Things to notice in Ep. 12
1. Peter's Rifle: Some obvious foreshadowing, right in the first scene -- the rifle is shown prominently in the background while Pete whines about cocoa.
2. Peewee Herman?? Duck phones Peggy for a "nooner" under the name "Mr. Herman." Then he calls her "Peewee" (his nickname for her?) It's an obvious joke...but why?
3. Aqua Net: Everyone saw the assassination foreshadowing during Paul Kinsey Theater -- now we know for sure they'll have to change that ad. Don looks at Peggy's story board - two couples in an open top convertible...yeah, gonna have to nix that idea.
4. Don's Dressed Like Oswald: Who noticed that Don is wearing the exact same outfit Oswald was wearing when he was shot? Dark sweater over white collared-shirt. Ummm...so does that mean Betty 's Jack Ruby?
5. Black and White: Henry's white Ford(?) pulls up next to Betty's black Lincoln in the parking lot -- a nod to Civil Rights?
6. Betty and Carla: Distraught Carla joins sobbing Betty on the sofa and lights up a cig. Sally consoles Betty. Betty and Carla do NOT console each other.
7. Natalie Wood: At the reception, Henry Francis's daughter tells Margaret Sterling that she "looks like Natalie Wood or something..." The actress playing MS once played Natalie in a TV movie.
8. Pete is Fab: At the end, Pete is channeling "Meet the Beatles" as his face is partially covered in shadow and he wears that black turtleneck.
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2. The "Mr. Herman" name actually comes from the fact that Duck's real name is Herman Phillips. Duck is a nickname.
Wow. You picked up on a lot of symbolism and visual cues that I totally missed. Thanks. (I wish I didn't delete the episode). I was waiting for someone else to notice the disturbing moment between Betty and Carla...how they sat right next to each other, and yet, could not connect. It was really sad. Speaks volumes about the times, but also I think helps us to make our own conclusions about the true nature of our friends in the MM world.
One thing that I am still wondering about was what Peggy was actually typing when Don walked into her office. She seemed a little protective of it, but didn't yank it out of the typewriter. Remember that Peggy always uses a dictaphone - so it had to be personal. So my gut was telling me that it was her resignation letter to Don. He was awfully keen to see what she was writing, but wasn't close enough and in any event was clearly distracted when he realized that the convertible image was no longer usable for AquaNet.
What do you think?
Well, if she didn't want Don to see what she was typing, she was awfully trusting to just get up and walk away from it. She went to Bert Cooper's office to watch the funeral, and he went into his own office, but how did she know he might not decide to go back into her office and check on her work on the Aqua Net material? As I recall, she did not remove the page from her typewriter before leaving her office.
You are right and that's certainly a good point. My read of the body language in the scene was that she was trying to lead Don out of the office and away from the typewriter first by standing up and inviting him to come to Cooper's office.
Recall that her decision to leave her office was pretty abrupt, right?
Not a perfect explanation, but it's what I think I saw. Been wrong before!
Thanks for the thoughts.
@ Baby Gene - I know Duck's real name is Herman, but it's obvious that the writers have stuck a Peewee Herman joke in here (Duck refers to Peggy as "Peewee" when they are on the phone) -- maybe it's just an inside joke?
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Also -- does anyone get why Duck unplugs the TV in the hotel room, instead of just turning it off? Is that just more death symbolism ("pulling the plug")?
My reaction: The unplugging generally symbolized Duck's "disconnection". Disconnection from his family (the divorce)...from responsibility (he is drinking again)...and morality (he is bonking Peggy while courting her for a position at Grey).
After the sex session, when he plugs the set back in and learns that the president has been murdered, his first thought is to reach out and to "reconnect" to his children ("I've got to call my kids"...). Perhaps Duck will go through a transition?
Anyway, my two cents for what it's worth.