Mad Men Season 6 (1 Viewer)

[Matt Hough]

Can't believe these guys aren't paying enough attention to notice what's going on. They deserve to lose the company with their complacent attitudes.

 

[mattCR]

Pete strikes me as the kind of person in the corporate world I run into that always sees the negatives about every possible option.. there is no option out there that would match with his end goals, so why even bother, as far as Pete is concerned.

Joan is trying to become a full partner. She has always been a partner but her name wasn't even in consideration; she was overlooked on all angles.. and landing a major MAJOR account like Avon would be a huge way for her to not just cement herself with SC&P, but also a way for her to feel as though she was more than a partner who earned her way in the wrong way.

I loved everything about this episode, and I thought that a lot of true colors came out.. Pete cares a lot about being perceived as the person who manages clients and business; everyone else didn't care.. they just welcomed new business, no matter who brought it in; hell, they were willing to praise Joan for bringing it in.
It's why I found Pete taking a puff a different sign.. all of the 'Old Boys' embraced the new strategy of no matter who brings in the business, it's business.. and Pete is stuck in the old days of how to conduct business by following a process of who does what when.. Pete's method doesn't embrace the realities of trying to grow; and it's funny how easily everyone else is onboard with trying to change (with the exception of Harry Hamlin's character, who like Pete, is also stuck in the past decorum),... and Pete breaks down and takes a puff as if to say: "can't beat 'em..."

 

[Quentin]

Pete's worried about being pushed out...and, he has good reason! He's just so whiny and tightly wound that no one listens to him.

I'm actually surprised Don is so casual about it. I wonder if this brush with death will change him at all? Who am I kidding!!

I thought the episode was ok at best. I'm never much of a fan of 'historical' episodes that attempt any focus on the current period happenings. I care far more about the characters than I do about the '68 Dem convention. Heck, they devoted more time to this than they did to Bobby Kennedy!

 

[ScottH]

I'm actually surprised Don is so casual about it. I wonder if this brush with death will change him at all? Who am I kidding!!

Yeah I think after every episode since season 2 someone says "I wonder if Don's [Insert Life Altering Moment Here] will change him?"

 

[mattCR]

I thought tonight's episode was fantastic. It was good to see characters from wildly different angles than we've seen. And we lined up the pins for Peggy.

What a high high and a low low for Don.. wow.

 

[Sam Favate]

Yeah, could be lots of wide-ranging implications for Don. Yikes. Is that the first time he was caught red-handed?

Great episode; looking forward to the end of the season. Sucks that there will only be one more year! But when all is said and done, this will remain one of television's singular achievements. So good on every level.

 

[TravisR]

Besides what was already mentioned, I really liked the scene with Peggy and Pete having fun with each other when drinking with Ted.

 

[Quentin]

I thought it was a low-low for Don too...but, I think it may have been brief.

He was close to tears in the elevator...but, after his fabrication told to Sally through the door I think he's already telling himself he's clear and free. He's just selfish and has no conscience. As much as I keep hoping to see him change, I'm more convinced now that he won't.

 

[ScottH]

So does anyone think on some level Don really is toying with Ted, or that his reaction to Ted was sincere? Personally I think Ted is starting to come off as paranoid.

 

[TravisR]

So does anyone think on some level Don really is toying with Ted, or that his reaction to Ted was sincere?

Not that Don hasn't lied a million times or that he couldn't renege for the sake of an upcoming storyline but I think it was played as a sincere moment.

 

[RobertR]

I knew Sally would catch Don in the act as soon as I saw her with the keys.

 

[Quentin]

Not that Don hasn't lied a million times or that he couldn't renege for the sake of an upcoming storyline but I think it was played as a sincere moment.

Don doesn't give a shit, so it was pretty sincere. Don and Ted are two VERY different dudes. Ted is screaming like a spoiled child, "I want MY juice, I don't want HIS juice!"

Don is like, "Give it to Harry (I don't give a shit)."

 

[Matt Hough]

Exactly. Don is in his own Don World and isn't even considering the reactions of others. I felt his confusion over Ted's assertions was completely genuine. He's never given him a single thought since the firms merged.This episode flew by for me. I did think the set-up for Sally's discovery was VERY telegraphed. Otherwise, a very enjoyable episode.

 

[bujaki]

Any thoughts on Bob's "fumbled" pass on Pete?
I believe Bob has no moral compass; he's out to succeed, damn the cost. He will use his good looks and sexuality to help him advance. Is he gay, bisexual? I don't think he cares one way or the other.
However, for someone who is always reading weaknesses in other, and opportunities for him, I think Bob fumbled badly after Pete called Manolo a "pervert" for being gay. Bob should have taken the hint that a pass was not a good idea, at least not at that particular time.

Pete's scene with Peggy was wonderful. It shows what Pete's life could have been had he taken another path in life (maybe with Peggy).

 

[Quentin]

I think Bob is likely gay. Why he's hot for Pete is beyond me.

 

[TravisR]

I'm taking things at face value that Bob is gay but I have a lot of trouble believing that Bob would be sure enough of Pete being interested in him that he'd make a move. Bob must know that Pete's got an estranged wife & kid and while there's a million guys with a wife & kid that are gay, it's 1968 and Pete is in a position where he could destroy Bob's career in an instant and that makes career minded Bob's move really tough to buy. I hope there's something more planned for the Bob character or that he becomes a larger presence on the show next year because if that he's gay is all that they've been building to, it was much ado about nothing.

Why he's hot for Pete is beyond me.

That made me laugh.

 

[Patrick Sun]

I think they've spent time having Don recollect on his own childhood this season, and to have his own carnal desires set up the events to have Sally's world view of Don, the father, shattered in that brief moment had to weigh on him. Hamm did a fine job of reeling from that moment. While Don assuaged Sally's reaction to her seeing her own father in such a compromising position, Don knows he is diminished in her eyes, and for a father, that would be a crushing blow, only to be soften by time when Sally matures and finds her own footing as an adult, but for now, their emotional connection will be strained and uncertain.

 

[Greg.K]

Oh my god, they shot Kenny! Those bastards!

 

[Quentin]

Oh my god, they shot Kenny! Those bastards!

LOL! I thought the same thing.

I have to say, this season has been a disappointment.

I'm disappointed that the big reveal this season is that Bob Benson is a shadow version of Dick Whitman/Don Draper. That's it? We see Pete has learned from his past mistakes...but, it just feels more and more like we're treading water and/or walking over our own footsteps (pick your poorly used metaphor).

I'm disappointed Megan is so clueless - first he's distant, now he's back to the alcoholic ways and the best she has is "throttle down"? She was a major character last season. This season she is window dressing.

I'm disappointed Joan is also window dressing. The ONE episode we get to focus on her with the Avon account has been forgotten already.

It hasn't all been bad...there have been great moments - Sally's discovery, Betty and Don at camp, and others. But, ugh.

 

[Josh Dial]

I have to say, this season has been a disappointment.

Interesting. Personally, I think this has been one of the best seasons of the show, and definitely the best season of TV this broadcast year (though it was a close race). Great symbolism, deeply-layered themes, and some really stellar work by the entire cast (and especially) crew.