‘Mad Men’ Recap: Furs, Sexism, and ‘Severance’ — Is That All There Is?
It’s been a productive time for Sterling Cooper & Partners since we last saw them in July 1969, and Mad Men heads into the “Me Decade” with relish. Ten months have passed since Roger and Don masterminded the McCann merger, and the partners are practically bathing in money. Signs of excess are everywhere, as leggy models wear fur coats in endless casting calls, fashion and facial hair are taken to new heights, and Roger has traded in hippie-style free love for a handlebar mustache, $90 tips, and a very different kind of woman.
And then there’s Don. Divorced and once again at the helm of SC&P’s creative team, at first glance he’s got more swagger than Burt Reynolds. Yet this Don is different. He goes through all the motions, but he seems tired, bored, and unable to play the role as convincingly as he used to. Perhaps the events of the past two years have begun to change him? But even so, he’s stuck in who and what “Don Draper” is supposed to be. Even his look still evokes 1960, a noticeable detail in a world full of bushy sideburns and plaid suits.
Don’s act is even harder to maintain once he learns an old girlfriend, Rachel (Menken) Katz, has passed away. Of all the women in Don’s life, this one always seemed special — a mature person who had the potential to be more a partner than a traditional wife. Despite not seeing Rachel for years, the news of her death crushes and bewilders him. His fog leads him back to a waitress (Diana, or Di) who seems to recall so many of the women in Don’s life: Rachel, Midge, Megan, and even Sylvia. Despite the cheapness of their back-alley encounter, he’s drawn to Diana in a way that keeps him coming back to the diner just to be in her presence.
Meanwhile, Joan is a full-fledged account woman with a chain-smoking habit to boot. She and Peggy team up on the Topaz pantyhose account and are confronted with a trio of sexist pigs from McCann who can’t control their comments about Joan’s body. Joan is clearly enraged; yet Peggy, who often has a blind spot when it comes to fellow women in the workplace, throws another heap of sexism on Joan, whipping out the age-old criticism that she’s asking for this treatment with the way she dresses. A petty fight ensues, and after giving it right back to Peggy, Joan goes for a little retail therapy of the kind that only the truly filthy rich can pull off.
Peggy, on the other hand, processes the encounter by allowing her co-worker Mathis to set her up on a date with his brother-in-law, Stevie. What starts as an awkward disaster, with Peggy needling her date for not being assertive, changes suddenly when Peggy hears herself described as funny and fearless. It seems to trigger compassion for his shyness, and when we see them again many drinks later, they’ve clicked. Peggy breaks out of her shell and, in a totally un-Peggy-like move, the girl who’s never taken a vacation asks Stevie to come to Paris with her on the spur of the moment. They don’t go — yet — but there’s hope that Peggy can get out of her own self-imposed rut and find the happiness that’s been so illusive.
Finally, there’s Ken — Ken was once our idealist. The one who was working the corporate life only while he developed his true passion, writing. How perfect that the day after he decides to leave the corporate life he hates to pursue his dream, he gets laid off! But unlike Peggy, he can’t bring himself to change his own circular life path. Even though he lost his eye at this job, the idea of angry revenge is so much more appealing to him than going for the things that would give him real meaning. He’s gotten what he wants in the moment — domination over those who dominated him — but will it be worth it to him in the end?
Is that all there is?
The idea that people never really change is par for the Mad Men course, and this episode laid it on thick. But this time, we’re not just aimlessly circling around; we’re going back to the beginning. Don is selling furs again, women from a decade ago are flooding back into his memory and life, and many people are arriving at crossroads they’ve been at again and again. We have very literally seen all this before. And in Don’s case, he usually goes back to where he started. Yet in these final seven episodes, will he be able to break out of his endless rut?
What did you think of Mad Men‘s return? Let us know in the comments!
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