Is Joel's marriage proposal to Miriam Maisel a flashback or dream sequence?

Question

In S02E09 of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, there's a scene where Joel proposes to Miriam at a diner and they dance in the streets, after she says yes, blocking oncoming traffic. The scene cuts to Miriam waking up in her bed and walking over to find her new boyfriend being interviewed by her father before he could propose to Miriam.

Was that scene with Joel and Miriam a flashback or a dream sequence? I had doubt because Miriam, who's a natural brunette, had blond hair in that scene. So I thought it was a dream as she wakes up right after.

Answer 1

It's a flashback scene.

As the New York Times reports, a diner set was created for the flashback sequence.

Hoping to capture not just the look but the feel of the era, I photographed over several days and one long night the meticulous transformation of an old Williamsburg bank into the B. Altman department store, a Midtown Manhattan television studio into a telethon set circa 1959, and, for a flashback scene, a West Village luncheonette into a period diner.

Narrative evidence for the flashback is provided by the fact that Joel and Midge are students (hence the references to dorms) and Midge's hair colour is different. This tends to suggest that the sequence is flashback rather than fantasy.

Answer 2

Nope, it's a memory. There's a scene in season one of where they meet and she's blonde there too! It was a college thing they did as a group, like when they nair'ed themselves everywhere. So she was blonde for a time. I loved the contrast between the wild man who cares nothing for tradition and just wants her opinion, and the man who doesn't mind her quirks but is much more of a follow the rules person. It's a very clear fork in the road for her.