Uwe Boll's In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale

This movie gives you a constant feeling that somehow you've not been paying attention and missed something critical. However, that's not the case. Pay all the attention you want the movie still will make no sense. Like zero. Zip, zilch, nada. I've never witnessed anything like this. Mayyyybe there was a MST3K film or two that was as disjointed as this (but even a lot of those had critical points edited out on purpose thus making them incomprehensible). It was like my girl and I started involuntarily doing our own version of Joel & The Bots. We couldn't help ourselves. Within the first 15 minutes of the film we had asked aloud, about a half dozen times, some semblance of the question "The fuck is going on here?".


There is scene after scene of characters running around in peril and battle and yet none of them really relate to, help set up, or in any way make you care about any of the other scenes and/or characters. That's not to say its not boring...because it most certainly is. There is tons of stuff happening, all at once, and yet it still manages to bore you to pieces. Its astonishing in its mind numbing horribleness. There was a point where I made the conscious decision that i was going to stick this thing out. To ride with this pig all the way to the finish line because I found myself wondering, "Just how bad is this drek going to get?" Well...pretty fucking bad, I can tell you that.


I kept vacillating between which aspect of the film I hated the most.

• Was it the acting? On the plus/minus side Liotta & Rhys-Davies were good as always but wasted, Statham (no great shakes as an actor but he does what he does competently) said things whispery and fought. On the minus/minus side Sobieski was vapidly lost, White was hammy, Reynolds & Perlman looked bored, and last and most certainly least Matthew Lillard was flamboyantly terrible in his performance of the evil nephew of the king. Lillard was the only one in the film outside of Statham & Rhys-Davies (2 natural born Englishmen) to speak with an accent. Unlike the other 2 accents however, Lillard's came and went.
• Was it the story? What fucking story??! Just to point out how little sense this movie makes, listen to this: In the middle of the movie, the king's evil nephew convinces the king he wants a fresh start and begs forgiveness. The king invites his nephew to sup with him at table and slides him a plate of his own food. The nephew eats heartily. Within the next couple of scenes we learn that the food was poisoned. When the king learns of this he asks who poisoned him. He is told by his closest aides that his nephew did it. The king then bites his lip and looks anguished and laments his nephew's nefarious betrayal. ?? If this movie had any thread of intelligence at all wouldn't the king have insisted "No...no that doesn't make sense. My evil nephew ate more of the food than I did and only ate what I myself separated and gave him to eat. He was in the dungeon before that and not only had no way of getting to the food I was served before we see him enter but he had no way of knowing what portion of the food he would receive." Alas, no. In this film this is the reason the armies go after the nephew.
• Was it the directing? Its obvious some money was spent on this movie based on the number of extras in 1 or 2 scenes, the size and quality of a few sets, the costuming, the graphics and special effects, and more than a handful of helicopter/crane shots following people on horseback or running. Its as if Uwe Boll had the LOTR Director's Handbook For Running and followed it faithfully. However Uwe Boll seems to have an incredibly poor eye for staging these large and expensive scenes. The massacre at the marketplace scene is hilarious in the length of time, and coverage of, the frightened extras running around willy nilly. This is a lengthy and nonsensically staged battle in which Statham, Perlman, and a cross-eyed actor I'd never seen before named Will Sanderson are apparently the only peasants willing to fight the not-orcs. Those 3 fight and fight and fight with the beast-men and all the while there are dozens of men, women, and children running around behind them terrified. They don't go anywhere. They don't fight. They just...run. And scream. And get killed in poorly composed close-ups where you can see the battle-axes and swords miss them. There are countless scenes in which it seems Uwe Boll just made the decision after 1 crappy take, "That's good! Moving on!!". I really can't decide which aspect was the worst. Unfortunately its something you'd have to decide for yourself.

I take that back. I take that back immediately. Its not "unfortunate" for you to decide this. Consider it an experimental endeavor. I plead with any of you who are curious enough, anyone who wouldn't mind wasting the time...watch this movie. Maybe like myself you have a brother-in-law who burns every single movie he rents and you can get a copy for free. Maybe like myself you had a co-worker emphatically recommend it (I HIGHLY doubt that to be the case). I promise, you don't have to watch the whole thing. Just watch the first 15-20 minutes and ask yourself if you know what the fuck is happening and who the fuck these people are and why the fuck we should be expected to know (or care). I bet you'll agree with me.

Mad Men S4E7 "The Suitcase" - A+

I've been waiting for this episode all season. Matt Weiner has built the Don vs. Peggy plot line so well throughout the early part of the season and Sunday's episode, "The Suitcase", delivered a gratifying confrontation between those two. Looking over several of the posts in here its obvious to see how clearly he hit the mark.




Contrasted with the now legendary "Clay vs. Liston" fight of May 25th, 1965, Elisabeth Moss and Jon Hamm, the two heavyweight players of Mad Men, got to share the majority of the screen time this week pulling no punches and trading dialogue full of antagonism, revelation, pertinent symbolism, and sentimentality. There were even some heavy handed puns woven in. Credit due to Matt Weiner for crafting such a superb episode this week, full of confrontation, featuring Peggy and Don saying the things they've been wanting to say (and that we've been wanting to hear them say) for so long. He truly has the voice of those two characters down solid.







The play-by-play:


May 25th, 1965. We know this because Harry Crane is passing out tickets with that date being the most clearly imprinted text on them. Harry handles his exposition duties for the week by revealing these are tickets for the Clay-Liston fight. The Cosgroves and the Campbells get freebies while Harry charges the lessers of the room $10 a pop. Don assures Harry "absolutely" that he'll be joining the boys for steaks at the Palms tonight. He then barks for the "Samsonite team" to join him in his office.




Don "absolutely" flakes on Harry & Co. by requesting Ms. Blankenship make him and Roger a dinner reservation for "anywhere BUT the Palms". Nice call back to the pilot right there. The more things change, the more they stay the same. Team Samsonite: Peggy, Joey, Stan, & Danny arrive to run through the idea they've come up with. Before they do, however, Peggy gets off a straight left jab at Don about him being over two hours late for this meeting. We get to see how the creativity is dispersed in this crew as Stan sets the scene, Peggy and Joey recite the lines they've come up with, and Danny is short. The idea is to have Joe Namath be the pitchman uttering some cornball dialogue about how strong Samsonite luggage is and how it helps him win the game and get the girl. It truly sounds like every old football player commercial I've ever seen and I swear this was an actual ad wasn't it? Don obviously hates the idea, hates Joe Namath, and ultimately hates Peggy standing up to his dismissal of the pitch. He dismisses Team Samsonite, save Peggy, from his office to explain this.




AND THEY'RE OFF!! After the initial feeling out of these two in tonight's headliner bout, Draper scores the first big blows of Round 1 with a line we were treated to in last week's promo: "Peggy, I'm glad this is an environment where you feel free to fail." OUCH!! Just because I heard it last week, and knew it exactly who it was directed at, doesn't lessen the sting of it. Peggy reveals, rather bitterly, that Don wanted to go with Danny's idea ("Only Samsonite is strong"). This initial bit of battling portends what's to come and does a nice little job of recapping all that's been happening with them this season. Peggy just doesn't feel that Don pays her the credit she is due. She has voiced to him previously that "they" (she) are all there because of him, to please him, and are sorely in wanting of his praise. On top of her feelings of being under appreciated by Don she now has to accept that he likes the new guy's stuff better. The guy Don mocked not only after but during his interview with them. This has got to be a bitter pill for her to swallow.




The bell dings and Round 1 comes to a close with Draper finishing strong. Peggy retreats to her corner to find a vase of flowers and a card from her former paramour Herman "Duck" Phillips. While thanking him for the apparent birthday gift he insists she open that accompanying "present". We're treated to a close-up of a business card reading "Phillips-Olsen Advertising, Peggy Olsen, Creative Director". Its not really a birthday gift though is it? And its DEFINITELY not a Hermes. What it definitely is is a proposition from Duck for her to leave SCDP and follow behind him, waddling into the big-boy pond. He goes into the full sell and lists some of the accounts he's got lined up. Matthew "Big Pun" Weiner lets loose with a few non-ironic memorables from Duck regarding the "under the table" discussions with Tampax. Who's that? Tampax. You know...50% market share Tampax: "they're really up there!". Peggy, being the mathematician that she is puts two and two together and realizes within a few seconds that not only has Duck lost his job with Grey but based on the tenor of the phone call, as well as what she heard about his dripping wet Kanye West impersonation at the Clios, that he's got a whole lotta liquid courage going on. Remember now, as we just learned from Don's pummeling of her in the scene just before, that it is currently 11:15 in the a.m. Roasted Duck is running the alcoholic playbook step by step right now and he goes from positively boisterous (choo-choo!), to melancholy (admitting to being inspired by "Draper" but not having the means to emulate him), to angry (snotting at her about the dummy cards he had made up(1)), to self centered woe-is-me-ism (with that Mark? He's another one...), to sentimental longing and "all I need is you" (telling her she's the last time he was happy) within the matter of, like, two sentences. I think he's barking up the wrong tree here though. Regardless of their relationship and of whatever she may see in him I really can't imagine Peggy as the "co-dependant" type willing to be his crutch as he fumbles drunkenly along Madison Avenue. I think she's honest in her appraisal of him as a "valuable account man" and likes that he hates Don so much but after this episode I think that's one dead Duck. Quite interesting to note is that for all the shitting Duck does on "creative" (and on Don), he quite obviously recognizes true talent and the importance of it. Peggy ends the call with Duck as Huey, Luey, & Lil Dewey drop into her office to announce they're off to lunch.




Ruh-Roh...Ms. Blankenship informs Don, and anyone with decent hearing in the office, that a "Stephanie" has placed an urgent call to Don while he was "in the toilet". Considering what we learn about her later, I wonder if Ms. Blankenship is into water sports. Dons apprehensiveness in facing this battle is apparent as he retreats to the solitude of his office to steel himself for the news he is about to hear. He makes it just about as far as his mini-bar, however, to pour out a little support. I don't think he was going to go back to the phone after the drink, do you? In any case he's rescued from having to follow through as Roger barges into his office like a wacky sitcom neighbor uttering "We're ruined!". The wacky sitcominess ensues as there's a bit of Three's Companiness about the meaning of Roger's lament and blahblahblah reformed alcoholics suck. As I mentioned above the dialogue in this episode is superb and Roger says something here that I think is indicative of that. He whines a bit about how AA guys like Freddie Rumsen and Cal Rutledge from Pond's "...start with the funny stories, and then they end up crying." This exactly the course of events for Don later on. There are clearer examples of symbolism and double meaning to come.




Team Samsonite sits contemplating how much they're failing at this thing and after Joey endears himself to me for vocalizing how much he wants to stab Danny's neck fat, Peggy, cutely decked out in a pink birthday crown, realizes that they're going nowhere fast and calls an end to the proceedings. Joan bitches at them for being messy in the common area and we see a furtherance of Joey vs. Joan. Joey refuses to clean up and exits. Danny & Stanny aren't such complete shitheads however and do the right fucking thing by actually cleaning up after themselves. Their little te-tete was hinted at in previous episodes (2) and if the promos are to be believed (HA!) they continue next week.




The secretary with the dirty faced French mother (is it Meagan?) and Peggy are both powdering their noses. Literally. We learn that Peggy's boyfriend Mark has some romantic dinner plans for them for her birthday. During Clay/Liston??? Sap ass sucka. As Meagan leaves, a visibly pregnant Trudy comes from around the corner after metaphorically powdering her nose. Elisabeth Moss continues to be my favorite on this show and be an expert at doing so much with so little as we see a flicker of uneasiness pass over her once she realizes Trudy has engaged her in polite convo. This girl is solid gold. There's a bit of dialogue about pregnancy and playful banter about Trudy's horrible horrible life with Pete, but the main purpose here is to show that "the fight" is on everyone's radar screen. Even upper crust blue bloods appreciate the spectacle of skilled combat and human confrontation. (3)




Yelled at by mean drunken bully boss? Check. Awkward conversation with wife of man who knocked you up forcing you to surreptitiously deliver and surrender a baby? Big Check. Having to work with Joey, Stan, & Danny? Check. Next question: Can a birthday get any worse?




Yes. Yes it most certainly can. I say so because as she exits the restroom, ready to leave work for her birthday celebration, she's summoned by Don. Peggy goes to see him as the rest of the crew watch her small solitary figure walk valiantly to her doom. They in turn laugh at her misfortune and beat feet out of the building. Peggy, with her coat and hat on, purse in hand, **coughcoughhinthint**enters Don's office to see what he wants. Ms. Blankenship is old and stupid and reminds us that California is waiting to hear from Don. He dodges Blankenship but he picks right back up with Peggy, insisting on seeing what came out of her cute little birthday crowned head. The trade a few shots with each other, Peggy giving even better than she gets, leaving Don so stunned all he can do is utter a fatherly "Excuse me?" at her willingness to battle him on this.




Now here is where the episode got great...




Peggy comes back into Don's office knowing he's going to hate each and everything she puts in front of him. She knows. He knows it. She knows he knows it!! She knows she's going to have to scuttle plans with her boyfriend, or at least be severely late for them, and work with Don on this. And its her birthday!! What she doesn't know, however, is that said boyfriend Mark has assembled the entire cast of "Peggy Olsen: This Is Your Life" (4) at their romantic rendezvous. We know this because we see them all lined up expectantly at the table with him as he receives news that she's running late. And while the boy is boy is painfully clueless and should be flogged unmerciful for such a poor decision, he definitely doesn't deserve to have to spend an entire dinner with those people. I think that violates several Geneva statutes. So, Peggy returns with the shitty Samsonite treatments and, much to the surprise of all involved, Don shits all over them.




After the commercial break we come back to these two and we see some time has elapsed. Peggy's still pitching but Don wants to talk "fight". This is interesting here because its becoming apparent that while Don may have really disliked the ideas presented, he doesn't really care about getting it solved really. He just doesn't want to have to leave the sanctity, the security, of his office. Don does a very weak, almost girly, pantomime of boxing and I can see quite clearly why he was forced to cry "Uncle Scrooge McDuck" later in the episode. The talk of the fighters involved makes Don go "light bulb" and come up with a boxing-related tag line for Samsonite. Peggy, very humorously, lies her ass off in response, professing the idea to be genius and almost physically salivating. Heh. She wants to leave. The phone rings...almost signifying the end of another round. Don looks terrified as his head swivels immediately towards the sound. He half heartily tells Peggy to "let it ring". I think he'd welcome someone else actually receiving the news, or being forced to receive it because she answered the phone. He'd probably have blamed it all on her because she answered it.




Alas, it is Roger. He's begging Don to come save him as he's stuck with two teetotalers. Two teetotalers talking tales through teardrops. The prospect of alliteration aside, Don denies the request to come and "save" Roger. Peggy gets her own phone call in which Mark reveals that he has her family there with him and they're all waiting. I really like the juxtaposition here between these two. they're both getting phone calls pressing them to flee the work. Pressing them to actually go on to plans they had previously made. Yet neither one of them really wants to go. Don I think because he knows he has to stick around and make this phone call. Plus as he said "he wouldn't be very good company". Peggy is different. I didn't realize that she was ready to sacrifice her own happiness, to sacrifice Mark's happiness, for the job until AFTER she comes back and trades a few more blows with Don. He actually gives her an escape. He allows her leave. She makes it to the elevator before we get a fantastic smash cut to a maitre de angrily slamming a phone down in front of Mark. Hee! It struck me here how much Peggy is becoming like Don. I could easily see this being Don and Betty in their earliest days. Back when Don was actually conflicted about staying late and working on shit ideas, yet still choosing the work over the happiness at home. There is no real reason, outside of wanting to please Don or wanting to "do the work" that bad, that Peggy chose to turn back at that elevator. I mean Christ on a cracker...she had already even hit "down".




As good as all the Don vs. Peggy stuff is this episode, I think the best scene of the episode is the Peggy vs. Mark breakup scene. The mom killed me. She spits vitriol in bunches. Knowing what we do later on, what the mother thinks about Don and Peggy, its doubly pertinent that the family winces when Mark snits that Peggy should date Don because she "never stands him up". Oh Mark...why do I think you're going to have a lifetime of being the only one at the table who isn't aware of something very important? Au revoir, Mark...




Peggy strides into Don's office, coming out of the corner hot to trot. She is super charged and they immediately fall into it here. Don says something here that is a repeat of something he said in an earlier exchange, "So this is my fault now?". I wonder if this is part of why he can't pick up that phone and get the news he knows is waiting for him. He's so self-centered, such delusions of grandeur, that he thinks he's to blame. He didn't do enough to save Anna. he could have, but dammit he didn't. And now when he picks up the phone he'll have to face the fact that she's dead and he could have beat her Cancer somehow.


OLSEN IS PUMMELING DRAPER...SHE'S BACKED HIM INTO A CORNER AND HE'S STUNNED STUPID!! She is like a pitbull in this scene, refusing to give Don any breathing space. She's relentless in recounting his recent fuck ups: the fact that they're even there right now, the Danny situation, being drunk, him taking credit for everything, and the she swings for the fences by bringing up Glo-Coat. And now we're getting to what she's fighting for. Don, the wily champ, blocks that last shot efficiently. He knows exactly what she's getting at with that wild swing and a miss and he's going to take it right back to her. This such a true argument here and it felt so good to hear these two give voice to what's been behind their bickering. They're both in the right here and they're both in the wrong. Peggy shouldn't be demanding to be part of the Clio thing but she's absolutely correct in wanting to be given some recognition by Don. Don is correct in corralling wild ambition by not doling out praise to each and every thing but he's got to divvy a bit out and he's got to acknowledge that his fuck ups shouldn't inherently be everyone else's problems. He's ready to share mistakes, like Danny, but not triumphs. Its almost as if the entirety of last week's episode, "Waldorf Stories", was a set up for this bit of dialogue. FANTASTIC WRITING. Although the stood toe to toe for that bit, Don countered strong to finish leaving Peggy to start crying. The man/woman fight kryptonite works perfectly. I'm giving this middle round to Peggy, she definitely got the better of the biggest exchanges, even though Don had her wobbling back to her corner.




Love the janitor fleeing the bathroom as Peggy comes in to bawl her eyes out. Little touches like that reminder of how late they're in the office. Crying alone in a public bathroom at work after hours...worst. birthday. EVER!!




**GULGH**(5)




Back from the odious commercials and we see Don going about the office, preparing his necessary tools for a night of work: a glass of scotch and a tape recorder. He's surprised by a mouse scurrying across his floor. Notice that the skyline outside is now much darker than before the commercial break. Nice little touch to use the break to make it feel like an extended passage of time. He hears a noise in the distance and realizes its Peggy(6). There's a look on Don's face like "Aw shit, I gotta deal with that problem too". Cut to said problem. Pegs in her office, curled up in a girly way on her couch, working away. She's resigned herself to the fact that she's stuck there...might as well be comfy. There's a knocking on a wall and Don's voice comes from off screen beckoning her to come to his office. Like a teenage girl pouting in her room she snots "No!". Man I love me some Peggy, I really truly do. I also love this show because every time I think its going to zig, it zags. I was fully expecting, partially because of the look on Don's face just before, that he was going to apologize to her; that there was going to be a moment shared between them where he cops to being an ass. But no. Not on Mad Men.




On Mad Men Peggy comes into the doorway, annoyed, only to find Don cracking up and insisting she has to hear what's on the recorder. Don has found the autobiographical recordings Roger has been making for his secretary to transcribe. Not only has he found them, he has listened to them and found them hilarious. He insists Peggy come in and listen and laugh along with him. What was seemingly a one-line throwaway in the pilot and played for levity in a few scenes ( for poignancy in one) since has all of a sudden become the thing which brings them together to laugh. Clever writing device or contrivance? As Matt Weiner (via Don) points out later the difference between something that's good and something that's awful is very close. I know good when I see it and I'm leaning towards "clever" on this one. I'm also leaning towards hilarious because Sterling's Gold is 24 carat awesomeness: Ms. Blankenship (Ida) is the "Queen of Perversion", Dr. Lyle neutered Bert Cooper, Bert had him killed, Roger saying "sometime in the Summer of 1948, no 1932...n-no 1939...". I also like that all of the revelations that we hear, the one that actually makes Peggy laugh is the notion that Roger Sterling is writing a book. I wonder if that book will have asides that read: (at this point Mr. Sterling audibly downs a glass of Scotch) "Ahhh...". After Don stops the hilarity he cajoles Peggy, who didn't need much cajoling, to not only saty "and visit" but to share what's on her mind. Peggy astutely points out that they don't have personal conversations, that they never "visit", and she thinks that Don likes it that way. She points out that she herself does. Don doesn't buy it. Peggy doesn't sell it very hard. She begins "visiting" with her attitude towards her just completed break up, ending a relationship she more than likely knew was ended all along. Peggy sees the mouse and eeks appropriately. The rest of this scene is signifcant for three reasons, and they're all Don-central: He begins opening up about his past to Peggy, he utters some of the symbolic dialogue I mentioned above, and he is utterly mortified of that phone ringing. Peggy notices all three. She definitely notices, although the implication may not have registered with her, Don giving up the search for the absconded mouse and his utterance of the line "...there's a way out of this room we don't know about". He's talking about more than the mouse having an entrane and exit strategy here. He's talking about a few things i think. In one aspect he's talkign about the the Samsonite pitch. Both of them would say the reason they're still there at that hour is becuase they haven't found the right idea for the ad. He's saying that there is an idea...one that will allow them to escape this room just as that mouse has done...it just hasn't come to him yet. In another aspect he's talking about Anna. He's trying like Hell to avoid actually facing what he knows is true, that she's dead and he couldn't do a damn thing for her. In this aspect he's trying to reason to himself that there's still a way for him to not have to accept it. He's trying to reason that there's a way for him to get out of it, to get away from it. This idea closely tied in to the revelation we get in the next scene. Don offers to take her out for his version of a birthday dinner.




Peggy's birthday dinner takes place at Slimy Slouvaki's Grecian Spoon. (8) This is such an important scene as we're treated to these two actually opening up to each other. The revelations come fast and furious as they hop from spitballing ideas for the Samsonite ad, to remembrances and recollections of their past, to intimately personal observations. The suitcase is unpacked, they're actually "visiting". Visiting HOARD. For Peggy Olsen a suitcase is something to be filled up, an exciting prospect of what may come. She declares as much when she tells Don she knows "what [she's] supposed to want but it never feels right. Or not as important as anything in that office". This is a woman who's more dedicated to what she can be and what she can create, rather than to what she is and what has been designed for her. She's ready to pack her suitcase and go somewhere with her life. We've seen Don be honest about his past with a select few people through four seasons and each time its only been because he was forced to. Adam tracked him down and forced him. Pete intercepted his mail and forced him. Anna tracked him down and forced him. Betty broke into his drawer and forced him. In those instances he was honest about who he was originally and what he came from. The rest of the time that he's even given minute details of his distant and recent life has been to sell. He did it while pitching the Wheel or talking to the dog food lady. Hell, the season opened with an entire episode dedicated to his unwillingness to acknowledge curiosity about himself, about "Who is Don Draper?". This is the first time we've seen him willfully acknowledge the details of his life and be happy to do it. With Peggy. She reciprocates in turn and we see that these two have much in common. They both not only lost their fathers young, they watched as it happened. This may have only just about EVERYTHING to do with their relationship. Peggy will always be looking for that praise from Don. a man she even compared to her father and their attitudes toward the appeal of black men earlier in the episode. While Betty was probably over-praised by her father and it has affected her and Don's relationship in certain ways Peggy, the other important woman in Don's life whether he acknowledges it or not, was deprived of receiving fatherly validation and compensates by placing her self-worth and value in Don's praise and recognition. While I think that's the most important revelation between these two I don't think that's the most important revelation to be found in that scene. That distinction belongs to Don's revealing what his Uncle Max told him. Hearing a man he admired, a man he has acknowledged was "good to him", in contrast to his real father who he has routinely derided, tell him that a man should live his life with a suitcase ready to go at all times was the spur that turned Dick Whitman into the man he would become: Don Draper. With that one sentence we now know why Don has been so ready to abandon his life, his career, his wife, his children, his everything...whenever things got to hot for him. He's bailed on birthdays, fled business trips, and incrementally abandoned his marriage until it collapsed. For Don Draper a suitcase is escape. Don ends the scene for us with another bit of double-meaning dialogue: "Let's go somewhere darker". I knew right then the conversation was going to open up and they were going to say things aloud they probably don't even want to say in their head.




At the bar they're now in, I don't know what the fuck is being said as a 1965 radio is squelching out the fight via an announcer who has apparently put a handful of marbles in his mouth. Let me just say before I get into what these two said that I was wrong at each step in regards to how this conversation was going to go. The emotions, opinions, and responses were not what I imagined they would be. Just like a couple weeks ago during "The Chrysanthemum and The Sword" I thought Pete was going to flame out and shoot himself in the foot with his father-in-law, I was completely surprised by the transpiring of dialogue. What follows is an example of what I mean: Peggy does a little compliment fishing before she gives voice to a story line we've been following since season one.(9) Peggy informs Don that "everyone" thinks she fucked her way through the glass ceiling. While the sheer mechanics and injuries that would result from such a coupling shuold be enough to convince everyone that it didn't happen, what seems to bother her the most is the thought that those two having sex is such an absurd idea. Her pride is more hurt at the belief that Don is out of her league. I didn't expect that. Don tries to rationalize WHY he's never made a move on her by way of a ridiculously transparent explanation of office protocol. A rules and regs guide on the do's and dont's of doing the mommy-daddy dance from Draper? (10) Right here I was thinking "Bad. Idea. Jeans.". I was fully convinced that this would blwo up in his face and Peggy would be offended at his explanation. But no, she actually seems somewhat mollified at the silly rambling because he managed to work in there that she's attractive. (11) Peggy brings up Allison without actually bringing up Allison and Don brings up Peggy's baby without actually bringing up Peggy's baby. Peggy divulges that her mother is convinced he's actually the Don Dada. This prompts him to ask if she even knows who it is. Again...I was ready for her to drop the big one on Don right here but I guess she hadn't had quite that much to drink. I'm glad Peggy didn't betray Pete's trust here, no matter how personal and open they were getting. Its notin character. The unintelligible sounds from the radio pick up and I'm just as lost as Peggy as she inquires whats happening to make all the men around her beg and plead and demand "get up!". Clay has defeated Liston and we get a glimpse that as soon as that fight was over, from men who didn't even see the fight that the "fix was in". (12)




Back in the confines of SCDP, Don does his Roger Sterling impersonation and makes a mad dash for the bathroom where he does a little technicolor yawning with Peggy as his audience. Peggy looks around the men's restroom as if its the first time she's ever been in one, and it might very well be, and while looking at the urinals, the wall graffiti, all to the soundtrack of Don's retching, she looks as if that restroom is a testament to every horrible thing there is about the male of the species. As she's having thi sepiphanie she hears her name being called from out in the office proper. (13) She is suprised to find see Duck. Probably not so surprised to find him drunkenly staggering. However she is most definitely surprised to find Duck, trou dropped, trying to take a shit in what he thinks is Don's office. Having informed him of his error and convinced him to come along she tries to escort him out of the office only to be found by Don. Don's ready to rumble and after being informed that he was once Peggy's drake, he swings once Duck calls Peggy a whore. Feathers fly as the two tussle and tumble. Dcuk gains the upper hand, literally, as he pins Don to the floor and we see Draper staring down the barrel of a locked and loaded Okinawan Palm of Death. Don gives and he doesn't seem to have much fight in him right now nor does he seem to care very much although he does look a little hurt as he realizes that Peggy will be leaving with this man. Peggy leaves with that man. Peeegggyyyy...you got sum 'splainin to-dooooo!!




Peggy returns sans man. She inquires as to Don's status. He reciprocates and starts trying to explain the situation to Don but he looks like that would only make him throw up on his shirt some more. I LIKED Peggy calling Don on his drinking right here. He knew it was time even before she said it. I really think this is going to be Don's metaphorical "wake up call". Don's literal "wake up call" is an image of Anna, suitcase in hand and walking perfectly, ghosts right into his office and looks around a bit like "Sooo...this is it huh? I like what you've done with the place. Could use a tree painted on the wall butits nice". She is transparent and it looks a bit cheesy and I wonder if that was a deliberate Matthew Weiner decision. Maybe trying to tie it in to how it would have looked in the 1960s? Dunno.








(1) - Do you think when he got those cards made up he told the printing company to put it on his bill? HA!
(2) - As well as the reveal of who was behind Joan having to pull pencils out of the ceiling. (It was Stan)
(3) - I love the bit done here by Weiner reflecting the differing attitudes women have regarding Peggy, and her place in this world, on her 26th birthday. After learning that she has romantic dinner plans at a swanky restaurant and taking into consideration her position at the company Meagan, a career girl, remarks that Peggy's "doing alright". Typed out it doesn't seem like much of a compliment but it was said as a compliment with admiration. Trudy, however, has a differing view altogether. Upon hearing that Peggy is 26, and without a husband, she feels sorry for her and tries to buck up the little camper's spirits with a condesceinding remark about there being plenty of time for her to find a man to complete her sad, useless existence.
(4) - Even "the roommate" HA!
(5) - Okay...I am officially FUCKING SICK of these Mad Men style adverts during the commercial break. This one is really only the second that I've watched (the first being a Suave on that I stopped FFing my DVR for because I though it was a scene at a rival firm) but this is just such horseshit. The pitchman is pleding mom, americana, apple pie...while he, and the americana mom apple pie viewing audience at home, get ogle a back lit sultry woman with hair flowing as she writhes her body seductively, just about to make mouth love to a sandwich. It cuts away just as we (the sammich) enter her mouth. There's even the obligatory thumb suck at the end. As if we didn't get the idea already that she has just fellated us all. The product?? MAYONNAISE!! I mean really. I bet there's footage they didn't use, but definitely shot, of her wiping a bit off the corner of her mouth with the back of her hand.
(6) - Quite different from every time I'M working late at the office and I hear a noise in the building. When that happens I realize its obviously a crazed axe murderer, who just happens to have a key fob for our building, and he's going to kill me if I go out there and look.
(7) - This reminds me so much of the first season episode "Nixon vs. Kennedy" (another confrontation!) when Cosgrove emerges from Kinsey's office with Kinsey's play "Death Is My Client" (and Allison, btw). After some clumsy attempts to get it back while Cosgrove reads aloud, Kinsey seethes. There's a cut-away and when they come back, instead of a fight between the two or Kinsey still seething and suffering, the Sterling Cooper Players are assembled and ready to perform for the crowd. That was a clear zag when a zig was expected. MWAH!!
(8) I wonder if even back then all restaurants were owned by Greek people. I wonder if even back then all restaurants owned by Greek people burned donw suspiciously.
(9) - I love when good shows do this. I loved it when The Sopranos would do it, when The Wire woul do it, and when Futurama does it. It makes being a fan of the show so much better
(10) - Sheeeeyyiiiiit (c) Clay Davis
(11) - What do the women think about this?
(12) - And really can we blame anyone for going nuts in 1960s America? Just a brief survey of some of the episodes of Mad Men shows why. In a very brief period of time Marylin Monroe dies under mysterious circumstances, the president was murdered, his alleged assassin was murdered in front of everyone, civil rights movement is going crazy and civil rights workers in the South were murdered, Malcolm X was murdered, and the country is in an ever escalating war. I don't doubt it all that people become more and more suspicious of anything that looked even remotely dubious.
(13) - Again...I would have instantly known my name was being called my a completely different axe murderer, this one who not only has a key fob but knows my name. They do exist.

Mad Men S4E5 "The Chrysanthemum & The Sword"

The Chrysanthemum & the Sword - A+


Absolutely fantastic episode this week. There was: conspiratorial hijinks, major pathos, Roger's funny racism, some comp for Don, Ugly Betty...oh and something happened with Sally too. Great writing this week by Erin Levy who has defined herself as my favorite writer for the show sans Weiner. Great Dr. Lyle Evans shout out! The acting was just, well, passable this week, however. That, and the slapstick-aroo with Ms. Blankenship, would be my only complaint(s).


Let me start by saying I have zero idea about the eponymous book, The Chrysanthemum and the Sword, so looking for a theme in relation to the title, as well as the book, would be an exercise in futility for me. That's not to say that there was none. I picked up very definitely on a theme of shame in last night's episode. I think the introduction of Japanese businessmen and SCDP's scrambling to educate themselves about them, their practices and their culture, helped highlight that theme. Betty and Don both dealt with the shame of their dissolved relationship and the effects of it they're witnessing in Sally's acting out. Don gave voice to the shame he feels at realizing he's not a good father. Betty voiced her shame at having a less-than-perfect child.(1) Roger wasn't so much ashamed but did quite obviously have some "survivor's guilt" going on preventing him from accepting the Japanese account. He also had to come in and admit his mistake in front of his partners.


Some good Taking of Pelham 1-2-3 Japanese tourist business goes on with Hamm & Kartheiser doing their best Matthau. Roger "Enola Gay" Sterling comes in and royally fucks things up.


Christ on a cracker!! Roger vs. Pete!! If its a dance-off I got Pete. Heart attack competition, Roger's my man. This is an interesting development and seems to be continued next week. Sterling no longer has anything to hold over Campbell, and he knows it. It was telling that during the meeting of the partners everyone was tired of Roger's laxative jokes, which after 18 years must drive Cooper crazy. He's trying to mock Pete here for the account but nobody's letting him get away with it. He's inherited everything he has, like Lucky Strike, and taking everything else as a joke while Campbell's making power moves is just not cute. Compound that shit by fucking with their wallets? I think Roger's noticing that its not just in a French pasture that he's losing his fighting compatriots. He's losing them on his home ground as well. I don't think he's imagining it either, immediately after he stormed out of the partner's meeting Pete even asks "Does anyone really have a problem with it". Don didn't waste a second responding "No".


Sally. Okay now I don't have much problem with directing the girl to do what she did. There are child actors out there who go on casting calls for "ugly kid" "fat kid" or "looks mildly-retarded ugly fat kid", THOSE kids I feel for. Anyways, I didn't feel as awkward as I inevitably will if they have her talk upon the DVD commentary for this episode. THAT will be fucked up. While Betty definitely overreacted to Sally's masturbating...I think there is certainly something to discuss if a child feels compelled to do it amongst sleeping friends at someone else's house. Are we supposed to think that was her first time? It seemed like that the way she was curiously looking at The Man From UNCLE, almost as if she's wondering what exactly is going to happen. This poor girl. What fucks you up more: having Betty as your mother, or getting caught the first time you ever go on a date with Miss Michigan?


The meeting in Don's office (does Cooper even have one?) to begin the wacky hi jinks was good in that we got to see Roger come in and offer mea culpas in front of his partners, moments before he mocks the Japanese way of doing the very same thing. In Japan Roger would be expected to "cut his own head off" because "[they] disgraced" themselves (notice how he lumps them all in with his actions), but in Roger's America this should be all that's expected of him.


Don & Betty's terse conversations sound so very real. Betty cannot help but insist she doesn't care what he's doing, all the while she cannot help but ask with who and how many? Don's angry that he's not there in the house while problems are arising, and he's mad that he really doesn't want to be. Scary good scene here. I said last episode I could never see a Don & Betty reunion and while I mean that, I would HATE if these two actors weren't given scenes together any more. Even though that whole scene was probably done on different days with only one of them there at the time.


Don pulls Dipseydoodle #452 out of the Draper Dipseydoodle playbook and starts a cold war between SCDP & The People's Republic of CGC. Spending war! Spending war! Spending war! Smitty nut laps Don in front of his new boss. Sounds more like Kurt's hobby.


Not to toot my own horn but I said, just moments before she did...completing that pregnant pause for her, that Dr. Miller isn't married. I could just tell that's where it was headed. Interesting revelation? Does anyone care about her outside of being a women in the Draper diaspora? While I do predict that she nailed Don on the "married within a year" thing, I don't think Don would ever marry someone that challenging to him. The girl from Benihana is a likelier prospect imo.



Gene Hofstadt putting his daughter on that pedestal has led her to jump into the arms of a much older man and allow him to father her now that Don's gone. When Don returned the kids and he and Betty are arguing in the foyer, it was like harry was in the background, with the paper under his arm no less, acting as Dad while "the kids" went a few rounds. He knows how to talk to Betty though, boy howdy. Gets on her side by criticizing Don...then telling her calmly what to do. He is her new father, while he is her lover. This just ain't going to come out well for the guy. I mean Betty lied to him about her being seeing a shrink "once" (even if she was somewhat surprisingly honest about "being bored"). This was even AFTER he gave her the out by revealing he's had a close family member (wife or daughter?) visit one with great results. I'm willing to bet she lies some more to him about it. Henry is likable, but believe me Henry...everyone thinks this is temporary.


I liked seeing childish Betty back. Man oh man did her mother and father do a number on her. I like that we've never seen her mother in any flashbacks and I hope we never do. I hope we just continue to hear these horrible things this woman did to her children. Publicly shaming her son for his very normal sexual curiosity by nailing the "nudist magazine" to his door taught Betty how to hide her experimenting. How telling was it that Betty turned that meeting with the psychiatrist into her own session? The psychiatrist was on it from about her second sentence too, having her call her "Dr. Edna", and recognizing her self-absorption; replying to Betty's insistence that Sally's natural experimenting was done to "punish [Betty]" with the very perceptive "That must be a terrible feeling for you". It must be. I must be terrible to go through life feeling like every single thing is done for your sake. But you know what? I like seeing Betty like this, I really do. I like seeing her in therapy and I think a child psychiatrist (one who won't share what they discuss with her daughter HA!) is perfect for Betty. Very telling how she smiled and stared wistfully at the dollhouse in the office. Ever the little girl, she still dreams of that make-believe perfect household and still very much believes in playing at it.

Don shames the shit outta the Japanese by writing them a 3K check and telling them they broke the rules. He doesn't reveal of course that he helped them break the rules by tricking CGC into breaking the rules. The Japanese eat it up. They love that stuff, those kooks.


"Pity Party for 1...Pity Party for 1...Mr. Sterling your table's ready!". Roger is lamenting his long lost fallen brethren: . Joan comes in and won't let him continue the wallowing. I think she doesn't want to hear gory war stories with her hubby so soon to run off and get bloweded up but really, more than that, I don't think Joanie likes seeing Roger this way. Old, bitter, and scared. She diplomatically calls him on his shit, and is off. Is there anything this woman can't do?


Lane with a nice reveal that he "allowed" Don to pull that "unseemly stunt", and for a very different reason than Don did. Brief scene but great look into the restructured hierarchy and partner dynamic going on. If Roger decides he's had enough and pulls out for whatever reason, I could see Draper Campbell & Pryce being a force to be reckoned with.


The episode ends with Sally walking into the 1st of the many tens of thousands of psychiatrist's offices she will walk into in her life. I bet Sally becomes a model who makes her way to being an actress. One who gets nude in almost every movie she's in. Like Sigourney Weaver.

(1) I wonder if she even knows how bad of a parent she is.
(2) Why is Rich Sommer still listed in my Satellite TV listings?
(3) Why no luck on the "call to California"?? DUN-DUN-DUNNNN!!!
(4) Watched this episode with my mom, who I got hooked on the show. Some of her comments: "They should just get rid of Roger" (cut to me looking mortified); Regarding Don: "He IS good at his job, too bad he can't do that in his personal life"; 2nd episode this year in which she sang every word to the song at the end, at the beginning of Sally's infamous scene she suddenly blurted out "Ilya Kuryakin"...to which I replied "Bless you" *rimshot*
(5) The one Blankenship moment I liked was the "Misters Pete and Pryce to see you". Fucking names up is good for some yuks.
http://www.nowthatspimpin.com/2010/07/17/crista-flanagan-in-august-2010-playboy-magazine/ LOIS!!!

Mad Men S4E4 "The Rejected" - B-

This week's installment of Mad Men is titled "The Rejected", and its certainly not hard to figure out why. Scene after scene this week reflect the episode's title, and apparent theme, by giving us a parade of people either in the process of, or dealing with the aftermath of, being rejected. Some deal with it with indignant denial, some are are traumatized, and yet others seem to use the rejection as a reason to venture into uncharted waters. One with anger and bitterness, the other with cheerful joy and bitterness. Aside from a cavalcade of rejectees we're also treated this week to a rare view, through the Draper lens, of the effect of the destruction of relationships upon the rejector. There's deft directing by John Slattery, crisp and poignant acting by Elizabeth Moss and Vincent Kartheiser, and competent yet uncharacteristically boring writing by Keith Huff & Matt Weiner. All of that and, thank God, the return of Ass-Hole Pete!!


The show opens this week with a 1965 version of a "conference call", featuring Don & Roger doing the 1965 version of a "hand hold" with Don's secretary/time-bomb Allison surreptitiously on the line scribbling notes. They're going over the ad restrictions for cigarettes and if there's a meta-comment on anything here I'm missing it. What I DIDN'T miss however, is the nice little meta-comment on Mad Men's unique look: "Low angles, wide lenses...". Sniggle. Sniggle again as Don goes for a shot of something to make this phone call easier and asks aloud, "Why is this empty?" "Because you drank it" is Allison's immediate retort and it took me **snap** that long to realize this plot-line was coming to a head tonight! The parade of rejection starts nice and early this week here as Peggy, accompanied by Dr. Faye Miller, steps into Don's office to discuss the direction being taken on the Pond's account. After being reminded about the direction ("indulgence/ritual") Peggy is given praise by Don...right in front of the repeatedly ignored Allison. Slattery shows a flair here as the shot is composed with Allison juuuuust barely in the bottom left corner, still surreptitiously listening in, but to which conversation is she listening? I think her breakdown later, in front of both of these women, reveals the answer.


Pete & Lane hang in the doorway apparently waiting for a free moment during a busy day at SCDP. The appearance of them causes Roger to excuse himself from the conversation and escort them out into the hallway, not before we're treated to Pete's announced rejection at not being involved in the "Lucky Strike call". Although any semblance of whining coming from Pete doesn't really count as the man has defined his familyhood, his marriage, and his mostly his career through self-pity and mopery. In said hallway, Roger rejects some more by informing Pete that SCDP must resign his Clearasil account because of the conflict with the much larger Pond's Cold Cream account. A blue man in a blue suit stands in the hallway, self-pitying like no other, after Roger & Lane both give him encouraging, and most definitely stronger than necessary, slaps on back. GOD that must have felt good for them to do.


Back in Don's office apparently Lee is calling them on their shit re: over billing his behemoth account. Don, Jedi master of the cover-up and deflect, invents a fire that compels them into action away from the phone. Roger follows suit and the teleconference with the client from Hell ends. Roger is allowed to escape however Don has just entered the 3rd concentric circle of Dante's Inferno(1) however, as Allison strides over and asks about the picture he just received in the letter from California. Don brusquely dismisses her inquiries, as well as her. He then looks up and sees a blinking neon sign reading: abandon hope, all ye who enter Allison.


Cut to: Pete walking into what apparently is his office. This scene begins with a sigh gag I didn't catch on to until later in the episode. This is another place I give Slattery credit, particularly his sense of comedy, for showing us later why the beginning of this scene was funny. Anyway, Pete enters and is startled by finding Harry Crane sitting in his desk eating a donut and reading the paper. Harry's useless once again this week for nothing else but expositing that Kenneth Cosgrove is getting married to an heiress or something. Blah blah blah exposition blah blah funny joke about the only place Harry's bus driver father in law can send him is the moon blah blah blah exposition that Kenny's at a big place and is "a comer". I think the main thing we get from this scene is that Pete is in a very bad mood and will perpetually be in competition with Kenneth Cosgrove. Oh, and Harry Crane has replaced Paul Kinsey as "douche bag extraordinaire".


Yay Peggy! I love me some Peggy. Peggy steps into the elevator and warmly greets a very young looking woman holding onto folder bearing an eponymous(2) pink slip. Noticing it, and realizing what it must portend, she offers genuine condolences to the toolbelt. Said toolbelt reveals that they aren't hers, that her name is Joyce, and that she's an assistant copy editor for Life magazine. Shaking hands with her new BFF Peggy gives her own rundown of vital statistics. Joyce then proceeds to break out some text-book Big Chief Rumbletummy "alone in an elevator" flirt moves by first showing pornography to the flirtee. Then by pulling the Richard-Gere-snapping-the-jewelry-box-on-Julia-Robert's-hand-and-we-both-giggle-uncontrollably move. You go, girl-boy.


Pete's father-in-law sits alone at a Manhattan bar as Pete strides up behind him. We learn that both men are "15 minutes early", which you may think is just a sign of nervousness, but I learned from Goodfellas it means that one of them is plotting to whack the other. Let me just say right here I loved this scene. I loved it because of everything that was said, and more because of everything that was unsaid and/or implied. As progressed I imagined their must have been a phone call from Pete to his FIL about getting together "to talk". None of this is pointed out directly to us in this episode but from previous seasons we know that their relationship is "strained". Not quite at Don Draper/Gene Hofstadt levels of contempt and disregard, but still. Not much is directly said during this scene but a great deal can be ascertained if you pay attention. Their both early as they both are trying to brace themselves for this discussion. Pete's FIL "Tom" can barely mask his distaste for his SIL when hurriedly states "We can eat anytime, OR NOT AT ALL." Meaning "lets do this and be on our way, prick". Pete requests some liquid courage(3) for his announcement. Pete stumbles and meanders his way through getting to his rejection of Tom's business, during which they don't even look at each other. I've had these conversations with relatives and dammit if this scene wasn't nailing the uncomfortableness inherent in such meetings. Pete rambles, Tom processes, Pete continues to ramble until he gets to the separation of their personal and business relationship, and poor Tom can't take no more. "You are some kind of high WASP all right", perhaps vocalizing the very thing he's resented about his son in law all along. Here it comes though, Tom pulls the old dipseydoodle on Pete and reveals that "he heard". He knows what? While Pete tries to figure out Tom's peculiar reaction, its revealed that Tom's not talking about zit cream. He's talking about Pete's baby cream(4). HAAAYYYOOOOOOHHH!! Trudy's preggers!! Pete's gonna be a daddy!! (again). Honestly, I was a little surprised by how excited Pete seemed to be about the news. He seemed genuine about it too. Pete The last great bit of business in this scene is done as Tom starts to run on about how he wanted more kids but blah blah uterus removed blah blah some kind of cyst or something(5) blah blah...and we see (and hear) Pete tuning him out, choosing to gaze off into the future. The sudden and immediate and scary assed future that awaits all men who hear that news.(6)


Pete bellows "Trudy!" as he steps into his apartment and we get to see this couple, who genuinely love each other and seem to be have the most successful relationship on the show, celebrate their upcoming bundle of joy. Awwwww. Pete remarks that he didn't expect to feel this way causing Trudy to query why he should know what this feels like at all. Fat suited Peggys dance through his head as he dodges the question. Pete FINALLY tells the truth about the Clearasil account but to the wrong member of the family. He laments his error in not revealing it at the bar but Trudy's like "no big let me tell him". I really thought he was going to let her too. How wrong I be.


Its a great day at SCDP and Joan's corralling the "chosen few" secretaries into the Pond's focus group established in the first scene. Allison, presumably upset because she's about to get beat out for the title of "world's most rejected secretary", snits to Joan "Why don't you have to do this"?. Joan, obviously upset that she's being lumped in with the "old & married" (read: rejected) secretaries snits back. Rowr. Hiss.


In the focus group peeping room, Don, Peggy, & Freddie are gathered as they're about to watch Dr. Miller "do her thang" on the unwitting secretaries in the adjoining room. The peeping room's day job must be as Joanie's office because she announces "Very well then, I guess I'll go work in Mr. Sterling's office". A phrase I believe she's uttered a couplefew times. Dr. Brooklyn asserts herself about some minor details regarding how she's supposed to be perceived by the lab rats err...secretaries. The rooms darkens and we see her enter the room though the window.
The Pond's focus group is a series of scenes which jump from the peeping room to the conference room (a table!) to seeing the conference room from the peeping room and really does a good job on playing with how manipulative this whole process is.


Don spies Peggy trying on the good doctor's wedding ring, which she took off to appear as "just one of the gals", seeing how she likes the look of it on her finger. Would a woman really do that? Peggy sees she's been caught and there's a great shot of Peggy looking sheepish, Don smirking, and Freddie oblivious to it all. So appropriate. Dr. Mindgames lays on some flattery and casual kickback talk trying to get these girls to open up about their "routine and ritual" of putting on makeup. Freddie asks Don, "Can you imagine? We're putting our financial future in the hands of 22 year old girls" to which Don lightheartedly replies, "Not mine". OUCH!(7)


One of the giggling gaggle share their story of make-ups and I can understand why the entire straight male audience of this show tuned right the fuck out during this scene, even though it was a good one. I just laugh to myself as I watch the actress, a gorgeous brunette, act shy and retiring as if she's ever been self conscious about how she looked. Up next is "Dottie". Dottie relates a tale of putting on cold cream while her boyfriend was in the room. While I love Mad Men there have been moments like right now, like Dottie's speech, and the responses of some of the other women to it, in which I have absolutely no idea what these women are talking about. I think its supposed to be honest and open but it soars straight over my head. Betty and Francine used to have talks like that. SO anyways, Dottie is sitting next to a secretary who's apparently half-giraffe because her neck starts somewhere around the 17th floor. The print of the dress and the hairdo aren't helping. E.T. the Extrasecretarial then spits out some bitter vitriolic boyfriend bashing and we see Allison suffering silently in the corner, hunched over. She comments its almost worse "When they notice you", to not be rejected (that's the gist anyway), and when asked to elaborate looks up at the 2-way and straight at Don who she knows is behind it. That part confused me because did they all know they were being watched? Or is Allison just that much smarter? Maybe its because she overheard the conversation earlier between Don, Peggy, and Dr. Coldheart? Dunno.


We hear, but don't see, Lane holler "Are you in there?". Pete's POV shows us why he didn't know, why Pete hates his office, and finally why Pete was so startled at Harry being in there earlier. I love this set-up. A visual gag I don't know is a gag until its revealed later. Am I the only one who didn't get it until this scene? Pete still hasn't broken up with Clearasil, even though Roger already told Pond's that they were going out and that Clearasil was a total slut. Pete reveals to Lane his wonderful news and Lane shits all over it. He then apologizes, offers congrats, and awkwardly leaves.


Back in the Pond's focus group the estrogen has reached Def-Con 4 levels and hankies and Kleenexes are flying about the room willy-nilly. They either just screened Steel Magnolias in here or this slumber party has gone horrible awry. Apparently Dottie knows all to well what its like to be one of the rejected and its all coming up. Freddie is killing it here with the comments. Talking about cold cream and shithead bastard men soon takes its toll on Allison and she breaks down sobbing. Freddie again scores a "HA!". Don squirms in his chair, as I do too, as we're both frightened speechless as what Allison might do or say. But no, she bails. The ever compassionate doctor assures the rest that Allison has rejected them all, "If she wanted to be around us, she would have stayed". Peggy has a heart however, and goes after her. But not before telling Don that "[she]feels kind of responsible". Oh Peggy...you have no idea how wrong you are on this one. You'll soon learn, my dear...you'll soon learn.


She approaches the still sobbing Allison who turns to greet her with "Oh. Its you". In that one comment we know she's upset that: a) Don didn't come for her, b) Don has sent her rival for his affections (in her mind), c) Don's back in the focus group drunkenly trying to nail Dottie. I think its all of the above.


Peggy invites Allison to the privacy of Don's office in which we get yet another dipseydoodle reveal as Allison confides her feelings of being rejected to Peggy. If she was looking for compassion or empathy however, then we're just going to have to chalk up another point against Allison being a good judge of character. Peggy returns to the peeping room and gives a spiteful "No she's fine" and Elizabeth Moss cannot get enough praise from me with how much she can do with so little.(9) The gorgeous wall flower (who we later learn is "Megan"), stops by to ask "Is she okay?" in regards to the blubbering Allison. To which Dr. Fuckyomama wonders contemptuously "Who?". If you look real hard you can actually see the frost and ice crystals drop off her tongue as she says it. Just before they can discuss the results Joan steps in and reclaims her office. Man she didn't wait a second. Joanie doesn't like being one of the rejected.


Hey its Kenny!! Its Kenny everybody!! You remember Kenny right? Kenny Cosgrove...of the Vermont Cosgroves? Yeah, the published writer. Good friends with Sal from the art department. Loves syrup?? That's him! Kenneth joins Harold and Peter for the lunch Harold exposited in his other scene. He can only stick around long enough in this one to exposit that he's either a Jew...or now that he's in television he's talking like a Jew. Pete & Ken sit amiably enough for all of 4 seconds before Kenny confronts Pete about the "shitty things" said behind his back. Lot's of "I heard you said" and Pete's denials are fucking great. I've never noticed this before but Kenny looks kind of like a Muppet. Maybe Bert. Anyways, Kenny's somewhat unhappy at his new place and has apparently bounced a few places. We learn here than Kenny Cosgrove is now one of "the rejected", and would love a chance to be working at SCDP. I'm not sure if Pete recognizes this for what it is though. Basically its an affirmation that "he's won" his battle with Kenny. He was chosen, Kenny was not. He's happy with a future ahead of him, Kenny is not. I think its at this moment Pete decides the course of action we see him take at the end of this episode. Pete congratulates Ken on his upcoming nuptials. However Pete cannot congratulate his sworn enemy without trying to one up him with his own announcement. He relates the fact that Trudy is "with child" and Ken, who can actually feel joy for another person without complaining about what he doesn't have, chuckles good-naturedly at the news. He offers, "Another Campbell...just what the world needs".


Don slowly and resignedly makes his way into his office where he knows Allison awaits. He tries to steamroll her and as she gets up to leave, I actually a utter a loud "Yes!" as she shuts the door to confront him. Fuck yes I was proud of her, and Don really had it coming. Allison forces Don to acknowledge what happened between them and describes her plan of action: quit and find a job with a woman boss, or at least a male eunuch. Before she goes however, she would like a letter of recommendation from Don. And here is where I called "bullshit" on the writing. Don Draper would not be so utterly clueless, so unable to see the forest for the trees on this one, as to say that "better still" Allison could type up her own letter and he'd sign it. Come on. This girl is BEGGING for him to say one nice thing about her. To treat her with a level of approval and affinity, even just for what she did as his underling, and he can't see that? This master salesman and viewer into the innerworkings of people's wants and needs? BULL and SHIT!


Just as astonished as I am, yet within arms reach of something throwable, Allison goes all Jai-Alai and wings some object'dart at something breakable. Ho Ho would be proud. She runs out of the office, Don calling after her (like he should have done earlier), and I got 50-50 odds on who knew the whole story first: Peggy or Joan.


Guffaw moment with Peggy peeping over at Don. Buzzing on Peg's intercom announcing that Joyce is here to see her. At least I think that's what she said. Hell she might have been verifying an order of a Happy Meal and a McShake for all I could understand of it.


Joyce is in the lobby hitting on Megan and I salute her for her taste. We see Cooper in the background chilling sock less, natch. Joyce lesbians that she's got a party in her pants in a loft somewhere downtown and invites Peggy. When she leaves, Megan says "She's kinda pretentious" to which Peggy almost swoons and utters "I know." Now I wasn't sure what direction they were going to go with Peggy becoming friends with Joyce, but I decided that this was the point in which Peggy definitely knew her new friend had all the tendencies of a 3 dollar bill. I'm glad the direction they did go with it, that Peggy wasn't phased at all by Joyce being gay and Joyce not being phased at all by Peggy not being interested. I think Peg was more happy at Megan deciding that Joyce was pretentious because of what had happened earlier in the focus group. I'll get to that a bit later.


ARRRGGHH(10)


And we're back...and so is my long lost friend Pete Campbell, Professional Ass-Hole. Been a long time, Pete. Trudy tries to run interference for him and be the one to break the news to Daddy, but my main man's having none of it. He won't even let dude make a fucking drink here. I can't even put into words how cold blooded Pete is here. I've tried. Nothing I write can do it justice. So I'll just repeat it: Tom: "I know...you need a bigger apartment!" Pete: "Every time you jump to conclusions Tom, I respect you even less". Mother. Fucker. Ladies and gentleman, this is the man who took him out to celebrate with champagne just a few scenes ago. The man who saved his ass by bringing him Clearasil for his new venture. Some might be grateful for the gesture, but Pete insists "I'm through auditioning". I think he means he's through auditioning for EVERYONE. Sterling, Draper, Cosgrove, and even his father in law...Pete's shown and proved. Basically, "I gave you a grandchild...you need to reciprocate". Pete demands the whole shebang from his father in law. The thing of it is: Pete's absolutely right to do this! I can't even be mad at him for it. All the while he's going into it I was thinking "No..don't...its too much...don't cross the streams Pete!". But he's 100% correct in this play. For the company and for his future career, that is. Tom was forever going to be the condescending father in law, holding his future over his head, doling out what he thought they needed when he though they needed it. Pete saw the play and he stepped up and took it. And Lord have mercy Pete shrugging off Tom's weak "you sonuvabitch" might have been my favorite cold-hearted Mad Men moment since Don's utterance of "God KNOWS they'd be better off" to Betty regarding the kids going with him. Welcome back Pete, you've been sorely missed.


So we see Peggy climbing the stairs to an artsy fartsy proto-Warhol party. Now I've been anticipating backlash to this aspect of Mad Men ever since the season began. As its evolved, Mad Men has become a show that chronicled the trubulance of 1960s America. Just from the focus of articles before the season began trying to predict what events it would cover, which trends would be seen, which characters would change and how, etc. I realized that inevitable there would be a portion of the audience just ready to hate which direction they decided to go with it. I firmly believe that no matter how the show deals with its time and place this season there will be those who will label the efforts as being contrived or obvious. And they'll be right on both accounts. Thats what the show does. I just hope people will criticize on merits other than the fact that they decided to include "X" or had character "Y" witness event "Z", algebraically speaking of course.


So Peggy meets up with Joyce and one of the nudes. Peggy's request for beer gets greeted with a joint. Did Anna stop by or something? If there was any doubt in her mind about which way Joyce swang, and I don't think there was because Peggy stares a little too long at a guy walking by (hinthint), it was extinguished with a sapphic lick upon the neck while Peggy hits the chronic. Peggy takes it in stride and confrims her straightness. Joyce takes being rejected in stride as well, probably because she knows she could kick her boyfriend's ass.


Don stumbles through the door and tries to write a rejection letter. Realizing it would be as phony as any recommendation letter he could write, he gives up. Or was he just not wanting to confront how sad it was starting? Dunno, but Don is one sad fuck this season.


Back at the party, Peggy meets Abe and "the artist". Peggy is ever the ad woman here as she meets them. When asked if she likes his film, which apparently has some sacrilegious images or something to do with Catholicism, she cannot even give her own answer. "I don't think I'm supposed to" she replies. This is a woman who understands that everything has an audience. Everything has a target. Even amongst these artsy-fartsy folks who have creative endeavors as "day jobs" she sees through it and knows his film is meant to sell you something. Uh-oh...its a raid!!! Peggy plays 30 seconds in Heaven with Abe and Joyce comes and gets them from out of the closet. The closed captioning shows Joyce saying "If only..." right here but its not on the audio. Abe "Scoop Scooperstein" smells a story brewing and runs of to cover it. Peggy and Joyce flee through the night. Oh for fun...

HILARIOUS reveal here as DFon walks up the hallway to see the new secretary Joan has requisitioned him from the supply closet. Blankenship, Ms. She looks 100 and sounds 200. This woman probably bathe dRoger when she was a spry young woman of 60. No way in Hell Don fucks this one. Right? Pete reveals his bonanza to Sterling, Draper, & Pryce, Lane. Misters. Congrats & huzzahs!! I'm mad Harry didn't show up and say "Mazel-Tov" and then just walk off.


Peggys going on and on about her new ultra-cool and hip best firends and then asks the "John/Marsha" guy (who I'm just going to call "Not-Sal") if he knew Malcolm X was shot. He replies that he has and chides her on her newfound awareness. The human ostrich walks in and asks if these two want to go in on a bottle of champagne for "the Campbells". Not-Sal offers to sign the card and Peggy, not knowing whats coming, goes about her business. When its her turn to sign however, she sees that it has a picture of a stork on it. I wonder if the secretary posed for it. Peggy can't bring herself to sign. Not-Sal reveals his interests lie in apart from his namesake's as he gets off the best line of the episode: "I would get her so pregnant". Peggy needs air.


Peggy congratulates Pete and the misdirections continue. Although this one doesn't feel forced because why in the world would these two ever discuss babies? There is so much between these two that was so wonderfully started 3 seasons ago. So much left unsaid and unresolved. They don't talk about it, ever, and they can barely even speak here. Vincent Kartheiser looks about half the size and with non of the confidence that he just possessed 15 seconds ago.


Don rejects Dr. Miller's (she's a she) findings about the failure of the test. He rejects her insistance on going with Freddie's original choice of direction. he rejects what she does and that what has been done is any indication of what can be successful. Is he rejecting reality?


Peggy is summoned to lunch with her new wild group of friends. She asks Megan if she'd like to join and, I think, is glad she declined. Peggy is glad that her new friends, and by extension her, is rejected by the likes of Megan. Peggy doesn't want to be one of the gals in the focus group and validates this by accepting Joyce's "pretentiousness" as just something positive the Megan types can't fathom. Fantastic work here as Peggy heads out the door with her friends for lunchtime fun, Pete gathers with his lunch group for business, and the two catch a glimpse at each other heading their own ways towards their own futures. Futures that probably could not have been had they become parents together.


And what would that future look like? Maybe it would be Peggy coming down a hallway, many many years from now, moving slowly, yet still faster than Rubicon, while Pete asks her "Did you get Pears?". Or is that the future Don can only view from across the hallway now that Betty has rejected their marriage? Since she's rejected him?


Question:
Does anyone think Pete was so pissed about Pond's because that was Freddie's account? I know they're different departments and all...
Is Harry Jewish? Has he served any other function that exposition this year?
Pete took being rejected as a spur to go out and get more business, Allison took it as a spur to get defeated and get the fuck out. Is this a man/woman thing? Or a character thing?
Did anyone else the Peggy/Pete relationship represented by the old couple?


NEXT EPISODE:
Who's got Roger in such a tizzy?


(1) The one reserved for fathers who bail on birthday parties.
(2) Now, the pink slip reads "REJECTS" rill bold across it. Some sources I looked at gave that (well, actually it gave "The Rejects") as the episode title. Others I looked at gave "The Rejected" as the title. Whatever, I think The Rejected fits better.
(3) Dewar's on the rocks (for those who keep score).
(4) Okay, I apologize for that
(5) Good writing here as this is a possible explanation for Trudy's previous inability to get pregnant.
(6) I didn't get the if its a boy $1000 if its a girl $500 thing, but from listening to Matthew Weiner's commentary tracks on the previous episodes I'd wager both of those amounts together that this is something that came from one of the staff writer's families or something. Every weird family thing done on this show seems to come from the real life experiences of the creators.
(7) This is my first year following Mad Men as it airs and I just want to say I HATE COMMERCIALS
(8) Bit of continuity error here as the papers doc are holding go from in front, to bosom, to in front, to bosom again. I am jealous of those papers.
(9) Do you think Peggy set Don up here by leaving Allison in his office to stew?
(10) As I said, first year following, hate commericals, blah blah blah...so I'm FFing through them and I stop when the show comes back on. Wait what? what the fuck is this Suave shit? Is this what companies are doing now to get people to stop FFing through commerical breaks? Making the commericals look like the show so we're tricked into stopping? Kudos Suave guys, you got me on that one.

Mad Men S4E3 "Good News" - B+

Good episode. Some belly laugh moments, some touching and tender scenes, some heart string tugging, and some serious shining by secondary characters Lane, Joan, Greg(!), & Anna. The directing was well-done, as was the editing, with one exceptionally creative and well executed scene I'll touch on later.


"Who Is Don Draper?" was the query to open this 4th season (the 1st I've actually watched week to week) and while we received more responses to the apparent season theme, the episode theme was most definitely reflective of the episode's title "Good News". That title however, is in my opinion meant to be taken sarcastically as any good news delivered in this episode came well after upsetting, and even devastating, news. "Good News" may be all in how you take it in these circumstances. After getting laid low with a serious one-two combination to your emotional being, a well timed and well placed series of jabs, hooks, and gut punches from some 6'6" 250lb. well-chiseled heavyweight champ named Life "Izza" Bitch, is it still "good" news that you're going to survive the round? That you're resilient enough to not get knocked down? That you're resilient enough to stagger back to your corner, getting just enough respite so you're ready and able to come out to another round of soul shattering abuse? I think the episode implies that it must be. I think the episode implies that its all we're going to get so we better make of it what we can. Take, and make, "good" of what news you can because as the final scene, and especially the final shot, seems to imply, the aforementioned heavyweight champ is going to land blow after blow, round after round, year after year.


The good news parade begins this week with the return on the doctor from the pilot episode. Dr. Lech, a medical professional with all of the table-side manner of Leon Phelps, is just wrapping up giving our Joanie some sort of exam done to her feet that somehow lets him know if you can have babies or not.(1) Before Doc Sleazebag rides his slime trail back out of the exam room Joan stops him and wants to be reassured that even though (actually because) she had two previous "procedures", she can still conceive, carry, and deliver a baby. The doc, surprised to learn that there have been two count em two abortions as he's only procedured her once, questions her as to the professionalism of the other one. Joanie, who knows from horrible doctors (more on that later), informs Dr. Iluvtouchinghoohas that it was done by a woman calling herself a "midwife". The doc then delivers her the "good news" that all signs are clear that she can be a mommy. Honestly, for all the shit I give the guy for being a scumbag he does actually seem to be a good doctor by the way he receives and delivers medical information to his patients. I just know that in the future he becomes that doctor that gets busted artificially inseminating his patients with his own baby batter (medically speaking). So...was this good news for Joan? She more than likely can make little Gregorinas and Greg Jrs, born perfectly formed with ten toes and ten fingers with no brains in them, but is that such a great thing? Can the marriage with Greg be as fulfilling as she has hoped and dreamed, as fulfilling as she is apparently working at trying to make it? Will it even last? Will she be pregnant when he inevitably gets FUBARed five clicks from 'the shit' in Da Nang, dinky dow big time with a mama-san dee dee mow?(2)


The uncomfortableness between Don and his secretary is still there, burbling and bubbling just under the surface, and I predict this storyline is going to come to a roiling boil sometime soon. Harry Crane shows up to exposit that Don's headed for LA during the upcoming holiday (what is it with this show and holidays?) and gets his weekly required dose of shit thrown at him. He has to just grin and take it this week however, as it comes from Don and Lane respectively. We also find out the "good news" that Lane is headed to London to visit his wife and children, as they are most certainly not traveling to NY, and I am officially pissed I don't get to look at Embeth Davidtz this episode.(3)


Joan strides, looking bodacious in blue, down to Lane's secretary and sweetly and subtly judges her as she turns directly into Lane's office to deliver "good news". Said good news is asking Lane if he wants some fried chicken cause she's running out for some and-some-oh-hey-by-the-way can I have some time off? Lane denies the request, sees what her offer for some fried chicken was and calls her on it. She rightfully apologizes and acknowledges the tackiness. Lane not so sweetly or subtly does not accept said apology. I love these two so I kinda hope there's no protracted war here...or do I?


Don's leaving, on a jet plan, and we don't know when he'll be back again. I wonder if he got William's luggage in the divorce settlement? We see him making his way up towards his first wife's home and we get a tricky reveal that her limp is not from polio, at least not right now, rather its from a casted broken leg. Now I will just get this out here now: in disagreement with a comment above in this thread, I haven't felt that Don's flashbacks have been the worst part of the show...its been the "Don in LA" scenes. I haven't liked them that much and the first couple of scenes of this "Don in LA" subplot were heading down the same path. Just as my eyes start to glaze over they do the right thing here and bring me some more Christina Hendricks.


Joan and Greg in the House of Shattered Vases, starting things off amicably. It quickly dissolves into a frustrated bickerfest and Greg storms off to work and we get our first glimpse just how scared Joanie is of him never returning. Christina Hendrickson does a great little flinch when the door slams as if it physically hurts, or stuns her, that he has left her. These kids are good together and we're treated to even more of that later.


Back in LALALand Janet, Chrissy, and Jack Draper are all down at the Regal Beagle. Things are par faor the course here being pretty boring and all and so far this whole subplot has seemingly only existed to show us that Anna wants some pot and to cause us all to wonder how long till Don bones a girl who was probably 8 when Sally was born. My first go round of this episode and I was pretty dismissive of this whole scene but on watching ti again I think there's some relevance to the little dialogue delivered by Stephanie (Chrissy) about her kooky college roomie. Lil Miss Sweatershorts gets to deliver the "Live! From New York" line this week while relating a tale about a ex-romie at Cal who flipped out on her, read the bible all night, and asked if she had heard "the Good News". I'm not quite sure, perhaps I'm digging here, but maybe this has something to do with good news being sort of like beauty: in the eye of the beholder? Stephanie sees her roommate having a nervous breakdown, while the roommate would probably define that night as her rebirth and thebest night of her life. Whats good news for one of them becomes just a wacky anecdote for the other.(4) Maybe?


ZZZZZZZZZ What'd I miss?


Okay!! Don and Stephanie drop Anna back off home and Don offers to give Stephanie a ride home as he feels hitchhiking isn't safe for a girl her age. She weighs the odds, deems Don a somewhat safer choice than hitching, and accepts. NASA is alerted and begins a "T-Minus 10 Til Insertion" countdown.


Don's pulling up Stephanie's home and is juuuuuuust about to start sealing the deal and I become thankful for no other reason than I don't have to watch this actress deliver her lines anymore. Its an odd combination of wistful and grandiose, as if everything she says is the mst devastatingly important thing ever uttered, all while she's freezing cold and shivering. No deals are going to be sealed tonight however as the frozen swayrocker drops a bombshell upon Don that gets him out of the mood in a big way. Apparently Anna's broken leg is due to her body being ravaged by the Cancer. DUN DUN DUNNN!!! The poor woman is not only dying but is absolutely clueless to her condition because her doctors have given her a prognosis of "Not now...but RIGHT NOW!" Don knows instantly that this is most definitely not "good news" and gets high(er) and mighty that Anna should be informed about this. The co-ed begs not to be put on blast for blabbing the big secret and takes off with Don's suit coat. Bitch.


Maybe there was a cut scene because Don now enters Annas home and hangs his jacket over the back of a chair. Its not Sonny missing Carlo by a foot with a punch but...ya know.


Don carries the now slumbering Anna from the couch to her bed and while watching her sleep the peaceful sleep of the soon-to-be-written-off, he contemplates losing her forever. Well done scene follows showing Don on the couch contemplating this recent turn of events. The light and shadow guys get to earn some Emmy nom by doing some fancy doo-dads to illustrate and that Don is stuck thinking about this from night til morn. Well done guys.


Anna's up and all in a tizzy because she thinks Don has left for Acapulco without saying "Have a nice dirt nap". But no, Don's still in her home painting her moldy assed wall with Dutch Boy's semi-gloss "Sorry You're Dying Blue" because, just like her sister, he feels guilty that she's dying, he knows it, she doesn't, and he'll do anything he can to help her right now. The Widow Draper relaxes now realizing he's going to stay a bit longer. She decides since its been such a stressful 3 minutes of awake time she's going to really relax now, proceeding to wake and bake and passing the wacky tobaccy to the soon-to-be Widower Draper. They have a bizarre little stoner conversation in which Don hears the good news he so desperately needs to hear. Its really quite touching when Anna clutches his hand and informs him that "[she] knows eveyrthing about him and she still loves him". Such good, even great, news to hear for a man as lonely as Don is this season. Especially after he informed her about how the same information altered the way Betty felt about him. He can't quite consider it a victory though because the deliverer of said news is dying, soon, and doesn't even know it. Thats GOT to destroy Don.


They discourse a bit more about UFOs, suns, moons, stars, quasars, muhfuckin Elroy Jetson, and I guffaw loudly as her bitchy sister bustles through the front door with groceries and greets the odd morning spectacle of these two sharing a J, Don half naked painting a wall, with a well placed "What the Hell is going on here?" HA!! (5) Anna gets off a good shot of her own regarding her sister just barging into her house as well and I HA!! again. Sis huffs out the door and Don hurriedly yanks on his pants and runs after the woman. I bet he's had to do that a grazillion times. He confronts Sister Draper and snits at her about how she should have told poor Anna, and how he's sure he's tried but she's poor but he's rich and he's here now, and how HE's going to tell her, etc. and Don does not behave very kindly here. Big Bitch Sis gets the best of this back and forth however as she reminds him, and all of us, just who is Donald Draper: "[he's] just a man in a room with a checkbook". She begs him to leave soon because she knows, as he does too, that the longer he stays the more likely the truth will be revealed to Anna that she's about to be reunited with the original Lt. Donald Draper ASAP.


Cut to: the blissfully unaware Anna Draper absolutely killing me right here looking for all the world like a sheepish little kid who just got caught with her hand in the marijuana brownie jar. So cute here. Don won't hear her complaining about her naggy sister however, probably because he knows she's going to be almost completely dependent upon her soon and things are going to get difficult enough without some petty bickering. Don braces himself, as I do too, for the big reveal. However as he looks into the eyes of the person who knows him best and a woman who he probably esteems above all others, he melts and cannot bring himself to utter the words. He fumbles out that unfortunately he cannot stay any longer and needs to bounce off to sunny Acapulco like a Price Is Right Grand Showcase winner. If this is the last we see of Anna Draper I'm okay with it, but not because of what I mentioned above and how I've felt about the Don in LA scenes. Rather, its because I'm not sure I can imagine too much more being wrung out of this subplot; not to mention the second half of these were well acted, well done scenes and it'd be cool to see them go out on top.


Joan is pulling pencils out of the acoustic celing tiles because its a Holiday and everyone still in the office bored stupid. Hey its Peggy!! I love me some Peggy. Peggy's only here this week long enough to hand Joan a box of flowers and remind us all about her loser boyfriend. She gives Joan her "good news" present which we all assume is from Greg because of their little tiff. Something's amiss here though because Joan reads the card and storms off leaving Peggy to mentally utter the 1964 equivalent of WTF?(6) Quick cut to Joan bringing that storm right on in to Lane's office, hurling the box of roses at him, and giving is a verbatim of the card that got her so stormy. "Darling, I've been an ass. Kisses, Lane". YIKES!! Looks like FTD "Pick Me Up Bouquet" has a different translation across the pond!! Joan tongue lashes the completely befuddled Lane on the inappropriateness of his apaprent offering and their problems have come to the surface. He is still confused however but informs her that while he did send her some flowers, THOSE weren't them. Shouting for his secretary, Sandy, to come in to the room they three get to the bottom of the mix up. Apparently the soon to be unemployed Snady is so wholly incompetant that she screwed up a very sensitive matter involving Lane's eroding marriage and not only did she know about it, she didn't inform anyone and shirked responsibility for the screw up. Joan fires her on the spot and the two recently embattled enemies unite in destroying a common foe as we watch Sandy head for the unemployment line, stopping first to pick up an OED and look up the word "egregious". Fantastic scene here and like I said above I'm not sure if I want these two liking each other or not. Did anyone else thnk it was significant that Joan didn't apologize this time?


Don's now heading out of LA for good, apparently headed for ACapulco, and as he says good-by he holds Anna a little too long, perhaps a little too tight. Sensing he's having a hard time saying good-bye, she gives him words of encouragement. He heads out the door, stopping to look at her for the last time.


Don celebrates New Year's Eve on a lonely plane ride, offering up a barely audible "Happy New Year" response to the airline stewardess. Hamm plays it well here regarding a party hat as if its a never before seen object from an alien world, as if he can't picture anyone in the world having anything worth celebrating right now.


Greg comes home to a Hawaiin themed dinner Joanie has cooked up because thats the only place left on Earth where it could technically still be 1964 and they can still technically celebrate New Yer's Eve. While I love the ensuing scene, its my favorite of the week, I think they went too far here trying to portray Joan as Superwifey. Cute idea but noone outside of a Martha Stweart Living writer would actually do it. As Greg sits in his chair for dinner, exhausted after a long hard night of malpractice, his doting wife hurries off to fetch him a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice (her idea). While slicing open an orange for her hubby, Joan accidentally slices open her finger. He jumps up to see to it and rushes to get his medical bag all the while she makes comments about going to the hospital. Greg is having none of it however as he sits her down, unrolss his kit, efficiently distracts her, and soothes her jangling nerves witha funny joke while sewing up her owwie. Joan starts to cry here and Greg reassures her thats its not so bad. She's not crying about that however, which he probably knew, causing him to reassure her even further that it'll be all better. "When?" is her lament. Greg looked pretty competent her in his doctoring and my first thought was that Joan was crying because she felt so guilty. I thnk she kept bringing up the hospital because she really wasn't too keen on having Greg see to her wounds. I still think that but I also think Joan's just really dreading lsoing this guy when he gets shipped off to Vietnam. The whole world hates Greg, and rightly so, but Joan sure seems to love him and wants this marriage to work. Great scene and both of them did very well.


Don returns from his devastating LA trip having forgone any sojourn to Acapulco, surprised to find Lane, the lone ihabitant of Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce. Don presses Lane on not being in London with his family and gets a non answer about work needing to be done. Surprising me that its taken as long as it has, Don makes his way towards Lane's mini-bar. Unlike Roger however, Don actually asks first. Lane does Don one better by breaking out the good stuff and gets off a shot at his alcoholic father that I can't quite discern if he says "collecting" or "connecting". Don is impressed with the hooch, and I want to taste it so bad my mouth starts to water, grabbing one for the road as he starts to make his way out before being stopped by Lane. Lane delivers the only actual good news of the episode (if I'm wrong let me know) by revealing that despite the low budget antics SCDP has had quite a good financial year. Maybe this isn't such good news for these two after all. Because if the year's been so good why the Hell are these two feeling so low and currently battling it out for the title of "loneliest male organism in this or any universe"?


Remember earlier when I mentioned that I love how real it feels when these characters interact in the office? That aspect of this splendidly written show reaches its apex here when we see Lane lying on his couch, the depths of his loneliness having robbed of him his will to stand, when he hears Don bellow his name from somewhere in the adjoining rooms. Resignedly getting up from his wallowing, we then cut to Lane, magic bottle of Stratford-upon-Avonshire Joy Juice in his hand, and immediately we see that in his mind this is the only possible reason Don could be summoning him. Its a small touch but it leaves a big bruise, ya know? But no, Don is lunching in the breakroom and informs Lane that they're going to the movies. They run through a list of possibles and I shit you not it took me 3 viewings to catch the gag about Lane so emphatically nixing the "Send Me No Flowers" suggestion.


Funniest moment of the year as Don & Lane drunkenly watch Godzirra and harass people.


This years theme very wlel may be "doing what you want vs. what people expect out of you" and I think is referenced while Dona nd Lane settle in to eat dinner together. Lane exposits a bit about what has gone so wrong in his marriage and flat out informs Don that he should be encouragin Lane to "get ona plane" and go after his wife. "Is that what you want?" Don quizzes and Lane doesn't really seem to want to answer that one. It is the question that NEEDS to be asked in this situation however, and I think Lane already knows the answer to it. Don apparently does as well as he reveals to Lane he had plans with a "lady friend" and asks if Lane wants a "lady friend" for tonight as well. I've decided that Lane knew what he was getting himself into from the get go here and even though he intially demured, it didn't take much coercion for him to accept the offer. Clever audio edit of uproarious laughter and applause after Lane makes an ass of himself in the restaurant and we find they've gone to a comedy club.


The comedian, apparently still shellshocked from his sexual harassment at the hands of Vito Spatafore, makes a string of "lets mock the queers" jokes at the expense of Don and Lane, spurring Lane to loudly proclaim "We're not homosexuals...we're divorced!" That is exactly what lane wanted to do I think. Proclaim loud and proud to the world his own version of "good news". Don's Slap Happy Strumpet and her friend, who actually LOOKS like she would be a hooker, show up and they all quickly flee the House of the Rising Puns.


Back at Don's humble abode Lane's hooker pays a little too much attention to Master of the House, causing her to be summoned to the kitchen. Whatever the hooker equivalent of "cockblocking"is happens in there because she comes right out, hands a drink to Lane, and leads him off to get his first piece of American pie. In the spare bedroom, after a brief bit of awkwardness, Lane goes for it. Don and Whore #1 do the same in the front room.


Next morning and Don's making coffee. What with all the drunken whoring, and occasional work, he must be a pretty tired guy. Lane comes out of the bedroom dying for a glass of water and this show stays true to form, portraying the after effects of the way these people live with all the drinking and smoking. He doesn't ask what the Hell was with all the slapping he kept hearing the night before but he does inquire as to what he owes Don for the night. Don perhaps gets the gist, perhaps not and says its on him. Lane drops all English politeness and gets to the point insisting on paying for "the girl", as his is a fiscal nature you know. He sincerely thanks his host for the "welcome distraction" of the night before. Don looks a bit chagrined here as he realizes that this welcome distraction is the way he's living his life right now. I wonder if he sees it this way, and if its a negative to him at all.


The episode ends with a satff meeting in which Joan asks if everyone's "ready for 1965". Jon Hamm looks about 10 years older here for some reason and itd be awesome if he's just that good at acting he can do that. I think this last scene sums up nicely the idea that Don is kind of on autopilot right now, filling his life with distractions, and is perhaps aware that time is flying by as he's doing this.

Questions:
Whats with this show and Holidays? The 1st 3 eps have been on Thanksgiving, Christmas, & New Years. Don mentions Easter in this one (taking the kids out to see Anna). Maybe this is the way Matt Weiner is doing this season?

Is Acapulco where Don went in the 2nd season when he just disappeared and hung out with those bohemians?

There've been several references to Don not eating and/or not having an appetite this season. Think this is getting towards something?

Does anyone have a different take on the theme of the episode? Does my Good News suggestion hold water?

"Doing what you want vs. what people expect out of you" - how prominent of a theme do you think this will be?

"Who is Don Draper?" How was this question answered this episode?

(1) I know the exam wasn't on her feet but I am willfully and happily ignorant of those procedures.

(2) Sorry, some people have Vietnam flashbacks...I have Vietnam Movie dialogue flashbacks.

(3) I love how this show has people interacting in the office settings. It feels real, subtle. A show has to have exposition of course, and who better than Harry to bring up LA and Lane doesn't come over to wish Don a fond farewell rather he can't find Don's secretary and needs his signature on some things. Well done.

(4) I remember reading, about 10 years ago when Al Gore was first creating the interwebs, one of those old usenet pages which was contained the worst ever "College Roommate From Hell" story I've ever read. Dude's roomie went nuts and basiclaly barricaded himself into his half of the apartment and didn't re-emerge until the end of the semester when he had a complete psychotic episode over the course of a weekend. I wish I could find that again.

(5) The actress playing Anna endears herself to me forever by doing a great bit of business at this point, surreptitiously holding the joint out for Don to take when she hears her sister storming in. And I HA!!! once more.

(6) Elizabeth Moss is my favorite actor on this show and its becaus eof moments like this. She's memorable in, like, 15 seconds of screen time.