"I went to a place to eat. It said 'breakfast at any time.' So I ordered french toast during the Renaissance". --Steven Wright ... If you are a devotee of time travel, check out this song...

Monday, September 27, 2010

Mad Men 4.10: Grim Tidings

Mad Men 4.10 got back to its mean, even grim roots last night, with an episode that had good news for almost no one.

Don almost breaks down, when FBI agents show up at Betty's place to question her about his life.  A big defense-industry client that Pete had brought into the firm had triggered a security check for Don.  His fill-in for the late Blackenship - Megan - filled out the government form and made a few errors, that is, she didn't get a few things right about Dick's impersonation of Don.   So Don's worried, and almost goes off the deep end.  Faye tries to help, but Don gets out of the vice - at least, at this point - by pressuring Pete to cut loose the client.

Pete's none too happy, especially when Roger gives him a tongue-lashing for not staying on top of such an important client.   Pete, covering for Don, has taken responsibility for the client leaving.

Meanwhile, Roger's had a tough few days, too.   He's lost Lucky Strike as a client.  He's begged them for 30 days before letting anyone know about this, and so far he hasn't said a word to any of his partners.    Then he learns that the night he and Joan spent together - last week in terms of episode time, something closer to seven weeks in narrative time - has gotten Joan pregnant.  He'd be ok with her having the baby, but she would rather not, and is more than willing to "take care" of the pregnancy.  About the only good thing that comes out of this sad affair is Roger gets even more in touch with how deeply he feels about Joan.

We haven't seen much of Lane recently, but he gets smacked in the face last night, too - in his case, literally by his father, wielding a cane.   His father wants Lane to come back to England and put his life back in order - which working in New York, and being in love with an African-American Playboy bunny, apparently is not doing.   I guess striking one's son with a cane passed for constructive family intervention back then.

And the one piece of really good news in this baneful tide?  Don is taking Sally to see the Beatles at Shea Stadium.  She deserves it, after all that she went through last week.

See also Mad Men 4.1: Chicken Kiev, Lethal Interview, Ham Fight ... 4.2: "Good Time, Bad Time?" "Yes." ... 4.3: Both Coasts ... 4.4: "The following program contains brief nudity ..."  4.5: Fake Out and Neurosis ... 4.6: Emmys, Clio, Blackout, Flashback  ... 4.7: 'No Credits on Commercials' ... 4.8: A Tale of Two Women ... 4.9: "Business of Sadists and Masochists"

And from Season 3: Mad Men Back for 3 and 3.2: Carvel, Penn Station, and Diet Soda and 3.3: Gibbon, Blackface, and Eliot and 3.4: Caned Seats and a Multiple Choice about Sal's Patio Furniture and 3.5: Admiral TV, MLK, and a Baby Boy and 3.6: A Saving John Deere and 3.7: Brutal Edges ... August Flights in 3.8 ... Unlucky Strikes and To the Moon Don in 3.9 ... 3.10: The Faintest Ink, The Strongest Television ... Don's Day of Reckoning in Mad Men 3.11 ... Mad Men 3.12: The End of the World in Mad Men ... Mad Men Season 3 Finale: The End of the World

And from Season Two: Mad Men Returns with a Xerox and a Call Girl ... 2.2: The Advertising Devil and the Deep Blue Sea ... 2.3 Double-Barreled Power ... 2.4: Betty and Don's Son ... 2.5: Best Montage Since Hitchcock ... 2.6: Jackie, Marilyn, and Liberty Valance ... 2.7: Double Dons ... 2.8: Did Don Get What He Deserved? ... 2.9: Don and Roger ... 2.10: Between Ray Bradbury and Telstar ... 2.11: Welcome to the Hotel California ... 2.12 The Day the Earth Stood Still on Mad Men ... 2.13 Saving the Best for Last on Mad Men

And from Season One: Mad Men Debuts on AMC: Cigarette Companies and Nixon ... Mad Men 2: Smoke and Television ... Mad Men 3: Hot 1960 Kiss ... Mad Men 4 and 5: Double Mad Men ... Mad Men 6: The Medium is the Message! ... Mad Men 7: Revenge of the Mollusk ... Mad Men 8: Weed, Twist, Hobo ... Mad Man 9: Betty Grace Kelly ... Mad men 10: Life, Death, and Politics ... Mad Men 11: Heat! ... Mad Men 12: Admirable Don ... Mad 13: Double-Endings, Lascaux, and Holes

20-minute interview with Rich Sommer (Harry Crane) at Light On Light Through





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The Plot to Save Socrates



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"a Da Vinci-esque thriller" - New York Daily News

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