Mad Men

[Andre Jurieu]

I really enjoyed the final moments of the episode, with Don's abrupt swerve in attitude serving as the perfect transition from conservative 50s (I know it's still early-to-mid 60s) into rock 'n roll 60s.

I thought Henry's mother described Betty quite accurately. Odd to see Don Draper willingly take a page out of the Hank Moody's playbook during the sex-scene.

Weiner & Co. always seem to jump ahead a little and then find ways to flashback (I remember wondering what happened to Peggy's baby), so we still could see some of the transition period for the company.

[Andre Jurieu]

The last scene between Don and his secretary in this week's episode was impressive. Allison's (Alexa Alemanni's) reaction to Don's "thank-you", with its subtle shift in facial expression, was just about as perfect as I could hope for.

I found the scenes with the nurse across the hall to be kind of disorientating, since I initially thought they were a flashback to when Don was just starting out at Sterling Cooper. I think that's mostly because Nora Zehetner seems so much younger in comparison to Don/Jon Hamm that I assumed we were seeing him in his early 30s. Maybe it was also because Don seemed so drunkenly awkward while hitting on her that I thought we were seeing him while a little younger and less in his "Don Draper's Guide to Picking Up Women"-prime.

[kaujot]

That's how far he's fallen.

[Jean-Luc Garbo]

Spoiler

I loved Lane's Texas buckle.

Also, it was nice to have an episode without Pete Campbell or Mrs. Draper.

[kaujot]

I thought it was a really great episode in just how disconnected it was from the rest of the "show," so to speak.

[Matt]

The shock cut after the mention of Catherine Deneuve was great.

[Andre Jurieu]

I thought it was a really great episode in just how disconnected it was from the rest of the "show," so to speak.

Agreed, though I think I might be one of the few who actually enjoys Don's trips to California, mostly because he seems far more relaxed and comfortable with himself.

The episode's disconnected nature made it almost feel like two different episodes.

Based on the previews for next week's episode, I have a feeling Ken Cosgrove will be making an appearance very soon.

[mfunk9786]

I feel terrible for Joan. Knowing that a loved one is leaving and might never come back has to be an impossibly horrible feeling, especially so early in their courtship. I hope this gets balanced out by, say, giving her a job in the TV department, which was my favorite Joan storyline ever.

[Matt]

I think her sitting at the head of the table at the end of the episode is very telling. It was made pretty clear in last year's season finale that she is really the one running the day to day operations of the place.

You know what this show is really bad at, though? Giving the viewer a sense of time and of events occurring simultaneously. They'll just intercut between a night scene and a day scene, or even between different days. I don't suppose that would be a big deal if the show didn't make it a point to be set in a precise historical time, down to the day.

[Jean-Luc Garbo]

I feel terrible for Joan. Knowing that a loved one is leaving and might never come back has to be an impossibly horrible feeling, especially so early in their courtship.

Joan and Dr. Rapist are married.

[mfunk9786]

I know, but they're newlyweds, and aside from the ol' rape storyline that's never been revisited, I think he's a relatively charming guy who is only cluelessly chauvinistic, rather than knowingly and aggressively like most other males on the show.

[Zumpano]

C'mon guys, you rape a girl one time and all of a sudden you're Dr. Rapist?

[Andre Jurieu]

I am utterly distraught at the departure of

Spoiler

Allison

, especially since

Spoiler

Alexa Alemanni

did such a good job throughout her run on the show. Of course I knew better, considering they were introducing so many new female characters to drift around Don this season. The scene between her and Peggy was fantastic, though a lot of it had to do with the surprisingly abrupt shifts. Interesting that Don seems to support a more progressive ad campaign for Ponds, yet he's just becoming even more of an emotional brute. I'm simultaneously repulsed and intrigued by his decline, though this is starting to verge into some Jack LaMotta territory for the unlikeable-protagonist factor. To think this was the guy that once scolded some younger gents for not showing the proper amount of respect to a woman in an elevator.

Props to Johnny Slatts on a solid directorial effort for that episode. I was rather impressed with his handling of the actors (Joan seemed so cold) and his framing choices. I didn't even mind his final scene, though it appears as though a lot of people found it heavy-handed. I thought it was kind of a nice shift from a show that sometimes settles for being subtle as a default. This makes me regret the fact that I once fixated on Slattery like a moron - enough to weird him out while he was with his kid - when I saw him in a coffee shop in NYC a few years ago (back when he was just the distinctive TV guest-star). That was not my finest moment, though in my defense, I was kind of hung-over that day.

Plus, I must say I agree with the underlying sentiments of Joey's comments on Trudy, though my own thoughts probably have more to do with Alison Brie (and possible a little bit of Annie Adderall).

[carax09]

I just realized that the actress playing Dr. Faye Miller (Cara Buono) was Grover's girlfriend in Kicking & Screaming, which explains why I always half expected her to take out a (teeth) retainer!

[Jean-Luc Garbo]

Come on, how awesome was last night's show?

Spoiler

Peggy fucking Olsen. All I can say.

Nice to see Danny Strong on board, too.

[willoneill]

It might just be in my head, but in last night's episode where Don began his Life cereal pitch, it seemed like he started out with a drunken version of his Kodak Carousel pitch from the Season 1 finale. It sticks out because the Carousel pitch is possibly still my favorite scene in the entire run of the show so far.

[Andre Jurieu]

It might just be in my head, but in last night's episode where Don began his Life cereal pitch, it seemed like he started out with a drunken version of his Kodak Carousel pitch from the Season 1 finale. It sticks out because the Carousel pitch is possibly still my favorite scene in the entire run of the show so far.

I think Don's subtle (or, I guess, not so subtle) repetition of a few core themes in his creative work (childhood, nostalgia, time) kind of emphasizes, not only his own fixations, but - at least in the last few episodes of this season - also his recent creative laziness or stagnation. He seems to have started to become more like Roger than he ever thought he would be.

[willoneill]

He seems to have started to become more like Roger than he ever thought he would be.

Agreed on that point ... that was pretty much the point of the episode, how Roger hired Don when he was drunk, and now Don has been pretty much forced into hiring this new kid, because of something he said while drunk.

[TomReagan]

Any thoughts on last evening's episode?

I'll have to view at least once more, but it smacks of an instant classic to me. Between Duck's shenanigans (especially in Roger's office), the passive aggression and mirroring on display from the very beginning of the episode, and the way Weiner was able to set up situations screaming of cliché as Don and Peggy's evening continued -- to then defy them, or at least take them to more interesting places -- was extremely well done. The only scene that initially bothered me was the spectral appearance late on, but even that was done with a fair degree of restraint (plus, the suitcase was a very witty touch from Don's pov and the workplace arc). Moreover, Hamm finally got to tap into much more emotional complexity than normally allowed, and I thought he pulled it off admirably.

This season is shaping up beautifully, which is something given the series' already high standards.

[Jean-Luc Garbo]

I was very impressed by Jon Hamm's acting this time around. I think he really upped his game. The emotional distances he had to go were well-played and convincing. Just the scene where he eviscerates Peggy was amazing. Then he has to go back around and break down after the phone call. Masterful job on his part. The tape that Draper found was just icing on the cake. No Betty in this one either! A classic indeed. Oh, I took that spectre as an allusion to the Twin Peaks white horse. It was a good touch, but Draper was obviously wasted.

[Yojimbo]

but what really puts it over the top is the meticulous attention to period

for me thats what causes me to delve too deep into it; that theres far too much attention to detail, and the look, and the lighting, and references to the big ad. campaigns of the day.
Its certainly well-acted and good dialogue, but I just need something extra; preferably darker, and not so much 'West Wing' style chumminess.
I actually bought a Season One DVD, but paused about half-way through it, about a year ago

[willoneill]

I have a question for some of the older readers here. This has been brought up, I think, on other websites, but in the last episode, Muhammed Ali is constantly refered to as Cassius Clay, but I was under the impression that he changed to Ali the year before this episode, in 1964. Wikipedia evens refers to this second Liston bout as Liston vs. Ali, whereas the first one, in 1964, is Liston vs. Clay. In fact, unless I missed it, I don't think anyone on the episode even referenced that Cassius Clay was now Muhammed Ali. Is that an error in the show, or was the name change not as well known as Wikipedia has led me to believe. Any thoughts?

[Yojimbo]

I have a question for some of the older readers here. This has been brought up, I think, on other websites, but in the last episode, Muhammed Ali is constantly refered to as Cassius Clay, but I was under the impression that he changed to Ali the year before this episode, in 1964. Wikipedia evens refers to this second Liston bout as Liston vs. Ali, whereas the first one, in 1964, is Liston vs. Clay. In fact, unless I missed it, I don't think anyone on the episode even referenced that Cassius Clay was now Muhammed Ali. Is that an error in the show, or was the name change not as well known as Wikipedia has led me to believe. Any thoughts?

I am almost certain did he didn't change his name until after that second fight; in fact, I believe it was not until 1965 or 1966 that he changed it

[Forrest Taft]

Though he was mostly referred to as Cassius Clay, Draper called him Muhammed Ali at least once, I believe.

[mfunk9786]

It just took a while for the name to catch on, hence Don's offhand 'oh, brother'-y comment. It was a different era from today, when Chad Johnson changes his name to Chad Ochocinco and ESPN sends out a memo demanding that on-air talent begin referring to him by his new name immediately.