Mad Men Season 7, Episode 11, “Time & Life”

This week sees yet another major overhaul to the organization of SC&P, this time in the form of their imminent absorption by McCann Erickson. Naturally, Don and the rest of the partners (except Ted) are resistant to the move, as it negates the independence they thought they were maintaining when they agreed to be bought out by McCann in the first place. Between a rock and a hard place, the partners have no recourse but to accept it, unless, that is, they can convince McCann to let them set up shop in California as SC&P West, maintaining the clientele that they would otherwise have to cut loose because of conflicts of interest.

Mad Men Season 7, Episode 10, "The Forecast”

“The Forecast” is an aptly-named episode, as it finds many characters thinking about what they want out of the future and who they want to be. This episode finds Don having to write a speech for Roger about the future of SC&P for their bosses at McCann. Don’s at a loss for what to write about, and I think there are multiple competing possibilities for why it’s such a struggle for him.

Mad Men Season 7, Episode 9, “New Business”

I was somewhat surprised to see Diana the waitress return so prominently in this episode, but midway through, it dawned on me that she’s actually kind of perfect for Don: she matches Don’s humble roots, and she has a world-weariness about her that suggests she knows what a hard life is like (in stark contrast with Don’s ex-wives, both of whom had privileged upbringings). Even more fittingly, eventually she reveals that just like Don, she is also running from a shameful past: her daughter died of the flu. It’s easy to see why Don is drawn to her. However, near the end of the episode she reveals herself not to be as kindred a spirit as she seemed: her pain stems not solely from the death of her daughter, but from her subsequent abandonment of another surviving daughter back in Wisconsin. She turns down Don’s attempts to escalate their romance because being with him makes it easier for her to forget, and unlike him, rather than run from her pain, she wants to hold onto it and remember it. The comfort Don can provide is not what she wants, ultimately.

Mad Men Season 7, Episode 8, “Severance”

The first half of this final season satisfactorily resolved (more or less) the arcs of three of the most important relationships on this show: those Don has with Peggy, Sally, and Megan. All is right between Don and Peggy, Don has healed his rift with Sally as well (although I wouldn't mind seeing more bonding here), and while his marriage to Megan ended poorly, it resolved; they’re done, a point emphatically driven home by the string of women Don sleeps with in this episode. The resolution of these storylines leads me to wonder about what stories there are left to tell in this final half-season (some of which are strongly indicated in this episode), as well as what kinds of stories I want the show to spend its remaining time focused on.*