Signal 30: Risk, Desire, and the unintended consequences of rewatching BtVS alongside Mad Men
Still not a full-on, old-school episode write-up (but, uh, closer than I intended when I first set out to do this). The semester's not over yet, for one thing. But I can't resist the siren song of this show any longer, so I do what I can. It might end badly, but for now I'm following the call. I just can't help mixing in some Buffyverse as well. (
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This episode focused on two characters who seldom get much spotlight, Lane and Pete. And both of them are experiencing some fish-out-of-water moments. When Pete seduced the au pair in Season 2, he was in his Manhattan groove, the king of his castle in the sky. But in Cos Cobb, he's just a disoriented loser who hasn't even mastered a basic teenage skill. Lane, though, has won the battle to stay in New York, where he clearly feels happier than in London. But he is all at sea in the world of entertaining clients. I think the ex-pat angle made that dinner even more uncomfortable; one thing I remember about living abroad was being thrown together with other Americans just by nationality, when we had little else in common. I rather relished the lack of boundaries in that scenario, but for someone as class-aware as Lane, I think it would be excruciating. Lane seemed equally out of place in the fist fight, so it was extra thrilling to me that he decked Pete.
Meanwhile, Don had two moments of unusual candor about his real past, when he talked about the ugly side of growing up in the country and also when he confided in the madam. We know he's confessed to Megan, and clearly she loves his multiple facets -- that plumbing scene was H-O-T -- and wants the man's man as much as the Manhattan sophisticate. We know that Pete and Bert already know that Don has changed his identity; Roger knows the "before" of his self-made career, though he may not know the switched dog tags. I'm wondering how long it will take for it all to come out. At the same time, I remember what he said to Peggy after she gave birth, telling her that she'd be amazed how quickly everyone would put things behind them.
And that brings up my last observation, that we now have two SCDP babies. In typical fashion, Joan takes the more traditional and feminine approach by keeping hers, even if under false pretenses, while Peggy keeps zooming on toward the future.
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