Martin Burgoyne reviews the ninth episode of Mad Men season 7…
‘New business’ is the very apt title for this latest episode of Mad Men. Whereas the previous episode was trying very hard to cover all bases on the goings on at Madison Avenue, this episode seems to focus primarily on three main storylines…
Firstly we have Don and his very peculiar fascination with a very ordinary looking brunette waitress… (Seriously, what does Don see in her exactly?) I mean she’s pretty, but has the personality of the mean lunch lady from my school days. It’s clear that she reminds Don of an old flame who has recently passed away. Don’s guilt over the way things ended between them is most likely the main cause of this bizarre pairing. It’s an odd storyline, especially for the ninth installment of a fourteen episode run. Introducing a new love interest for Don just seems like a strange choice for the show, I can only think that there’s some sort of twist to come in this tale…
The second storyline we have is one involving Peggy Olsen and the cuddly hippy hairball that is Stan Rizzo (When are these two going to get together, seriously?) They disagree over the use of famous female photographer Pima Ryan for a commercial shoot, it becomes clear that the woman in question is definitely batting for both teams. I’m talking about business and pleasure of course. Some great scenes ensue between Peggy and Stan as they both subtly reveal what base they each got to with the flirty snapper. She is played brilliantly by Mimi Rogers, who seems to excel in roles designed for powerful women with a strong sexual desire. Peggy seems to be in awe of her, but envious of her presence at the same time. Is it just that Pima could de-flower Mr Rizzo with such ease? Something else that Ms Olsen has yet to achieve.
The third storyline involves Megan’s brief return to New York as she finalises her divorce with Don. While back in the big apple she re-connects with her Mother and Sister (Did anybody else know she had a Sister?) Nonetheless it’s always a treat to see Megan’s Mother again (played with fire & ice by Julia Ormond) There are some great scenes as Marie instructs the movers to remove ALL of the furniture from the Draper residence, “I just took what you were owed” was her reasoning. She still manages to find time to catch up with a newly moustachio’d Roger Sterling, but I mean it would be rude not to visit while she’s in town.
Mad Men is making some very bold choices in this latest episode, while we as an audience are used to Matthew Weiner WTF moments. I do hope that we see less “New Business” and more regular clients for the remainder of the series.
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