Freakin' Matthew Weiner. He always waits until the last five minutes of key episodes to throw a complete knuckleball at the viewers. Don's attitude, the music, everything.

Agreeing completely with Frank about the self-loathing, which also reminds me a lot of an episode of Criminal Minds that, incidentally, aired tonight, where a call girl is murdering her clients-- a madam reveals that what the men really want isn't the sex, but someone to whom they can reveal their weaknesses.

Love how Peggy is willing to stand up for her mistakes but is also ready and willing to call Don on his shit.

Was surprisingly charmed by Henry's mother. She's got Betty nailed, doesn't she?

I'm sure it was The Defiant Ones.

I really like the Eliot/Hardison friendship. First the coffee, now the impromptu fishing trip, and then the Wii. They're very cute together.

Speaking of cute--Hardison and those tight pants. Mrrowr.

You just know that Hardison got the Wii fishing game for Eliot because he didn't get to have his fishing trip. So cute.

Mad Men:

The actress who plays Sally Draper is now listed in the opening credits.

Both Peggy and Betty are sporting post-Jackie bouffant bobs. Joan's wearing sixties eyeliner.

Love the new offices. It's getting sixties now.

"Who is Don Draper?" I think we have a Theme.

He's: the subject of "Tobacco Road," a dick (as well as a Dick), a good father, an advertising star, a difficult mentor to Peggy, somebody who wants to conceal his past, somebody who chooses to tell his own story, somebody who spends Thanksgiving with a whore, somebody who wants to be slapped, somebody who has more money than intimacy.

Sterling Cooper Draper Price (SCDR) is struggling, and are going to have to aggressively move into the changing decade. Don's making that choice. They're finishing '64 and moving into '65. This is the period when the Beatles happen, the California sound (Beach Boys) happens, Motown explodes. It's the beginning of the post-Kennedy sixties. The mod part. I think they have to go to London during this season or next.

In 1966, the Velvet Underground form in Manhattan. The Warhol, media-driven sixties, advertising-as-art is coming soon.

Leverage: Were we supposed to fully understand how Hardison set that fuse, because I sure as hell didn't.

Yeah, the flashback explained nothing.

It was like,

Step 1: Acquire cigarette.
Step 2: ...
Step 3: Explosion!

Mad Men:

I've been thinking about the use of "John and Marsha" near the start of this episode. I don't think it's insignificant.

"John and Marsha" was the first single (released in 1951) by Stan Freberg. It was a goof on soap operas and consisted of two actors saying each other's names over and over in different tones of voice in a way that created a melodrama. Later in the 50's Freberg revolutionized advertising by injecting humor into what until then had been all about the hard sell. I think this ties into what David said above. Using Freberg was a signal that SCDR needs to change in order to survive. They're "going to have to aggressively move into the changing decade."

Excellent article on Freberg's role in advertising here: [link]

I think it's significant that Peggy is more in command. She has a collaborator that she's sympatico with (much more than the milquetoast "fiancee") and can casually order off to rough up a sketch in charcoal without a loss of respect. She's owning her failures, too, and pushing back at Don.

Don's a jerk, especially now... but Betty is a double-plus-jerk.

It was like,

Step 1: Acquire cigarette.
Step 2: ...
Step 3: Explosion!

So the underpants gnomes set the fuse!