Mad Men Season Four Recap

Mad Men premier party was a success. We had Manhattans, suits with skinny ties, form-fitting dresses and heels (sorry crab), a jello/fruit mold and some lively, timely chatter about President Kennedy's assassination and the question on every American's mind: Do you think we'll make it to the moon by the end of the decade?

Noticeably absent from the evening were Thally's lisp, Baby Eugene and Peggy's repressed, unfortunate, weirdo hair cut. Thally is growing into a beautiful, sassy bulimic exhibitionist...it seems she's replaced her tongue-thrust oral fixation with that of an esophageal kind. If we learned anything from the Thanksgiving dinner scene, it's that Thally does not like being force-fed sweet potatoes in front of mommy's new husband's family.

Peggy has become more girl-like and less Gollum-like in the year we've spent apart. She has a bob that covers her terrifying ears, sits on tables during meetings and has inside jokes with the cute new SCDP employee. (Who are you, 'Joey?') She's more assertive, extroverted and daring this season, which should make for some nice scenes with her babydaddy Mister Peter Dykeman Campbell.

Don was bringing me down pretty hard until the last scene of the episode. He lives alone, is newly anorexic (so that's where Thally got it from) and has a new penchant for getting beat up by otherwise friendly hookers. I guess the lovely school teacher got the boot? I was expecting to see her free-spriting through the first ep... I think we can file her under the "Noticeably Absent" file too.

So basically Don is a partner in a brand new and thriving agency but still hates his life. He's like a dead fish in interviews (come on Dick, we all know your secrets now, no need to be shy) and he still does not like to be told his creative is bad. (Watch it, Danskin.)Informing- I assume- his shitty attitude at work, he is seen trucking back and forth to the 'burbs to see his kids, and by default see his ex-wife and her new hubby squatting in his house. Dammit Bets, move out!

The one glimmer of hope in the bleak affair that is Don's life as a bachelor is his interview with the WSJ. After getting a stern talking-to from Sterling and Cooper, Don realizes that, omigod, he is an advertisement for the firm! Bring on the smiles! Bring in the charm! Be gone, Mid-Western humility!

I have to wait a whole week for the next ep (and you, poor reader, have to wait as long for a re-cap) and I will spend the time wisely. I realized I had not nearly enough to talk about loudly as strangers walked by, puzzling over the group of twenty-somethings dressed to the nines at 9:45 on a balmy Sunday night. I need fuel for my era-appropriate banter. Please feel free to comment below.