Sunday’s Mad Men was a bowl of great festive fun with a cup of creepy mixed in.
It’s Christmas in New York, and I’m a sucker for anything set in New York at Christmas.
The episode opens with Henry, Betty and the kids picking out a Christmas tree. Sally (who looks increasingly like the anorexic actress I hope she doesn’t become) runs into Glenn, a boy who works at the tree shop. He’s in charge of cutting rope. With sharp scissors.
He and Sally talk about their respective parents’ divorces. Glenn offers his wisdom and advice: Ask for big gifts now before her mother inevitably has another baby.
Over at Sterling/Cooper/Draper/Pryce, Don receives a letter addresed to Santa Claus from Sally telling him what he can get them for Christmas. It’s clear this is the only communication Don has with his children and he doesn’t even read it himself. He has his secretary read it to him.
Meanwhile, Roger has a meeting with Freddy Rumpson about a $2 million account with Pond’s Cold Cream, and the possibility of transferring it over to SDCP. Roger is exceedinlgy entertaining in this episode, especially in his scene with Joan where he stares her up and down and tells her to wear the dress she wore last year because she looked like a Christmas present. It’s a line that most women would find disgusting, but John Slattery delivers it with such fun that you can’t help but smile.
It wouldn’t be Christmas without someone losing their virginity! Enter Peggy, who finally does the deed with her boyfriend. His argument for doing it is he wants to be her first. While laying in bed post-coitus, her boyfriend very seriously asks if she’s okay and if she feels different. It was an amusing moment and the look on Peggy’s face was the icing on the Christmas cake.
Speaking of creepy guys courting girls, Sally gets a phone call from her boy friend Glenn. She talks about how hard it is for her living at home and he sympathizes with her. Apparently the next step in courting her is breaking into her house. With the precision of a young Danny Ocean, Glenn calls the house to make sure no one’s home. He then brings a friend to break in and they take every food item they can find and destroy the kitchen. Glenn moves on to the rest of the house, leaving Sally’s room untouched, except for a bracelet he made her. A clear message has been sent. He’s psychotic. She’s smitten.
Then there’s Don. While drinking at work has always been the standard at the agency, Don is taking it to a new level. He shows up to his house twice in this episode drunk and in need of help. The first time around he can’t get the key in his door. His neighbor Phoebe puts him to bed and Don puts the moves on her. She’s too smart for him. She resists.
After the Christmas party, Don finds himself drunk at his doorstep again. This time, he doesn’t have his keys and his secretary brings them to him. She also takes care of him and he also puts the moves on her. It works on her as they do the deed on his couch. Predictably, the next morning Don is cold and business-like.
This episode was a great ride. The premeire was good, but this episode brought back the fun.
Mad Men airs Sundays at 9 p.m. on AMC
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Christine is an improviser/comedian currently living the Boston area. She has studied and performed at The Second City and Annoyance theaters in Chicago. You can currently see her perform at ImprovBoston in Cambridge, MA.