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| John Slattery |
Welcome to Mad Cap: a daily rundown of every episode of the acclaimed AMC series Mad Men. During this time, I will be compiling my thoughts and highlights as we travel through every moment and season of the Emmy-award winning drama that has come to define modern TV. The goal is to be a refresher on every moment for Don Draper and his band of advertisement executives leading up to the final season. Stay for all of the shocking moments and the brilliant acting performances, and make sure to chime in with your thoughts and criticisms on why the show means something to you.
Season 1, Episode 11
"Indian Summer"
"After hundreds of dollars, all that
you've done is make her more unhappy."
- Don Draper (Jon Hamm)
Plot:
The summer is reaching its peak hotness. Betty Draper (January Jones) gets a visit from an air conditioning salesman and ends up becoming aroused by him. She fantasizes about him regularly. Meanwhile, Don Draper (Jon Hamm) has Peggy Olsen (Elisabeth Moss) try out a new weight loss device that involves pelvic vibrations. It becomes something erotic and causes Peggy to feel uncomfortable talking about it in the pitch meeting. The team from Lucky Strike Cigarettes have a meeting with Roger Sterling (John Slattery) that gets cut short by yet another heart attack. Sterling also gets a brief conversation with Joan Holloway at the start of the episode. Meanwhile, Pete Campbell (Vincent Kartheiser) is growing jealous of Don as their jobs are placed on the line. Betty apologizes to Don for letting the air conditioning man in. Don gets annoyed that Betty's therapist hasn't improved her emotional state at all. Bertram Cooper (Robert Morse) promotes Don, and Don promotes Peggy simultaneously. Pete becomes so jealous that he steals a package that he finds in Don's office from his brother who committed suicide.
Rating: 4 out of 5
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| Elisabeth Moss |
MVP:
Peggy Olsen (Elisabeth Moss)
If there is one underlying theme, it is the pleasures of a woman. The whole episode focuses around the satisfaction of the women in the Mad Men universe. Betty is sexually driven by a salesman to the point of fantasies. Joan wants Sterling to treat her right. Peggy wants a raise and to be respected as a copy writer. Of those, Peggy is the dominant force in this episode, having the most literal form of pleasure that not only addresses the sexual desires, but the physical deformation that the women of the time faced. She is confident where necessary, but deep down, she is sort of a slob by beauty's standards. It even comes to the point where Don insists that she start acting like a man. It is tough for her and with that promotion, it is only going to get worse. Even then, Peggy's vulnerability and desire to be accepted while also wanting pleasure is a fascinating aspect of the series that continues to develop.
Best Scene
In an episode full of symbolism of Peggy being a little unattractive, there was no scene that made more use of this than the pitch meeting in which she was forced to sell a vibrating weight loss device to a room full of men. With wisecracks about their wives and even some degredation, it sums up everything about how men looked at women back then. This weight loss device wasn't only a product, it was a symbol for how men don't appreciate natural beauty and instead want an ideal form involving skinniness and perfect shapes. Women don't get pleasure out of it, except through this measure (Which isn't really weight loss, is it?). It ends is a manly fight, but everything prior is excellent build-up and captures the show's ability to commentate on issues while being witty and subversive.
UP NEXT: "Nixon vs. Kennedy"
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