Emmy Catch-Up: Self Made (Series Finale)

Every year, I watch the six submitted episodes of every series I don’t regularly watch that’s up for one of the Emmy series prizes. This year, I’m watching the entire season of every series nominated in the top category, as well as this one, which netted a lead actress bid for Octavia Spencer but missed the main limited series race.

Self Made: Season 1, Episode 4 “A Credit to the Race” (B+)

This episode again skipped forward to show a wondrously successful Sarah living next to John D. Rockefeller and contemplating the next steps to cement her legacy. Desiring to have a convention at her own home was an interesting way of celebrating all she had accomplished, inviting people in to the way she lived to commemorate all that she had done. The appearance of protestors outside her door was less expected, but the drugstore deal that she had hoped for her entire life turned out to have some unfortunate implications for those who had worked tirelessly to sell her products on their own, aware that they were a crucial part of the fabric of the operation that would be irreversibly transformed by a move like this. Her prognosis only made her more stubborn and set on doing things her way, and it didn’t seem like she was going to cave to anyone else’s demands. But she ended up doing just that, realizing the value of her employees and even deciding that she wasn’t going to let her husband’s uselessness bother her anymore, despite the fact that Dora was clearly trying to profit off her name and use it to sell products. Her admission to Addie that she did steal her formula was an interesting point since the character of Addie is based in part of the real-life Annie Malone and its only suspected that part of their rift was to do with stolen products, though none of that is confirmed. This was still a worthwhile and emphatic closer to a short limited series that I found to be well-acted and well-costumed. I don’t think Octavia Spencer has a shot at winning an Emmy but I’m glad that I watched this show.

Series grade: B+
Series MVP: Octavia Spencer as Sarah

Emmy Catch-Up: Self Made

Every year, I watch the six submitted episodes of every series I don’t regularly watch that’s up for one of the Emmy series prizes. This year, I’m watching the entire season of every series nominated in the top category, as well as this one, which netted a lead actress bid for Octavia Spencer but missed the main limited series race.

Self Made: Season 1, Episode 3 “The Walker Girl” (B+)

With only four episodes in this limited series, it’s understandable that things would skip almost right away from a few donations from other women to Sarah running a very successful factory. That didn’t mean, of course, that Sarah was done with working hard to ensure that success continued, and it turns out that the worst threats were from people closest to her. CJ should have realized that the “Walker girl” he was advertising didn’t represent his wife and the market she was trying to reach, and she probably should have been attuned to the fact that his fragile ego would send him into the arms of another woman. Sleeping with one of her top sales associates who also jumped ship while she was out of town was a low blow, and showing up drunk to the factory and sabotaging a major deal that it looked like she was going to be able to sell was pretty unforgivable. After that therapeutic bike ride, it was affirming to see Sarah hold her ground and tell her husband to pack his stuff and get out in no uncertain terms. Lelia got to experience the wonder of New York City with her mother and then realize that both she and John were equally uninterested in their marriage, and a relationship with Esther away from all of this wasn’t in the cards even if her future holds many great things (some quick research indicates the real Lelia wasn’t known to be gay but definitely supported and bolstered free-thinking expression of sexual identity for others). Ransom is doing his best to remain a positive support for Sarah with his cousin dragging him down at every turn, and Addie is just as determined to bring Sarah down as Sarah is to succeed.

Emmy Catch-Up: Self Made

Every year, I watch the six submitted episodes of every series I don’t regularly watch that’s up for one of the Emmy series prizes. This year, I’m watching the entire season of every series nominated in the top category, as well as this one, which netted a lead actress bid for Octavia Spencer but missed the main limited series race.

Self Made: Season 1, Episode 2 “Bootstraps” (B+)

This show premiered right when things were still getting serious with the pandemic because I distinctly remember taking a walk without a mask on right after watching the first episode. It was a busy time and so I didn’t watch the other three episodes, but now that Octavia Spencer has earned an Emmy nomination for her performance, I figured it was worth it to check out the entire thing. I’m not so sure the song and dance numbers are necessary, but they don’t detract all that much and help to show how Sarah is picturing her life and her future success. The anachronistic music feels much more appropriate, showcasing Sarah’s sense that she is very ahead of her time and isn’t going to let the archaic nature of the world around her stop her from achieving what she knows she can. It’s upsetting to see just how much men want to keep her down, with her husband, who’s not particularly serious or helpful, insisting that he’s the man of the house and Booker T. Washington delivering a very regressive dismissal of her behavior as an outburst with no intention whatsoever to actually consider what she was saying. The mortician attempting to rape her when she went to ask for funding was also very disturbing, and now she’s in league with dirty money through no fault of her own. Ransom is deeply loyal to her, and he’s going to work hard to make sure that her business doesn’t get dragged down by this unfortunate partnership he’s now entered into after placing that bet. John is intent on bringing her down with Addie, while CJ’s need to be seen as in charge by a woman is going to make her fundraising all the more difficult when his affair inevitably comes out. At least she got a major win in the form of the endorsement of Margaret and the other wives, which almost felt more impactful than her husband’s would have.

Pilot Review: Self Made

Check out my one-minute take on every new pilot, which is embedded below and you can also watch by subscribing to movieswithabe on YouTube.