• I can understand why the beer was such an issue for Betty. It was the last straw for her. She was trying to just ignore and get over the incident with Jimmy, but that was it.

• I think Don, more than anything, is trying to sell the American Dream. Not only is he selling the American Dream to the rest of the world, he is selling it to himself. The problem is that his family is not in a magazine. Its a real living thing, and unfortunately, he’s killing it.

• When Betty finally confronts Don, he’s actually not having an affair anymore. So when she can’t find proof, you have to remember that she had found proof in season one. She had smelled other women’s perfume on his clothes before. He just had gotten all his dry cleaning done after ending things with Bobbie, which understandably makes her distrust her own perceptions and internal beliefs. That has got to be the worst feeling ever.

• That scene where Betty spoke to Don sleeping on the couch was powerful. I doubt Betty often let Don see her hair wet with no make up in a bathrobe. Don’s lies in that scene ranged from plausible to just blatantly obvious. Of course its wrong for Don to lie about his affair, since she has no proof, he can still push the lies without much issue. However when he lied about not saying “I love you”, that is just blatant and undeniable. However Don did mean it when he said he didn’t want to “lose all this”. When Betty left the room, I think she knew what was really true in what Don had said, and for a moment believed that was enough.

• With the broken glass, and then with the oven, clearly the writers were trying to show what Betty could do. Betty could stick her head in the oven and never come back out. Yet she’s stronger than that, which is something I think she realizes about herself when she tells Don to not come home.

• The writers are still pushing Sally’s weight with her playing Piglet in the ballet. Betty mentioned in season one how her mother used to pressure her about her own weight. Its a never-ending cycle. I started on diets in middle school. It wasn’t untill I was older that I found out that my mother had been a “big girl” when she was that age… ah, it never ends.

• Also worth noting how Betty shares Sally’s bed when she feels she cannot sleep in her own, and how Sally asks Betty if anything is wrong. I’m sure Betty realizes in some way that there is a very good chance her daughter will end up in Betty’s position someday, while Sally in some way realizes something has gone terribly wrong.

• When Betty finally confronts Don, he’s actually not having an affair anymore. So when she can’t find proof, you have to remember that she had found proof in season one. She had smelled other women’s perfume on his clothes before. He just had gotten all his dry cleaning done after ending things with Bobbie. Betty can no longer smell something she has smelled before, which understandably makes her distrust her own perceptions and internal beliefs. That has got to be the worst feeling ever.

• Poor Peggy with the Priest. Just having to think about spending that much time alone with a Priest makes me uncomfortable.

• The Priest is interesting. I thought it was interesting how they had him be the only man in that montage at the end with the women. Its far-fetched, but I do think him taking off his uniform is significant. Perhaps the writers are trying to show is that underneath his uniform, he’s just a man. While I do think he’s genuinely trying to help Peggy in his own way, I don’t think he’d be so intent on her if he didn’t see something else in her that he found attractive in someway. I’m not saying he’d ever act on it, though. But I do think that its there.

• Plenty of sex, which isn’t a bad thing.

• Duchovny, for the most part, does a great job. You can (almost) believe that so many women would throw themselves at him, while also believing how self-destructive he can be.

• However I don’t buy all the physical fighting. Is there anyone who really tries to get in so many fights? Especially when they’re normally not that hot-tempered (would never hit people he cared about).

• It can be difficult to see Evan Handler do “wrong” things after knowing him on Sex and The City. However for the characters on this show, he’s still a pretty decent guy.

• Marcy (Charlie’s wife) and Becca are definitely my favorite characters.

• The whole stealing of Hank’s work really really bothered me. I think it bothered me so much simply because it was his livelihood.

• While we’re at it, Mia stealing Hank’s work was far too predictable. Its a pathetic thing to do and in reality won’t get her anywhere once she realizes she has to keep writing.

• Its going to be interesting to see how the show handles Hank not being single anymore. No more random hookups means the show loses half of its content…

I kept putting it off, but I finally started watching Mad Men to see what all the fuss was about…

• Its completely engrossing. I watched the entire season far too quickly.

• Extremely well written. At times it really really bothers me, but doesn’t depress me. Its hard to explain.

• Compared to my other beloved show-set-in-the-past, Deadwood, there is no sense of urgency. Its different, but still great.

• My favorite characters are Betty, Joan, Peggy, and of course Don Draper.

• I identified with Betty more than I ever expected to.

• The men, on a whole, mostly disgust me.

• Especially Pete Campbell. I keep hoping an will anvil drop on his head. Just looking at him creeps me out.

• The finale was easily one of the mot well-written shows I’ve ever seen. It really encapsulated the entire season and was just so thought out. Betty’s scene at the therapist blew me away. So did Don’s presentation. Just plain fantastic.

• Clearly, I loved it. Not what I expected at all.