"Masters of Sex" Season 2, Showtime

It is reassuring to see that this show is just as engrossing as the first season. Complex 'grey' characters (e.g. the selfish, hardly likable Bill Masters), female bonding (e.g. Virginia and Lillian, Betty and Rose) and the welcome return of 'The Pretzel King' and his sardonic wife, Betty, the ex-hooker. I hope Danny Huston (last seen in "American Horror Story") is used as an ongoing character in this season.
The art direction in Episode 2 is a standout (Gateway Memorial Hospital set design). Bill's speech about sexual dysfunction compared to being labelled "deviant" could be this season's raison d'etre. I am really enjoying ballsy Betty, too.
Episode 3 (surely Emmy-nomination worthy) was primarily a hotel room-based two hander with Bill and Virginia discussing sexual identity, power and the psychology of boxing. The intercutting of the operation scenes concerning the hermaphrodite infant was poignant. This season gets better and better.
With Episode 4 and 5, integration and race relations is becoming a dominant theme. Nice to see Sarah Silverman return as Betty's old "friend".