This weeks Mad Men was really good but there were a few parts of the episode that left me with more questions that answers, so, I went looking for answers and found an awesome TV club on Slate.com that discusses each weeks episode!
It’s three different people that write articles, sometimes back and forth to each other, about their views on the episodes; the goods the bads and some of the more intricate plot line details. Check it out @ Mad Men TV Club on Slate.com
Anyways, I got to reading one of the articles for this week and just had to leave a comment so I thought I’d share it here too. Here is the part I was responding to:
But one question we haven't covered is this: Why, in a show that's chockablock with characters we'd like to spend more time with—Joan, Ken, Roger, even Moneypenny—do we keep getting introduced to new ones? Don has now had two mysterious male-bonding sessions over makeshift cocktails—the first with Conrad Hilton, the second with Warden Den—and although both have deepened our understanding of Don's mental state, neither has added much in the way of plot. READ MORE
And here are my thoughts on the subject:
I think that Don's "mysterious male-bonding sessions" are a perfect compliment to his character. Throughout the series Don has all of two lasting relationships with people outside of Sterling Cooper; his wife and the gal from his previous life (can't remember her name, she has the bad leg). So, I think that it is very fitting that they have introduced new short term characters, like Dennis Hobart, to have these revealing moments with Don.
He has always been so guarded about his life, past and present, and yet he has these moments with complete strangers where he is opening up and revealing parts of his past and childhood (at the bar during the wedding) as well as his thoughts and feelings about being a man and dad. I think he does this because to him these people are nobody, people that he has just met that happen to be there when he chooses to reach out to someone (which is becoming more frequent); and that he probably will never see again. So, because there is no danger or commitment in the act of opening up to strangers he does it freely and probably feels better in doing so (for instance the moment of happiness after the bar scene when he drops their things and kisses Betty after the wedding) but then faces no repercussions in his life by letting someone in, no matter how short term.
Thinking about taking up smoking because Don looks so suave doing it,
~Steve
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