I normally spend a good portion of Monday morning reading up on last night's Mad Men, but as a service to my readers (all three of you) I'll be denying myself in order to bring you my exclusive, uninfluenced thoughts. Let's delve into last night's deceptively titled episode, "Good News."
This almost felt like two separate but related episodes. In the first half, Don (or Dick) returns to California, hits on someone who didn't have front teeth the last time he saw her, and receives the devastating news that Anna, the mother/cool older sister he never had and the only person who really knows him but loves him anyway, is dying.
Don is obviously quite comfortable being a lone wolf, but even the most lonesome of loners needs someone he can confide in and turn to for unconditional love. Unless of course he's a sociopath. Don as serial killer would be an unexpected turn, but I don't see things going that way. As it is, Don's about to be utterly alone in the world, and that's a frightening prospect for anyone.
In the second half of the episode, Don drowns his sorrows the only way he knows how: in a river of booze, tobacco, poorly dubbed Japanese cinema, and whores.
That much isn't surprising at all; the big shock is who he drags down with him. I think we might have seen Lane Pryce give a half-smile once, but that's been about the only sign that he's capable of having fun. But add a broken marriage, a bottle of biteless liquor, and Don Draper to the mix, and the strait-laced Brit trades in his stiff upper lip for 24 ounces of scene-stealing, USDA prime Texas beltbuckle and ends up doing the walk of shame with Don the next morning. That's the power of Don Draper.
Thoughts on the episode:
-I'm still torn as to whether Don did the right thing by not telling Anna she has cancer. My mom insists Anna knew, and while I think that's possible, I'm not so sure. Hints were given both ways. On the one hand, leaving that unsightly stain on her wall could have been a sign she knew she was on her way out (so why bother?), and her parting words to Don could surely have been those of someone who knew she would never see him again. But on the other hand, her belief that she would meet Don's kids at Easter seemed genuine, not like the kind of pleasant delusion dying people allow themselves before they've fully accepted reality.
-Even in the most comfortable place in his world, someone still makes Don Draper feel like he doesn't belong. Anna's sister's admonition that he's "just a man in a room with a checkbook" was a brutal reminder that there's only one person in the world who really understands and accepts him.
-Maybe it's Anna's presence, maybe it's the fact that Hollywood is all about manufacturing reality (just as he does in his job and his real life), maybe it's how good he looks cruising Pacific Coast Highway in a convertible, but doesn't Don just feel more at home on the West Coast? With all the mentions of L.A. already this season, I've been thinking that maybe a future season will send Don across the country to start up a West Coast branch, or see SCDP fail and some of the key players head west to start again. I doubt if Weiner will take the show out of New York, but a West Coast setting would open the door for the student movement, the explosion of the Sun Belt and suburban sprawl, and some Hollywood intrigue. Oh, and I don't think anyone is prepared to hear how much I'd be willing to pay to see L.A. Don go on a weekend-long bender in Vegas.
-I feel bad for going this far without mentioning Joan. Strong episode for her, from her merciless firing of Lane's inept secretary (whose screw-up might have been the final straw in Lane's marriage) to her reminding Greg that she doesn't file papers anymore ("I have someone do that for me.") Who else but Joanie would think to celebrate Hawaiian New Year's since Greg had to work? How did people even know what time it was in Hawaii in 1964/5 without the world clock feature on cell phones? The finger slice and repair was a pretty momentous occasion: the first time in his history on the show that Greg is actually likable. But being as this is Mad Men and he's heading for 'Nam, I wouldn't get too attached. Back to Joan, I wonder if either of her, um, "procedures" had anything to do with Roger Sterling.
-I had a feeling Lane's marriage wouldn't last long after his decision to stay in New York with SCDP given his wife's distate for "the States," but I thought the dissolution might be a bigger storyline. I suppose Weiner felt like he's more than adequately covered that territory with Don and Betty. It'll be interesting to see if we get more glimpses of Lane's personal life as the season progresses. If Don thinks it's tough being a father to his kids in Ossining while living in New York, imagine what Lane will go through with his son in London.
-Sopranos fans should've recognized alum Wiener's reference to Janice's religious zealot boyfriend and his fondness for asking if people had heard the "good news" in Anna's niece's tale about her suddenly converted roommate. Jackie Jr.'s response to the question ("Yeah, I was here at Thanksgiving") is one of my favorite quotes from a series that was full of them.
-Seems things are back to semi-normal with secretary Allison after last week's wham-bam-thank you ma'am (minus the thank you).
-I mentioned that I usually spend some time on Mondays reading up on last night's episode. My reading list includes Alan Sepinwall's blog, Slate.com's TV club, and the Wall Street Journal's conversation group. If I'm missing anything let me know.
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