Mad Men 'The Benefactor' Episode 3

That man is an animal
The lid was lifted on the hidden world of the ad shoot once more and it revealed the truly ugly nut that lay hidden beneath. They say a good comedian is able to talk about the elephant in the room and make it funny...not this jerk. There was nothing funny about the way Jimmy Barrett insulted Mrs. Schilling. The only good thing was he didn't realise who she was and his wise crack cost him as a result.

Sterling Work
Can I just say I love John Slattery as Roger Sterling this Season. He's such a shameless self-confessed old dinosaur, that he's hilarious to watch. His reaction to the Barrett situ was classic: "Oh God, I miss the fifties!" As for his approval of Don's clean-up plan: "That'll work. A guy like that must know how to make a charming apology or he'd be dead!" I don't think Betty would have been as pleased with his approach, certainly not the Bobbie end of things.

Stepford Wives
I wonder will the next generation look back at ours and think that women were badly treated. We have more independence and rights than previous generations but we're also expected to be superwomen, running homes, families and careers simultaneously. However I doubt many would swap places with 60's women, even plush middle class Americans. There's Betty and Sarah-Beth who are so bored at home that their most exciting outing of the week is to sneak a peak at a newbie down at the stables.

Gone with the Wind
Then there's the other extreme, the rich aristocrats like Tara who treat their fiancés, such as poor Arthur as if he were an employee. Her aim is to whip lash him into the type of man she wants him to become. Betty is none too pleased with her emasculating ways and I don't think that's the end of it for her.

Age of Innocence
It's not much easier for the younger girls either – mothers are terrified of their daughters carrying any weight knowing that they'll become fodder for the amusement of chauvinistic males or worse, comedians such as Barrett. The result is a constant barrage of comments about their growing bodies.

Ageism
Isn't it strange how age is regarded in 'Mad Men'? It is indicative of the time that a five-year age gap is treated like a ten-year one now. Draper is only about ten years older then the youngest member of his team but he is treated like a father-figure superior. People lived faster, harder lives then and as a result life-spans were shorter.

Money does not make you happy…
But it quiets the nerves as Sean O'Casey said. There's Harry faced with a pay-check dilemma and he does the normal thing, picking up the phone and discussing it with his wife. There are two things wrong with this picture; firstly his wife was no help at all, except pushing him into fighting for a raise. It's as if society gave her permission to be disappointed with his display of weakness and to leave him to sort it out on his own.

Secondly, while nowadays it is normal for couples to share their financial burden, it wasn't the done thing then. Salvatore is in shock when Harry reveals that he was so open with her...thankfully times have changed. With many households forced to look for two pay checks to make ends meet, both parties discuss and face financial pressures. Let's not get started on the recession and recent budget or the thrill of escaping into 'Mad Men's' world will evaporate!

Unhealthy Habits
Freddie's drinking is becoming a problem and this won't be the last we hear about it either. Its not just drinking that's raising eye brows either, smoking is beginning to take centre stage for all of the wrong reasons too, despite the fact that Don and co have a store room full of Lucky Strikes.

Next
Putting aside Don's dirty dinner antics, he and Betty made a cute couple during the closing scenes. More of that to come next week, when they spend a family weekend together. Also in 'Three Sundays' the staff work around the clock at Sterling Cooper's to prep for a big pitch – wonder who they're after this time?

Taragh Loughrey-Grant

'Mad Men' is on RTÉ One on late night Mondays (11.35pm on Monday 20 April).