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'Mad Men' enters the lipstick jungle
After five straight weeks of exceptional episodes, Mad Men faltered just a bit for me this week. Which is to say, it was still better than most of what's on TV at the moment, but not quite as good as the past couple of weeks.
Part of that had to do with the fact that the focus moved off of Don Draper for much of the episode and onto others at Sterling Cooper. Pretty much all of that clicked, but after last week's revelations about Don's past, and the tease of the opening scene, I guess I was just hoping for a little more down that path.
Spoilers coming right ... about ... now.
Another minor complaint: The period references, which to this point have been more or less note-perfect, were too much on the nose in Thursday's episode. The potential campaign for the Israeli tourism ministry (with references to Exodus), the name-checking of the similarly themed The Best of Everything and the thicker-than-usual sexism in the two-way mirror scene -- not so much that they had drinks at the ready but that the idea of women "brainstorming" seemed so amusing: It all felt like too big a nod and wink to the audience.
Which is a shame, because what we learned about Roger Sterling, Joan, Rachel Menken and even Peggy (a little, anyway), was all pretty cool stuff.
It seems a given that Joan (the fantastically vampy Christina Hendricks) was probably sleeping with someone in the office; she's been dropping hints about having the place wired since the premiere. Still, the revelation that Sterling was discussing his problems with his daughter with her somehow came as a bit of a surprise (even though it probably shouldn't have).
A lesser show probably would have treated their affair as a pure ego trip for Sterling, but you get the sense -- thanks in no small part to the ability John Slattery has to convey a lot of information without saying much of anything --that Joan is really the one wielding the power there. Her little performance in front of the two-way mirror was aimed squarely at the boss, and it came across as a taunt as much as it was a come-on.
Where Joan has some control, though, Rachel finds herself losing her grip a little, at least as it relates to Don. Despite their somewhat one-way relationship to this point, and his often patronizing attitude (though I loved her comeback when he started quizzing her about Israel: "I'm the only Jew you know in New York City?"), she's drawn to the guy. Maggie Siff is giving a really fine, restrained performance, and it's great to see her get to open up her character a little bit.
As for Peggy, she remains the biggest cipher, but there are increasing hints that there's a good deal going on beneath, to paraphrase Don, that blinding earnestness. Again, the guy in charge of the lipstick campaign could not have been more of a pig ("Where'd you hear that?" is his response to her "basket of kisses" remark), but eventually he gets the message that she might actually be able to help him. And boom, she's asked to help write copy for the campaign -- albeit for no extra money and with no break from her job as Don's secretary. (Also loved Joan's throwaway Marshall McLuhan reference in that scene as she breaks the news to Peggy.)
The closing scenes, with Don slumming in a beatnik bar with Midge and her radical pal Roy, were good for a little bit of comedy, and the final cross-cutting as her friend sang "Babylon" was beautifully done.
So yeah, I wish we'd gotten a little bit more about Don, but Mad Men, we're learning, is a show that rewards patience even as it tells stories about people seeking quick gratification. So I guess I'm willing to wait. A little while, anyway.
Your reactions to the focus shifting away from Don this week?
I thought this was the best episode so far. It was touching and fascinating. I do love the way you try to act like all the references are obvious, to make yourself seem witty. The truth is these men seem real and their references, "Ethel Rosenberg Pink!" are brilliant and seem like really smart people from then. The sexism seems on target now as then. Imagine how you'd feel about a focus group filled with 22 year old women. Superior. and you'd be as much of a pig as them. the show is deep and moving and honestly I'm already worried that it wont get picked up. I need it right now.
carrington | Aug 23, 2007 10:37:48 PM | #I enjoyed a break from the Don-centric plotlines because how the others' lives are or will affect his on-going turmoil: it was the perfect bridge to what comes next, especially after last week's episode and revelation of Don's past with brother Adam. Last week, we hit a mid-season high, the build-up from the pilot, so this episode served not only as a bridge or segue to what comes next but it served a part of the overall theme of the show: the end of an era, "living as though there's no tomorrow." That would scare some, that would challenge others. And I don't believe the presence of the Israeli Tourism delegation at Sterling Cooper was an accident. I believe they, too, serve as a reminder that change is inevitable in all our lives, but that may be just one of many interpretations.
Spencer | Aug 24, 2007 4:21:41 AM | #i love this show---awesome.
tim | Aug 24, 2007 8:46:11 AM | #I'd argue that even when the focus isn't on Don, it still sort of is. The concept of Jews in exile, ie. making a go of it in a world not of your own making, ends up being about Don anyway. That's why he so identifies with Rachel (and why she can't seem to shake him as well.) Rachel, oddly enough, isn't even born of a Jewish mother. If her mother had survived childbirth, one surmises she might have grown up Lutheran (or Presbyterian or etc.)
drake | Aug 24, 2007 10:28:21 AM | #i remember this time. i worked in an office like the ad agency and the men treated us women the exact same way as protrayed in the series. everyone smoked!!! i love this series because i can remember it all so well.
sandra | Aug 24, 2007 2:26:15 PM | #I might very well be wrong on the Rachel/Marilyn interpretation here. I forgot about the Jewish tradition to name a child after a relative who recently died (her mother.)
drake | Aug 24, 2007 2:58:55 PM | #Worked in an office around the same time as this program is set, and a lot of it is true to life. We even had our own "Joan" who pranced around the office in tight clothes and high heels and was rumored to be sleeping with the boss. Attitudes of the men were terrible.
One trival thing bothers me; Rachel says she's 28 years old. She looks at least 40 or maybe it's the heavy makeup. No way can she pass for 28! Love John Slattery.
The actress playing Rachel is under the age of 30. I think it is the style of the make up from those days.
Lee | Aug 26, 2007 6:15:40 AM | #More than a few of the episodes have been about coming up with an ad slogan for a client... I was somewhat disappointed that there wasn't a resolution to the Israeli tourism campaign in this episode. Did I miss something or am I thinking too "procedural" to expect it?
Alex | Aug 27, 2007 10:13:34 AM | #
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