Episode 505 is a beautiful character study picking apart the life of one Pete Campbell. In the suburbs all is not well. He’s a bred and borne city kid, and he’s having a hard time adapting to the suburban life style. Like the continuous discordant drips of the leaky kitchen faucet, Pete’s life continues on and on, but to what end? In writing, he has it all. He is an important member who is continuously bringing in clients, has a beautiful home, a charming wife, and a new child. He should be feeling like a king, but something’s off. He’s bored and restless of country life. Not only that, he’s downright depressed. During the whole episode he constantly mentions examples of death and tragedy. He talks of keeping guns in the house. It’s been two weeks since the brutal deaths in Chicago, and now there’s been a shooting at a University in Texas as well as news of plane crashes. The Mad Men universe is no longer what it used to be in terms of predictability. Time slips by in a moment and now the world is full of random events.
The one modicum of learning some control over life and death is scoffed at in the beginning of the episode. Pete’s in a driver’s education class in a local high school during a showing of “Signal 30,” a staple traffic safety film shown in driver’s ed classes all over the nation. As the sounds and images of the carnage of real life traffic accidents are played over the projector, Pete laughs at the film’s campiness, winning a smile from the attractive blonde in a few seats ahead of him. He slowly gazes over body, from neck, breasts, bare legs and feet. Rather than learning how to navigate safely, he becomes preoccupied with attracting the attentions of an underage female. He openly flirts with her and flaunts his moneyed background in an attempt to reel her in, and constantly asks her for a free Sunday. She’s something new, something young, and something he can use to satiate his boredom. He’s tried buying happiness but as lovely as his new stereo is to sounding just like “a tiny orchestra,” it’s not enough. More than anything what does a king want? An adoring audience. He’s found someone that could possibly fill that role.
What about Trudy? As mentioned by Pete in the season opener, there used to be a time when she wouldn’t be caught dead with a robe outside the house. She’s no longer wearing frilly negligees to bed, but loose fitting sleeping gowns and hair rollers. She’s no longer calling him at the office and asking what he’d like to eat for dinner, and nor does she wait for him to come home. She’s (rightly) preoccupied with keeping their house a beautiful home and their new child. She doesn’t have time to stroke his ego.
Edward Ballar
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Ramon Angel
Al Woo
Stephen Jang
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