Less philosophy, more fun...
Okay maybe not, because "The Quality of Mercy" was another stellar Mad Men episode. I've often said that the show was overrated, but these 4 last episodes have been high quality, very thought-provoking. Such meat to chew on! The second half of the sixth season has been excellent.
Don Draper is such a magnificent bastard! He shares some flaws with Walter White (and Peggy is totally his Jesse!), but is a classier guy, and even more competent when it comes to pull some Machiavellian and cruel move. The way he managed to embarrass/humiliate Peggy, emotionally-kill Ted and show his dominance over his rival, while saving the accound during the St. Joseph meeting scene was great art, especially if we think of the state of Don at the beginning of the episode. It took seeing Peggy and Ted together at the cinema to get a grip and found his mojo back.
He eventually sold his lie to the St. Joseph guy, but I couldn't help thinking that using the dead man's name for that pitch was a bad omen...and a nice touch recalling another dead man's name which Dick Whitman used to leave Korea and make a career (a more subtle touch than the obvious parallel with Bob Benson being Don Draper 2.0). Lie within lie, and echoes echoing echoes, fraud covering frauds...
Also, Sally really is her parents' daughter. Damn, that little smile when Glen was punching his friend, and her reaction when the girl called her a trouble-maker. Sally will rule the boarding school in no time, the same way Don rules his company.
Of course this totally sums up Don Draper's character. Don will forever be an infantile character who gets jealous and yet gets what he wants, but there's still hope for men (sort of) since Pete has been growing up. We might have thought that he still longed for using that old rifle of his, a mere toy he kept around -- his secretary pointed out that he could only shoot squirrel with that! --, but he learned the quality of both surrender and mercy when facing Bob, which is something that keeps eluding a predator like Don, who always goes for the kill...even if he actually is the victim's hunter.
And there's Kenny of course, the guy who got shot at the beginning of the episode and who is man enough to cry at the idea of what his death would mean for his family, not only his wife but also his unborn child. He prefers to give up going to the field before it's too late.
Many fathers turned out to be seen as mere children on the show, to begin with Roger Sterling whose own daughter called him a child and whom Joan clearly sees as not being father material. Maybe Pete can become a true father to Tammy now? Or do men remain eternal little boys?
One last thing. Matt Weiner really is teasing us with death and impending doom. I don't expect Don to die so soon, so I guess that Megan is indeed a good candidate
Here are two interesting reviews, one by Todd VanDerWerff on the AV. Club, the other by Alan Sepinwall. I tend to agree with Alan more, when it comes to Pete (probably because we both love the character!), but Todd's freudian and Shakespearian take on the episode is worth reading.
What did you think of the episode, flist?
Also, for old times sake, I found this on youtube:
Too bad the vid maker left out my favourite characters: Jaime, Brienne...and Stannis. Yes, I think it's time for me to come out.
Stannis is my favourite GoT character. I like him because the show isn't selling him to be liked (unlike a certain white-haired girl living in Kitschland), besides I find him fascinating and sexy! I guess that I'm even more in the minority about that than I'm concerning my love for Pete Campbell! Ok it's likely nobody cares anyway.
Don Draper is such a magnificent bastard! He shares some flaws with Walter White (and Peggy is totally his Jesse!), but is a classier guy, and even more competent when it comes to pull some Machiavellian and cruel move. The way he managed to embarrass/humiliate Peggy, emotionally-kill Ted and show his dominance over his rival, while saving the accound during the St. Joseph meeting scene was great art, especially if we think of the state of Don at the beginning of the episode. It took seeing Peggy and Ted together at the cinema to get a grip and found his mojo back.
He eventually sold his lie to the St. Joseph guy, but I couldn't help thinking that using the dead man's name for that pitch was a bad omen...and a nice touch recalling another dead man's name which Dick Whitman used to leave Korea and make a career (a more subtle touch than the obvious parallel with Bob Benson being Don Draper 2.0). Lie within lie, and echoes echoing echoes, fraud covering frauds...
Also, Sally really is her parents' daughter. Damn, that little smile when Glen was punching his friend, and her reaction when the girl called her a trouble-maker. Sally will rule the boarding school in no time, the same way Don rules his company.
Of course this totally sums up Don Draper's character. Don will forever be an infantile character who gets jealous and yet gets what he wants, but there's still hope for men (sort of) since Pete has been growing up. We might have thought that he still longed for using that old rifle of his, a mere toy he kept around -- his secretary pointed out that he could only shoot squirrel with that! --, but he learned the quality of both surrender and mercy when facing Bob, which is something that keeps eluding a predator like Don, who always goes for the kill...even if he actually is the victim's hunter.
And there's Kenny of course, the guy who got shot at the beginning of the episode and who is man enough to cry at the idea of what his death would mean for his family, not only his wife but also his unborn child. He prefers to give up going to the field before it's too late.
Many fathers turned out to be seen as mere children on the show, to begin with Roger Sterling whose own daughter called him a child and whom Joan clearly sees as not being father material. Maybe Pete can become a true father to Tammy now? Or do men remain eternal little boys?
One last thing. Matt Weiner really is teasing us with death and impending doom. I don't expect Don to die so soon, so I guess that Megan is indeed a good candidate
Here are two interesting reviews, one by Todd VanDerWerff on the AV. Club, the other by Alan Sepinwall. I tend to agree with Alan more, when it comes to Pete (probably because we both love the character!), but Todd's freudian and Shakespearian take on the episode is worth reading.
What did you think of the episode, flist?
Also, for old times sake, I found this on youtube:
Click to viewToo bad the vid maker left out my favourite characters: Jaime, Brienne...and Stannis. Yes, I think it's time for me to come out.
Stannis is my favourite GoT character. I like him because the show isn't selling him to be liked (unlike a certain white-haired girl living in Kitschland), besides I find him fascinating and sexy! I guess that I'm even more in the minority about that than I'm concerning my love for Pete Campbell! Ok it's likely nobody cares anyway.