Last night's Mad Men could be described as transcendent, to give our guy Johnny Depp some good PR. Joan is now an account "man", Pete wants out of Sterling Cooper but actually seems willing to do something about it now, a colored women can be seen from the window (until Cooper "requests" Joan change that), Peggy is just as lonely as Don and speaking of Don, he seems to come a long way in sixty minutes (as we have seen both positively and negatively in the majority of every single Mad Men episode ever). Maybe transcendent isn't the right word. Maybe the word I'm looking for is change.
Joan has come a long way since we first met her back in season one, as has her "protege", Peggy. Joan seemed to be the top dog secretary on Peggy's first day at the office, and we soon found out that her title was more "I hold everything together in this shithole". Did she think Peggy would ever jump her on the totem pole in the office when she was just a secretary on Don's rotating wheel of women? Absolutely not. Peggy's innocence and unassuming determination to make a good impression only made her seem more vulnerable. Well, some ten years later, Peggy has almost completely made the transition into a "mad man" while Joan is just beginning her "promotion". Does Joan really want to be an account person? Probably not. Does jealousy have something to do with it? Maybe not as much as being exhausted from the office drama, but it's in there. Joan never thought she'd wind up dancing with the big boys upstairs, but now she is and all she can do is smile about it. I also wouldn't forget about the way she told Roger, as though he was a distant father that Joan was looking for approval from. His response, if it matters, was golden, by the way. Sterling, ladies and gentlemen, the greatest television character there ever was.
As for Don, I think we saw a lot of change crammed into one episode. At that start, I had never seen him more lonely and never felt worse for him. It might seem hard to actually feel for a guy who took on the life of his deceased buddy from war to hide the shit in his life, hold a mask on all of it to his own family for years and years, cheated on his wife on a daily basis, hides his sorrow in booze (although I don't think I've seen him actually drink yet this season, change?) and genuinely seems to hate the world, but I do feel for him. He is alone and he is depressed, that is never more obvious than the opening Don scenes in this week's episode. He wakes up at 7 in the morning, only to fall back asleep until 12:30 in the afternoon. Don follows that up with a riveting day of watching television and eating crackers. He finally is dressed up in his suit and tie when we hear the doorbell ring, assuming he has company for the night. When Dawn appears, only with news from the office and his lone message, I can't help but feel awful for the guy. When she tells him that she can't stay and has to get going, the disappointment on his face actually breaks my heart. Here is a guy who had a family and career at one point who now finds himself spending his days sleeping, eating and laying around the house. Don undoes his tie minutes after he ties it in the first place as he shuts the door behind Dawn, and all seems lost for our, uh, hero?
Than comes the heart to heart with Sally at the end of the episode. At a roadside diner after Sally shows up at his apartment earlier looking for change to catch the bus back to school (Don decided they needed to talk and took it upon himself to drive her back. What about work, er, never mind), the two share a meal for the first time in what has to be a few seasons. Well, not at first though, since Sally isn't hungry. But when she sees a side to her father she has really never seen, the softer, ashamed, broken and honest side of him, she lightens up. She orders a Coke and chooses her father over her friends back at school. The two talk openly and Don even tries to joke about dining and dashing (which is just awkward, and it makes me wonder if Don has ever cracked a joke other than for the purpose of getting into a woman's pants). It's pretty cool seeing them bond, and its even cooler when they arrive at school and Sally says that she loves him as she gets out of the car. Don tries to break a smile as the episode comes to an end.
So does this mean days are looking brighter for Don? Probably not. I have a feeling something really bad is about to happen, either in the next episode or the following one. I think Don might get fired from Sterling Cooper so they cut out his alimony and commit to the self absorbed, attention hungry Lou Avery. On a side note, I can't stand Lou. He pisses me off. And his sweaters make him look like a prune Mister Rogers, if that was ever possible. But yeah, I think Don is either looking at a pink slip or a divorce paper soon because if I've learned one thing from this series, right when things are looking up or bright for someone, their entire life collapse around them. It's also reason for Joan to look out.
Finally, I think Pete might be serious about breaking from Sterling Cooper with Shaw. And what would you think if they managed to sway Peggy to come along with them? Could either Shaw or Peggy be talked into working together again? Neither of them is happy. Shaw is depressed and Peggy is alone and cynical, and hysterical. How could it get worse for either of them? Sure, Shaw has a family to think about but he hates the life he is trying to protect Why not be miserably happy with Peggy? Well, Peggy and Pete.
Well, Peggy and Pete and the mysterious Bonnie Whiteside.
Either way, change seems to be setting and as we've learned from before, these Mad Men characters don't handle change all that well.
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