Well, he can’t play golf ever again, so he might as well be.
And that really weird gift of the dead snake stuffed into a basket as a way of telling him he was going to Bombay was pretty funny too. I actually felt sorry for the guy in that scene.
I think he was upset, more than Roger usually is. He complained about it to Bert Cooper, whose response was, “We took their money, now we have to do what they say.” It was also interesting when Roger said, “I keep telling myself, I’m rich, so they can’t hurt me,” and Cooper said, “Well, that’s a mistake,” or something like that. This might be the kick in the ass Roger needs to re-evaluate his situation.
Joan came off as a really good wife in this episode. She was supportive, gentle, and loving. Did anyone else cringe when she said to Dr. Rape, “I married you for your heart, not for your hands”? When they brought out the cake, I figured she was sobbing because she didn’t want to leave, but couldn’t bear to lose face by staying. What a shitty situation for her to be in. I was really hoping she’d confide in Don to get her job back, so he could help her contrive a reason to stay that wouldn’t humiliate her. Don is great at keeping secrets and would have probably been able to figure something out.
Can anyone explain Betty’s giddyness for most of this episode? She actually seemed… too happy? Definitely no the sullen, pouty Betty I’m used to.
Until the smoking in bed post-Barbie scene.
So, did the Brit lose his leg because it was tourniqueted? I remember in Girl Scouts (in the late 70’s) we were taught to never ever tourniquet unless it was a last resort.
Also, are we to assume that the Brit loses his career because it was shameful to be disabled?
Well, it doesn’t help that Dr. Rape basically told her she had to keep her job now- a little late don’t you think? So either way she will be humiliated- either by having to stay there (although I doubt she really ever wanted to leave) or by having everyone know she is working at another agency.
Seems weird that they would have made those decisions without having his residency secured.
I figured the Brits thought a one-footed ad man would be a distraction in that he couldn’t properly schmooze the clients without making them feel uncomfortable with his limping about (and inability to play golf). Plus, it’s not even as though he’s limping from an old war wound valiantly fighting the Germans or Communists or something – he got it from an office party when a secretary in his firm ran over his foot with a lawn mower. Hard to get respect from the clients with a story like that.
I’m gonna go ahead and assume that it had more to do with the fact that his foot was shredded by a lawn mower.
And as mentioned above, I don’t think that the Brits consider his handicap shameful so much as just… offputting. Can’t have the clients squirming.
Joan was awesome. And I too kept waiting for to explain her situation to Don. It’s not like she saves a whole lot of face with Sterling once they get called for references. Why not just let them know that her situation has changed, and she’d like to stay. It’s not like they’d tell her no.
Good point, if lost his foot in the War it probally wouldn’t be much of an issue.
She’s not going to be in SC’s offices when they get called for references. They’ll know (& she’ll know they know), but she won’t have to actually face them.
Betty is totally in love with baby Gene. She really didn’t have time to properly mourn her father before the baby was born. Now I think she’s focusing all her love on the “new” Gene partially to avoid dealing with her grief over losing the old one. As usual she is totally clueless as to what Sally is going through. I predict she’ll always favor Gene over the other kids.
I might be reading too much into it, but I thought Joan’s bloodstained skirt was foreshadowing the JFK assassination. There was also a shot of Don and Joan sitting next to each other in the hospital waiting room which looked a lot like JFK and Jackie sitting next to one another in the car before he was shot. Maybe I’m crazy though…
“Totally clueless” is such a kind interpretation. I’d have gone with “totally indifferent”. Betty’s such a child herself, I think she genuinely believes that Sally is difficult just to spite her. Any time the poor girl acts out, Betty’s reaction can basically be summed up as “Why are you doing this to me?”
I profoundly doubt it. They want him in charge of all things Creative, but not the whole shebang. I’m pretty sure they consider him (not incorrectly, IMO) someone who needs to be reigned.
That could be. At least until baby Gene becomes a person with a mind of his own.
It explains the change from the last episode, when Betty acted like she was trapped by motherhood, and this one, where she doesn’t say anything to Bobby about his dirty shirt and tries the best she knows how to console Sally.
Thinking more about the spectacles thing (and footless Guy), physical appearance seems important to PPL. St. John looks like Hart Bochner (one of the secretaries commented on how handsome he is) and the other guy reminds me of James Mason. Then there’s Lane, who looks like a frog. It might explain why they’re so charmed with Don. He’s not just smart and creative, he’s beautiful.
Re the office manager it’s odd (to me) that they reward him by kicking him across the ocean, and really don’t seem to give him any real respect for doing a bang up job. They are polite/condescending to him, but it’s obvious he’s a lackey. I suppose I always thought people who got things done would be rewarded and it’s almost like he’s being punished and pushed around.
In an American context “success” means that you have some degree of self determination and say as to there you will go. Even when he’s being congratulated he’s being whipped. Is this the way British firms of the 60’s would operate?
It doesn’t to me make sense even with the time difference and different cultures. I don’t get it.
I think the deal with Lane (was that the manager’s name?) is that he’s really just good for trimming fat and bitching about the supply closet and getting the books in order. Once the fat’s been trimmed, the books are straight and everyone’s using strictly rationed budget quality pens, he’s pretty expendable and can be shipped off to the next place. Like Roger laments about himself, he’s the victim of his own success. Only in Lane’s case, it’s actually true.
Riding lawn mowers have drive chains for both the blade and the wheels. In this way, the speed of the blade needn’t be in any proportion to the the speed of the entire mower. Also - and most key here - this means they can be driven without the blade rotating at all. There’s no need to remove it.
I never have a problem with fictional violence, but the sheer googly-eyed incompetence of the act nearly made me retch. I would sue for my life and wait a year before having Lois relocated to the bottom of the East River.
Plus riding mowers put out a HUGE vortex of wind when the blade is spinning. If you were standing next to one in an office all nearby papers etc. would be blown off desks etc. I don’t recall that happening in Lois’s last ride down the aisle.
Well, back in the sixties the standard 8 1/2’’ by 11’’ paper was much heavier owing to the old-growth redwood, asbestos, and lead they used to manufacture it. I love how this show gets those little details!
Am I the only one with a looming feeling of dread that Sally or Betty are going to kill that baby? Either Sally will get sick of it stealing all of her attention and/or being her reincarnated grandpa, or Betty will finally split her nut over her dead father + postpartem depression and one of them will smother that thing with a pillow.
I need Matt Weiner to write me a letter confirming this isn’t going to happen, because in any scene taking place at the Draper home, I can feel it coming.
For a while I’ve been wondering if Don would get fed up with all of the corporate meddling (being forced to turn down the Maddison Square Garden account seems to have killed his spirit) and start his own agency, but I never knew where the money would come from. Now, I wonder if Hilton will be a silent investor, and Don would bring along basically the entire cast. Draper-Sterling-Cooper, doing (for starters) all of Hilton’s marketing.
Perhaps Connie will get a premonition that his great-granddaughter will be a vapid, celebrity-seeking whore who destroys the family name, and he’ll decide to give his family fortune to Don instead.
