The narrative itch that doesn't get scratched.

You think so, Hec? I was actually thinking that Betty might be the narrative itch that doesn't get completely scratched. Or do you think they're just too far gone with her and there'd have to be some sort of resolution? (Although keeping in mind that Weiner comes from the school of Sopranos storytelling.)

You know, though-- I don't think Jane wants to be rebound wife. Not with Roger. The more I consider her being the one who told Roger about Don, the more I wonder if she wasn't using it as a method by which to get more information on Don and his situation from Roger (never mind that Roger's as incurious as a lizard and wouldn't have much beyond the obvious to tell her).

From the extended preview on amctv.com, it looks as if there's a party of some sort happening in the office in next week's episode. I'm fairly certain we're suppose to assume it's Joan's wedding shower-- she said she was planning a holiday wedding, Marilyn died in August of '62, I think, so it could be they've jumped forward a few months, which, not unheard of for the show, or it's a red herring and it's not really her shower, but a party for some other reason.

just as JFK's assassination will.

You think they'll jump forward more than a year? Maybe next season.

You think they'll jump forward more than a year? Maybe next season.

I could see them opening next season with that. Kind of bookend the beginnings of S2 & 3 with landmark moments of the Kennedy Administration.

We've only got four episodes left, the next one is called "The Inheritance," the names of the two after don't really give anything obvious away (although, no doubt, it'll be obvious after the episode airs) and the final episode's title hasn't been released yet.

I thought it was hinting at that happening eventually, but that it hadn't yet at the point Jane got fired by Joan.

Jane gave Roger her address right after she got fired, so I assume the affair started shortly after that (if not that night).

I'm not sure what it is about Jane that makes me want to see her suffer. But I do. I want Joan to skin her alive.

You know, though-- I don't think Jane wants to be rebound wife. Not with Roger.

I think that she wants to be Don's rebound wife. I suspect that she's with Roger because there's no one better. Now that she knows that Don and Betty are having problems, she's trying to make a move. But then Roger upset the apple cart by leaving his wife for Joan. And I think that Don knows that Jane told Roger about him and Betty, which is why he fired her.

Over on House Next Door, they're thinking that JFK will be shot between seasons. They say the Weiner is planning five seasons to cover 10 years, so it'll only cover every other year.

Over on House Next Door, they're thinking that JFK will be shot between seasons.

Makes sense -- it would also fit Weiner's style very well to come back in early in '64, having missed the big traumatic event but coming in when the emotions and the sense of things being shaken up are still raw. An OMG-turn-on-the-radio ep seems too heavy-handed, but a series of after-the-fact references and allusions would make perfect sense.

1964 has the added virtue of being All About the Beatles and heralding a huge cultural shift. Don and the other ad men are going to be on the wrong side of a generational divide.

Also, when Don was sitting in his dark office talking to Peggy about not informing him first about Freddy - he reminded me a lot of Michael Coreleone in Godfather II.

By the by, Mad Men V.2 Soundtrack was just released today.

Also, when Don was sitting in his dark office talking to Peggy about not informing him first about Freddy - he reminded me a lot of Michael Coreleone in Godfather II.

I give her some credit for not throwing Pete under the bus. She said that they should tell Don, and Pete said no. Then Pete went running to Duck and Roger.