The Suitcase
So two weeks ago I wrote a scathing review of one of the show’s most disappointing episodes (Waldorf Stories). Then last week, they roll out what was possibly one of the best episodes in Mad Men history. And this week…well frankly, I’m confused. As a film major, I tend to view things in complete units. A movie is a movie and once the credits roll that’s all folks, you’re done. One of the fascinating things about television is the ability to track characters over multiple episodes. Building a season is more important than each individual episode. Some writers understand this perfectly. Some start off with a perfect symphony and over time start hitting sour notes (see the last season of Lost, Grey’s Anatomy after season 3, and the recent season finale of True Blood). In the past 3 episodes, it seems that we’ve seen the entire emotional range of Don Draper including but not limited to: drunk bastard, sentimental dad, grieving friend, and (my personal favorite) writer of diary entries that sound more like film-noir voiceover than honest confessions. But I digress. Since I have two episodes to write about, I’ll spare the detailed summary of each episode and dwell instead on some of the highlights, lowlights, and WTF moments.
First, last week’s episode. The Suitcase was probably the best episode since the season one finale The Wheel. Why? Don and Peggy. Let me say it again so the writers can hear me: DON AND PEGGY. These two characters make the show live and breathe. Sure, we need Roger, Joan, Pete, Betty (wait, can’t we just push her off a cliff?) and the rest of the SCDP crew, but the relationship between Don and Peggy is what makes the show captivating. Their strange doppleganger/father-daughter/mentor-mentee relationship has led to some of the best Mad Men moments: Don visiting Peggy in the hospital, Peggy covering up Don’s drunken car accident with Bobbie Barrett. Don admitted last season that he’s so hard on her “because I see you as an extension of myself.” Nothing narcissistic about that! Still, there’s a tenderness between these two that we’ve only seen glimpses of so far. The Suitcase reveals the depth of their connection, moving both characters forward and reminding some of us viewers why we cared about them in the first place. The highlights:
• Mrs. Blankenship, Don’s constantly inappropriate secretary: “If I wanted to see two Negroes fight, I’d throw a dollar bill out the window.” Minus one for blatant racism, plus one to Joan for picking a secretary that will never, ever, distract Don in a sexual manner.
• Don and Peggy’s knock-down, drag out fight (underscored by the boxing theme that pervades the episode). Best lines: “I don’t say thank you, that’s what the money is for!” “You should be thanking me and Jesus for giving you another day!”
• Duck attempts to take a shit in Roger’s office. Okay, he thought it was Don’s office. And okay, he was drunk. Really, really drunk. Drunk enough to think that such a move would woo Peggy away from the office into his bed. Honestly, I hope this is the last we see of Duck—he’s so last season. But I doubt it.
• Related to the last point—Don punches Duck for calling Peggy a whore. He may be drunk, but at least he’s honorable.
• Don Draper’s humanity. He eats in diners. He spends a night with a woman without actually sleeping with her. He gets vomit on his perfectly ironed white shirt. The sweetness of Don and Peggy’s “date” especially with his knowledge of Anna’s death, was undiluted perfection. Their friend-date ended with the almost unbearable beauty of her letting him fall asleep in her lap. I applaud the writers for keeping their relationship platonic. It’s much more important that Don sees Peggy as an actual human being and vice-versa. My eyes first misted up when Don tells her that the only person that actually knew him was gone, and she replies “that’s not true.”
• Don Draper cries. John Hamm, we are not worthy. The breakdown of the unassailable Draper façade brilliantly reminds us of the show’s overarching theme: identity is just a projection, the past is easy to hide, and it’s impossible to know another person completely.
• When Don grabs Peggy’s hand at the end of the episode, it’s an important moment of acknowledgement. In the past, Don might have pretended the evening never happened and rebuffed her with an offhand insult. Instead, he recognizes that something has permanently changed between them. “Take a shower and get back to work” isn’t an order. It’s an expression of gratitude.
Oh yeah, and it ended with Bleeker Street by Simon and Garfunkel. As if it wasn’t orgasmically good enough already.
The Summer Man
What to say about this week’s episode? “The Summer Man,” as one of my friends put it, was “more interesting than it was good.” Don is apparently trying to turn his life around by swimming laps and writing in a journal. Joey, the temp guy that no one cares about anyway, is on a sexist rampage against our Joan. Joan in all of her fiery glory appears to have lost some of the delicious bitchiness that left lesser secretaries shaking in their pumps. She’s actually one of the sadder characters on the show—drooled over by everyone and understood by few. Here’s a woman whose husband raped her and is now has to deal with a kid that tells her that she’s “walking around looking like she’s trying to get raped.” She silences the water-cooler crowd by letting them know that they’re all going to end up as ash in some battlefield in Vietnam. Joey’s gotta go, and in a twist of the office’s female power structure, Peggy is the one to fire him. I was disappointed that Joan lashed out at Peggy instead of expressing gratitude. Whatever happened to the sisterhood? But Joan’s not the type of girl who wants anyone to think she can’t take care of herself.
Don’s voiceover wasn’t obnoxious but it was an odd change in the show’s style. All of a sudden he’s this guy who keeps a journal that sounds an awful lot like The Great Gatsby. I’m glad he’s bored by blonde Bethany, despite the fact that she goes down on him in a taxicab. . Oh yeah and he runs into Betty on his date. So awkward. So not over him. Between her hysterical antics and the complete lack of chemistry her and Henry, we can only hope that she won’t be sneaking back into Don’s life. He’s finally realized that he needs a relationship with an actual adult woman. His date with Faye goes better, and I loved that he was the one to say no to first-date sex
The best part of the episode was when Don crosses into enemy territory to attend his two-year-old son’s birthday party. Gene, the “baby” has mostly been unmentioned and unseen until this episode, and he serves as a symbol of the last halcyon days of Don and Betty’s marriage. Don with all his faults has always cared about his kids, and I was happy to see that he and Betty finally realized that it’s not all about them. It’s about their children. Sally, Bobby, and Gene—the only good thing that the two of them created together. So they can stand in the same room and Betty can introduce Don to their son as “Daddy,” and everyone can have a moment of peace. Following up an episode as stellar as “The Suitcase” is a daunting task, but I hope that we don’t have to listen to more of Don’s inner monologue. “She wants me to know her, but I already do.” Thank you Mr. Film Noir Voiceover Guy. When it comes to Don Draper, the mystery has always made the man, and I’d like it to stay that way.
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