Mad Men Week 10

After the climax of the "Don and Peggy" episode (The Suitcase) and the surprising jolt of the following episode (Summer Man) the back leg of Season 4 has a lot to live up to. Episodes 9 and 10 were very fine but perhaps the climax of the season has already been reached.

I thought Peggy's storyline ended quite definitevely at the end of Episode 9 when she opted for the elevator down with Joan and ______ instead of the other elevator with her new lesbian bohemian buddy. Don suddenly made his way back to the lightness in Ep 8 and now it seems that a new, semi-fabricated plotline has plunged him into a different kind of depth. His relationship with Pete, while interesting and well-played seemed only to hint at further conflict rather than sit and creep in, as with Don and Peggy weeks earlier.

I thought Roger's storyline perhaps to be the most interesting this week; that and the new developments in Don and Betty's post-marriage life. The bomb that Lucky Strike lays on is sudden and must remain a secret (clealy the big word of the day in this one).

I'm curious to see where this goes. "Hands and Knees" marks a swift turn after the middle section of emotionally intense masterpieces, but perhaps one whose larger sense will fall into place in the home stretch.