"Why Does Everything Turn Out Crappy?"

Mad Men, S05E12

Lane's embezzlement was discovered, and Don asked for his resignation.  Don demanded to have a meeting with Ed, in order to stop settling for smaller clients and go for the bigger players.  Sally came to stay with Don, but when both he and Megan were gone from the house, she had Glen come to the city and they went out together.

We all knew it was just a matter of time until someone found out about Lane forging Don's name on a check, but I still didn't think that they would sack him.  After all, Lane is a partner with a name in the firm, so I thought he might be given a little slack.  But Don rightfully couldn't trust him anymore and asked him to quit, without asking him to reveal the crime he had done (or pressing charges against him).  I just felt bad for Lane because he risked a lot to quit his job in England and come with them to their new company.  He brought up the point that he had invested money into the firm that he had been trying to get back all this time, while Don was living the life where 7500 dollars was nothing to him.  And despite that he stole money, you don't think of Lane as some sneaky, debased human being who deserved whatever came to him.  It's just so sad that he was basically struggling all this time, while keeping nearly everyone in the dark all the while, but he never made it.  Perhaps if Lane wasn't so committed to solving his problems on his own (putting an unreasonable amount of burden on his shoulder), things might have turned out a different way.

With his whole world coming down on him (and Lane seeming like not the type as Don is to rebuild his life), it was no shock that the new car Lane's wife bought was almost his deathbed.  However, I was happy that the car wouldn't start and he couldn't suffocate himself.  I couldn't imagine how hard that would have been for his wife to find that later (or to hear about it from someone who found him in the garage later).  I was really praying that Lane would take it as a sign to not give up so easily, but of course, there was that horrible scene where Joan couldn't get into his office.  I knew it could happen, yet I still couldn't believe that Lane hung himself!  It just seemed like such a waste!  Unlike most flawed characters in the show, I wanted to see him come out on top one day--he deserved it.  But instead, he died where he worked (and had suffered the most) and had plenty of confused witnesses to his death.

Lane's death wasn't just a tragedy within itself, but a personal blow to Don who had been the one to ask him to resign.  Don, unlike any of the other partners would have been, hadn't taken Lane to the cleaners for what he had done, but I'm sure that Don felt regret when he heard of Lane's news.  I liked that Don wouldn't wait for the coroner to come and took down Lane's body so that it could be at rest in a more dignified position.  I also think that it was particularly hard for Don to see that happen to Lane because this situation is quite similar to what happened with Don and his brother.  He washed his hands of someone and next thing he knew, that person had killed himself.  It's no wonder that Don is often trying to rescue people all the time--people sometimes die when he doesn't!  Thus, I find myself sad for Don, too, as much as I am sadden by Lane's passing.

Another thing that wasn't too uplifting was Don and Roger's meeting with Ed.  I can see why Don would want to stop bending over backwards for companies like Jaguar when he could be getting better companies.  Of course, despite that letter he wrote against Lucky Strikes has branded him a traitor against most of the big dogs, I admire that Don hasn't rolled over and died just yet.  I just don't think, even with his passionate speech about working hard for them until he got them everything, is going to impress hard-headed guys like Ed to hire their firm.   I'd love for one of Don's hard pitches to get them something better than a car dealership that they had ensure by offering some sex, but I won't hold my breath.  People are stubborn, and their opinions aren't so easily swayed by strong words.  I just hope that maybe they will let Don's work speak for itself and not be dissuaded by his gusty stand against a former client.

It was good that Sally was in this episode because it provided a little comedy relief.  Her and Glen's sort of date was so funny to see.  Despite that Sally denied liking him in "that way" and Glen claimed she was more like his little sister, it still looks like they are moving away from being friends with each other.  It was so cute that they were just walking around at a museum together and that Sally got all dressed up (and made-up) just for Glen (not that he was that impressed).  It's a shame that their time was ruined when Sally suddenly got her period and ran back home!  I mean, that is so crazy!  Sally was awful to do that to someone she made sneak out of school and come see her three hours away.  Who does that??  I'm surprised that Glen wasn't more pissed about it than he was.

Also, I give some props to Megan for handling the situation with Glen so well.  She neither chewed out Glen for being there when he shouldn't have been, nor ratted out Sally to Betty when she found out she had gotten home safely.  Sally owes her big time.  She was just lucky that it was her period and not something else that Betty might not have been so sympathetic about.  However, I get the feeling that Betty felt like was a little better than Megan because Sally had run home to her about her period instead of talking to Megan about it.  I could understand why Sally would want her mother then, but I just wish that Betty didn't have to be so smug about it to Megan.  

After Don came home and had one of the worst days ever, I was worried that Glen was going to get an earful from him, but instead they had this moment of understanding that was surprising, but welcome to me.  As random as it was that he offered to take Glen home three hours away, it was nice that Glen sort of voiced the theme of this episode about how things you want turning into shit against your will.  I liked that Don wasn't about to agree with him or let him know that he has no idea how bad things can get, but instead tried to cheer the boy up by letting him drive his car.  That was so cute and weird!  And as weird at it was, it seemed like that was the best ending for this episode that I could ask for.  I just didn't know what Don might have done when he came home if there wasn't a distraction there.  Thank goodness Sally had invited him over.  Anything that can take Don's mind off the series of unpleasant events that keep happening around him sounds good to me.

Didn't think that after last week's episode of the women taking different methods to further their careers could this episode top that.  I will miss Lane on the show, and I hope that his memory won't be wiped away so easily as if he wasn't an important part of Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce (what will happen to their name?).  With another major player in the office gone, what will happen to the functions of their business?  Will Don be able to fix these holes that have formed in their business or will he be moving on as if they didn't exist?  Next time is the finale, so I'm worried about what bombshell they might drop to leave us with until the next season.  I hope that there won't be anything as drastic as another death (or another person leaving the firm), but so far Mad Men has been on point every time this season, so they have the ability to do just that.  If anything good can happen before this season ends, I would love to see Don make progress against that letter that has blacklisted him with many businesses.  With that, I could just manage to not see the world that Don lives in as so freaking bleak.

Betty vs Megan, Don vs Michael

Mad Men, S05E09

Don started to see that Michael (not Max as I've been miscalling him) was starting to look like the most significant person in their creative department and pushed one of Michael's ideas aside for his own during a meeting with a client.  Betty began to compare her life to Megan's and tried to stir up trouble in her and Don's marriage out of jealousy.  Roger took his ex-wife to dinner in order to win over a client and ruined their amicable relationship by having sex with her in the new apartment he bought for her.

Truly, I expected Peggy would be the first one to butt heads with Michael in terms of who has the best ideas, but I guess things are going so well for her now that she can't be bothered to look at what he's doing.  However, Don hasn't had as much time to spend with Michael as Peggy has and probably hasn't noticed how another "Pete Campbell" has slipped into their company when he wasn't looking.  I'll admit that Michael does great work, but he's surely no Don when it comes to personality.  Michael's not just long-winded but he also seems to have this sense of entitlement and assurance that is puzzling at times.  He seems to think that his talent precedes his position.  Sure Don slighted him by not letting the client see his idea, but Don is unquestionably his boss and that means he gets the final say.  I am disappointed that Don didn't let his work speak for itself (perhaps the client would have been keener to his devil ad no matter what), but I didn't care for the way Michael starting stomping his foot like a spoiled child because his boss didn't use his work.

The scene where Don and Michael were in the elevator together was really great.  I think that Max should have the right to question Don as to why he didn't use his ad, but that wasn't what Michael did.  He was basically telling Don that he knew without a doubt that his ad would have won against his.  Really, Michael is so brazen.  He hasn't even been working there that long and he already thinks he's the shit.  Please.  I didn't buy that Don thought he would look weak (unless you mean his own talent) by going into a meeting with two ideas, but it was a reasonable excuse.  Still, Michael should have just been quiet and stopped bragging about himself.  I laughed when Don told him that it was a good thing he worked for him.  Emphasis on "worked for."  Whether Michael shines or withers is really up to Don, so he ought to not try to put Don down or find himself another damn job.  It was also funny when Don said that he didn't think of Michael at all when Michael said he felt sorry for him.  That little punk.  If Don was a pettier man, Michael's ass would be so fired!  What I like best about their conversation is that it suggests that Michael will no longer treat Don like he's his best friend.  It'll be interesting to see how he acts around the office knowing that Don isn't going to have his back.

Betty, like Don, was also seeing her life in contrast to a younger person.  Megan has a great apartment, a great body, and a great husband.  Her children also like her (not to say they don't love their own mother).  Why shouldn't Betty feel a little envious?  But I don't know why Betty dislikes her life so much when she has a nice house, a good husband, and a support system at Weight Watchers.  She's not living in the streets and is 400 pounds!  I think it was that really sweet note that she found from Don to Megan that sent her over the edge.  I bet he never left her such notes when they were married.  She shouldn't be that surprised--their marriage was based on lies and the superficial.  I wish that Betty could stop being so damn vicious when it comes to Don.  He did her wrong, but let bygones be bygones.

It was almost too easy for Betty to make Sally, who was pretty good friends with Megan, turn on her stepmother.  I was really disappointed in how she blamed Megan and threatened her after how well Megan has treated her.  Sally was acting like a brat, but I think that Megan did an excellent job of telling her about Anna when she was put in a difficult position about whether she was overstepping her boundaries or not.  I did blame Don for not telling Sally sooner and putting Megan on the spot like that, even though Betty was the one who brought up the topic.  Megan did even better when she realized that Betty was just trying to cause problems and prevented Don from calling Betty when he found out what happened.  I was pretty happy when he finally spoke to Sally and made her apologize to Megan.  Don shouldn't have kept Sally in the dark about it, but she didn't need to treat Megan like that.

The best thing was when Betty tried to find out if her little plan had worked and Sally made it seem like the topic of Anna was no big thing.  Sometimes Sally seems like more of an adult than Betty does!  I'm glad that Betty got angry and that she failed miserably to make Don and Megan fight and turn Sally against Megan.  Stick to your own damn life, Betty.  Maybe if you spent more time figuring out a way to make yourself happy, you wouldn't have to try to bring others down to join you in your own misery.

I was impressed with the way Roger and Jane were getting along until it was obvious that he was jealous of another man getting her attention.  Then he ruined her new apartment by creating memories of them together when they slept together.  It was wrong of him to open up that part of their relationship again, but Jane didn't try very hard to resist him!  She had a chance, but then she didn't say anything. Why did she blame him completely?  I honestly don't think that Roger meant any harm to her, but the way Jane was acting, it was like Roger planned the whole night to screw her over.  When Roger said that he felt terrible about what he had done, I believed him.  He's not a bad person, he just sometimes lets his emotions get the better of him.  It just bothered me that Jane made him into some kind of villain when he's being more a decent guy as a ex-husband than a lot of guys would be.

I love all the emotions that I can experience when I watch this show.  I want to yell at characters, I want to laugh, and most often I just feel bad for the way things turn out for just about everyone.  I'm eager to see what Michael will be like now that he isn't going to be the golden child in his mind anymore, and how Don better competes with Michael in terms of talent.  Don hasn't peaked yet, so there's no need for him to stomp on Michael when he could just outshine him.  Betty needs to get a life as always and keep her "fat nose" (as Don so eloquently put it) out of others' lives.  However, I'd like to see her try again to take a stab at them, just so I could see Megan and Don's love continue to triumph in the end.

Award For Most Uncomfortable Dinner

Mad Men, S05E07

Megan's parents came to town, and we saw that their have an unhappy relationship.  Megan came up with a great pitch that gained them the Heinz account.  Peggy thought Abe wanted to propose to her, but he actually wanted to move in together.  Don was given an award for his letter that spoke about smoking's hand in cancer and other health risks.  Megan's parents, Sally, and Roger all accompanied Don to the award dinner.  The night revealed a lot for those who attended it.

I wondered what kind of parents that Megan had, considering her personality.  They seem to not be much of a reflection about Megan's character, as they have a history of bickering and making each other miserable.  It was clear that Marie was starved for affection, but luckily she was more impressed with Roger than Don and didn't do anything inappropriate with her own daughter's husband.  From what I've learned about Emile, he just seems dispassionate about the way his own life has turned out and takes it out on others.  Even his daughter isn't exempt from his negativity.  It's no wonder that Marie, who claimed to be once full of life and adventure, would end up fooling around with Roger, with his renewed look on life.

I don't think much is wrong with what Roger and Marie did (because they are adults), but I wonder if Sally will get over walking in on them while Marie was pleasuring Roger on her knees.  Maybe she'll appreciate staying with her grandmother a bit more than going to the "dirty" city to hang with her dad's kind of people.  Before that happened, I thought that Sally and Roger were so adorable together.  He was pretending she was his date, and Sally acted as his encouragement so he could work the room.  I think Sally was having fun pretending to be an adult (nice dress, conversation about business) until she got a glimpse of some of the other things adults did.

Don may not be the father of the year, but I still think he's a great dad.  He has all the opportunities to be absent his children's lives, but he's there for them a decent amount.  I just loved how he was stunned by seeing Sally in a beautiful and more grown-up dress, but told her to tone it down.  Emile made Don's fear of his daughter growing up too quickly worse by saying that all girls eventually "spread their legs and fly away."  Thanks to that funny misquote, I'm sure that Don will be keeping a closer watch on Sally whenever she's around.  It was really sweet after he got his award he claimed that seeing a beautiful girl who would be ready for makeup one day, but not today, made him happier than being honored.  Aww.  It's gonna be rough for him when she starts to get rebellious and nothing he can say will make her listen.  I think Sally is a good person, but she's definitely got a curiosity that will probably make her a wild teenager.

Instead of worrying about his daughter leaving childhood, Don should be most worried that his image is indeed as negative as Roger warned it would be before he wrote the letter.  At the dinner, Ed told him that no one wanted to work with him there at the party because he's not the trustworthy type.  I can't argue with that.  For Don, business is business.  I don't think that he ever considered any of the clients to be his real friends and would actually stick his neck out for one of them.  And why would he?  With slimeballs like Heinz, I wouldn't promise my loyalty to them when they are just as likely to cut off their business for the smallest thing that dissatisfied them.  There's only so much ass-kissing one can do for a customer before it becomes counterproductive.

Speaking of Heinz, I was almost glad that Raymond's wife let it be known that they were going to fire SCDP because I've had it with him taking advantage of them.  He wants so much, but gives so little back.  And sure, that's the nature of their business, but it's been a while since they've had such a shitty client.  I prepared to watch Don get a little revenge on Raymond, which I could have cheered on, but Megan smartly decided to give the pitch she had been working on with Don and they secured the account.  Way to go Megan!  However, she increasingly looked less and less thrilled about her success, the more Don and the others applauded her.  I thought she was really passionate about copywriting, but it looks like that's not where her heart is.  Emile further suggested that Megan is settling for a different kind of success, but not the kind that she has always dreamed of.  Now I'm wondering if she'll try her hand in acting or performing again, despite that she's made a significant mark in their advertising firm.  I worry that Don, who seemed excited that he and Megan could work together so well, might not be so supportive if she decided to give up on advertising (or Megan may stay in the business and be unhappy but too scared to quit).

As far as Peggy goes, I thought that Abe was going to dump her.  When he asked her to move in, I thought she was disappointed.  I think that only when Joan praised her and made it seem very romantic did Peggy see what a wonderful gesture it was for him to ask.  I mean, I thought Peggy would be ready to punch Megan in the face for winning over Heinz when Peggy had failed at it, but she was so satisfied with her love life that she was genuinely happy for Megan's achievement.  Wow.  Peggy's mother, of course, wasn't happy at all, but that was no surprise. I just didn't think she'd be such a stubborn bitch to tell Peggy that if she was lonely to just keep getting cats until she died.  Because being a cat lady is much better than "living in sin" with her loving boyfriend.  Maybe she'll never get married once they move in together, but at least Peggy will have someone there to love her and take care of her.  Is a cat going to make her feel good after a horrible day at work and make sure she doesn't drink herself to death?  Peggy's mom needs to get the stick out of her ass and stop trying to push her ideals onto her daughter (her mom ain't no saint either!).

I wonder if Don can do something to change his business perspective so that they could draw in more clients who can trust their firm.  Hopefully the dissatisfaction that Megan seems to have with her job won't start to tear at her marriage.  I don't care too much about what happens to Peggy as long as she's concentrating on her own life.  I like the new Roger, and I'm eager to see if he can turns things around in his professional life.  With a lot of things going to the dump with everyone else, it would be nice to see someone making some positive strides.

Don's Not A Murderer, But Peggy's A Little Racist

Mad Men, S05E04

Don came down with a fever and imagined having an affair and killing the woman involved.  Peggy bonded with the new secretary, Dawn, and let her stay the night despite she didn't trust her 100 percent.  Sally butted heads with Henry's mother and felt terrified when she learned more about some recent murders.  Joan welcomed her husband back from the war, only to send him packing when he proved that he cared more about the respect and status he got from the army than his own family.

I liked seeing Don a little sick.  I was hoping that we get to see Megan taking care of him, but most of that happened while we watched Don seemingly slip back into his old habits.  I was going to get so angry at Don if he had really slept with one of his old skanks.  Thank goodness it was fever-induced dream.  I was most worried when I saw him choke the bitch--how in the world would he cover that up??  Especially since he killed her and then hid her body under the bed.  And he didn't even hide it well--there was one leg still poking out.  I let out a breath when the morning came and Megan was talking to him per usual.  I could see Don possibly involved in a murder cover up, but hopefully not so sloppily.  I mean, I don't want Don to go to jail.  He's not that bad of a person.  Not yet, anyway.  I wonder if this dream signifies him "killing" that sleazy part of himself.  I really hope so.

I was pleased to see that Dawn wasn't going to just be a background character completely.  Her starting a friendship with Peggy was a good way to ensure that she could get some screen time, but what the hell was up with that moment with her purse??  I'll give Peggy points for not taking her purse out of the room, but she sure as hell wasn't smooth about those few seconds where she wondered if it was okay to leave it in the room with her.  She did just get a huge payday for saving Roger's ass--guess money like that she can't just have sitting around unguarded.  Still, I wish that of all things Peggy could have done that was offensive to Dawn it had been something ignorant out of her mouth and not some action like that.  I just think that Peggy is one of those people who should know better than to treat people like that. Especially when she thinks that she gets Dawn's feeling of being an outsider (no, bitch, you don't).  I'm counting on her making amends in the future.  If she is the decent person that I've come to think her character is.

Um, Henry's mother is all kinds of crazy.  I can understand why Sally was complaining about her to Don.  I'll skip over the part where she thinks that necessary discipline for a child involves striking them for no reason so they'll be prepared for the unexpected (her father sounds awful).  No, the real part that made me wonder how Henry could leave Sally alone with her was her lack of filter when describing the murder in the paper (I don't care if Sally read them on her own--you don't need to tell a frightened girl that much truth), her burglar alarm (a kitchen knife, really?), and the ease in which she dispensed a pill to calm Sally down for the night (man, she loves resorting to pills to solve problems).  Henry's mother makes me think again about denouncing the way Betty used to treat Sally.  Goodness.  I wonder how that's going to play out later on.  I'd hate to see Sally start taking pills regularly.  It'd add to the dramatic element, but I hate to see a young girl downing drugs.

As far as Joan tossing her husband out on her ass, I say way to go, Joan!!  He's such an asshole.  If he was going back to war to protect a cause he believed in, I would think he had a good reason to rush back in.  Instead, I only felt like he was using his army status to be the big-shot he wasn't back at home.  Wow.  That would be great if his absence wasn't a burden on the family he left behind.  True, he'd only be gone a year but why risk something happening to you just so could feel superior about yourself??  I couldn't be happier that Joan stayed strong and held her ground.  Screw that guy!

On a side note, Michael seems to be walking on a thin line already.  He obviously has talent and a way with words that might even rival Don's, but he is very into his own world.  When told that his stunt at the meeting with the clients almost got him fired, Michael was impassive as if he hadn't noticed how very pissed Don was.  I don't know why, but I love it when Don yells at the younger people at work.  There's something very funny about it.  So I can see that he might have to do that constantly with Michael if he doesn't get out of his deluded world.  Nice to see that he has the potential to be entertaining not just as Peggy's rival, but as a comical thorn in Don's side (sort of how Craine tries to buddy up with Don but Don just blows him off).

So much to look forward to next time, as usual.  What I most want to see (although it may not be addressed next time) is how Joan fares without her stupid husband holding her back.  Hopefully this means that she will soon be walking down their office as she should be.  What I'd least want to see is more of Betty whining about her weight while she stuffs her face.  Unless we reveal some kind of meaningful point through her domestic boredom (I suppose that's her problem), I'm not interested.  And of course, we better see Peggy set things right with Dawn.  Hate to see that swept under the rug like so many issues on this show.