," Fuller said.

Susie also has some poignant moments with Lenny Bruce (Luke Kirby), the brilliant, but troubled comedian who recognizes in Midge the same magic that Susie sees.

"Everyone knows the Lenny Bruce story," Borstein said about the real-life trailblazer who died of a drug overdose in 1966 at age 40.

"You know what's coming you know the future and, so, every scene always feels a little heavy, always feels precious," Borstein said. "How much time do you have with this guy? How much time do you have with this character?

"There is one scene in particular when Susie got to speak with him when Midge can't, and that was a really moving, tough scene to do."

All in all, Borstein is happy with how Susie's story ends in Maisel.

"I think it's satisfying, but I also know -- remember those Choose Your Own Adventure books where you could choose different endings and paths? -- that's what's possible with all of these characters," Borstein said.

"So, you may have fantasized or pictured in your head something slightly different and then it is a surprise. Oh, it's this? This is the trajectory we're taking?"

She said she had faith that any way Sherman-Palladino decided to tie up loose ends would feel authentic and resonate with audiences.

"Particularly with Susie, whether she succeeds, whether she fails, whether the crash is harder -- any of those would have been satisfying for a viewer," Borstein said.

And should fans demand a Susie-Dinah workplace comedy spinoff, Borstein and Fuller will be there.

"Let me know. I'll call my agent," Borstein quipped.

"I do think there are stories to tell, but I also feel like we're finishing off a beautiful knitting stitch. I feel like we are complete, but you can always make the scarf longer."