Mad Men - Season 4

You might be crazy for different reasons. IMDB says that is Erin Cummings. God bless her heart. She made an excellent ginger.

 

Standing up to Don is nothing new for Peggy; those two have the most interesting relationship on the show. Remember, she's the one that bailed Don out after his DUI and took care of his injured skank. And even though he's sometimes impatient and slightly rude to her, he's always seemed pretty fond of her but not to the point where he'd let her get a big head.

 

I thought it was ridiculously childish of her. Just because Don is absent doesn't mean she has leave to be a terrible parent too.

But then again, I hate Betty in every way, so I may be biased.

 

Don's line "Henry, I think everyone thinks this is temporary" was fucking priceless. Hamm makes Draper such an epically powerful character. His freakout at the end of the meeting with the swimsuit company was pretty ridiculous but in some ways I can't blame him. They were pissing me the fuck off as they sat there. It was weird to see Don lose his cool like that though.

 

El Tee, I think that Peggy isn't going to take any shit. I think she was picking her battles before. She put up some offense this time and laid into him and not just putting up a solid defense.

Don't get me wrong about Betty, she's being a bitch, but how many women were sort of socialized into that motherhood role and may not have been suited for it? Could she be a victim of society? Could she just be a bitch? Did she get royally screwed by her only lifeline and husband?

I think Don sabotaged that last meeting on purpose to be a part of his story to the Washington Post, his explosion was just too good. The walk-out, just far enough for Roger to catch him, then come to back and throw them out? I mean come on. Like I said, Don sometimes is the Devil, and we keep on cheering him. Can't wait for the next one. "Christmas Comes But Once a Year."

 

She didn't lay into anyone. She's passive-aggressive with Don because (I think) she knows he has a soft spot for her personally and creatives in general (see: Sal). But he can still be a dick even under the best circumstances, which is exactly why she brought along a fake fiancee when she had to beg for the cash to clean up her and Pete's mess. And, she wasn't trying to start a fight with him back at the office, but after giving her a hard time about her stunt (to keep a client) she simply said what most everyone already knows: everyone there is indulging Don's vision of what a creative ad agency should be. It's been shown in many respects that Sterling and Cooper are simply riding their star pony in a wish to remain relevant, not because they have some high and mighty professional integrity. That Peggy is the only one with guts enough to remind Don to his face (that he won't tune out, like Roger) is why theirs is the most interesting dynamic in the series.

Two words: daddy issues.

I think you mean the Wall Street Journal, and I don't think it was intentional. The first 55 minutes of the episode were more than enough reason to explain why. He's no longer the shining star of a top-end agency; he's divorced and soliciting hookers (mommy issues?) to humiliate him; he's gone from finger-banging a client's wife in public to getting left on the stoop by a stage extra; and he's essentially gone from representing people like Conrad Hilton to employing guerrilla marketing for a canned ham company. And then a low-end bikini company...errr, excuse me, a low-end "two-piece bathing suit" company actually wants him to come up with a pitch that any shitty intern could imagine.

This season started off with the question "Who is Don Draper?". That scene with the Jantzens was Don beginning to answer it.

 

You're right, she looks so ugly right now, god who let that whale on TV?

Christina Hendricks is hot BECAUSE of her curves. She couldn't sustain gargantuan breasts and ridiculous hips on a size 0 frame. It would be disgusting and porn star-esque, which would be out of place on a show like Mad Men. If you look at the first picture, her stomach looks rather flat and proportional to the rest of her. What does this mean? (gasp) She is curvy.

Her interviews are along the line of women in the 60s could get away with being curvier, so she is able to put on weight without freaking out about losing her contract. On top of that, she celebrates the ability to put on weight without developing an eating disorder because she was taught it was okay to have a little extra baggage.

I say good for CH. She looks phenomenal, is a total bombshell and isn't a superficial idiot.

 

This episode was great. I'm so happy and still very creeped the fuck out they brought back Glenn.

FREDDY RUMSEN IS BACK! Also with some money to keep the lights on. Is Peggy getting fat again? I don't have a problem with her weight, I just don't want them pulling another storyline trick on on me.

I love how Don is becoming an alcoholic, and Freddy's client is his sponsee. His neighbor is fucking creepy. I can't stand that woman in any role on any show. Thoughts?

 

If this were any other show, I'd say that the preview of Joan at her doctor's office might indicate a pregnancy plot. However, since this is "Mad Men" and their previews are so deliberately useless I'm not even going to waste a moment guessing.

I was afraid Allison might be typing up a letter of resignation after realizing that her stint on the Draper desk only landed her $100 and a thank-you. After all, Peggy was promoted to an account executive and Jane was promoted to Mrs. Sterling. But it appears she's sticking around until at least New Year's, and she could end up getting a pen dipped in her company ink again.

Was anyone else wondering if a male SCDP staff member was going to have to fuck Lee Garner, Jr. in order to keep the account? (I think Lane or Roger would have actually done it.)

As for highlights, I thought the look on Joan's and Peggy's face when that guy made the comment about the "white pants" couldn't be topped. But then I saw the look on Peggy's face when her boyfriend talked about wanting to be her first. The line of the night goes to Roger Sterling: "I feel like with my hair you can't even see me in here."

 

I for a second thought he was going to ask Roger to take Jane into his office. That guy was really being a dick.

I watched the episode again, I definitely think that was a letter of resignation. It seems like so many women are trying to get promoted to Mrs. over anything else. She's also been working with Don for awhile, she knows him pretty well. He even let her into the inner circle with the letter from the children where she even began to cry. She wasn't seduced, she's been into Don for awhile. Once that line was crossed, she thought it was a natural progression of them getting together. Now that she realized it isn't going to happen, she's crushed and done. Props to the actress from being a satellite character, then coming in and delivering.

 

I watched AMCTV.com's "extended look" at next week's episode they suggest you watch after getting fucked over by their "scenes" from the next episode. Predictably, it's just a ~60 second long clip that isn't really all that helpful except to demonstrate that approximately half of the preview for the next episode is just cleverly edited soundbites all from the very same scene. However, it's clear from the extended clip that Allison is still on the job and from the preview Don appears to be asking her if she has plans for New Year's. So, if that is a letter of resignation (and I think it might be) she hasn't dropped it yet and Don Draper's Guide to picking up women may be getting ready to turn her frown upside down.

Of course, it's also very likely that strategy is going to end badly since Allison will probably be forced to make reservations and/or pick up gifts from Victoria's Secret for the stage supernumerary, Miss White Pants, and the chick from "Heroes" that lives next door. All Peggy ever had to do was bail him out of jail and tend to his skanks, which is an entirely different level of humilation than what Don is subjecting poor Allison to right now (although if memory serves she did also fuck Ken Cosgrove way back in the day, so she's got some experience with discretion). Still, I'm sure there is another Joan lecture/consolation session coming our way in the near future.

 

I sat and prayed she wouldn't become a new love interest. She looks like the bushbaby cousin of the alien chick E was dating last season of Entourage. I never watched Heroes, but this girl makes my penis retreat like the French infantry.

 

Fun fact: This isn't the first time John Slattery and Matt Long (the new art guy) have worked together. They were also on Jack & Bobby.

The first episode threw me off a bit. I thought the producers might take the change of scenery as an opportunity to radically change the tone of the show. I was beginning to think that angry Don was going to usher in a new, less subtle Mad Men. Thankfully, I was wrong. The tense silences and loaded eye-bats were back and in top form (did you see Don's face when Lee Garner, Jr. insisted that Rodger put the Santa suit on?)

Speaking of the best parts of Mad Men, thank God Joan is back at her peak. I'm really happy I downloaded this episode; I was able to pause and take a couple of seconds to fully appreciate those dresses .

...dat ass

 

Glenn is my new favorite character on all of television. That creepy little fucker is awesome.

"Don't turn on the lights, shithead!"

Between Glenn, Lee, and Peggy's boyfriend, that episode was oh-so-delightfully full of overzealous male creepiness.

Well, given that the second episode took place on the 23rd (I think) and that's conversation is pre-New-Year's....it still very well could be.

 

I completely forgot about this. Anyone else notice that Bobby is played by the same kid who was Lil Bill O'Reilly?



I didn't recognize it until I heard him yell about there being something in his bed and then the voice clicked.

 

Kids just say the darnedest things...

 

$100 in 1963 dollars is worth about $700 today. That doesn't seem like a pittance.