So many things to like in tonight's episode. …
The big thing, of course, was the way this episode reminded us how the culture was changing in the early '60s — cynicism about heroism (in the conversation re John Glenn), the way Don's old-school view of the ad game is giving way to a more hard-nosed sensibility, and of course the party at Paul's. That whole scene made Paul seem more pitiful in a lot of ways; his literary ambitions from the first season clearly haven't come to much more than a year later, and he has to use his ambition as a rationale for being a thief of office products.
Even more interesting is Joan's reaction to Paul's new girlfriend. It could be taken as simple racism, but there was so much more going on. Christina Hendricks plays Joan's reactions as so thoroughly based in rage and envy, that her racial barbs seem less rooted in prejudice than the most effective weapon she can come up with to get back at Paul. And we see how deep her frustration is when her age is revealed; she's a rapidly aging woman in a young woman's game — and therefore another example of the way the culture is passing by even people in their thirties, if they can't see where life is heading.
In addition, there's the explanation of what happened to Peggy's baby, and her emotional distance from her child. That makes a fine companion plot to Pete's emotional ineptitude when dealing with a death in the family. Are Peggy and Pete in fact a better match than they at first seemed, both investing all their feeling in their jobs, with nothing left over for people, even ones close to them?
And all of your thoughts?
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
A completely random question crossed my mind last night: did the employees stock their own in-office bars, or is that considered office supplies? (I'm sure a lot of that is products they advertise for…)
I think its kind of interesting: last season I got the impression that Don wasn't the paternal one and that Betty was, and this season it seems to switched.
Not completely surprised about Pete, or Peggy for that matter. I'm anxious to see how that all plays out. And Joan – she's fabulous. I just like seeing different aspects of humanity all played out in each character.
" It could be taken as simple racism, but there was so much more going on. Christina Hendricks plays Joan's reactions as so thoroughly based in rage and envy, that her racial barbs seem less rooted in prejudice than the most effective weapon she can come up with to get back at Paul."
This is ridiculous. Of course Joan's comments had a lot to do with racism. What else could it be? Why would Joan even bother to take the trouble to insult Sheila the way she did? She and Paul haven't dated since a time period before the series began, which was March 1960. They haven't dated in over two years. Yet, Joan seemed upset over Paul dating a black woman. Come on! Paul must have dated other women since breaking up with Joan. She must have realized this. Yet, she went out of her way to insult not only Paul, but Sheila. Why? Because Sheila was black . . . and Joan must have felt insulted by the fact that he would choose someone whom she probably viewed as inferior.