Mrs. America

Phyllis Schlafly was a staunch conservative who stood in the way of women's rights as well as other civil movements like gay rights.

She is not the hero of this story and that's what makes the series so compelling. You get the story from many sides and each actress portrays their part with amazing talent that leaves you wanting to learn more.

I suppose the strong performances could be why some users like Liberius mistake the portrayal of individuals like Phyllis Schlafly as supporters of female empowerment when in reality she stood in the way of progress, not with facts but through charisma alone.

In most political tv-dramas ala West Wing there are the good sympathetic side, the pragmatic middle-ground and the evil/greedy/malicious adversaries. Not here. You will at times feel sympathy for both Cate Blanchetts complex portrayal of Shaftlys campaign against the women's liberation movement and disgust at the Pro-ERA proponents that ignore, undermine and fragment themselves in the fight for true equality between the sexes. The conversations are realistic "-Have you read Xs new unamed book? -No. I hear it is boring. -She is always a bore -". Events that we tend to think were front and center in the 70s are not dominating the narrative. Watergate, Vietnam and hippies are not shown to be the centre of the world like in Forrest Gump, rather they are mentioned briefly in passing conversations. Things that were way more discussed then but nearly forgotten today, like SALT and the awkward situation with the political parties in mid-shift is prominent. The conservatives and liberals are not synonyms to the respective parties. We meet the progressive republicans and the chauvinistic democrats. Kudos for showing that. Roe vs Wade is not shown to be the giant battle we think it was today, but rather we are treated to the more bipartisan support it enjoyed. ERA is not shown to be a life or death struggle with a small group of women standing up for it, rather a manifestation of a beginning culture war. There are no heroes, no easy answers or giant victories. This could have been a Wicked witch Shcaffly vs Saint Steinem series. It is not. We see Steinem avoiding picking sides, pedantic infighting, racial unspoken tension, the emergence of lgbtq-struggle, a wide range of christian views from the new evangelicals to the practical pragmatic Catholic mother who shield her gay son in Scafflys case. I love it. Because it does not try to dumb a complicated era down, rather we are shown an era were having a mailing list of 30 000 people was considered a major political asset... and where by-then-standard progressive women still considered it their duty to drive the daughters to tennis-lessons so their husbands could succeed... Where married women debating without their husbands present on television was strange. I am captivated( and also a man), in a way I have not been since Rome was premiering on HBO.

Impeccable cinematography, unbelievably talented cast.

Characters full of charm that captivate you, even if their beliefs may annoy you, disturb you, insult you or disgust you. This show is a cradle for experiencing how to empathize with all kinds of people. Not simply fun or entertaining, even though it certainly is due to the aforementioned reasons, but this show is like experiencing personal, political reinvention.

Can one's character be separate from their true or false beliefs? Have you seen how might beliefs collapse and shatter and turn into a different kind, all in one person's mind? And most importantly, how do you feel about feminism? How do you feel about the political subjugation of women? The answers to these questions will be find if you give this show a chance.

This show deserves a 10 star rating because it was essential for me and I believe it is essential for all. Highly recommended. Congratulations to the creators and cast!

As a woman who is old enough to remember the events in this series, I can say most of it is true. And as a New Yorker, it brings back memories. Despite a few reviewers who claim this is a 'disgusting' and false portrayal of the early 70s women's movement, sorry, they are wrong. And if they look at Wikipedia's entry of Phyllis Schlafly, they will learn. This is a very entertaining and important series, don't miss it.

The writing, the acting, the cinematography, the soundtrack, the costumes...... all are of such incredible quality that it was hard not to binge watch the whole series in one go. I had to limit myself to 2 episodes per viewing so I could fully appreciate the context, the storylines, the historical unfolding of two very real and very opposed ideologies that run so deep in America.

Absolutely fantastic viewing.