Mad Men Episode 6-10: A Tale of Two Cities

Recap: This episode takes place during the time of the 1968 Democratic Convention in Chicago. At home, Don watches the live convention coverage as a speaker drones on and on. Megan enters the room and checks out the TV, complaining that they’re supposed to be debating the Vietnam War (where one faction of Democrats wanted immediate withdrawal of all troops). She worries about cops in Chicago hassling the anti-war demonstrators, but Don says they won’t show that stuff on prime time. She tells him he’s too cynical. She’s for Humphrey (Democrat) but he’s for Nixon (Republican). He changes the subject and invites her to travel with him to California so they can revisit Disneyland. Megan tells him to go without her but stay away from actresses. They kiss.

At the office, Don joins the executive board already in session: Pete, Roger, Bert, Joan, Ted, and Jim. Jim argues that the agency needs a new name. Ted says it should be SCDP-CGC but Joan says it’s too long. Next they assign roles for the immediate future: Ted is to travel to Detroit and deal with the Chevy account; Don and Roger are to fly to LA for Carnation and other accounts; and Jim Cutler is supposed to go with Mike, Stan, and Bob Benson to Manischewitz. Jim complains that he has to babysit for Don & Roger’s account and people.

On their flight to LA, Roger chatters and distracts Don while Don tries to prep for their business meetings. Roger says, “Come on, we’re executives. Leave the work to Ted.” He also tells Don, “We are big New York ad men…be slick, be glib, be you.” Don replies, “Well, I’m usually informed.”

Over in the creative office, Stan and Mike listen to a radio announcer who reports that the Democratic party has rejected the peace plan to end the war immediately. They are disappointed and angry since they’re anti-war. Jim enters the room to talk about business, but Stan & Mike (especially Mike) want to talk about the news they just heard. Mike insults Jim and calls him a fascist. Jim doesn’t want to talk politics, and points out the hypocrisy of receiving a paycheck from Dow Chemical while being anti-war. As Mike continues to insult Jim, Bob Benson walks in and tries to calm Mike down, saying, “That man is your boss!” Jim yells at Bob: “Go back upstairs” and Mike tells Bob: “Thanks for making that worse.”

Jim heads to Ted’s office and unloads his frustration about the SCDP creatives. He wants to fire them, starting with Mike, but Ted says, “He’s lightning in a bottle” and tells Jim to learn to get along with them and hold their hands. Ted also points out that “the problem is that you keep talking about two agencies.”

Next, Bob Benson enters Jim’s office and Jim says, “I was just coming to see you. I believe in you, Bob, but you’re untested.” He then asks Bob to handle the Manischewitz meeting without him, and Bob says, “I welcome this chance to shine.” Then he walks away from Jim’s office and looks back over his shoulder in bewilderment.

Returning to his desk, Bob listens to a record about success with a positive mental attitude but is interrupted by a call from Stan, who appeals to him to come and help Mike. Mike is on the floor, feeling sick and believing (thanks to Jim Cutler) that he’s actually part of the problem in society, a bad person for making a living through money from the likes of Dow Chemical. Mike starts quoting obscure lines and believes his mind is being controlled. Bob tells him he’s feeling fear, but Mike denies it. After trying to inspire and reason with Mike, Bob resorts to yelling at him: “Now pull yourself together and be the man that I admire!” This helps Mike regain perspective and a sense of humor. However, at the client meeting, we learn that Manischewitz has put SCDP-CGC under review, which means they’re going to drop the agency.

Meanwhile, at a restaurant, Joan meets Andy Hayes, a new acquaintance of Joan’s friend Kate. Joan thinks it’s a date, but Andy thinks he’s there to talk business. Joan adjusts and begins to try to sell him on SCDP-CGC’s advertising services for Avon. She says “I’m in charge of thinking of things before people know they need them” and talks warmly about Harry Crane’s ability to promote Avon through TV ads. Joan claims their agency is different because “we listen to the clients.” Andy moves to pay for the lunch but Joan obviously wants Andy to know how important she is when she says, “No, I’ll get this” and boasts that the company pays her to get the check.

Not long after, Joan tells Peggy about the business opportunity with Avon. Joan says with excitement, “I thought I was on a date but it’s even better.” Peggy convinces Joan to tell Ted, saying “You’ll be the account man, if that’s what you want” although Joan doesn’t appear to believe this. They tell Ted, but since Ted is heading out the door for Detroit, he passes the opportunity off to Pete. Ted tells Pete: “Reel them in” and rushes off, leaving the women feeling disgruntled and worried.

When Pete meets with Peggy and Joan a little later, he tells them what’s going to happen next, speaking in what they perceive as a dictatorial way. Joan resents this. Pete says to her, “Don’t worry. You’ll get all the credit.” Then he gives her a big, condescending smile and walks away. Joan feels shut down but later she sets up a meeting behind Pete’s back for herself, Peggy, and Andy.

That meeting is held at a restaurant. Joan arrives there first, and when Peggy arrives next, Joan tells her that Pete couldn’t make it. Surprised, Peggy wonders how they’ll handle the meeting, but then Joan admits she didn’t invite Pete. Peggy says, “You can’t do that” and Joan replies “I did it. If you want to leave, you can.” Andy arrives and Joan introduces him to Peggy, raving about her talents. Peggy begins to relate to Avon by telling Andy about her childhood memories of the Avon lady, but Joan soon interrupts her to have a more general conversation that she seems to think sounds more professional.  Then Joan asks Andy what Avon’s biggest challenges are. Andy complains that women are working more and not home as much, which is a problem because Avon’s business model required door-to-door sales. Also, he says that hippies don’t wear makeup. He’s not sure whether their advertising should be more nostalgic or groovier, and thinks they’re currently somewhere in-between. Next, Peggy asks him what he thinks of Avon’s current advertising. When he doesn’t respond immediately, she asks whether he thinks it’s unintentionally old-fashioned. He concurs. Peggy floats the idea of Andy sending an Avon Lady to the office. Joan immediately criticizes Peggy’s idea by pointing out that the office doesn’t have a doorbell. Peggy looks at her with disdain. In the end, neither Peggy nor Joan know how to wrap up the meeting to get a sale, and there’s an awkward silence.

Returning to the office, Joan says to Peggy: “What is going on? I just handed you the business of your life.” Peggy replies: “I know you want this and now you can’t have it.” Joan explains that she has to do this herself, her way. “All that matters now is who has the relationship.”

Later the ladies of the office receive a box of Avon product samples, which some of them rifle through in the conference room after someone accidentally opens the box. When Pete learns that Joan and Peggy held a meeting with Avon behind his back, he’s furious and chases the women out of the conference room. He calls Joan to the conference room to grill her, and Peggy walks in. Pete calls Ted into the room and shoos Peggy out. Peggy goes to Joan’s office and turns up the intercom so she can hear what’s happening. Meredith barges into Joan’s office and asks Peggy’s opinion of her outfit, and Peggy shushes her. They both listen as they hear Pete say, “What we have is a breach of the fundamental rules of this business…It’s a revolt.” Ted demands that Joan tell him what happened. Knowing that Joan is in trouble, Peggy writes a note and sends Meredith into the conference room to read it; the note says that Avon is on the phone for Joan. Pete tells her to go answer it. Then Pete argues with Ted, and Ted replies that “possession is 9/10 of the law. We’re all working together.” When Joan returns to her office she realizes that Peggy has rescued her. Peggy then says to Joan, “You’d better hope they call.”

In California, Harry Crane wears a bright gold blazer and a scarf-like necktie as he drives up to a hotel in a bright red convertible sports car and lets Don and Roger out of the car. Don and Roger are wearing suits and sunglasses, looking very conservative. They both complain about the car but Harry is excited and tells them to save their strength for a party in “the Hills” that he’s been invited to the following evening.

That night, everyone from Joan and Megan in their New York apartments to Don in Los Angeles tune in to watch the happenings at the Democratic Convention. As a tape of rioting in the streets of Chicago is shown, the reporter says, “This was supposed to be a nonviolent demonstration.” Megan in New York phones Don in his LA hotel to talk about it. She says, “Can you imagine a policeman cracking your skull, changing your life?” Don replies, “Honey, they’re throwing rocks. They’re asking for trouble.” Don deals with Megan’s upset emotions by making a joke, which upsets her more. Don apologizes. Megan worries that riots may break out in LA and tells Don to be careful. Don says he misses her, and Megan advises him to “Go for a swim. It always makes you feel better.” (Great foreshadowing!) They end the call with loving concern for each other, and after they hang up, Don lies back on his hotel bed and stares at the ceiling, ignoring the television screen.

The next morning, Roger, Don, and Harry meet with George, an executive at the Carnation office. George says, “We all hated what we saw, but the Democrats are dead.” He laughs about the Chicago riots handing the election to Nixon. Jack, another important Carnation executive, walks in just then and says it’s no laughing matter. He tries to stick to business but there’s a little more politics shared first. Then Harry mentions that Carnation needs more levels of advertising on television, including on game shows and other venues. George and Jack, however, are suspicious of SCDP-CGC because they’re a New York firm and New York firms have “an attitude.” They also feel it’s an irresolvable problem that the agency represents Life Cereal, one of their competitors.  However, Roger quips: “Look, we’re sorry your last girlfriend hurt you. But we’re in your office now.” This makes them smile, and they ask what Don, Roger, and Harry have in mind for their ad campaign.

That night, Harry drives up to the hotel in the same red convertible, which again irritates Don & Roger as he picks them up, still dressed in suits and sunglasses, to attend the party in the Hills. They arrive at the house and are greeted by an attractive blond hostess who Roger flirts with, but she’s not interested. The popular song Harper Valley PTA is playing. Don spots Danny, who used to work for him briefly, out on the pool deck, and he and Roger go out to say hello. Danny introduces his tall, bikini-clad girlfriend, Lotus, and Roger makes “short jokes” about Danny, which makes Lotus giggle. Danny says he tried advertising for a while but “It wasn’t my bag. I had to quit.” Roger embarrasses him by stating that Danny was fired, and mentions that they’re related because Danny is Roger’s ex-wife Jane’s cousin. Danny tells him he’s now known as Daniel J. Siegel, a producer at Paramount, and he starts dropping names. All the while, Lotus giggles from time to time but otherwise remains silent.

Meanwhile, Don goes over to the bar near the pool and converses with a man. Don tells the man about all of the accounts his company has, and the man replies that he’s into jingles, but that “If times get tough we’ll look you guys up.”

A bit later we see Roger flirting with Lotus near the pool. He says, “You don’t talk much, do you?” and she just looks at him. Danny walks up and tells her “Let’s go” but Roger challenges him. They get into an argument thanks to Roger’s aggressiveness, and after Roger threatens to punch Danny, Danny punches Roger in the groin. Roger doubles over in pain as Danny walks away with Lotus, who is giggling in reaction to the punch.

Around the same time, Don has wandered into the living room and sees a circle of people all smoking hashish through a large hookah. The party hostess asks him if he likes hashish, and Don replies, “I don’t know yet.” He removes his shoes upon request and takes a puff. He sits up very straight in his suit, which makes him look out of place because everyone else lounges around in their colorful hippie clothes.

Next, it seems that Don gets high, wanders off, loses consciousness, and falls into the pool, but what we see is his near-death experience. In this dream-like state, he finds himself kissing the blond hostess as he tells her that he’s thirsty, and she says, “There’s a pool full of water out there, Don.” Don replies, “I told you that’s not my name.” He then spots Megan, dressed in hippie garb, and Megan walks up to him smiling. Don moves away from the blond and asks Megan how she found him. Megan says she lives there. “It’s cool, it’s California, everybody shares.” She tells him she quit her job because she couldn’t bear to be apart, and that she has a surprise: she’s pregnant. She then leads Don down a long hallway to a dimly lit corner of the room and, beaming with joy (as one would expect in Heaven), she says, “Everybody’s looking for you.” Just then a man in an army uniform reaches out to light his cigarette. The soldier appears to be the man whose wedding Don stood up to on the beach in Hawaii. The soldier has lost an arm, and he tells Don: “My wife thinks I’m missing in action but I’m actually dead.” Don wonders what happened to his arm and he replies: “Dying doesn’t make you whole. You should see what you look like.”

Don hears a woman scream as if from a distance, and then he hears a man shout: “Man overboard!” He finds himself standing next to the pool looking down at his body, face-down in the water. He returns to consciousness in his physical body as Roger rescues him from drowning.

On their return flight to New York, Don coughs, and Roger offers an alibi: “You caught a cold in California.” Roger chats him up and makes him smile, and then Don turns and looks out the window. When they arrive in New York they go straight to the office. Dawn greets the two men, but Pete is hovering and brushes Dawn off, saying: “If you don’t mind, this is urgent.” When the three of them enter Don’s office, Pete continues: “I have to tell you that in your absence, things have become quite dire.”

Meanwhile, Jim and Ted catch up with each other upon Ted’s return from Detroit. Ted is excited to report that Jack, a key executive at Chevy, has finally signed off on the agency’s work and Ted got to see the car for the first time. Jim tells Ted that he didn’t actually attend the Manischewitz meeting, and Ted gets angry. Just then, Bob walks in and says, “They’re putting us in review.” Realizing that Ted is mad at Jim for not attending the meeting, Bob tries to rescue Jim by claiming it was his idea that Jim not be there. Ted is taken aback when Jim turns around and rewards Bob by assigning him to help Kenny with the Chevy account. Ted says nothing but has a strange look on his face as he observes this interaction. After Bob leaves, Ted scolds Jim: “You’re splitting this place, and not in half.” They then go to Don’s office for an emergency meeting of the executives, although Joan is specifically excluded.

Asking “How was California?” the execs hear that it was “a series of busts.” Ted shares that Detroit was a success and that Joan is “at the 5-yard line” with Avon. On hearing that Manischewitz has put their agency up for review, Roger says, “It’s been coming for months.”

Then Jim announces that they finally have a name for their agency: Sterling Cooper & Partners. Jim explains, “It’s the only thing that’s equally offensive to all.” Ted says to Don, “I can swallow it if you can” and the agency name is accepted. On their way out of Don’s office, Roger says to Bert, “Nice work.” Bert replies: “I had nothing to do with it.” Remaining in Don’s office are Don and Pete. Pete asks, “You have no problem with this?” Pete warns Don that “this is not the same business” and Don tells him, “If you don’t like it, maybe it’s time to get out of the business.”

With that, Pete wanders out to the creative room, stares for a moment, and walks up to Stan, who is sitting on the couch smoking marijuana. Pete says, “What are you doing?” and Stan replies, “Working.” Pete grabs the joint (despite Stan’s objection) and takes a puff, sitting down on the couch to enjoy it while staring at the legs of a short-skirted young woman walking by as he gets high.

The final music is Janis Joplin’s song, Take Another Little Piece of my Heart.

 

A major theme of this episode is the clash of cultures. As with any clash of cultures, this show features both “hawks” and “doves” who try to either keep the cultures apart or integrate them into a single, unified new culture.

·         The war in Vietnam represented an internal clash of cultures because of the competing economic and political systems trying to rule the country. By the late 1960s the United States was fighting with the South Vietnamese and against the North, but not winning. Many in the United States, especially the youth who were being drafted to fight and die for a war they didn’t believe in, were “doves” who wanted to withdraw all U.S. troops immediately. The “dove” or anti-war movement was met with violence by the cops in Chicago during the 1968 Democratic convention, although rock-throwers (a violent subgroup) among the “doves” helped ignite the conflict. In the end, the Democratic party and the nation remained sharply divided, helping to create a cultural split throughout the United States that showed up as a generational as well as a political divide.

·         The Democrats vs. the Republicans divided the country politically, with Republicans mostly “hawks” and Democrats largely but not completely “doves.” We see the political split in Don and Megan, where Democrat Megan is sympathetic to the anti-war demonstrators and Republican Don is less sympathetic and more cynical. To resolve their political differences, Don is a “dove” with Megan in that he speaks sympathetically to her concerns about the protestors rather than arguing with her, and he tries to change the subject and kiss her when possible to smooth over their differences. 

·         We also see politics played out at SCDP-CGC when youthful anti-war Democrats Mike and Stan try to discuss politics with older Jim Cutler, a man who doesn’t want to talk about politics (Republicans of that era often believed that people should mind their own business). Ironically, the “dove” Mike yells at Jim and insults him, so Mike is more of a “hawk” when it comes to dealing with his political differences with Jim, and Jim is more of a “dove” in trying to relate peacefully, if coolly, to Mike. Bob Benson, the consummate “dove” in terms of bridging gaps with others, walks into the middle of the argument and tries to make things better, only to be scolded by Jim (suddenly acting “hawkishly” ill-tempered towards Bob), while Stan is more “dovish” in keeping his mouth shut to de-escalate the argument.

·         Carnation executives George (Republican) and Jack (apparently sympathetic to Democrats) feel the need to talk politics at their meeting with Don, Roger, and Harry, showing how far the political divide permeated society. Jack said they should stick to a business discussion, but then he made further political comments.

·         Although SCDP and CGC have merged, their cultural differences remain and produce animosities among “hawks” or aggressive, divisive individuals like Jim Cutler and Pete. Ted is the “dove” on the CGC side, trying to peacefully integrate the two teams into a new company. Likewise, Don is “dovish” when Pete (who has “hawkishly” argued with Peggy and Joan and wants to hold onto the business culture of the past) tells Don disdainfully at the end of the show that it’s just not the same agency. Don (who accepts the new, integrated agency) says that Pete should accept it or leave.

·         The beginning and ending of this episode revolve around finding a new name for the agency. This represents two cultures coming together, both sides sacrificing something so they can form a new agency, with a unique new culture.

·         Although there are three cities pertinent to this episode, we never see what happens in Detroit. Therefore, the two cities whose tales are told would be New York and Los Angeles, places where the cultures were extremely different in 1968. Everything we see, from the eastern conservative suits vs. western hippie clothing, to the eastern aggressive, bullying, fast-paced manner vs. the western laid-back, authority-questioning manner, to the eastern business women vs. the western bikini gals, sets these two cultures apart. Harry Crane knows how to dress for either coast and has made peace with both cultures, while Roger pumps himself up about how much better New York is and rejects the west coast culture. Don is somewhat open to the west coast culture as he’s willing to try their hashish (although he can’t handle it) but he maintains his New York style of clothing and doing business. In Don’s unconscious, he sees Megan being at home in the west coast culture of hippie clothes and free love.

·         There’s a huge gap between male culture and female culture, with a minority of women trying to become independent and the vast majority of men feeling that men should dominate women.

·         Among male culture, men were split along fashion trends between the east and west coast looks and between pro- and anti-establishment thought, but largely unified in their feelings of dominance over women.

·         Among female culture, many women in 1968 were looking at both east and west coast fashions (Avon’s Andy specifically mentions working women vs. the hippies who no longer wear make-up, representing style splits within the female culture) and some women were becoming aware of politics and anti-establishment rhetoric, but many were also split between “hawks” and “doves” (competitors vs. cooperators) towards men. There was the old-fashioned beauty who was good at being receptive and listening to men and giggling (Lotus), vs. the new woman (Joan and Peggy) who rejected the good-old-boys’ club having power over them and wanted to become empowered to move up the ladder in their organization.

·         There’s a divide between old and new selling styles throughout the episode: Roger and Don use old-school tactics to try to impress the California guys – boasting about their accomplishments and putting others down to try to look good by comparison. Meanwhile, Peggy and Joan ask their potential Avon client a lot of questions and use good listening skills in a more consultative sales approach, although they have things to learn about how to ask for the order. (This is not to say that Roger and Don, or other salesmen, fail to listen to their customers, but that part isn’t shown in this episode.)

·         Personal clashes in fashion or communication styles appear throughout the show: Ted and Jim have clashing leadership styles; Don and Roger have clashing ways of preparing for their client meeting; Mike and Bob have distinctly different ways of dealing with authority in the office that cause problems for both of them; Joan and Peggy (and Pete) have clashing ways of thinking about and handling the Avon prospect; Harry’s style of clothing and car choice clash with the fashion sensibilities of Don and Roger; and Don and Megan have clashing ways of interpreting the events around the Democratic National Convention. Most of these clashes aren’t resolved in this episode.

 

A recurring motif is frenemy rescues. People who are competitive towards each other suddenly turn around and rescue each other from disasters.

·         Jim yells at Bob Benson when he walks into the creative office and tries to help Mike calm down and show some respect for authority. Yet later in the show, Bob makes up the story that it was his idea that Jim should not attend the Manischewitz meeting, thus trying to rescue Jim from Ted’s wrath.

·         Bob responds to Stan’s request and rushes in to rescue Mike, who is crouched on the floor feeling sick and sounding mentally unstable. After trying reason and persuasion and hearing Mike deny his analysis that he’s frightened, Bob shouts at Mike with a positive spin to snap him out of his fears.

·         Roger and Don have their disagreements, but in the end Roger jumps into the pool and rescues Don from drowning.

·         Peggy and Joan argue about how to handle Avon, but ultimately Peggy rescues Joan from being trounced by Ted by writing a fake memo and asking Meredith to read it to Joan in the conference room, thus getting her out of there.

 

Finally, there’s a broad theme of shifting power structures. As cultures merge, some people (like Pete or Jim Cutler) fear the loss of power and influence, while others work to gain power (like Ted or Joan). New York and east coast culture may be losing influence over the country as California captures more people’s imaginations and shifts fashion and communication styles. Politically, the Democrats lose influence after the 1968 convention and fall into disarray as the Republicans gain power through the presidency of Richard M. Nixon. But a few years later, the anti-war movement would force the U.S. withdrawal from Vietnam, proving that the power and influence of America’s youth in 1968 was on the rise.

I (Karen) am not really sure about the significance of the final song, “Piece of My Heart.” It reminds me of Lotus, who seems to offer herself up to being owned by men – giving up her identity to be a giggling sex object that makes men feel good. Jim thinks that all the principle characters at the agency (except Harry) have had a piece of their heart torn out during this episode.

 

Mad Men Episode 6-9: The Better Half

Recap: The episode begins with Pete, Don, and Ted in the conference room debating what ad campaign to use for Fleischman’s margarine. Harry is in the room but mostly as an observer. Ted insists that Fleischman’s will taste better to consumers because it’s more expensive than other margarines, but Don says price is irrelevant because all margarine is cheap compared to butter, and therefore the ad should be about taste. Pete says to go on taste alone. They pull Peggy into the room and ask her opinion. She says she buys according to price, but when she realizes she may not be in agreement with Ted, she hedges and refuses to give a further opinion, claiming she doesn’t want to take sides. At the end of the meeting, Ted caves in to Don’s idea, and then Don says it doesn’t matter to him because he won’t even be there. After Ted and Don walk out, Harry says to Pete: “I wasn’t going to get in the middle of that. Are you suddenly dumber than Peggy?” He also gives Pete advice to see a headhunter, and tells Pete of his own career plans to become a partner, although for now he’s keeping his options open by looking around.

Soon thereafter, Don confronts Peggy with: “I’m not paying you to be a diplomat.” Don wants Peggy’s opinion about the margarine commercial, but instead she gives him her opinion of working with him and Ted: “You’re both demanding and pigheaded…You’re the same person sometimes.” But she says Ted is more interested in the commercial and Don is more interested in having things his way. Don denies this. She also says about Ted: “He never makes me feel this way,” to which Don replies: “He doesn’t know you.”

When Peggy gets home that night, Abe has his arm in a sling and was stabbed. A cop is in their living room asking him questions, and Abe is uncooperative and claims he can’t remember the details, especially when asked the race of his attacker. Peggy confronts him after the cop leaves, and Abe says in frustration: “Everything you say is going in my story. Why would you side with the cops?”Peggy thinks the people in their neighborhood are not their friends, but Abe feels he’s on the side of “the people,” even though one of them attacked him, and that the country is basically a police state. Peggy wants to sell their apartment and move out of the area. She sympathizes with Abe and thinks his weird behavior is due to a trauma, but Abe feels she’s patronizing him by sympathizing. Then, unable to type because his arm is in a sling, he tells Peggy to go get his typewriter and help him get some of his story down. She says she has to work in the morning, and tells him she’s going to bed.

Later in the episode, Pete, Peggy, and Ted walk down the hallway of the agency toward Ted’s secretary. She stands up and announces to them that Fleischman’s has called. Pete sees it as a good sign, but Ted’s secretary says they just called to get some data about market share, which makes them all continue worrying. Ted then calls Peggy into his office for a personal conversation and yells at her for touching his hand during the presentation and for smiling at him. Unaware that she’d done these things, Peggy tries to calm him down. Ted says he’s been thinking about their kiss ever since it happened. Peggy says she thought the plan was to forget about the kiss, but Ted says he can’t, and she says she thinks about it too.

The next time we see Peggy, she’s arriving home to find Abe trying with his one free arm to fix a broken window, where somebody has thrown a rock through their window and broken the glass. Abe agrees with Peggy that it’s time to put their apartment on the market. Surprised, Peggy says, “You’d really do that for me?” Abe responds: “Maybe we’re not cut out to be pioneers.” Then he kisses her, but the kiss lacks passion.

Some time later, late at night, Peggy’s at home holding a homemade weapon – a knife attached to a long pole. She uses it to open the blinds to see what’s going on outside their building, where there’s a lot of loud yelling and fighting going on. She’s very frightened. Just then Abe walks into the room, and she turns with the weapon in front of her and accidentally stabs him in the abdomen. It’s serious and they call an ambulance. On their ride to the hospital, Abe tells Peggy what he really thinks of her: “You’re a scared person who hides behind complacency…I don’t know why I thought you’d be braver…Your activities [as an ad agency employee] are offensive to my every waking moment. I’m sorry but you’ll always be the enemy.” Peggy replies: “Are you breaking up with me?” Abe continues ironically: “I’ve got to hand it to you. You gave me a great ending to my article.”

Back at the agency the next day, Peggy enters Ted’s office for a private conversation. She tells him that Abe has been stabbed, but that he’s going to be all right. Ted shows sympathy and concern. Then Peggy says that her relationship with Abe is over. Ted flips into professional mode and tells her: “I’m sorry to hear that” in an impersonal way. He also tells her she’ll find someone else. Then he acts like an upbeat manager and says: “It’s Monday morning – are you ready to work!?” He says Fleischman’s has just called, and “It’s full speed ahead. Round up the team!” Peggy is stunned and looks very lonely.

Megan’s story begins onset as she enacts a scene from her soap opera with Arlene, the wife of her boss. After the director says “cut,” Megan is criticized over a loud speaker for not making “the twins” (her dual roles) different enough. Arlene tells her not to worry about it. Next we see Megan at home, greeting Don as he comes home. She’s prepared a fancy dinner for him. Surprised, since it’s just a Thursday night, Don tries to act happy about it and cooperate but refuses to talk about his day. When he hears Megan discuss her day (“I think they hate me” at work), and analyze her twin roles (they represent two halves of the same person who want the same thing but go about trying to get it in different ways), he tells her he’s too tired for dinner and wants to watch TV instead. Megan goes along.

Don leaves town to visit his son Bobby’s summer camp, and Megan invites Arlene to her apartment for a lovely dinner with plenty of wine. Arlene enters the apartment in a fancy dress and Megan wears a casual pants outfit. Megan wants to talk about her script, but Arlene says: “Megan darling, you’re a good actress on your way to becoming a successful one. There’s nothing I can help you with.” Then Arlene tells Megan her experience at the start of her own acting career and talks about how she handled some harsh criticism she received then. Megan compliments Arlene on her career security given that she’s married to the boss, and Arlene compliments Megan on her strong relationship with Don. Megan confides that her marital relationship has become distant and says she feels lonely. Arlene leans in and kisses her on the lips. Megan is shocked and backs away, telling her that’s not what she wants. Megan then gets angry and accuses Arlene of misusing the personal information she’s been telling her, but Megan’s smiles confuse Arlene and she moves in on Megan a couple more times before realizing she’s being shut down. Arlene tells Megan that her concerns about acting are foolish and that she feels Megan led her on. Megan worries that she’ll be punished at work for rejecting Arlene, but Arlene ends the evening telling her: “No hard feelings. Status quo ante bellum.”

By the end of the show, Don returns from his visit to Bobby’s summer camp and comes home to find Megan out on the balcony at night, dressed in a Macy’s tee shirt and her underwear. Don tells her he missed her, and Megan replies that she misses him all the time. She then launches into a fairly gentle confrontation about the decline of their relationship and tells him: “Something has to change.” Don says: “You’re right. I haven’t been here.” He then kisses her, and she leans in and rests her head on his shoulder while he holds her.

However, earlier in the show during his travels to Bobby’s summer camp, Don had run into Betty (looking trim and blond again) at a rural gas station. In that scene, Betty asks the attendant for directions, but when the attendant (who is dazzled by her looks) fails to offer street names in his landmark-based directions, Don tells Betty: “Follow me” and they caravan their way to the camp. On arrival, Betty connects with Bobby first, and Betty and Bobby sing “Father Abraham,” a camp song with hand gestures, while sitting at a table in the camp’s canteen. Don walks in and joins them at the table, and they all sing the song together and have some family fun. Bobby says hi to another camper sitting with his parents at the next table, and explains that the boy is Bobby #2, while he is Bobby #5.

That night, Don walks by the row of adult cabins and sees Betty sitting on the step in front of her cabin. He brings over some liquor to share, they reminisce about summer camp experiences and the conception of Sally, and they both enter Betty’s cabin. When Don embraces her, she says: “What are you doing?” He replies: “I’m waiting for you to tell me to stop.” Instead she smiles and gives him the green light, and they have sex. In bed, Don tells Betty: “I missed you” but Betty says she’s happy in her life and just wants to enjoy the moment with him. She also talks about the way Don is before and after having sex, and says she loves the way he is afterwards until she begins to see the decay. Meanwhile, Don wonders why sex defines being close to someone. “If you climb a mountain, it doesn’t mean you love it” he muses. Betty remarks about Megan: “That poor girl. She doesn’t know that loving you is the worst way to get to you.” With that, Don kisses her and they move into passionate sex.

The following morning Don finds himself alone in bed. He dresses and walks to the canteen, only to see Betty and Henry sitting at a table enjoying breakfast together. He walks over to say good morning, and Betty and Henry greet him politely but then ignore him. Don walks to a small table at the other side of the canteen and has breakfast alone, looking out of sorts. Finally, when he returns home and greets Megan out on the balcony of their apartment with the same “I missed you” line that he’d given Betty a day earlier, he looks weary rather than excited.

Betty’s contentment with Henry at the breakfast table contrasts sharply with earlier scenes she has with Henry. First we see Betty dressed in an expensive gown at a dinner function she attends with Henry. Henry makes a couple of phone calls from a phone booth while Betty waits in the hallway and is approached by a man named Stuart. Stuart tells her he wants to be with her all night. Betty replies indignantly that she has three children, but then she repeats the statement in a flirtatious way, saying, “No, look at me. Do you believe I’ve had three children?” This takes Stu by surprise, but the conversation ends because Henry comes over to claim his wife. Then Betty and Henry take a limo home. After asking the driver for privacy, he initiates a conversation with Betty about what Stu said to her. She says she doesn’t want to get anyone in trouble, but then she tells him everything Stu said. Henry, after seeming to blame her for being the center of other men’s attention, is turned on and starts making out with her.

Pete’s story begins at the meeting in the first scene of the episode when, after siding with Don about the Fleischman’s ad campaign, he’s influenced by Harry to see a headhunter. Later in the episode, the headhunter he sees at his Manhattan apartment is none other than Duck Phillips, who is still up to his old tricks of trying to convince people that he’s way ahead of them. Duck puts the onus on Pete to do better at work so that Duck can help him. Duck tells Pete that, since the agency’s merger, his position is not strong. Pete says he doesn’t know what he can do in that regard. Duck ends the meeting by offering some advice: spend more time at home and learn to manage your family life or you’re not going to manage anything. However, Pete feels his family is a constant distraction, and he doesn’t even admit to Duck that he’s separated from Trudy.

Back at the agency, Pete enters Joan’s office and asks her whether she thinks his attention at work is “too dilute.” He feels he’s being pulled in multiple directions personally, but when he begins to talk about his situation with his mother, Joan says she can’t help him with his problems because she has the same types of problems. Pete then asks her if she wants to get supper with him, but she says she has other plans. Pete ends the conversation by thanking her, but Joan says: “For what?” Pete says he doesn’t know, and he seems confused as he exits her office.

Later in the episode, Joan is at home on the weekend packing things to go to the beach with baby Kevin and her friend Bob Benson. Bob is wearing short shorts and looking as friendly and polite as ever. Bob offers to get baby Kevin, but Joan asks him to wait. The doorbell rings and it’s Roger, wearing his suit and carrying a shopping bag that looks like it’s from an expensive store. Roger and Bob are surprised to see each other and they each quickly realize that Joan has a relationship to the other one. Roger then pretends he came to Joan’s place to get some work papers, and Joan plays into the ruse by saying to Bob: “Some people never stop working.” Bob offers to get the car so that Joan and Roger can speak privately, but Joan says: “Mr. Sterling was just leaving” and sends Roger away.

Back at the agency on Monday, Roger visits Joan’s office and brings the same shopping bag, which contains a gift of Lincoln Logs for baby Kevin. Joan tries to refuse the gift, saying it’s too confusing for the child to get gifts from Roger. She prefers that Kevin believe his father is Greg, a man far away that she can tell heroic stories about. She then thanks Roger for the gift and accepts it, but tells him he’s too unreliable to be in Kevin’s life.

Also, Bob visits Pete’s office and brings up the delicate matter of his need for a nurse for his mother. Pete immediately assumes Joan told him about the situation, but Bob tries hard to take Joan off the hook (“She was concerned about you and was well-aware that your well-being is also an interest of mine”) while providing a unique referral of a male army nurse who is “well-bred.”

Unfortunately, Roger has already had a bad experience with his daughter, Margaret, and his four-year-old grandson. Early in the episode, Margaret brings the boy to the agency to spend an afternoon with “Pop-pop” and Roger says he plans to take him to the zoo and then a movie. Later in the program, Margaret calls him on the phone and screams at him for taking the boy to see Planet of the Apes, a movie that frightened him so much that he’s been having recurring nightmares ever since. Roger defends the choice, saying the boy wanted to see that movie, and Margaret says it’s her fault for allowing a four-year-old to watch another four-year-old. She tells him he will not be allowed to take care of the boy anymore unless her mother (Roger’s ex, Mona) is there to supervise him.

The final song of the episode, Always Something There to Remind Me, is about a man who feels lonely and haunted by the memory of a past relationship that he hasn’t gotten over. This sentiment seems to apply to multiple characters this week. Ted tells Peggy he still thinks about their kiss (although he later acts as if he’s not interested in her); Roger can’t seem to get over Joan, who is always there at work to remind him of his feelings for her; Don hasn’t completely gotten over Betty, whose children bring them together and remind him of his feelings for her based on her beauty; Arlene may be constantly reminded of her crush on Megan since they work together; and Joan has her son, Kevin, who is always there to remind her of Greg, and possibly of Roger.

As the title suggests, a major theme in this episode is two halves of an individual, as well as couple dynamics (where a woman is traditionally considered a man’s better half).

·         Peggy tells Don that he and Ted are like the same person, but she implies that Ted is the better half.

 

·         When Abe breaks up with Peggy, his reasons for breaking up all have to do with her failings; not only is he resentful that she doesn’t seem to be his better half, but he implies that he’s the better half and that’s why he’s dumping her.

 

·         Don has long seen Peggy as a mirror image of himself, which may be why he’s so hard on her. He, too, is scolding and resentful of her because he finds his self-image (Peggy) to be so much less than he believes he is.

 

·         Megan plays two characters at work that are identical twin characters. Colette is supposed to be the better twin because she’s blond and self-confident, whereas the other twin is more subservient.

 

·         Megan is clearly Don’s better half; she is honest with him overall, confronts him and tries to drive his personal growth, and keeps trying to make their marriage work. However, it’s hard to know whether Don realizes her value as his better half.

 

·         Arlene shows two sides of herself, first as a coach and confidant to Megan at work, and second as a sexual vixen ready to swing with her husband and other couples or go AC/DC on the side.

 

·         Betty sees two sides of Don, the before-sex Don who’s aggressive and ready to “climb the next mountain” and the after-sex Don who’s attractive but shows signs of decay.

 

·         We’ve already seen two sides of Betty: the insecure fat Betty, and the self-absorbed snobbish thin Betty. We’ve also seen blond Betty vs. dark-haired Betty. The question about Betty and Henry is: which of them is truly the better half of that relationship? To me it looks like Henry, overall.

 

·         Roger and Greg may be two halves of the same person, each trying to serve as the absentee father of baby Kevin. Joan seems to believe Greg is the better half in that pairing.

 

A related theme of this episode is relationship triangles and the problems inherent in them.

·         The first triangle we see is Don, Ted, and Pete at the Fleischman’s ad meeting. Don and Ted square off about the focus of the ad, and Pete sides with Don.

 

·         Next, Pete is ignored when Peggy is pulled into the meeting, and the triangle becomes Don, Ted, and Peggy. Peggy expresses her own view but then refuses to say more because she realizes she’ll be siding with either Don or Ted and knows that either way is problematic.

 

·         After Don and Ted leave the room, Harry speaks of his relationship with a headhunter as well as his plans for becoming a partner at the agency, thus theoretically creating a triangle between himself and two agencies, one of which he’ll eventually side with.

 

·         After Peggy sits with Abe at home while he talks to a cop in their living room, creating a visual triangle, Abe accuses her of siding with the cop.

 

·         A visual triangle is shown when Pete, Peggy, and Ted walk together down the agency hallway toward Ted’s secretary.

 

·         When Ted pulls Peggy into his office to talk personally about his feelings about her, he reignites her feelings for him and thus sets up two triangles: one between the two of them and Abe, and the other between the two of them and Ted’s wife. After Abe rejects Peggy, Peggy chooses Ted, but meanwhile Ted chooses his wife, at least for the moment, making Peggy feel very alone.

 

·         The dynamics of Abe and Peggy’s relationship are strained by two triangles: Peggy’s love for Abe vs. her love for her career at the ad agency, and Abe’s love for Peggy vs. his love for “the people” and his radical belief system. They both ultimately choose their careers/beliefs over each other.

 

·         Arlene’s advances toward Megan create a triangle for Megan between Arlene and Don. This is not a hard choice for Megan to make, but it’s a funny twist to the triangle theme.

 

·         Betty drives to Bobby’s summer camp and encounters a service station attendant. When Don shows up, a relationship triangle is created (in the imagination of the attendant) and Betty chooses Don over the attendant.

 

·         At the summer camp, Betty, Bobby, and Don create a family triangle that seems stable, and nobody has to side with anybody else at that time.

 

·         Betty sets up a triangle between herself, Don, and Henry by having drinks with Don, leaving her cabin door open, and being available for sex with Don during their summer camp weekend visit. The following morning, however, she has no problem siding with Henry in this triangle.

 

·         Likewise, when Don accepts Betty’s come-on and sleeps with her, he’s in a relationship triangle with Betty and Megan. He seems to enjoy the adventure of conquering Betty once again, and he’s had so many affairs that he may be comfortable with triangular relationships. However, when Betty shuts him down the next day, he returns to Megan and “sides” with her.

 

·         When Henry and Betty emerge from the formal dinner they attended and Henry goes to a phone booth to place some calls, Stu comes along and creates a relationship triangle. Betty rejects him, then flirts with him until Henry comes along and Betty sides with Henry.

 

·         Wanting to create a relationship option with another agency so that he can side with either his current agency or a new one, Pete has a meeting with headhunter Duck Phillips. Unfortunately, Duck is unable to help him make a new connection at that time.

 

·         When Duck talks to Pete about finding him a job with another agency, Duck’s advice is to manage his family or he won’t be able to manage his career. This sets up a triangle between the individual, the career, and the family, suggesting that these three aspects of life need to be in triangular balance for success.

 

·         Following Pete’s conversation with Joan when he asks for her advice and tells her he needs to find a caretaker for his mother, Joan passes this information onto Bob Benson. This sets up a triangle (Joan, Bob, and Pete) in which Bob later gets back to Pete and tries to help him by suggesting a nurse, and Pete knows it was Joan who mentioned it. Bob does a pretty good job of siding with Joan while convincing Pete he’s on his side, too.

 

·          When Bob and Joan pack to take Kevin to the beach, they look something like a family triangle that could potentially be stable if they all play their roles well.

 

·         When Roger rings the doorbell and enters Joan’s apartment only to see Bob Benson there, the relationship triangle is tense because Joan has quite clearly taken sides with Bob and Roger feels strongly rejected.

 

·         Earlier in the episode when Margaret brought her son to spend the afternoon with “Pop Pop” Roger, a nice family-like triangle is created among the three of them. Later, Margaret sides with her mother (Mona) against her father (Roger), showing another family triangle that is disastrous for Roger.

A recurring motif of this episode that’s hard to miss is people giving mixed signals.

·         Peggy gets mixed signals from Ted, who wants her to keep her opinions to herself but also say what she really thinks about the Fleischman’s ad ideas. She also gets mixed signals from Don, who makes her feel like two cents while telling her that her opinions matter to him. Abe gives her mixed signals when he agrees to move out of the neighborhood because he loves her, and then breaks up with her shortly thereafter. Finally, Ted gives Peggy mixed signals about his feelings for her – first personal attraction, then a professional cold shoulder.

 

·         Don and Ted give each other mixed signals when they spend the meeting arguing about the Fleischman’s ad, and then both cave in to each other’s ideas at the end.

 

·         Megan gives Arlene mixed signals by inviting her over and acting excited to see her, serving her dinner and wine and telling her how lonely she is, and then blaming Arlene for putting her in jeopardy at work when Arlene kisses her. Even when Megan rejects Arlene’s kiss, her signals are so mixed that Arlene mistakenly tries a couple more times before realizing she’s being rejected. On the other hand, Megan has been getting mixed signals from Don for a long time, acting as though he loves her but also acting distant.

 

·         Betty gives Don mixed signals when she seduces him but tells him she’s happy in her life with Henry. When they have sex, she talks about his decay and expresses sympathy for Megan, who doesn’t realize that having sex isn’t a good way to get to Don. Surprisingly, Don is turned on by this talk and they make love. Also, Betty gives Stu mixed signals, brushing off his advances and then flirting with him.

 

·         Henry gives Betty mixed signals in the back seat of the limo. Henry seems to be scolding Betty for being the center of attention at the fancy dinner event, but when she tells him what Stu said, he starts kissing her passionately.

 

·         Pete gives Joan mixed signals when he enters her office to ask for advice, and then suddenly asks her out for supper. Roger has given Joan mixed signals for years, wanting her in his life but also wanting to sleep around and just drop in on Joan when he feels like it.

 

·         When Bob Benson approaches Pete with a recommendation of a nurse for Pete’s mother, Pete gives him mixed signals – first blaming Joan behind her back for talking about his private issue, then challenging Bob every step of the way, and finally seeming interested in Bob’s recommendation.

 

·         Joan gives Roger mixed signals when she first refuses to take the Lincoln Logs he bought for Kevin, and then later accepts them with thanks. Her actions give Roger the message that his gift giving is acceptable to her, even though her words say otherwise.

 

Possibly the biggest theme of all is relationship illusions vs. realities.

·         Don’s relationship illusion is that he’s the stud, always ready to climb the next mountain. However, his reality, at least in this season, is that he’s recently been rejected by Sylvia and he isn’t Betty’s first pick, either. Megan is his reality, and he doesn’t seem overwhelmingly happy about her.

 

·         Peggy’s relationship illusion is that Ted may get a divorce and marry her. Her reality, however, is that she is Ted’s protégé, making Ted feel powerful around her at work, but right now he is keeping their relationship strictly professional.

 

·         Abe’s relationship illusion was that Peggy would be a strong woman who would become radicalized and fight the police state side-by-side with him. His reality, which he suddenly realizes in this episode, is that Peggy is scared of “the revolution” that he’s dedicated to fighting, and she’s part of the capitalist establishment that he sees as the enemy. Meanwhile, Peggy’s illusion of a happy life with Abe has already become a nightmare for her, and even though she hadn’t planned on breaking up with him, his rejection makes her feel free to pursue a relationship with Ted, a creative ad person like herself. Unfortunately, that turns out to be an illusion too, at least as far as we can tell right now.

 

·         Arlene has illusions of forming a sexual relationship with Megan. Reality sinks in when Megan rejects her advances multiple times within a few minutes.

 

·         Henry’s relationship illusion is that he’s enough for Betty. The reality is that Betty plays around with Don when Henry’s not there, and she flirts with other men too. Of course, Henry doesn’t know about Betty’s night with Don, so his illusion remains intact for now.

 

·         Pete’s relationship illusion is more of a mask he wears around others. When talking to Duck, he creates the illusion that he still has a family life, although the reality is that he doesn’t. Pete also fancies himself a match for Joan, an illusion that she immediately shoots down.

 

·         Like Pete, Roger has illusions of being a good match for Joan. She’s rejected him before, but he now sees that she’s moved on to Bob Benson, a harsh reality for him. Equally harsh is his daughter’s screaming phone call, destroying his illusions of having a good relationship with his daughter and grandson.

Mad Men Episode 6-8: The Crash

Recap: Working in Detroit with his counterparts at Chevy, Ken begins the episode behind the wheel of a Chevy Impala, nervously speeding as his drunken Chevy companions surround him inside the car and harass him with mocking laughter and even a pistol, urging him to go faster. This joy ride, leading to an off-camera crash, sets the tone for an out-of-control weekend at the new, as-yet unnamed ad agency, SCDP+CGC.  

At the office, Ted, Don, Roger, and Jim sit around a table looking worn out, with Jim and Roger playing checkers as they all try to come up with new ideas for the Chevy account. Ken enters the room saying, “Sorry I’m late,” but gets chewed out. “No one cares that I almost got killed?” he challenges, but in response he receives only abuse. The bad news he bears is that Chevy, the agency’s new overlord, has given them a three-year calendar and wants a constant stream of new ideas throughout that time, in exchange for the hefty sums of money they’re pouring into the agency.  

Dawn enters the meeting room and tells Don he has a phone call from Dr. Rosen. When Don goes to his private office and answers the phone, it’s Sylvia, who is angry about Don’s repeated visits to the hallway behind the back door of her apartment, where he leaves old cigarette butts. She says Arnold thinks she’s smoking again, and she tells Don that she’s afraid she’s going to burst into tears and tell her husband everything. Don tries to schmooze her as if he doesn’t understand the situation or the danger inherent in it, and she eventually hangs up on him.  In frustration, Don picks up the telephone and slams it against the booze cart, smashing glass all over. Just outside his office, Dawn hears the crash and buzzes him to see if he’s all right. He tells her he’s tired and just needs to take a nap. As he coughs, he begins to remember an episode in his teenage years when he had a bad cough and was fed soup and nursed back to health by a prostitute named Aimee who then molested him. More than two hours later, Dawn enters Don’s office to say that Mr. Cutler wants to see him, and she offers to clean up the mess of broken glass.

Jim Cutler announces to the team that Frank has died. Visibly upset, Ted excuses himself from work for a few days, and Peggy says that she can go to the funeral but also be available to work over the weekend. Next, Jim announces that “the doctor’s here,” and that Don should see him first. Not knowing what that means, Don follows Jim’s instructions and heads upstairs to meet a “Doctor Feelgood” who dispenses an “energy serum” via shots in the butt. The shots, which take a few minutes to kick in, are supposed to supply one to three days of “focused energy and confidence.” Nearly everyone in the creative department gets the shot and remains at the office all weekend to try to meet their next deadline with Chevy. Only Mike Ginsberg and Peggy seem to remain sober. The result is a lot of hyperactivity and chaotic bursts of energy among the creative staff, including Don, who are totally confident of their brilliance as they spout platitudes as if they were fabulous concepts. Don searches for artwork from an old ad campaign and is sure it contains the solution to his problem, but he’s more focused on the problem of winning back Sylvia than coming up with work for Chevy.

Ken comes to see Don and explains that he has no power in his relationship with the Chevy guys, but Don demands to be in on Ken’s next meeting with them, convinced that the timbre of his voice will make all the difference. Ken, feeling no pain after his energy serum shot, expresses his frustration and anger by performing a tap dance for Don on his injured foot while delivering an incredibly artistic rant about “It’s my job…” – as if he were a servant doing whatever his master says and wearing a big smile to mask his resentment. Don walks to the area where the creative team is working and gives an emphatic but empty-sounding speech: “There is no reason to give in…This is a test of our patience and commitment…” Peggy commends him for sounding inspiring, but when she asks for his ideas, he says he doesn’t have any yet, although he won’t stop looking.

Next, Don encounters Wendy, who is sitting in the creative office doing i-ching readings. Wendy offers to do a reading for Don, telling him he can just think of a question for the reading and doesn’t have to say it aloud. She later has sex with Stan in someone’s office, and at another point waits in Don’s office where she plays doctor with a broken stethoscope and tries unsuccessfully to seduce him. Much later, Don learns that Wendy is the daughter of the deceased, Frank.

Sometime during this crazy weekend, Stan challenges Mike to throw a makeshift dart (a pen? a hypodermic needle?) at the picture of a large apple positioned above his head. Mike misses and punctures Stan’s raised forearm, causing significant bleeding. Peggy dresses the wound in another room and Stan kisses her, saying that women resist men but they really don’t mean it. Peggy appears to enjoy the kiss but tells him to stop and that she has a boyfriend. Then Stan confesses that he’s feeling bad because his cousin, age 20, was recently killed in the Navy. He then jokes about the job of being a mailman to those on the front lines. Peggy advises him that he needs to feel his grief and not try to cover it up with sex and drugs.

Throughout the weekend, only Mike produces a couple of good nuggets that could become ad ideas, which Peggy acknowledges. At one point Stan excitedly says, “I did it! I’ve got 666 ideas!” Mike says, “I’m wasting my Saturday with lunatics.” At some point, Peggy tells Jim Cutler, “See what a mess you’ve made?”At another point, Don is excited about his new concept: “History cannot be ignored!” As he explains his idea, Mike tries to build on it, saying “Promise them anything – you’re going to change their life – take away their pain – Chevy.” But Don quickly rejects the “Chevy” statement and talks about “getting in the door” – which doesn’t make sense to the others. Peggy realizes Don is out of it. Jim Cutler then calls Peggy over to peek on Stan and Wendy having sex, and Peggy is disgusted and decides to go home.

Meanwhile, Don calls Megan from the office. She needs him to come home immediately to watch the children so she can go out to a play and meet a producer. Don apologizes but says he’s in the middle of something and can’t leave. Megan ends up quickly trying to ensure that the kids will have something to eat before she walks out and leaves Sally in charge. When Don finally leaves the office for home, he first goes to Sylvia’s back door and knocks, but nobody answers. Leaning in, he overhears the kitchen radio blasting the lyrics, “Well I think I’m going out of my head…out of my head over you…day and night…I must think of a way into your heart….” At this point, Don is crashing from his drug high and meanders through the hallway to the front door of his apartment, muttering aloud instructions to himself and rehearsing private lines, such as “Sylvia, don’t close the door on me.” When he enters his home, he’s stunned to see two cops, Betty and Henry, Megan and the three children all sitting in the living room looking at him. He then learns that while Megan was out and Sally was babysitting, an elderly black woman who called herself Ida snuck into their apartment through the back door and stole valuables while pretending to Sally that she was a long lost relative. Don suddenly passes out and falls flat on his face, recalling in his unconscious state the beating he took from his aunt as a teen after being molested by Aimee.

That night as Don rests on the bed staring off, the ever-supportive Megan tries to reassure him. She also apologizes for leaving the children alone, saying, “Sally seems so grown up but she’s really still a kid.” Don, however, can hardly relate to Megan as he ponders his own frustrations.

On Monday morning, Don and Sylvia happen to ride the elevator together. Sylvia asks, “How are you?” but Don stares straight ahead and says, “Busy.” When Don is at work, he calls Sally at the Francis residence to reassure her that he’s okay and that he didn’t have a heart attack. Sally says she’s embarrassed, and that she “acted like a stupid kid.” She also comments that she knows very little about him, which gives him pause. Don replies that he was the one who left the back door open, and that she did everything right. His final advice is: “Try and forget about it.”

Later that morning, Don meets with Ted and Jim in Ted’s office. Ted demands, “What the hell went on this weekend? This work is gibberish!” He also asks, “How could you bring Frank’s little girl [Wendy] here?” to which Jim replies, “It’s better than if we let her go to the Village like she wanted to.”  Then Don announces that, from then on, he will evaluate the work of the creative department for Chevy but not work directly on the account. Indignant, Ted says, “I can’t do it all!” Don replies, “I’m sorry Ted. Every time we get a car, this place turns into a whorehouse.” As Don strides confidently out of Ted’s office, Ted and Jim stare after him in shock and disbelief.

 

As the title and opening scene reveal, a major theme of this episode is a loss of control that leads to a crash.

·         Ken lost control of the car because his Chevy companions pushed him too much, leading to a car crash.

·         Don lost control of Sylvia, and then of his temper, leading him to crash the phone into the booze cart in his office that created a mess for Dawn to clean up for him.

·         In Don’s flashback of being molested, he lost control over his own body, and this resulted in being beaten by his step-mother, a sort of crashing of his psyche.

·         Most of the office, including Don, lost control of their moods and their thought processes because their boss, Jim Cutler, took control and pushed them to take a mind-altering drug. This led the creatives to “crash” at the office all weekend and end up with nothing but a mess of gibberish to show for it. At one point, Peggy told Jim Cutler, “See what a mess you’ve made?”

·         By leaving his back door open, Don lost control of his own home when the intruder, Ida, “crashed the party” of Sally and her brothers by trespassing.

·         When Don came down from his drug high, he lost control of himself and literally crashed onto the floor in his apartment, becoming “a mess” that Megan attempted to “clean up.”

·         The agency itself was out of the control of its own executives, being controlled instead by their Chevy counterparts; this caused the agency to “crash” in the sense of becoming dysfunctional.

 

A related theme is work as a form of prostitution. This is similar to the crash theme because prostitution involves a woman giving up control of her own body and allowing men to crash into her in exchange for money. At the new agency, Jim Cutler and most of the others agreed that the large amount of money they were receiving from Chevy was a good reason for them to allow the Chevy execs to screw them over as far as workflow. By remembering his experiences as a youth in an actual whorehouse, Don understood this transaction for what it was and, by the end of the episode, closed the door on it and said no to having his talent prostituted in that way.

 

A motif throughout the episode is closing doors that should never have been opened.

·         Although Don obsesses about finding a way to get Sylvia to open the door for him, Sylvia closes the door on him permanently, and says he should be happy he got away with it.

·         The drugs in that “energy serum” opened doors in people’s minds that are normally kept closed for good reason.

·         During Don’s attempts to get Sylvia to open her back door to him, he leaves his own back door open, thus allowing Ida the intruder to enter his apartment, threaten his children and steal his valuables.

·         When Stan and Wendy were having sex, they left the door open and Jim Cutler (and Peggy) were able to peek in on them.

·         Don tries to convince Ken to “open the door” to allow him to accompany Ken on his next sales trip to Detroit. Ken doesn’t hold that door closed, but rather explains that he lacks the power to open that door.

·         In taking care of Stan’s wound in a nurturing way, Peggy “opens the door” to an intimate encounter with him that she then explains to him is inappropriate.

·         Jim Cutler opens the door to Wendy hanging around at the office all weekend while her father is being buried, which Ted feels is inappropriate.

·         Wendy tries to “open the door” of intimacy to Don, but Don realizes it’s inappropriate and keeps that door closed.

·         Don’s memory of his first sexual encounter is the memory of being molested, against his protestations. This sexual abuse happened because he wasn’t accorded the right to privacy and a room of his own where he could close the door to intruders like Aimee.

·         At the end of the episode, Don walks out of the office, through Ted’s open door, and Ted and Jim both think his behavior is totally inappropriate.

 

A key quote in this episode is Peggy’s advice to Stan that he needs to feel his pain, and that sex and drugs ultimately can’t cover it up. That same advice could be applied to Jim Cutler, who felt that drugs could ease the pain of his employees who had to work through the weekend. It could also apply to Wendy, who was using sex and possibly drugs to mask her pain at the loss of her father. More broadly, it may even apply to Don to some extent, although Don also uses sexual relationships to grow and learn, not just to avoid his marital problems.

Given all the control issues in this episode, it was nice to see Don shift from feeling out of control to getting back in control of his life. Sylvia rejects Don first, but by the elevator scene at the end, Don rejects Sylvia too and feels more empowered because of it. At work, Don at first goes along with Jim’s advice and takes the shot he was told would give him more energy and confidence, but by the end of the episode, Don tells Jim what he will and won’t do. Over the weekend, Don puts his home life on hold because of his altered state and his need to produce new ad ideas quickly, but by the end of the episode, Don places a call to Sally from work and handles the conversation like a strong parent, one who takes responsibility for his mistake and gives his daughter an appropriate sense that he’s still in charge.