Nearly three seasons of storytelling come to a head in this
episode when Betty confronts Don about his past. Finally, everything is laid
out in the open between the two of them (OK, well, most everything), and by the
end of the episode we’re left wondering what will happen to their relationship:
Can Betty forgive and move on (as her lawyer advises), or not? Meanwhile, the
first half of the episode is focused on Roger, who encounters two lost loves
from his life—one recent (Joan, looking for a job) and one from his youth. The
scenes with Roger are wonderful and add depth to his character, but they get
blown away by the action in the Draper home. And, oh yeah, Joan’s oaf of a
husband joins the Army so he can stay in medicine.
Best Scene: Betty’s
confrontation with Don spans 13 consecutive minutes at the heart of the
episode. Broken into three parts (the office, the kitchen, and the bedroom), it
is without question one of the best, most intense sequences in the entire
series. There is so much packed into these segments, I could write a dissertation
on them alone (someone probably already has). The writing, acting, and
direction are impeccable. It’s useless to try and capture all of the greatness
here, so I just want to point out a few tiny details:
• Watch how Betty treats Don’s shoebox of mementos; she
slings it around the kitchen like trash—the same way Don himself was treated as
a child.
• Even when he’s at his lowest and his cards are literally
all out on the table, Don still can’t be completely honest with Betty. He tells
her the Army “made a mistake” when they switched his name with the real Donald
Draper, but we know that’s not true—he took Draper’s dogtags before the medics
arrived. He chose. He acted. It wasn’t an accident.
• This is a good scene to return to if you ever need
the Cliff’s Notes version of Dick/Don’s history.
Best Line: Betty
to Don: “Are you thinking of what to say, or are you just looking at that
door?”
Grade: A
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