This one takes a few minutes to really get going but, wow,
once it does it offers one home-run scene after another. The action mostly
takes place on one Saturday, in a classic “Mad Men” structure where the scenes
bounce between several different groups. The main thread has Roger and Jane
hosting a Derby party at their country club, and it offers us introductions to
two important characters: Conrad Hilton and Henry Francis. Elsewhere, Joan and
Greg host a party for Greg’s medical colleagues; Peggy, Kinsey, and Smitty are
working at the office and end up getting high; and Sally steals $5 from her
grandfather back at the Draper house. Matthew Weiner has a tendency to lay his
themes on a little thick, but what I love about “My Old Kentucky Home” is how
inscrutable it is. It also offers one of the best closing shots in the show’s
history, with Don and Betty kissing in the moonlight. This is the kind of
episode that you can’t envision any other television show being capable of
creating.
Best Scene: In
one of the more shocking scenes in “Mad Men” history, Roger serenades Jane in
blackface during the party. Looking to escape the fiasco, Don retreats to a bar
inside where he meets a man that will change the course of this season: Conrad
Hilton. Their conversation is one of the best moments of the entire series.
Best Line: Roger
to Don: “You know, my mother was right. It’s a mistake to be conspicuously
happy—some people don’t like it.” Don: “No one thinks you’re happy. They think
you’re foolish.” Roger: “You know, that’s the great thing about a place like
this. You can come here and be happy, and you get to choose your guests.”
Grade: A
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