Mad Men Season 1 Episode 4

            This episode is really interesting and helps me understand the characters more. It opens with Pete and his friends listening to a record when his wife Trudy arrives. She arrives unannounced and you can tell that Pete is annoyed with her arrival. Trudy has a surprise for Pete and wants to take him to lunch. Pete introduces Trudy to Don. And Don charms her like he does to most of the women on the show. Peggy is also there and she waves but Pete doesn’t introduce her instead he just gives her a dirty look. The surprise Trudy has for Pete is an apartment in Manhattan. Pete and Trudy argue that they can’t afford it. Trudy’s idea is that they could ask for help. Pete is hesitant. There is a little problem at the company between Don and Paul’s girlfriend Rachel. Don asks her out but she puts him down. Back at the Draper home Betty is reading to the kids to put them to be and then goes out to walk the dog. While walking she sees a many banging on Helen’s door. He tells her he is Helen’s husband and asks Betty if he can use her phone. But Betty refuses and tells him “I’m sure you are who you say you are, but I don’t let strange men into my house.” He looks angry and Betty goes home quickly. Later on, Helen comes by to apologize. Betty and Helen sit and talk and Helen explains how she divorced him because he was cheating. Helen says goodbye to Betty after Don arrives home. Now back to Pete. Pete goes to his father who is mean Pete discusses the apartment. Pete tells his father he needs help with the down payment. His father tells him no and he’s spoiled and that he thinks advertising work is meaningless and doesn’t count as work. Pete goes home and lies to Trudy saying he didn’t bring up them needing help for the down because his father is sick. The next day at after a meeting something huge happens. During a meeting with Bethlehem Steel Pete decides to undercut Don while don is pitching an idea. Don reminds Walter (the guy from Bethlehem Steel) that he initially liked Dons idea. There is a little argument between Pete and Don where the ends results are Pete storming out like a child saying he has good ideas too. Later that night the Betty gets a call from Helen asking if she could babysit. She goes and babysits but its weird how Glen behaves around her. Like asking for a lock of her hair or trying to watch while she uses the bathroom. Betty gives in and gives Glen a lock of hair. Once Helen arrives home Betty tells her nothing about what happened with Glen and goes home. Betty finds Don asleep with sketches on his chest that are ‘O Little Town of Bethlehem.” The story flashes over to Pete and Trudy who are having dinner with Trudy’s parents. Trudy’s parents offer to pay the down and Pete refuses. On the way home you can tell that Pete is angry.  But he continues to pull a shady move on Don and the guys at Sterling Cooper. He goes to the St. Regis hotel to meet Walter from the steel company. Once there Pete introduces them to ‘cousins’ and then pitches his idea. I feel that Pete is so willing to prove himself he endangers his job more than helping himself. The next day Walter and the people from the steel company meet. Don presents his O Little Town idea, but Walter wants Pete’s pitch. After Walter leaves, Don fires Pete. I know I was so happy when this happened mainly because Pete is a sleaze ball. Well, Pete is extremely upset and storms back to his office and kicks out the people who are listening to records. Don now has the duty of telling Roger that he fired Pete for going behind his back. Roger is happy while Pete is in his office drinking and trying not to cry. Now it is both of their duty to tell Cooper what has happened. Cooper tells them to rehire Pete because of his family and their influences. Don and Roger go to Pete’s office and the unthinkable happens. Roger tells Pete that Cooper and he wanted to fire Pete but Don wouldn’t allow it. Roger tells Pete to follow Don like a soldier following a commanding officer. The episode ends with Pete and Trudy in their new apartment. The neighbors come in and talk to them and are happy with their family connections. Pete however looks out of the window uncomfortably.

The same theme I have seen continued yet again. The theme is adultery. Don cheats on Betty and continues like nothing’s happened. I also noticed that all of the people in this show like to gossip. Betty talks to the psychologist about Helen not properly caring for Glen. It’s sad how Betty feels about Helen but pretends to be a friend. I also have seen the theme of alcoholism continue. Pete drinks heavily once he gets fired. I also saw the theme of smoking continue. Everyone in this show smokes so much.

            The scriptures that come to mind for the adultery is Hebrews 13:11. Which discuss marriage and how it should be held in honor among all and God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous it says it clearly how adulterers are going to be judged. For drinking and smoking I found 1 Peter 5:8 which says be sober-minded; be watchful. Again I ask how the show would be different if there was a Christian character. What would happen in this show if they were saved? Would the characters act differently?

Mad Men Episode 3

This episode begins with a big shocker.  Don probably isn't Don Draper after all. Someone by the name of Richard Whitman's thinks Don for someone else. But the way Don behaves shows he is hiding something. Don is grouchy and begins to binge drink. This alienates Betty even more.   The episode doesn’t take place in the office or in Manhattan but in the Draper household. It is when Don begins his binge while building a playhouse for his daughter’s birthday.  Don doesn't get drunk simply to so he can tolerate building the playhouse but it seems pretty obvious that he's drinking to suppress the real him that began to emerge when he was recognized on the train. In this episode there are some hints about Don’s past and how he is comfortable with manual labor the hilarious scene where he takes a leak and finds himself unable to wipe up without dirtying Betty's meticulous organization of the bathroom. Betty and her friend suddenly see Don as a sex object once his rough side begins to surface.  The scenes with the Drapers' friends and neighbors during the birthday party are among so hard to watch. They all gossip and speak badly of others who haven’t been around. The hardest scene to watch was when they assume about the new neighbor, Helen Bishop, and how they her divorce makes her less than them. It is expressed by the braying men and whispering women. It was extremely hard to watch how one of the neighbors slaps someone else’s child for accidently spill a drink. Don comes in and the neighbor plays it off. Betty ask for Don to go and get their daughter’s birthday cake. He goes only to not show up until 2 am the next morning. While this is happening Betty tries to make it better and Helen comes to the rescue with a frozen cake. During the episode you can tell Betty is upset but is trying to save face with her friends and neighbors. When Don does return home he not only returns home drunk and late but with an older dog for his daughter’s birthday. Betty is more upset with the dog then him returning home drunk and at 2 a.m. The only glimpse of the office is when of course Don cheats on Betty again with the women from the first episode the owner of Chanel. We see how much of a jerk Pete Campbell really is. We see Pete talking to Peggy about not speaking of the brief relationship they’ve had because of the fact that he’s married now. Peggy reluctantly agrees to what Pete asks.

            The same theme I have seen continued yet again. The theme is adultery. Don cheats on Betty and continues like nothing’s happened. I also noticed that all of the people in this show like to gossip. Betty and all her friends gossip about Helen. It’s sad how even though they gossip they pretend like their friends and Helen is the one who helped saved the daughter’s birthday. As you can see another theme that has continues is the alcoholism. Don goes on a binge because someone called him by a different name. The neighbor in the episode slaps a child who doesn’t belong to him for spilling his drink. Everything revolves around the lies that are being told.

            The scriptures that come to mind are Hebrews 13:11 which discuss how marriage should be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefined for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous. It says it clearly how adulterers are going to be judged. For drinking I found 1 Peter 5:8 which says be sober-minded; be watchful. I wonder what would happen if someone in the show would just choose not a drink. How much would it change the way people see them? If they where Christians in this show would it change their habits or would they just play it off like they are now?

Mad Men Episode 2

Well the show Mad Men doesn't really change in the second episode. It is all about Don Draper and his very complicated life. In this episode Betty, Don’s wife, has a massive panic attack where her hands go numb behind the wheel of her car. Betty ends up crashing into a fountain in the front yard. Peggy is missing Pete.  So let’s begin with an in detail summary. 

The episode begins with Don and Betty at dinner with Don’s boss Roger Sterling, and his wife Mona. Don is reluctant to talk about his past. Roger speaks of his nanny, and mentions his daughter sees a psychologist. Once the ladies go to the bathroom, Betty’s hands go numb. Mona puts her lipstick on for her.  At dinner Don refuses to speak about his past and later that night Betty begins to wonder who he really is and she even asks him “who’s in there?” Whoa go Peggy in this episode she receives her first paycheck. Then Don is persuaded by someone name Bertram Cooper to work on the Nixon campaign. Then there is some real action when Joan walks by and sees Peggy about to eat lunch and she say’s how sad it is. So Joan takes Peggy into the break room where Pete (the guy who cheated on his finance last episode) has sent a postcard to his friends back in New York. The girls say they’re going to shop through lunch. Of course, this invites the men to take them out instead, and they flirt heavily, and when they get back, Paul hits on Peggy. Peggy shoots him down. While this is occurring back home Betty and Francine gossip about the new neighbor, divorced Helen Bishop. Later, Betty slows down while driving past Helen and her hands again go numb. Then Betty ends up crashing into a fountain in the front yard. There is an argument between Don and his mistress Midge. Then Don goes home Betty tells him all about the doctors and Don doesn't believe her and thinks that psychiatry is fake. Don comes home that night with a beautiful white gold watch, but Betty, still weepy, again suggests psychiatry. Don arranges for her to see Dr. Arnold Wayne. After taking Betty to Dr. Wayne at eleven in the morning, Don blows off work to visit Midge. Paul hits on Peggy and kisses her but she pulls away. He asks her if she belongs to someone. Peggy starts to put together her desk to leave a little early, but Joan catches her and shows her letters that she’d typed is wrong. Peggy says she’s upset because men are all over her, although Joan suggests this is enjoyable. Betty is at her first appointment with Dr. Wayne, meandering about her hands, the bomb, and feeling anxious. Dr. Wayne silently takes notes. Don takes Betty out to dinner, and, once home, Dr. Wayne calls to discuss Betty’s session.

Again throughout the episode I saw one major theme play out. It was sexism and adultery from all the men on the show. Again, even when Betty, Don’s wife is seeing a psychologist he chooses to cheat with Midge. All thought this episode a theme I saw was drinking. Each man and every woman had multiple drinks. They all consumed alcohol in almost every scene of the show. I was amazed at how they all treated each other. It was all about sex and how they all want to try and get into with each other. It’s hard to understand the women most they say don’t want to be with the men but they don’t really know how to say now or stop the continual flirting and advances. The last theme is that everyone in the show is a chain smoker they all continually smoke. Even Betty’s friend Francine who is pregnant smokes. It’s strange how no one seems to care about personal health but instead their social lives.

In conclusion, these actions and themes are against scripture. In Hebrews 13:11 it discusses how let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefined for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous. It says it clearly how adulterers are going to be judged. I just don’t understand how a woman would be able to live in this time. For drinking I found 1 Peter 5:8 which says be sober-minded; be watchful. Again this time was all about a person’s social life not their life. I just find it hard to comprehend how people feel that all these behaviors are okay.  

MadMen Episode 1

The blog TV show that I have chosen to watch for my blogging assignment is Mad Men. Mad Men follows the lives of ad executives in the 1960’s. It takes place on Madison Avenue in New York City. The show follows many different characters and their lives and views of work and other things. The characters are Don Draper, Peggy Olson, Pete Campbell, Betty Francis, Betty Draper, and Roger Sterling. The first episode discusses the life of an ad man. It begins with a young Peggy Olson coming to work at the ad agency. She is placed to work for the head ad man who is Don Draper. Don offended the beautiful and intelligent owner of Chanel. She argues against his sexist remarks and he storms out saying ‘no women will speak to him like that.’ The episode continues Don Draper struggling to maintain his client of a cigarette company Lucky Strike. The beginning of the episode Joan Harris who is the manager of the secretaries hints towards Peggy Olson that having affairs with some of the men in the company may be necessary.  Meanwhile Peggy is fighting this thought and want of having to have an affair something is brewing between her and the engaged Pete Campbell. In the episode you see Don Draper having a relationship with Midge. The first episode I believed she was Don’s wife but in the end shows she is Don’s mistress and he is married to Betty Draper.  As the episode continues there’s some arguments between Don and Peter. They argue over the fact that Pete is a junior executive and wants ma chance to prove himself but goes about it the wrong way. In the end of the episode Don goes home to his wife Betty with the Lucky Strike ad that he wanted. While things wind down it shows the heavily intoxicated with alcohol Pete Campbell show up at Peggy Campbell’s apartment to apologize. The episode ends with Don at home with his wife and Peggy inviting Pete into her apartment.

All throughout the episode I saw one major theme play out. It was sexism and adultery from all the men on the show. It was very apparent that the men in the show, most who are engaged or married, enter sexual relationships with other women. Two men surly cheat on their wives sand one on their fiancé. The Joan Harris who is the manager of the secretaries openly discusses and hits towards Peggy Olson having to have an affair to continue with her work. Another thing I saw was that the two Midge and Peggy both new that Don and Pete where in relationships. One other theme I saw though the episode was the fact that all the characters smoked. All the characters I saw where chain smokers they continually smoked throughout the episode. These where the two major theses I saw continually play throughout the episode.

I feel that both of these themes are against what biblical scripture says for us to do in the Christian faith. For the first theme it is found in the Ten Commandments that we are not to commit adultery. As for smoking it is found in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 which says “don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body." This isn’t a specific command or warning against not smoking but is says we are to treat our body like the temple of the Holy Spirit. We are to treat our bodies with respect because of the Holy Spirit living within us.