The Gilded Age Premiere Brings Marian and Larry Together

The Season 4 premiere of The Gilded Age brings Marian Brook and Larry Russell together for the first time since their engagement ended, then leaves Marian facing possible social consequences after they sleep together. After attending Oscar van Rhijn and Enid Winterton’s wedding celebration, Marian and Larry are stranded when their carriage is damaged in a storm. They take separate rooms at a hotel, but Larry later goes to Marian’s room and the two spend the night together. The episode marks their first sexual encounter. Marian leaves the next morning distressed about what happened. In the world of the series, an unmarried woman’s reputation could be damaged if such an encounter became known. Her aunts, Agnes Van Rhijn and Ada Forte, do not know that she and Larry slept together, though they have warned her about the risks of being seen with him. Larry is hurt by Marian’s departure, and the pair have not resolved how to handle the night or its possible fallout. The episode also advances several other storylines. Gladys Russell gives birth to a son after a difficult delivery. A hysterectomy saves her life but means she cannot have more children; her husband, Hector, Duke of...