MAD MEN 3.10 - "The Color Blue"

WRITERS: Kater Gordon and Matthew Weiner
DIRECTOR: Michael Uppendahl
GUEST CAST: Abigail Spencer, Marshall Allman, Christopher Stanley, Charles Shaughnessy, Embeth Davidtz, Kiernan Shipka, Alison Brie, Peyton List, Crista Flanagan, Laura Regan, Ryan Cartwright, Mary Anne McGarry, Hal Landon Jr., Deborah Lacey, Alexa Alemanni, Jared S. Gilmore, Neil Dickson, Anthony Burch & Shannon Welles

[SPOILERS] There's a lovely scene between Suzanne (Abigail Spencer) and Don (Jon Hamm) when they're in bed together, and she recounts the time a little boy in her class wondered if other people's perception of the colour blue is the same as his own. Don answers the conundrum by suggesting that "people may see things differently, but they don't really want to." This episode, entitled "The Color Blue", was certainly all about how people perceive things the way they want, despite the fact everyone's seeing the same thing...

As I alluded, Don's affair with his daughter's school teacher has definitely stepped up a gear -- with Don regularly sneaking out of the house at night, under the pretence of working late for the notoriously demanding Conrad Hilton, leaving Betty (January Jones) to sleep alone. In this episode, Don was introduced to Suzanne's teenage brother Danny (Marshall Allman), a dropout whose problems holding down a job stem from the fact he's afflicted by epilepsy.

Danny sees Don as an arrogant man (sensing his disdain at having his evening with Suzanne interrupted), but Don manages to prove him wrong a few days later, by offering to give Danny a lift to a job his sister's got him at a hospital in Massachusetts. Danny confides to Don that he has no intention of doing a menial job to ease his sister's conscience, so asks to be dropped off early, which Don agrees to do. Then, perhaps because Danny reminds Don of his own younger brother (who committed suicide when his attempt to reconnect with Don, or "Dick", hit a brick wall), Don gave Danny money and his business card, with an open offer to get in touch if he ever needs help.

At Sterling Cooper, Paul's (Michael Gladis) perception of Peggy (Elisabeth Moss) is that she's a favourite of Don's and her career progress isn't a result of true merit, as she's certainly less gifted as he believes himself to be. The pair were partnered for a Western Union campaign here, to work out why sending an old-fashioned telegram is preferable to modern telephone correspondence. Paul worked into the early hours, fuelled by alcohol, and during a chat with late-night janitor Achilles suddenly had a brainwave that would undoubtedly prove to be a winner. Sadly, the next morning, Paul awakened in his office with a hangover and realized he never wrote his masterstroke down and has thus forgotten it.

Peggy and Paul's meeting with Don didn't start well, after Paul admitted he lost his incredible idea and ruefully mentioned an old Chinese proverb ("the faintest ink is better than the best memory".) However, Peggy realized that same axiom could hold true for telegrams -- as there's a permanency to a telegram that a telephone call won't ever replicate. Don sensed a winning idea, so had them leave to develop it further, as Paul's eyes opened to the fact Peggy's a demonstrably gifted copywriter, literally gawping in astonishment at how she salvaged the entire meeting by thinking on her feet.

The real surprise of "The Color Blue" came from Betty's long overdue discovery of her husband's secret identity, after she found his desk drawer key in a pair of trousers and couldn't resist snooping inside while he was at work. There she found a shoebox of mementoes (Whitman family photos, Dick Whitman's army dog tags, Anna Draper's house deed, and his divorce papers), and while she may not know exactly what it all means yet, it's clear that Don's been keeping an awful lot of secrets from her. Even if Betty only deduces that Don's been married and divorced before (which isn't entirely accurate, as he'd taken on Don Draper's identity and ended the dead soldier's marriage), it's undoubtedly going to cause ructions. How can Don possible talk himself out of any of this, with so much evidence involved? Is Betty prepared to cause such turmoil for her family, or will she bite her lip for the sake of her three kids? Is her fancy man Henry Francis (Christopher Stanley) someone she can turn to after she confronts Don, or is he less noble than he appears and only in this for a thrill?

For Don, his acquired identity is about to achieve its highly accolade yet, as "prime time" speaker at Sterling Cooper's 40th anniversary party, following a $5,000 signing bonus handed to him by Lane (Jared Harris). It's an honour that has Roger (John Slattery) all in a twist, as his loathing of Don's success reached another level, and even Cooper (Robert Morse) doesn't feel like attending -- likening the party to a funeral. Interestingly, Lane received word from his bosses at London that PPL are going to sell Sterling Cooper, meaning the anniversary party's now serving a dual purpose as a way to promote the thriving business to potential buyers. To this end, Lane convinced the vain Cooper to attend, by making him worry a non-appearance will make rivals think he's ill. Lane himself is visible upset he'll soon have to return to London, although his homesick wife Rebecca is overjoyed (Embeth Davidtz)

Overall, I really enjoyed "The Color Blue", particularly the unexpected development of Betty sneaking a look behind the façade that is Don Draper. Her moment in the final scene, sat looking at her husband give a speech amongst his peers, spoke volumes about how much she's beginning to realize how little she knows about the man she married. The week's theme of people only seeing what they want to see in other people was also very nicely handled, particularly regarding Paul's epiphany over Peggy's worth.

Asides

-- Interesting to note a harsher tone from Henry Francis, after Betty mistakenly thought he'd rang their home and called him back later. The wrong number was likely Suzanne, which is itself amusing because both Drapers are having affairs and worrying that every strange phone call was for them.

-- Why are PPL selling Sterling Cooper? There must be a sound financial reason, but you have to wonder what it could be. The company's been doing very well, and even has the illustrious Conrad Hilton on its books. Maybe they just wanted to increase its attractiveness and sell for a higher price all along?

-- Another case of perception blindness; Roger's ageing mother mistaking his new, younger wife Jane (Peyton List) as his first wife Margaret, on the way to the anniversary party in the back of a limo. Is she senile, forgetful, or relishing making barbed comments about her son's "trophy wife"?

-- You may recognize Marshall Allman as L.J from Prison Break.

24 MARCH 2010: BBC4/BBC HD, 10PM