Last Sunday's episode of "Mad Men" was a one-shotter, an episode that existed entirely on its own, with little reference to what came before, and most likely, will occur in the future. "The Sopranos" used to do this often, and of course Matthew Weiner, "Mad Men"'s creator, was a writer/producer for "The Sopranos". He introduced this device on last week's "Mad Men" episode in which the serial nature of the show is interrupted - what happened with the American Airlines account? Where were Pete Campbell and Paul Kinsey? How were any of the conflicts introduced in the season's first two shows advanced? - in lieu of some other purpose. Since none of the show's existing plot lines were addressed the only other purpose for a show like this is to delve deeper into the particular characters the episode focuses on (in this case Don and Betty Draper), to learn something about them we didn't know before.
So what did we learn? For one, we learn that Don likes to skip out of work to see foreign films. That's where he's at when the comic Jimmy Barrett insults the wife of the owner of Utz potato chips, a client of Sterling-Cooper. This really can't be considered slacking. Keeping up with the trends of the day is part of Don's job and foreign films were in vogue during the early 1960's. I think this was another reference to the new cultural world order that was arriving on the scene during the era. The bohemian Greenwich Village society certainly included a foreign film aspect - you were cool if you rejected standard Hollywood movies and watched high-brow films instead. In episode one of season two, we saw Don buying, reading, and being affected by, a book of Frank O'Hara's poetry. In this momentary clip showing Don in the theatre, we can perhaps deduce he is continuing to be seduced by the bohemian culture, the one he utterly rejected in season one.
We also learn he can be ruthlessly cruel. When he grabs Bobbie Barrett by the hair, pulls her head back, and reaches up her skirt and tells her, "I will ruin him", we believe him, and so does she. I was going to describe the action as shocking, but it's not really. It's already been well established that Don Draper is a man who will do whatever is necessary to protect himself.
And we learn Betty Draper is "profoundly sad." Well, we knew this already. If the series producers wanted to drive home the point they could have done it a bit more subtly than in the stable scene when Arthur repeats the phrase to Betty twice. Who talks like that? The scene is a bit of a howler, redeemed slightly by Betty's explanation of her reserved demeanor: "my people are Nordic." I loved that. But they didn't need to establish that Arthur is unhappy with his fiance, or that he is hot for Betty. A short conversation followed by Arthur making a move on Betty - with her same reaction - would have established all that just fine. The vital scene was Betty walking away trembling, barely able to walk or light a cigarette. She was trembling with desire, perhaps not for Arthur in particular, but simply for the attention of another man, any other man.
Which makes the final scene slightly ambiguous. Don and Betty are driving home from the apology dinner, one in which Betty played an important role. Betty begins to cry, out of happiness she tells Don, because she has always wanted to play an important role in his life - "we make a good team." I don't think she cries out of happiness though - I think she is "profoundly sad" here, though I'm not sure she even recognizes it. There has always been an air of slight confusion about Betty - she's a woman who doesn't really know herself, though that may be beginning to change. Is she starting the process of changing from dutiful 1950's housewife to a self-aware woman? This would be in keeping with the whole change theme of season two.
So was the episode successful? Partially, due to the few things I've mentioned here. But the main story line of the episode - that of Jimmy Barrett, his insult of the Utz owner's wife, and the apology extracted at the dinner - was fairly lame. If you're going to do a one-shot episode, you need to have a fun or interesting story to hang it on. Jimmy Barrett was supposed to be an insult comic but there was nothing funny about him at all. His lines weren't funny, only cruel, so I never found him believable as a truly popular entertainer. I did like the wife, Bobbie, and her come-on to Don, and her line later to him, "I like being bad and then going home and being good." And there were a few other good lines. But it wasn't my favorite episode. I like one-shotters when they're well-done - think of "The Sopranos"' Pine Barrens episode in which we learned so much, and not much good, about Christopher and Paulie Walnuts - but I don't think this episode of "Mad Men" was an entirely successful one.
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