The plot thickens as Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce is on the verge of losing its meal ticket and “Chocolate Bunny” enters the vernacular.

Zoe

We all though the unifying theme of this season might be holidays, but it turns out its self destructive vomit. If not the extremely literally kind, than the metaphorical word type. The kind that causes you to drop an f bomb at a partners meeting or tell your girlfriend about deserting the army.

But it appears this vomit can be healing too. The Francis marriage, for one, seems safe and healthy and functional at the moment. And Don’s relationship, rather than blowing up in his face when he admits but a tiny bit of a hobo tendencies, becomes closer (at least until the hint of cheating at the end).

Roger is, of course, screwed and takes it out on Pete who, despite being a rapist is full of righteous anger over Don’s lies. And it’s hard to find it in me to find much sympathy for either’s plight, even as SDCP seems unlikely to make it through the year.

No, the real person to pity this episode is Pryce. Too awkward to ever really hang with the cool kids like Don, he tries to impress his dad by showing him the Playboy Club which just seems…poorly chosen. Ah, but his girlfriend (who’s not only a black woman, but is allowed to speak!) works there. And he wants his dad to know this, among many reasons, is why he’s staying in the states. Of course, since he is apparently the inly non-asshole from England, it backfires in his face with fury and abuse. Better luck on the other side of the pond, Pryce.

No matter. Though everything was a bit standstill this week, and while everything seems relatively healthy in most characters lives, I have every bit of faith in the world that it will blow up horribly soon. And, until then, we can all enjoy the image of Sally at the Beatles concert, screaming in front of her proud father.

Dennis

This episode was called “Hands and Knees,” but it may as well have been titled “Secrets, Secrets, Everywhere.” While Mad Men always seems to always be about the secrets we keep, this took that to a whole new level: Don, Betty, Pete, and (eventually) Faye all had to deal with the responsibilities of knowing Don’s real identity. Joan, Roger, and a mighty cranky doctor had to handle Joan’s adulterous accidental pregnancy. Meanwhile, a possibly heart attack-induced Roger also decided to keep the secret of Lucky Strike’s departure (if this doesn’t mean the end of SCDP, I assume this will mean the return of Sal?) from the firm for now. Still, there were some reveals as well, as Don let Faye into his world a heck of a lot faster than Betty, and Lane let his father (and us) know about his new black Playboy bunny ladyfriend (though his father didn’t quite take it as well as hoped).

While I didn’t love this episode as much as recent episodes, since it felt a bit disjointed (by the mid-episode Lucky Strike reveal, I felt as anxious as Roger at the umpteenth reveal) and a bit obvious (again, this episode’s theme: Everyone Has Secrets!), there were some choice moments… It was good to see Pete and Don’s connection revisited. While this was a major season one plot point, I had almost completely forgotten Pete knew of Don’s real identity, so it was good to have Pete tasked with telling more lies to keep Don’s initial one afloat. And speaking of Don’s ever-growing network of liars, Betty got just a tad more sympathetic than she has been this season, as she continued to protect Don (and, she seemed genuinely excited for her daughter to go see the Beatles with her dad). A Betty thaw was probably recommended. Now it’s time to get to more important stuff: a healthier dose of Peggy, and the return of Sal!

The ladies of Mad Men take center stage this week as a wacky death causes problems at the SDCP office and we contemplate whipping up a batch of rum French toast.

Zoe

This week was like a round up of my favorite characters. Sally! Joyce! Faye! I couldn’t be happier, especially since all were perfect in their roles, navigating confusing, limited worlds where what you want and what you have are two very different things. Well, of  them except Joyce, who just shows up to be America’s Favorite Lesbian.

This week was also a great reminder of two things: liberal hipster guys have always been a bit condescending when they want in your pants and as wonderful as Mad Men is on gender, it’s a lot worse on race. I don’t just mean the Fillmore car account–I actually thought that was pretty spot on, for the era and the characters. No, what bothered me more is that one of the only black speaking roles on the show ever went to a mugger. I mean, it might be “accurate”, but it gets my goat. I’m not saying Mad Men has to start taking on the black experience in the 60s as well (though I appreciate that they are moving in to acknowledging it more), but it’d be nice if they didn’t perpetuate the worst stereotypes of the era and ours in the few roles they do have.

Never mind, for the episode featured must Sally and for that I am grateful. I know many fans hate Betty with the sort of passion usually reserved for politics, but I find her growing on me this season. Finally in a happy marriage with an emotionally available grown-up, she’s found a bit of a backbone and a bit of a move away from the childish behavior she had before. Fans may not like that she tells Don off, but geez, the guy needs it sometimes. Plus, in making Sally his “problem”, she was able to give Sally exactly what Sally wanted.

Unfortunately, Don is less capable of this. He’s a good dad, for the era, and he loves Sally, but he’s clearly a bit out of depth when it comes to dealing with Sally’s confusion and anger over the divorce and, well, her fastly approaching puberty. And so while he can order her the pizza she wants or spend some time at the museum, it’s Megan, a secretary who seems to give Sally what she needed most: some physical comfort, some common ground, and some discussion of emotion. Instead all Don can do is shake his head in confusion and throw his not-girlfriend girlfriend at her, even as Sally is blissfully happy to sleep on his couch.

Oh well. He’ll have plenty more time to try before Sally runs off to become a punk rocker. In the meantime, I’m going to try some rum French toast. It sounds surprisingly delicious.

Scott

After a couple of  episodes that defied Mad Men formula with dark night of the soul minimalism and pervasive voiceover, “The Beautiful Ladies” settled back into the show’s usual groove. That means my mind also settled back into its usual state of thinking Don is a callous, selfish bastard.

This was largely a takin’ care of business episode when compared to the freshness of “The Suitcase” and “The Summer Man”, but its eventful finale pulled me in two wildly divergent directions. When Sally takes a spill after trying in vain to escape from her narcissistic parents, her pain taps into a sixth sense of women protecting one another, and every every woman in the office concernedly gathers around her. It was a moving moment, calming Sally down with some much needed love and attention that she’s not getting at either home.

Then Don, who was MIA through most of the incident that he created by treating his daughter like a problem to be handled, infuriated me by getting all touchy feely with his new girlfriend, holding her tight, ssh-ing her protests, telling her it’s all gonna be alright, and pretty much doing all the coddling that his troubled daughter needed. It’s becoming harder and harder to care about Don as his endless quest to get laid comes at the expense of his children when they need him most.

Dennis

Mad Men‘s been on a particularly female fantastic bender this season, and I’m pleased to see it continue with “The Beautiful Girls” (in case the title didn’t tip everyone off). Sure, Don Draper was in a bunch of this episode, but he still ceded much of the action (and my attention) to the girls around him, whether it be daughter Sally, dearly departed secretary Ida (sniffle), ladyfriend Faye, or coworkers Joan and Peggy (and Peggy’s buddy Joyce).

It was an eventful episode for most everyone (and probably my second favorite of the season after “The Suitcase”). Joan and Roger briefly reunited (due to obvious Mad Men metaphors, as soon as that mugger demanded Roger and Joan’s rings, I knew that meant they were allowed to knock the boots). Meanwhile, Peggy dipped her feet in the being political pool (and I’m hoping this means she might consider hiring a black copywriter to add to this mostly colorless cast). But it was this week’s final moments that really got me. First, there was Sally’s mad dash down the hall of SCDP, which ended in a faceplant while all the ladies of SCDP looked on with sympathetic concern, some of them even following Sally out for her reunion with her mother (hey look, January Jones finally got to share a scene with some of the rest of the cast!). Then, there was Joyce, off to go do that crazy 60s thing her and her friends do, heading into one elevator, and Peggy catching another elevator, glamorously wedged between Joan and Faye as the doors close. Beautiful indeed.

Don starts a diary and Peggy pulls rank this week.

Dennis

I’ve noticed that AMC tends to let its shows do an unconventional episode (see also, Breaking Bad‘s season 3 quality quirkfest “Fly”) a week after a more linear, heavy-hitting episode (in this case, last week’s still beautifully resonating “The Suitcase”). So yeah, this was one of the weirder (even if there were no further reveals about Bert’s balls or Mrs. Blankenship’s sexual prowess), understated episodes.

The pacing was certainly a bit slow, but it made sense, as Drunken Don came back to sober life on Earth. The moments of Don writing, Don swimming (though, let’s face it, this hobby was also probably a ploy to get Jon Hamm shirtless more often), or watching John Francis (I feel like every time the character is mentioned he/everyone else always says his full name, to the point where I often doubt if Francis is his last name or an extension of his first) mowing the lawn, certainly corroborated this theory.

I suppose the most interesting storyline here was Joan and Peggy’s fight for feminism in the office. I’ve always found these two’s interactions intriguing (though not as intriguing as say, Peggy and Don, or Peggy and Pete for that matter) and Joan’s surprising scolding of Peggy in the elevator was probably the episode’s finest point, again stressing that point that the show’s two main women (discounting Betty, sulky as always) are two very different women, with different approaches. Perhaps these two can learn from each other sometimes, but they are on different paths. Still, can’t blame Peggy for wanting Joey out of the office (oh Matt Long, sorry your character couldn’t be less one note). And hey, this allows the revolving door of this season to keep on swinging (goodbye Joey, welcome to season 4, Francine!).

Zoe

I’m not sure if Don’s keeping a diary for therapeutic reasons or because Roger inspired him to start a memoir (first and foremost: which flavor of ice cream did your mom give you, Don?) but the voice-over narrative was a bit jarring tonight.

But enough of that: I want to talk about swimming. As someone who has picked up the sport myself this summer, I immediately understood the pleasure Don got from it. Unlike running or biking or other sports, you get to end a swimming workout fresh and clean (if a little chlorinated) and exhausted. In an episode that seems to be about incremental growth, incremental change, and incremental acceptance, swimming makes perfect sense. As adults, we’re rarely swimming in races, except the mini-race Don creates at the end. Instead we’re just trying to out do ourselves, go an extra lap, swim a little faster. Absolutely no one else notices or cares. It’s an intensely personal, narcissistic sport on some levels and in an episode about self-examination, well, it fits right in.

But beyond the characters who had to fast awkward truths about themselves this week, there are those who probably never will. By which I mean Joey. Of course Mad Men‘s appeal comes from it’s resonance even now, but the Joey and the Chipmunks plot hit especially hard for me, as there is still a Joey in every office. As much as Mad Men shows us how the structural dynamics of the workplace have changed, the social measures are still very much intact. And then you’re left between a Peggy and a Joan–be seen as a humorless bitch or as undeserving of your status? It’s a no-win scenario for women while the Joey’s of the world get to feel smug and superior, even as they’re fired.

No matter, I suppose, because at the end of the day those of us who face the harder truths might get rewarded. If not with respect, then perhaps with a giant purple elephant and then unabashed love of a father.

Scott

I’m happy and surprised that A) this episode continues Season 4′s winning streak after a divisive start (I clearly wasn’t crazy about it), and B) that it seems most everyone here and elsewhere on the net really liked it. I’m a little more surprised at B; Mad Men fans are fanatical about the show’s subtlety, as if any moment that feels too on-the-nose is a giant gong breaking their concentration on its deliberate pacing and meditative tone. “The Summer Man” was full of gongs — the textbook sexual harassment plot, the textbook newly divorced parents clash over the kids plot, and most of all, DEAR GOD… Don Draper voiceover providing insight into his stoic, impenetrable image!

For me though, Mad Men often feels so icy and cerebral that being able to learn a little about our protagonist in his own words four years in was a welcome development. Don’s diary didn’t really tell us anything new about him besides the fact that he likes to sleep like a skydiver. He sees himself as a man alone whose flaws and inability to see past the flaws in others will always keep him at a distance. He’s not really into Bethany. He drinks too much and knows it. But it does give us a mental image of Don’s headspace that I didn’t have before. His mind is like a dark, minimalist Scandinavian art film. It’s not a happy place to be, but he seems to be gaining a self awareness, or at least a desire to acquire some self awareness, that he didn’t have before. You’e also gotta love the music break set to “Satisfaction” (really nice touch to include the verse about the man who tells Mick about white shirts and cigarette brand loyalty) that basically doubles as a commercial for sunglasses and smoking. And his honest (and modest) exchanges with Faye actually made a date with Don scene interesting for maybe the first time since Rachel Menken was in the picture.

“The Summer Man” also has the most unexpectedly hopeful ending of a Mad Men episode since Season 3′s finale “Shut the Door. Have a Seat”. The sexually-harrassing jerk doesn’t get away with it (although his firing comes with a venomous rebuke from Joan). Betty seems to have matured a bit. Don steps into an uncomfortable situation to be an actual father. This optimistic note will probably give way to more existential angst next week, but it’s a fine way to prime us for Season 4′s home stretch (only five episodes left this year).

Mad Men saved one of its best episodes ever for the Labor Day weekend.

Zoe

In all the watching and thinking I have done about TV over the years, I have come to the conclusion that the best, deepest, most memorable relationships are nearly always friendships. Even those that trip the line into sexual (a Jim and Pam, say) the deep abiding friendship stands out more than the kissing. We don’t want Fox and Mulder to be married (and, having seen the second X-Files movie: trust me, we don’t want that) what we want is some sort of firm assurance that their deep caring and love for each other will last.

But, of course, nothing can be so easily assured. Friends wax and wane and consummated relationships end and everything muddles on. As Don and Peggy lamented at their Greek diner–of only everything could be as easy as picking the good idea from the bad idea. If only we could know which relationships would be worth it when we saw them, rather than having to deal with the trail and error of getting to know someone.

And, of course, illustrating this beautiful as the episode centerpiece is Jon Hamm and Elisabeth Moss just absolutely killing it. The stages they go through–from angry to resentful from friends on a drunken bender to friend dealing with the results of a drunken bender–is absolutely pitch perfect. And while Peggy, for all her insecurities and worries, seems to be growing more confident and self-assured, Don is a mess. He’s an angry asshole, than a jerk, then a guy with vomit on his shirt.

The beauty of course, is not that Don and Peggy–both to the point kind of folk–spend endless time talking about their feelings or the changes in their relationship or what to do about. The beauty is that they stay. The best friendships aren’t always the most showy, or the most emotional, or the most talkative. Sometimes they best friendship are simply the ones where you can count on that other person to be there when you need them to be there. And while Don bullies Peggy into helping him handle Anna’s death at first, she sticks it out into the messy, crying, end without even needing to know why.

Of course, I doubt this will change much. Life doesn’t work like that, with having a moment and the everything is different. Don will continue to be harder on Peggy than anyone and Peggy will continue to resent him for his many faults. But at the end (as at the beginning), one of them will risk something to squeeze a hand, to let the other know it was worth it.

Dennis

Glory be, it’s a holiday! No not Memorial Day, important as that is. Rather, it’s the birthday of our lord, our savior, Peggy Olson, Holy Mother of Fantastic. Naturally, in honor of Peg’s birthday she gets a whole episode to herself. Sure there are other players in this episode: Don. Duck. Trudie. Mark. Simon. Garfunkel. Cassius Clay. But they’re all here for The Peggy Show. And what a show it is!

And while I enjoyed the conversation between pregnant Trudy and “witty” Peggy in the ladies room (and Pete’s frightened look as they walked out), it’s “The Peggy Show, With Special Guest Star Don” that was my favorite part to watch. Anytime these two get a solid moment together, it’s an exciting time. Tears are shed by all, passions flare (Peggy is upset Don got the credit and the Clio for her idea!), secrets get discussed (Peggy’s pregnancy, Don’s parents, Peggy and Duck’s relationship, Don’s dalliance with Allison). But it’s the little (and yet, paradoxically, still big) bits that always get me, from Peggy assuring Don after the death of Anna that she wasn’t the only person who knew the The Real Him, to that hand grasp in Don’s office at the end. I’m sure there will be a lot written in regards to will-they-or-won’t-they speculation, but The Nanny this is not. Whether Don and Peggy ever do the deed is inconsequential (and I’m sure if it does happen, it’ll happen, pardon the cliche, organically), they already have always had a special connection. No one else gets these two creative, conflicted people like they do one another, and I’m always happy when we get to witness those moments where their minds meld.

This week’s episode competed against the Emmys and revolved around an awards show. Oh Mad Men, you’re so clever!

Scott

Knowing that most discerning TV viewers were probably tuned in to the Emmys for no good reason, Mad Men took the liberty of becoming Lost for a week and engaging in some fun but unnecessary character moments through the extensive use of flashbacks. I think most of us always wondered how Don transformed from a lowly car/fur salesman to a God Among Men, and “Waldorf Stories” handled the task well by juxtaposing plucky upstart Don begging snooty upscale drunk Roger for a shot and getting it begrudgingly because of drunken confusion with plucky upstart Danny begging snooty upscale drunk Don for a shot and getting it begrudgingly because of drunken confusion, with lonely drunk Duck in the background as a cautionary tale.  And Don is definitely seeming more like Duck every day. He’s a loser really, an alcoholic who isolates himself from everyone, including his children, and makes lewd comments to nearly every woman he sees (I didn’t like his hand-holding with Joan one bit). If the guy I just described didn’t have a chiseled jaw and a hell of a haircut, nobody would have anything to do with him.

Dennis

Thanks to AMC for re-airing Mad Men at 11 so that I could see the end of the Emmys (where the show won for a third consecutive time) and then switch directly over to watch Don win a Clio. What’s that? The Emmys and Mad Men‘s foray into an awards show are the same night? Coincidence? This is Mad Men and Matt Weiner we’re talking about, so probably not. Either way, I’m happy we got the Clios, as it brought us a few interesting gifts: John Aniston (yep, Jen’s dad, and a Days of Our Lives mainstay) showed up as the presenter. Duck returned, and while he’s never been my favorite character, this was a nice little cameo, still tragically off the wagon before being escorted off the show yet again. And most importantly, we got to see thankless Roger flashback to that time he hired Don (or didn’t hire, but was too drunk to remember).

I liked the parallel between the early days of Roger/Don to Don hiring Danny (who I believe was played by Buffy the Vampire Slayer alum and a TV movie writing Emmy winner himself, Danny Strong, after his own alcoholic blunder. Yet, my favorite storyline of the week was brought to us by Peggy Olson, ever increasingly the show’s envelope pusher. While Joan gets all the credit for being the walking sex symbol of the show, it was nice to see Peggy get her chance to shine (or strip) here and really bust Stan Rizzo’s obscured (in a sight gag worthy of Austin Powers) balls. While the aging Don and Roger might get increasingly drunk and depressing, at least we have Peggy to keep bringing a little modern 60s flair to Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce.

Zoe

Sure, Don deserves a lot of accolades for his Clio, but if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to be at the other end of the stage, congratulating Peggy for her “Smuggest Bitch in the World” award. Her winning entry was nothing more than amazing.

In other news, we get a bit of Roger/Don flashbacking this episode and we see what brought them together–and why Roger’s insistence on Don noting he couldn’t have done it without Roger it both true and not true (given the nature of Roger’s gift, all credit clearly goes to Joan). In any case, this flashback is given to parallel the experiences of the welcomed sight of Danny Strong as the teeny cousin of Jane and Don’s experiences trying to get a job with Sterling and Cooper back in the day.

This device mostly works and it’s always nice to see Don back before he was the slick drunk we know him as, back when he was a bit of an eager beaver with poor taste in ties. An earnest (but hungry!) guy like that and you can see why he got the job and why Betty agreed to marry him, not realizing it’d lead to misery.

Speaking of Betty, though the fanbase seems to want to paint her as History’s Greatest Monster, and while I’m not fan of her as a person, it’s worth noting that her anger was beyond justified here. For all the grief Betty gets from viewers, Don is well on his way to being a total deadbeat dad. In fact, one of the reasons Peggy deserves her award if for the “fix it” speech she gave Don. It was just about the job, but it was so clearly about the terrible, bleary mess his life has become. And I sure hoped he was listening.