 |
| Jon Hamm |
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 8
"The Summer Man"
"So all you've done is proved to them that
I'm a meaningless secretary and you're
another humorless bitch."
- Joan Harris (Christina Hendricks)
Plot:
Don Draper (Jon Hamm) is grieving from Anna's death by choosing to look inward and keep a diary. He is also swimming and dating Bethany Van Nuys (Anna Camp) to fill up his time. Meanwhile, Betty Francis (January Jones) is getting jealous. This is upsetting Henry Francis (Christopher Stanley), which forces him to call Don to pick up his belongings as to get rid of his existence in the house forever. Meanwhile, Peggy Olsen (Elisabeth Moss) is happy that Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce is getting a faulty vending machine. Meanwhile, new hire Joey Baird (Matt Long) is making sexist drawings of Joan Harris (Christina Hendricks), which causes Peggy to get all defensive. Don gets his stuff and when confronted about Joey, he tells Peggy to take care of it. She does, but leaves Joan upset with her. Don sees another woman and tries to live a normal life by crashing his son's birthday party. Betty is annoyed about Don and isn't sure if she's entirely over him.
Rating: 4.5 out of 5
 |
| Christina Hendricks |
MVP:
Joan Harris (Christina Hendricks)
The episode is all about how women have to deal with despicable men. In the case of Betty, she is trying to deal with her own personal feelings towards Don. Peggy is trying to do what's best and stop Joey from sexually harassing the female employees. However, Peggy remains of an old school model. She may be tough, but she doesn't get involved in situations because she feels that it will make her look weak. She doesn't care what Joey does, as long as she tells the right person to fire him. She knows the system better than Peggy. She is confident and while maybe not entirely the most progressive on the subject, is a fascinating look into a woman who is about to experience big life changes. Still, she doesn't want anyone getting into her business, which is probably the biggest thing that upsets her.
 |
| Left to right: Hendricks and Elisabeth Moss |
Best Scene
It seems like a triumphant moment for the Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce women. Peggy put Joey in his place by firing him. The harassment is gone. Or is it? On the way home, Peggy runs into Joan in the elevator and is confronted with an even more confusing angle. Joan is mad that she took things into her own hands while Don encouraged her. Joan has not been shy about firing her own share of people, but somehow takes major offense to this. Is it because of some personal grief over her husband's deportation to Vietnam? What exactly is going on in Joan's head. Nonetheless, she seems to take a regressive nature in this episode by suggesting that Peggy was wrong by firing an incompetent employee thus proving that while society has been improving, it also has ways to go before men and women would be treated equal.
UP NEXT: "The Beautiful Girls"
Comments
Post a Comment