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| Left to right: January Jones and Don Draper |
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 2
"Ladies Room"
"I can never get used to the fact that most
of the time it looks like you're doing nothing."
- Roger Sterling (John Slattery)
Plot
While Pete Campbell is on vacation, Don Draper (Jon Hamm) is busy working on a new client that's selling deodorant from Gillette. Meanwhile, Peggy Olsen (Elisabeth Moss) is trying to get used to the office politics and gets invited out to lunch with Joan Holloway (Christina Hendricks) and some male coworkers. While driving with the children, Betty Draper (January Jones) becomes sidetracked and crashes her car, which causes Don to get angry and force her to go to therapy. Meanwhile, Don is also having an affair with Midge Daniels (Rosemarie DeWitt). After lunch, Betty is shown around the office by Paul Kinsey (Michael Gladis), who eventually falls in love with her. She has trouble focusing on work as she is forced to deal with the objectifying men. She is also concerned about crying women in the bathroom despite Joan also telling her to mind her own business. As everything seems fine at the Draper residence, Don calls up the therapist to discover everything about his wife and how stressed she is with her private life of raising a family.
Rating: 4 out of 5
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| Elisabeth Moss |
MVP:
Peggy Olsen (Elisabeth Moss)
While this episode continues to show the range of what Mad Men will be about from introducing the bosses to the work ethics, this is also an exploitative look into the lives of two women: Peggy and Betty. We see Don's work and home environment and how they differ in curious ways. In particular, Peggy is an innocent character who is slowly diving into a world of sleaziness and objectification. She has yet to succumb to the ways of Sterling Cooper's operations. It is through her that we understand better who Joan is and how she flirts her way through the business. Everything lines up in her favor and we to sympathize along with her as our entryway into this world. It is strange, exciting, and unique.
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| Left to right: Andy Umberger and January Jones |
Best Scene
I will say upfront that while Betty's story was equally engaging, this episode is most importantly about Peggy's transition into the business. We see the politics in play and the general treatment of women in the workplace during the era. This is all best summed up in a scene in which Joan returns to Peggy with a letter covered in mistakes. Through a momentary conversation, Peggy reveals her vulnerability and Joan shows her confidence as being something of a necessity. She doesn't deny that women are objectified, but she doesn't seem bothered by it, either. She roars and the brief moment gives us our first glimpse into the clashing personas that will likely continue to develop throughout the series.
UP NEXT: "Marriage of Figaro"
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