I’ve always found it curious that AMC always rolls out a new episode of Mad Men on Emmy night. It just seems odd that watching the show take home the top prize three years in a row has competed with its own ratings. I’m not one to complain, as I much rather watch a new episode of Mad Men than just about anything on television, and certainly a whole lot more than an awards show. I have to wonder, though, if the writers were doing a little wink and a nod by placing an episode surrounding the advertising Clio awards on opposite the Emmys. In the end, everybody won — Mad Men took home best drama, and Draper and company won for their Glo-coat campaign.
What a clever little episode this was. I suppose that we have come to expect such things from Mad Men, but I really loved the parallel stories that were set up. We got to see the parallel of Don’s hiring at Sterling Cooper with young Danny’s hiring at Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce. As it turns out, both men were hired due to nothing more than drunken shenanigans. Something tells me that it’s not going to work out quite as well for Danny as it did for Don, but who knows for sure?
There was also the parallel of Don’s behavior becoming more and more Roger-like even as Peggy becomes more and more Don-like. I loved watching Peggy “learn how to work” with Stan. She is smart, confident (when she’s not dealing with Don), and is not afraid to take charge. I wish she could find a little more of that spunk when she is dealing with Don. I was actually hoping that she was going to give him a stern talking to when she showed up at his apartment after his epic bender. I kept flashing back to when Don visited Peggy in the hospital at the beginning of season two and brought her out of her post-baby funk. I was really hoping that with a few choice words she could make Don realize how horrid his life is right now and snap him out of it, but it was not to be… yet.
Can we talk about Don for a minute? He was so drunk he lost an entire day. An entire day. That’s not “let’s celebrate” drunk, that’s “I want to drink enough to kill myself” drunk. I suppose that alone says something about the state of Don’s life right now. I found it very interesting that the show drew the parallel between Don and Roger. Roger is such a joke around the office (even Lane called him a child in this episode). Is Don headed down the same path? He seems better than that. There was also a wonderful irony about Roger taking all the credit for “discovering” Don, while the truth is he drunkenly hired him and didn’t even realize it.
As an aside, I have to admit that I sort of loved (for a number of reasons) that the only appearance by Betty in this episode was two minutes of her screaming at Don over the telephone. And then there was the fabulous Duck sighting. Is he even more of a drunken embarrassment than Don?
I’m still loving season four, but I am eager to see Don make some changes in his life.
Clacked by Bob Degon
on Aug 30, 2010 @ 19:21 EST5EDT
I kind of got that Roger was so drunk that he didn’t remember offering Don a job because he actually didn’t, and Don just took advantage of him knowing that he was so drunk that he woudn’t remember anything.
I was wondering the same thing since we didn’t actually see Roger offer him the job. It definitely seems like something that don would do, doesn’t it?
The smile on Don’s face after getting on the elevator at the end with Roger really makes me think that he did just tell Roger that, and that it didn’t actually happen.
I am really enjoying this season, not that I want to see Don hit rock-bottom, but that the writers aren’t necessarily making him completely absent of upside. They could have just as easily had Don lose the award and then go on a bender, but that wouldn’t be their style. They instead have him WIN the award and then go on a bender. Looking forward to next week.
On a side note, I know this isn’t the first time they’ve used flashbacks for devices, but this felt different somehow. Good different.