Here She Comes In Her Palanquin...Mad Men, Season 2, Episode 6, Maidenform

It is his daughter's adoring gaze that undoes Don in this episode, twice in fact. First when he is called upon at the country club to stand as a war hero (which he knows he is not), and again when she promises to be quiet and not talk for him. Since he had just told his mistress not to talk, Sally's promise gives Don a little insight into who he is to her, versus the unpleasant glimpse into how Bobbie and other mistresses see him. He doesn't feel deserving of Sally's admiration as her hero-daddy, but he doesn't want to see himself as the man-whore that Bobbie reflects either. This episode reminds us that Don doesn't know who he is at all, and that is mostly just reflecting how other people see him right back to them.

He is the woman in the Playtex ad, he wants to be the Madonna at home with his wife and children, Whore to his mistresses and an intriguing mix of both to his co-workers and clients. Don has so carefully managed his persona that he is genuinely shocked to find out that his mistresses have talked about him. He sees himself as so in control of every situation that even the people he is reckless with should know not to mention it. Bobbie sees herself in Don, and the fact that he is so repulsed by that shows that deep down he sees it too. Last week, he was pleased with her when she reflected some qualities that he admired in himself (toughness, good business sense, the desire to make herself into who she wants to be), but now he does not want to see himself as a user and himbo, a male Bobbie.

Both of those moments with Sally, when her pretty face looked up at him with all the love and admiration in the world, made Don act as though he was having a panic attack each time. It is more than just knowing that he doesn't deserve to be admired, and even more than the fear that his daughter will find out who he really is and lose that respect for him. It is the fact that he doesn't know what his true self looks like that makes the idea of it being exposed so terrifying. His secrets are leaking out all over the place, and there are reminders of his lies everywhere he looks. Don is a man whose entire existence depends on his ability to keep it together at all times. He is beginning to realize that there are so many elements he cannot control, and he is starting to lose that control himself.

I liked how this episode started with the women getting ready in the mirrors, how at odds that was with Paul's idea that "Women only see themselves through men's eyes." I was surprised to see Peggy doll herself up, take Joan's advice to "start dressing like a woman" and Bobbie's advice to "stop trying to be a man". Of course I don't like to see her perched on a clients lap like a stripper, but at the same time, it shows she is willing to do whatever it takes to be successful at Sterling-Cooper. I liked it because truly, she had to show up there to force them to include her, but I hated it because she was hanging on that old man's lap! Kind of gross. It was a different time I guess.

Oh Duck. The Duck storyline killed me, and not just because of poor Chauncey's fate. (Maybe Pete found him? Maybe?) His indifferent children, his failure with Playtex, his fall of the wagon, the reaction to his ex-wife's impending marriage, all of it was incredibly well played by Mark Moses. He seemed like such a defeated man trying to keep his head above water. I'm glad that he made his peace with Don (just a tiny glimpse of Roger, sadness, telling Don to make nice with him.) but the rest of his story was very sad. I like that they are going a different way with this Duck story, because my prediction that he and Pete would unite against Don does not seem to be in the cards. That story would have been more typical way to go, and I should have known that Mad Men would do something atypical with the character.

Hmm, what did I forget?

Oh, Don=Not nice to Betty
and Pete=Jerk.

Also, I loved Hamm's subtle reactions to Bobbie revealing her children to him. His face definitely read "Holy crap, how old is this lady!" when she mentioned her daughter at Sarah Lawrence. I also think Don was turned off to the idea of Bobbie as a mother in a different way than Arthur was to the idea of Betty as a mother. Arthur thought it made Betty seem old, tied down and common, clashing with his idea of a fragile beauty on a horse. For Don, it was the idea that Bobbie could be someone's mother and also be the crass woman that she is. He didn't want to think about her children seeing just the mother side of her, when this other side existed. It mirrored his feelings about his how is own children see him versus how others do, versus of course, how Don sees himself. (When he can bear to look.)