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| Left to right: Jon Hamm and 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 4, Episode 6
"Waldorf Stories"
"My mother always said, 'Be careful what you
wish for because you'll get it. And then people
get jealous and try and take it away from you.'"
- Roger Sterling (John Slattery)
Plot:
It's awards season for Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce. The gang is ready to head out to see if they won any awards for their advertising. Meanwhile, Life Cereal is preparing to have a meeting with them. Peggy Olsen (Elisabeth Moss) deals with her new radical friends, especially one man who enjoys being nude and free thinking. Before Don Draper (Jon Hamm) leaves for the ceremony, he talks to a potential employee who is related to Roger Sterling's (John Slattery) wife. During this time, Sterling and Joan Harris (Christina Hendricks) begin to fall for each other again. Don remembers the time when he was a suits salesman who pressured Sterling for a job by stalking him. After Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce wins the award, Don drinks to excess and accidentally spouts the slogan that the employee had used. Peggy is more upset by this than Don is, who spends the next few days being a reclusive drunk. Peggy invites her radical friend over for a conversation in the nude only to beat him at his game. Feeling pressured to pay the employee off, Don tries to give him cash, but settles on a job. Pete Campbell (Vincent Kartheiser) discovers that Ken Cosgrove (Aaron Staton) wants to work for his company, but is reluctant based on a shaky history. He eventually accepts. Don has to deal with the fact that Betty Francis (January Jones) called him and wonders why he wasn't looking after their kids.
Rating: 4.5 out of 5
MVP:
Don Draper (Jon Hamm)
Don was the kind of man who we have known to hold his liquor. However, there's something peculiar and off this time. He's cocky. He won an award and spends a pitch meeting going against orders to please his client. He loses his award and ex-wife in favor of isolation in his own drunken stupor. Each day bleeds into the next. It doesn't matter when or where he is anymore. He's starting to mess up big time and even takes credit away from other people. It is quite a distance from when he first started as an equally strange and bright eyed individual. Yet here we are with Don, months after his divorce, handling success in the most miserable way possible. How are things going to change from here on out?
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| January Jones |
Best Scene
It is hard to really follow the chronology of this episode because it is done almost exclusively from the vantage point of a drunken male who is celebrating with some sex and a whole lot of sleep. He seems to stumble through every situation while still landing on his feel. The man can't fail. That is, until the reality sets in and the hero that we have been supporting is revealed to be ignoring his kids and the world outside. With one phone call from Betty, we quickly see how he finds new excuses to hide his shame from the people who were supposed to love him. The moments drift and while everyone else is being productive, he seems to exist in his own vacuum. It leaves plenty of questions as to where Don can possibly go from here. It seems like this is a downward spiral of intriguing proportions where people get jobs just to cover their tracks.
UP NEXT: "The Suitcase"
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