Mrs. Maisel Perfectly Resolves Jackie’s Story After Brian Tarantina’s Death

Warning: SPOILERS for The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel Season 4, Episode 3 – “Everything Is Bellmore”

The tragic death of actor Brian Tarantina was perfectly handled by The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel season 4 in how Tarantina’s character, Jackie, was written off the show. Season 4 picked up right after the ending of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel season 3 when Midge Maisel (Rachel Brosnahan) and Susie Myerson (Alex Borstein) were fired by Shy Baldwin (LeRoy McClain) and kicked off his tour. Miriam and Susie returned to the Gaslight to lick their wounds but Jackie, who runs the nightclub in the Village where Midge was discovered, was nowhere to be found. The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel season 4, episode 3, “Everything Is Bellmore,” touchingly addressed both Jackie’s fate and the loss of Brian Tarantina.

As Jackie, Brian Tarantina was part of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel‘s ensemble since season 1. Jacke managed the Gaslight and was Susie’s boss, but he was also closer to Midge’s diminutive manager than even she knew. Jackie always told it like it is and was straight with Midge if she was great or when Mrs. Maisel bombed on stage and got arrested. Later, when Midge’s career started taking off and Susie went on tour with her client, Jackie moved into Susie’s tiny apartment, where they were later joined by Chester (Connor Ratliff), Susie’s creepy stalker. Jackie was a good friend to Susie and he sought to improve her dire living conditions while giving Myerson sage advice that she didn’t always register. With all of the chaos that accompanied Midge and Susie at the start of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel season 4, many viewers may not have noticed that they didn’t see Jackie in the first two episodes.

In real life, Brian Tarantina died on November 2, 2019, and his cause of death was from “acute intoxication,” i.e. a drug overdose. Because Tarantina died months before production on The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel season 4 began under COVID-19 protocols, Jackie had to be permanently written off the series. Brian Tarantina had worked with producer Amy Sherman-Palladino since Gilmore Girls and the respectful way The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel closed out Jackie’s story was tremendously poignant and perfectly done. At the start of Mrs. Maisel season 4, episode 3, Susie returned to her apartment to learn that Jackie had died of a stroke, but he left Myerson with elaborately banal instructions about what chores had to be done at the Gaslight that day. Susie then sifted through the remains of Jackie’s life and was heartbroken to discover that she hardly knew him at all despite the fact that they saw each other almost every day and shared an apartment.

When only four people – Midge, Susie, Chester, and Jackie’s sister Nancy – came to Jackie’s funeral in Mrs. Maisel season 4, Susie was so angry and distraught that she crashed an adjacent memorial service and delivered a powerful eulogy that ranks as one of the finest performances Alex Borstein has given in the show. An emotional Susie gave Jackie, a war hero who lived an extraordinary life that Myerson had no clue about, a heartwarming tribute in her typically foul-mouthed and angry way. Susie realized that Jackie was a true friend to her all along. Midge also learned that Jackie was incredibly proud of helping discover Mrs, Maisel, which surprised her. But Jackie really did admire Mrs. Maisel and Midge never saw the moments when Jackie cheered her on while she blew away the audience during the telethon at the end of Mrs. Maisel season 2.

Both Jackie the character and Brian Tarantina will be dearly missed on The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, but the show used the tragic loss of Jackie to uplift and fuel Susie’s story. Spurred on by wanting to make Jackie proud, Susie rededicated herself to becoming the best manager she can be, not just for Midge but for other clients as well. Jackie’s memory will help Susie Myerson and Associates become the success Susie dreams of in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. And, when Susie does make it big, it will honor the memory of Jackie on the show and Brian Tarantina in real-life.

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel Season 4 streams Fridays on Amazon Prime Video.

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