This has been the best season of Mad Men so far, so I was sad to see it go when I sat down to watch the finale last night. I expected the episode to be monumental like the previous finales, and it was, but not in the same way.
Last year's finale really set the bar as far as finale excitement when the key players started their own agency. I was expecting some big plot to come in and save the company. In fact, when I found out Don was taking his family to Disneyland, I fully expected Don to somehow land the Disney account, especially given the fact that the public first found out about the construction of Disney World in the autumn of 1965, which is the same time period as this episode. And if that wasn't meant to happen, I was sure something else equally as earth-shattering would happen. When Stephanie gave Don that engagement ring, I knew we were in for some trouble.
Don and Megan do seem to genuinely like each other, but I don't know if that's just the effect that California has on Don. He was happiest in California with Anna, and I see his relationship with Megan as an attempt to recreate that version of himself. I was disappointed that Don and Faye's relationship had to end, but it was obvious that one of the main reasons Don went for Megan is because she was so good with his kids, in a way that Don knew both Faye and Betty could never be.
Speaking of Betty, I was so mad at her for firing Carla, and it was just downright cruel of her to not even let Carla say goodbye to the children. It was nice to see Betty get her comeuppance throughout the rest of the episode. The scene between Don and Betty in their old kitchen late in the episode was very interesting. Betty was obviously waiting for Don to arrive, and I think her intention was to seduce him, or at least allow herself to be seduced. It almost seemed like Don was going to take the bait, but he ended up being forthcoming about his engagement, which only wounded Betty further after Henry had already put her in her place earlier in the episode. I actually thought Betty might kill herself after that depressing shot of her alone on Sally's bed, and I still guess that suicide will eventually be a part of Betty's story arc.
Overall, the episode wasn't as hard-hitting as previous season finales, it was a step back. It focused on Don and less on the company, which was fine. The whole season has been about peeling back Don's layers and revealing who Don really is (the first line of the season: "Who is Don Draper?"). With that in mind, the final shot of the season was haunting, with Don lying in bed with his new fiance, who apparently makes him happy "the way [he] always wanted to feel," but still staring out the window, apparently still imagining other possibilities for his life. It was brilliant, but I was hoping that, with the events of this episode, Don had really turned a corner.
I guess I just wanted a little more to hold on to until next summer when the show comes back. I can't wait to watch the whole season over again, and maybe I'll see some things in a new light.
I think my favorite episode of the season was "The Suitcase," the one where Don and Peggy had to stay and work late together and Don ended up getting really drunk and Peggy had to take care of him.
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