First of all, his trading away a sandwich can hardly be considered to “ruin the day”. Betty must be freakin’ nuts to see things that way. But, much, much, worse than that … she must be totally out of her freakin’ mind to say that to her (maybe 10 year old?) son.
Second, did you hear the kid say “I’m sorry” at least 3 times? He reacted as if he had caused the end of the world.
What kind of relationship does Betty have with her children if one very minor mistake causes the kid to apologize like that over and over?
He is either terrified of her cuz she beats him all the time. Or he is terrified of her because no matter what he seems to do, it is always wrong and everything he does seems to always cause terrible problems that are always his fault.
My mother was a real nasty bitch. But she was a Saint compared to Betty Draper.
Then she went on a hunger strike for the day just to rub in what a little jerk her son was (well, no he wasn’t but that was her intent). The woman’s a god damn lunatic.
The partners have effectively hamstrung Don, taking away some of his best tools. I hope before Weiner knocks him down again that he lets Don succeed, if only to spite them.
That thing with the blonde - Emily? – was just so weird. Obviously a setup, I think from the three guys he was meeting with. But why would they care if he was still a horndog?
Clearly the partners were confused; Jim “Sexiest Man Alive” Cutler thought they had already fired him.
That was my take on it. If they thought they could cow him by threatening to make his life shitty, too late! His life is already shitty. And now he can outcompete Lou with both hands tied behind his back.
They wouldn’t care. It was a bribe, not a test. We’ve seen that the accounts men at Sterling Cooper have a stable of escorts to throw at their clients. Presumably the new agency is used to arranging similar things.
The actor playing Bobby is 11, and I don’t think he’s playing older than that. This is a bit of a continuity problem, because the first season is set in 1960, and Bobby was 4-5 that year (He has been recast several times, unlike Sally). By 1969 Bobby should be around 13-14 (I remember thinking the first year that Bobby and Sally were the same age as my sister and myself – and coincidentally, Gene was about the same age as my younger brother).
I don’t think there’s any serious physical abuse going on, but Betty is a Gold Medal purveyor of mental abuse.
I’d love to see Don violate the agreement followed by the firm’s counsel explaining to the other partners that the agreement is invalid for some reason or another. Or Don follows the agreement to the letter and it turns out to cause more problems than Don not being there at all.
I almost forgot that Roger was “the President” of SCP; IIRC it was a meaningless title with no authority the other partners gave him to shut him up.
Agreed. I think Megan would’ve even forgiven him if stayed in LA, but lied to her about going to the office (when he was really meeting with local firms).
I thought that for a moment, but how would Megan know Don was having dinner at that restaurant that night? She’d have to have had her friend staking out Don’s apartment and following him.
They’re already renting time on a third party computer; it’s very clear he & Cutler were talking about actually buying a computer just for SCP.
It does really make sense for Roger to have sent her either. Unless he’s having Don followed by private detectives he’d have just seen Don going into the restaurant of the hotel’s he’s at then run back to his room to order a girl.
[QUOTE=Sampiro]
If Betty and Henry divorce, I hope Henry gets the kids. He’s a better parent than either of their bio parents.
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It doesn’t work that way; Henry’s only a step-parent. And the only way Don could get custody would be if Betty died or was institutionalized. In default of Don & Betty the kids’ closest relative is Betty’s brother who we haven’t seen her father died.
[QUOTE=Sam Lowry]
…I think Betty’s story was showing how things for women are changing. Betty’s friend talking about working part-time while Betty isn’t. Since Betty has no other job other than being a mom (and a politician’s wife), she was trying to be the best one she can be, but doesn’t fully understand what that means…
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I have a feeling Betty’s reaction to all this is going to be to get pregnant again. It’s only a matter of time before Bobby starts to hate her. I see boarding school in his future, and he’ll probably prefer it just as much as Sally does. Then it’s Gene’s turn.
I think the word you’re looking for starts with the letter “C”.
Well at least Betty is smart enough to realize her kids hate her or will soon enough. She just can’t figure out why it is those stupid ungrateful brats who ruin everything don’t love her.
It doesn’t work that way; Henry’s only a step-parent. And the only way Don could get custody would be if Betty died or was institutionalized. In default of Don & Betty the kids’ closest relative is Betty’s brother who we haven’t seen her father died.
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I know, but he’s still the best of their four parental figures, with Megan second best. I wonder what he sees in Betty. (Granted, she’s good looking and much younger, but she ain’t worth it.)
I think the offer he got from the competition must have been a good one. It just wasn’t a partnership, or maybe it’s an inferior firm, which is what prompted Roger’s “demotion” comment.
If it was a bad offer, Don wouldn’t have let Roger know anything about it, and Roger would have phrased his comment differently.
I thought the best part of the episode was that they kept it ambiguous whether or not Roger inviting Don back without telling anyone and then having him sit around the office for hours was a clever strategy to force the Partners to take him back, or just Roger being an irresponsible lout. Either case would be believable with the character.
Other then that, and the writing staff welcoming him back, the episode was kind of meh. The “leave of absence” thing never really made sense to me. Don’s “Double Secret Probation” makes even less sense. Betty’s character is just unrelentingly depressing.
So I just saw the episode and thought it fantastic! Don’s “OK” at the end was definitely in the character arc of him being honest and trying to fix things that he messed up. In that guise, who sent the girl (I definitely don’t think it was Roger - he was surprised to see Don) is irrelevant compared to Don not taking the bait. Though the reception Don got from Joan and Peggy was sad, I loved how Ginsberg was so excited to see Don (as if to say “FINALLY someone I can work with”).
In addition, even though Roger showed up late and drunk to the office, I love how he fought so well for Don in Bert’s office. He was on top of his game and blew up all of Cutler’s points left and right, as if he even prepared for the meeting (but I’m sure he didn’t). It was great seeing that.
Re Betty being a bitch mom and punishing the kid all day over the stupid sandwich: this reminds me of something I read in Diane Rehm’s wonderful autobiography, Finding My Voice. Her mother used to punish her when she was really little by giving her the silent treatment. I might be remembering this wrong (I loaned out the book and never got it back), but I think when she was still a toddler (about age 3), her mom didn’t speak to her for three weeks over some tiny childish infraction. (I’ll gladly stand corrected if someone has the correct story.)
Re Megan’s outfit, the micro mini with the hem-length crocheted sweater vest: I had that outfit! BLECH. :eek: That damned long sweater vest… :smack: Egads. At least mine was white and not Harvest Gold.
Why is everybody just assuming the girl was sent to his table as some sort of trap arranged by someone (either Megan or Roger or someone else?) It is 1969 after all, the sexual revolution is in full swing. And while I was only just being born at the time, the way everyone who was there tells me, NYC was ‘f**k central.’ Just simply stroll down the block on any given day and you could find someone who wanted to have sex with you.
I think the key point to the girl’s brazen proposition is that it occurred just as Don is on the verge of accepting a business offer from his four-eyed friend. They are the two talents that Don has always excelled at - business meetings and random sex hook-ups. It’s as if the universe was signaling to him “Yeah, Don, you still got it!”
It’s about time that sonofabitch Draper got shoved down a notch or two. I would hate to be in the same office with that prick control freak, sticking his fat inflated ego in to everyone’s business. Poor fucking Don, his narcassim finally catches up with him. There’s lots of people who have shitty childhoods but they don’t grow up to be liars and cheats. And poor Megan, she made the mistake of falling in love with him. He essentially gets her out to California then proceeds to lie to her for a whole goddam year. I don’t care how cute he is, (and frankly he doesn’t look that great anymore, he’ s puffy from the drink )I could care less about him. I’m more interested in how they weave the 60’s into the show. I hope Megan doesn’t get killed out there alone in Laurel Canyon in 1969, hopefully her agent won’t introduce her to the LaBiancas, Sharon Tate and Roman Polanski.
[QUOTE=Andiethewestie]
I hope Megan doesn’t get killed out there alone in Laurel Canyon in 1969, hopefully her agent won’t introduce her to the LaBiancas, Sharon Tate and Roman Polanski.
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I know nothing of metro L.A. geography. Is her house supposed to be in the same general area as the Tate-Polanski residence? Or as the Labiancas (which IIRC is not close to Sharon Tate’s house at all)?