Loved the premier, so many things bubbling beneath the surface. The perfect description was Ken saying that things were "stable," but Pete is right, stable is one step back from success moving towards failure. Things look stable on the surface for all the characters but major cracks are showing. Just like the mid60's such as when Trudy thinks everything is fine in the world and Peggy's beatnik boyfriend can see the race riots and other social turmoil of the 60's just taking root.
Don - has finally gotten what it seems he wanted, he's lost in the honeymoon period with his young, sexually vibrant wife and thinking of nothing but banging her all the time. He seems to have combined his "proper" home life with his sexual appettite at work that led to him cheating on Betty all the time. Unfortunately, this means he has lost his own drive at work and the firm is suffering for it.
Peggy - is doing all the creative and seeing how Heinz shot her down, she's probably not doing as good a job as she thinks she is.
Pete - workaholic, misses the city, I think he's afraid that he's going to turn into his friend on the train that uses work to escape from his home life and family, in a way Pete is turning into a younger version of how we saw Don in the first season. He's the only one pulling the cart at the firm and he's overwhelmed, even Ken doesn't have the killer instinct or the drive and determination that's needed.
Roger - the honeymoon period is over with his young wife and he is reduced to trying to poach or bribe new clients away from Pete.
Lane - forced by his father to get back together with his wife, he pines for his bachelor days of banging chocolate bunnies. I think he has major money issues as well as evidenced by his wife constantly asking for money and about decorators, etc. He and Pete are the only 2 partners not loaded from the sale of the original Sterling Cooper. I'm also wondering what Lane does all day at the office as he seemed to admit that Joan does a lot of the work that you would think is his area.
Joan - once again realizing that her "perfect life" of doctor husband and baby is not what she really wanted. She finds herself worrying that she's become marginalized and forced out at SCDP and she definitely has some mother issues who knows exactly how to get under her skin and make this proud strong woman insecure.
As for the other characters, Harry has become even more of a ##### morphing from the nice guy, devoted family man (other than that one time) to the same lecherous men he saw running Sterling Cooper in the 50's. The problem is that it's now the mid-60's and times they are a changing. Bert is good for a laugh, but just as irrelevant now as he has always been. Poor Megan is realizing that her young, vibrant, sexual revolution influenced and positive outlook clashes heavily with Don and his coworkers who are older, cynical and still stuck in their "proper and prim" 50's attitudes. What a contrast Megan is to Betty, sleeps in the nude verses night clothes, gives sexy dances in front of all his friends whereas Don once had a major row with Betty for what he saw as "flirting" with Roger over dinner.
As for the firm, things may be "stable" but it's obvious they are really a balancing act. Lane says their credit line is tapped, they can't afford to hire anyone else, the books are a mess, and they have major timing issues with their expenses growing and their revenues only trickling in after the fact. If they don't already, they are going to have major cashflow problems. It doesn't help that 3 of the Senior partners already made their money and at this point are useless and Pete is the only one trying to grow the business. Even once ambitious Ken is complacent and happy with "stable" and we already saw last season he wasn't willing to do whatever it takes to bring business in the door like Pete was.
Probably the best thing about the premier... no Betty the whole time!!! Thank goodness, I didn't even miss her.
Nice write-up. The theme did seem to be that everyone at the office was complacent and minimally motivated except Pete. Even Peggy, who was working hard and expressed her usual annoyance at not being listened to or appreciated, didn't seem to be as intensely consumed by the office. It seems clear the agency is going to inch towards the brink again. Hopefully Don returns to the guy who told Bert "I want to work" when the sky was falling at the end of season three.
Don't even bother watching anymore until you've gotten caught up. And the smoking is absolutely necessary.
this is like telling the various members of the Wu-Tang to put down their blunts
