Open This Drawer

In my first post I claimed that this blog would cover a variety of things (one of the things it will cover that I neglected to mention is books and writings of that ilk) though so far it has mostly been about music and that will probably remain as the most popular topic. However, since I've been getting such heavy traffic and since those of you who don't share my (correct) musical tastes have been clamoring for other subjects, let's talk about my favorite (well, along with Friday Night Lights) drama on TV: Mad Men. Granted, it's not The Wire, but I highly recommend it anybody who would bother reading this blog.

Now, to be perfectly honest, I watched this show for an episode or two when it first came out and didn't get into it. I think what I didn't like at first was that the mid-levels at Sterling Cooper (Pete in particular, but also Ken, Paul and even Peggy) didn't seem well-acted or thought out. On second viewing (I recently watched the complete series to date over a period of few weeks) I found that what I'd misidentified as mediocre acting for weak characters was actually excellent acting (especially for Vincent Kartheiser as Pete and Elisabeth Moss as Peggy) for characters that were insecure and unsure of themselves and how they fit in. An egregious error on my part, but again, I really didn't give it much of chance on its initial run.

Anyway, while I could obviously spend a lot of time gushing about what a fantastic actor Jon Hamm is and how Roger Sterling (played by Jon Slattery, the No. 1 pick in the Anderson Cooper biopic draft) is one of the finest characters I've ever seen, I'd rather touch on the defining (and best) episode of season three: "The Gypsy and the Hobo" the 11th (third to last) episode.

Each of the first two seasons had their defining scenes. For season one, it was Don Draper's "Carousel" speech. I've probably watched this five to ten times on youtube since I saw it and just think it's so great. (A quick aside, for those who know/are my good friend Sam Anderson...but am I alone in thinking he could play Don Draper or another character on this show? He would've nailed this speech. Just owned it. Someday soon hopefully.) And in season two, I thought the scene in the last episode where Peggy [I'm not going to write SPOILER ALERT over and over again but just be warned that I'm going to talk freely] reveals her secret to Pete was the most devastating exchange of the series. It was an excellent example of holding a plot piece (that everyone knew would come) so long that you almost forget about it and then dropping it in at the perfect time.

However, season three brought it to a new level with "The Gypsy and the Hobo" which was, in my opinion, one of the most memorable and amazing episodes of television I've ever seen for any show. Obviously, part of it was great simply because of the old standby of seeing a character you care about face what they dread most in the world. In this case, Don is confronted with the past by the very person he has spent the most effort hiding it from. In a lot of shows and films (and books for that matter) when a character finally has to show a different side of themselves it comes off as odd or contrived and subsequently unsatisfying. Not here. I again commend Jon Hamm (I'm sure he's thrilled to have me on his bandwagon) on perhaps his most skilled performance of the show's run and credit the writers for having it unfold so impeccably. The added tension of having Miss Farrell waiting in the car and knowing that she could walk in at any moment, at the absolute worst possible time, brought the drama to another level. It was really incredible. I was basically in shock when the episode was over because of how explosive and revelatory this episode was. I thoroughly enjoyed the finale and look forward to next season, but for my money, episode 11 was the crowning achievement of this season--for this show and for any other.

Bravo, Mr. Draper.