Mad Men 5x08 Reaction
Added 2026-01-03 23:50:05 +0000 UTC
Comments
They were not understanding to him at all. We the audience suspected that Megan wanted to move on for an episode or two now. But from Don’s perspective, she dropped a bomb on him.And he was gracious about it. Don is heartbroken, and understandably so. But apparently he’s not even allowed to have feelings. These two are great but sometimes in this show they are completely unable to empathize with men.
Julien
2026-01-08 00:58:30 +0000 UTCI love watching this show with you two so much 🥹 This is my favourite series of all time, and the best thing is that we're over halfway through season five and so many of my fav episodes and moments are still to come. Eeeekk!!
walder slayyyyy
2026-01-06 13:24:47 +0000 UTCFinally broke down after this reaction and started watching ahead. Episodes 509 and 510 down already.
Mike
2026-01-06 00:22:14 +0000 UTCFaye is reading Games People Play in 4x11 too.
Jamie
2026-01-05 14:55:24 +0000 UTCTrudy is excellent, but to be fair to Pete, as the girls said, he has a huge wounded bird complex. And I think that's why he feels the disconnect with her. Because she's not wounded inside the way he is, and that leaves a gap between them.
Sebastian
2026-01-05 09:41:40 +0000 UTCI finally caught up to the reactions after binging the past seasons and now I join the painful wait for the next upload 😓
mundanelotus
2026-01-05 07:00:04 +0000 UTCI think it's easy to think it's easy for Don to be unaffected/unconflicted with Megan wanting to go in a completely different direction with her career. I think it's totally human to want your partner to be into something you're into. Megan did initially indicate she wanted to try and pursue copywriting and when she succeeds at it and you see your partner excelling and something you're passionate about, it can't not hurt when they suddenly reject it completely (in a way rejecting you).
Eric Viola
2026-01-05 04:45:09 +0000 UTC"Lady Lazarus" is a Sylvia Plath poem about death/suicide and rebirth, published posthumously (after Plath's own suicide) in 1965. The final lines definitely feel applicable to Megan's reinvention, and her rejection of Don's dream for her future in advertising, in the episode: I am your opus, I am your valuable, The pure gold baby That melts to a shriek. I turn and burn. Do not think I underestimate your great concern. Ash, ash— You poke and stir. Flesh, bone, there is nothing there—— A cake of soap, A wedding ring, A gold filling. Herr God, Herr Lucifer Beware Beware. Out of the ash I rise with my red hair And I eat men like air. Cyngu onggyrq qrcerffvba nyy ure yvsr naq jnf gerngrq jvgu ryrpgevp fubpx gurencl, fb gurer'f nabgure fvtavsvpnag cnenyyry gurer jvgu Orgu. Naq bs pbhefr gur ersreraprf gb fhvpvqr pbagvahr fgnpxvat hc: Va nqqvgvba gb Qba qenjvat gur abbfr n srj rcvfbqrf ntb, urer jr'ir tbg gur pbairefngvba nobhg Crgr'f vafhenapr cbyvpl, gur rzcgl ryringbe funsg, naq gur Flyivn Cyngu ersrerapr va gur rcvfbqr'f gvgyr. Onq arjf sbe Ynar nurnq...
Mike
2026-01-05 03:48:29 +0000 UTCI have never felt sadder for Don than in this episode.
Sami
2026-01-04 22:32:39 +0000 UTCPraying that Heated Rivalry is on your guys radar🙏
whit anderson
2026-01-04 22:06:38 +0000 UTCMany scenes in this series remind me of a book, Games People Play (1964) by Eric Berne. I wonder where Matthew Weiner gained some of his insight into human behavior from that period.
Thomas Fahey
2026-01-04 21:26:26 +0000 UTCThe main problem for me is that I don't think Beth gives off any type of sexual hints while they're in the car. I think the read on this episode would be more balanced if Beth had even simply given Pete a knowing look as she exited the car.
Father of the Year
2026-01-04 19:20:31 +0000 UTCRegarding the title, since you were wondering, in the New Testament (in John) Lazarus is the guy that Jesus brings back from the dead.
Biberius Caldius Mero
2026-01-04 18:59:00 +0000 UTCI think the “disjointed” nature of Season 5 is specifically why it’s so many people’s favorite. Every episode is sort of its own thing, and we are getting a lot of characters and situations that don’t always involve Don. What would you want Don to do that he’s not doing? He’s in his honeymoon phase. He’s cruising. Ginsberg is a great character! What’s the problem there? There’s lots of reasons Pete is bored and sad but we don’t have to rehash those in depth (American Dream disillusionment, toxic masculinity leading to perceived emasculation, you know.. the central themes of Mad Men). I like that Lane disappears for a few episodes (or whoever’s turn it is to disappear.. didn’t we go many episodes without Peggy a couple seasons ago? And we haven’t seen Betty since the beginning). MM could very much run into the character bloat problem if we had to follow every storyline all the time. I don’t think the women have gotten more saintly. Peggy just cheated on her boyfriend. Megan’s mom just cheated on her husband. Beth just cheated on her husband and played a game with Pete (deserved or not). Betty is still Betty. What we know of Megan is pretty middle of the road. Unless just not having a terrible flaw means being saintly. Joan is the only one who is usually given a halo effect. The only man who has gotten worse is Pete. Don is Don (until the Howard Johnson's episode, I would say this is an improved version of Don. He hasn't even cheated!). Roger has been on an upswing. Ken is great. Ginsberg is oddly sweet. Stan’s comments have all but dried up. Lane has arguably gotten worse but again we haven’t seen enough of him to make this a point. I’m genuinely curious on your thoughts on what you would want to happen.
Jamie
2026-01-04 16:51:12 +0000 UTCTomorrow Never Knows isn't exactly the catchiest tune. It was the avant-garde's preferred track on Revolver, so a poser like Megan would be drawn to it. She could've told Don to listen to Eleanor Rigby (an actual great song) first, instead.
tilden katz
2026-01-04 16:11:16 +0000 UTCI feel like I could write this under 3 different ongoing threads so I'll just put it here as it's own thing: There is a lot of pre-known character bias going into the Pete thing - we know him as being a creep so that’s our default assumption going into every scene. We don’t know who Beth is, so we can’t judge her character as accurately. I imagine if the scorned housewife in question was Betty, a character we know well, and a rando named Pete appeared in her life and she decided to take advantage of it to get back at her cheating husband, etc, it would be encouraged even. But we just met Beth so it’s like “why is this beautiful woman into Pete of all people? Why is he coercing her?” And by "we" I guess I mostly mean LM, though I suspect many people must see this episode the same way. Even though I think it’s obvious what she’s doing (the window heart confirms this), maybe there is a bit of a writing flaw if some people boil this episode down to just Pete being a scumbag and it being unimaginable that someone would sleep with him. I think the Harry scene specifically was overkill on "isn't Pete the worst?" when they should've been driving home Beth's point more. I love subtext, but maybe this scene undoes it?
Jamie
2026-01-04 16:10:17 +0000 UTCTHANK YOU.
tilden katz
2026-01-04 15:54:25 +0000 UTCThe highlight of the episode is Peggy telling Don to shut up. Elisabeth Moss should've won the Emmy for this episode. I'm still waiting to have someone explain to me what Don has done this season. The show has no center because of it. Storylines that go nowhere. I mean WHAT is Ginsberg? Pete is bored, sad, for apparently no reason at all. Lane punches the shit out of Pete and promptly disappears for 3 episodes. Its a disjointed, unfocused season, with Don on his way to another failed marriage as the feature??? Hooray. Meanwhile the women grow more saintly, and the men are resolutely determined to break the Guinness world record for behaving like animals.
tilden katz
2026-01-04 15:53:30 +0000 UTCShame Alexis Bledel's role was spoiled by the thumbnail. Pete and her storyline is meant to reflect a role reversal, with Pete taking on the role of the 'other woman'. His conversation with Harry illuminates that feeling of being used and powerless we see in some of Don's lovers. Maybe also highlighting the 'changing times' we see in Don's storyline. The nuance gets lost somewhat because of Pete's desperation and generally unpleasant nature. I mentioned it in Signal 30, but I'm not a huge fan of Pete's increasing humiliation and sliminess this season. It's disappointing to be invested in a character despite their bad qualities, only for them to keep going to the extent that I've completely checked out. I still enjoy the plotlines and the acting. I get why they did it, it is a logical continuation of his character. I just don't enjoy it.
Mark M
2026-01-04 14:14:23 +0000 UTCIt makes for a phenomenal needle drop… but I did have to wonder why Megan would tell Don to start with the final track on the album. Surely he’d find the first track Taxman a lot more palatable and easy to get into. I just don’t get people who listen to an album out of order for the first time I guess lol
Darrach
2026-01-04 13:17:35 +0000 UTCHeartbreaking: Worst guy you know doesn't get to have the affair he yearns for.
Nina
2026-01-04 11:09:26 +0000 UTCSo strange to see Mr Belding from Saved By The Bell pop up in this episode as the Cool Whip guy
Śéáń
2026-01-04 08:54:19 +0000 UTCV ybir gur Orgu fgbel, fb V jnf nyfb nagvpvcngvat guvf, ohg V qb guvax V fnj vg nf whfg nabgure Crgr purngvat fgbelyvar hagvy yngre. V rira jbaqrerq haqre n cerivbhf ernpgvba vs gurl jbhyq frr vg gung jnl hagvy gur RPG erirny naq fhofrdhrag ivfvgngvba. V jbhyq yvxr vs gurl ernq vagb Orgu'f punenpgre zber, nf qrfcvgr shgher xabjyrqtr V qb guvax fur'f ravtzngvp naq gurer'f zber gb ure hcsebag guna bgure jbzra Crgr unf unq nssnvef jvgu, ohg bu jryy. V qba'g guvax vg'f n snhyg bs gur jevgvat, naq V qba'g guvax vg'f YZ abg orvat noyr gb frr vg rvgure. Fbzrgvzrf qvfphffvbaf/creprcgvba pna or vasyhraprq ol jung lbh guvax be fnl va gur zbzrag, yvxr V'z fher vs bar bs gurz unq ahqtrq gur bgure va gur qverpgvba bs nanylmvat Orgu gurl jbhyq or noyr gb unir fbzr guvatf gb fnl, ohg vg whfg qvqa'g unccra. Jura fur arkg pnyyf uvz naq fnlf gb zrrg, gurl jvyy cebonoyl fnl fbzrguvat nobhg ure orvat haunccl naq gura pbasvezvat gung jvgu gur "V'ir orra srryvat oyhr" fghss. V yvxr lbhe ernqvat ba gur cbjre qlanzvp, V abgrq va bar bs zl pbzzragf gung vg qbrf srry yvxr Crgr trggvat n gnfgr bs uvf bja zrqvpvar.
Kev
2026-01-04 06:40:39 +0000 UTCOne of my absolute favourite episodes, maybe even my favourite, depending on the day. The "Tomorrow Never Knows" moment is still electrifying -- both for what it means narratively, and as a viewer who spent most of S4 and S5 wondering how they were going to handle The Beatles when they could never in a million years play their music on the show. (The show played footsie with the question in S4 with the "Do You Want to Know a Secret?" cover, and again this year with Don whistling "I Want to Hold Your Hand". Of course this episode would feature a conversation about how impossible it would license their songs. $250K well spent.) I think it's really fascinating how the show has dramatized the importance of music this season -- first with mission to sign the Rolling Stones, and now with Don outright asking why clients care so much about using pop music in their commercials -- because I think you can feel that same shift in how the show itself uses music cues. All the way back to "Band of Gold" in the premiere, Mad Men has used popular music (with an *almost* perfect devotion to period-appropriateness -- I see you The Decemberists) to underscore important character moments and key political and cultural milestones, but the way that pop culture has bled more and more into the narrative and fabric of the show, to the point that we're now getting stories about whether the main character is "made for these times" (to borrow a phrase)... Maybe it's just that "Satisfaction" and The Beach Boys are more famous and recognizable than Bobby Helms and Perry Como, but the needle drops feel bolder and more expressive than they did in the buttoned-down early seasons. And it makes sense, because the explosion of pop culture (and the Beatles especially) in the decade is just one of those cultural forces that you *have to* explore if you're going to write about the 1960s. On a totally unrelated note: Vf vg zl xabjyrqtr bs gur erfg bs gur frnfba pbybhevat zl bcvavba, be ner gurl ernyyl haqre-ernqvat gur Crgr fgbelyvar urer? Gurer vf n ybg zber tbvat ba guna "Crgr fxrrif ba Ubjneqf jvsr", naq vg'f abg rfcrpvnyyl fhogyr -- bhgfvqr bs Orgu'f zragny urnygu ceboyrzf, V thrff, gubhtu V guvax rira gung abgr vf cerggl cebzvarag va gurve nsgre-frk pbairefngvba nobhg gur cvpgherf bs gur Rnegu. Ohg lrf, fur *vf* yrnivat uvz ba gur ubbx, naq cynlvat hc gur "ab Crgre, jr pna'g!" bs gur fvghngvba. Crgr vf ybbxvat sbe fvghngvbaf jurer ur pna srry cbjreshy -- ohg fb vf Orgu, naq fur sbhaq bar. Znlor chggvat Uneel va gung fprar jvgu Crgr gb pbasvez uvf (lrf, irel gbkvp) ernq ba gur fvghngvba jnfa'g n tbbq fgbelgryyvat pubvpr, orpnhfr jr xabj jung xvaq bs punenpgre Uneel vf?
Mike
2026-01-04 06:29:12 +0000 UTCMatt Weiner must've met some guy like Pete when he was younger, and ABSOLUTELY hated that guy. "How can I make this guy worse" is how he went about writing that character. It's boring. Makes out with a guy's wife in his living room, while he's in the house. WHO DOES THAT???
tilden katz
2026-01-04 06:12:59 +0000 UTCCutting to the researcher, still standing there through that entire argument lol
Mike
2026-01-04 04:37:10 +0000 UTCThey really knocked it out of the park with Megan's mid 60s styling. I can just imagine Jessica Paré being the costume/hair/makeup department's own personal barbie doll.
Jamie
2026-01-04 04:33:06 +0000 UTCThat scene in the test kitchen is very Always Sunny coded.
Taya
2026-01-04 04:30:51 +0000 UTCVs Wbna jnf ernyyl nyjnlf pbeerpg lbh'q guvax fur jbhyq frr gur qvibepr pbzvat, rfcrpvnyyl fvapr fur whfg fnj gur fgbel bs nabgure "frpbaq jvsr" cynl bhg ivn Wnar. Gur bgure guvat vf, V pbhyq or zvferzrzorevat, ohg lrf Qba tbg Zrtna gung pbzzrepvny va guvf frnfba svanyr, ohg qbrfa'g fur qb jryy nsgrejneqf naq ynaq ure bja Fbnc Bcren? Naq fur fnlf fbzrguvat nobhg trggvat bssref va YN. V guvax fur pbhyq unir qbar jryy, ohg fur fcvenyf va gur ynfg frnfba qhr gb ure crefbany yvsr juvpu raqf hc nssrpgvat ure cebsrffvbany yvsr. Rvgure jnl V guvax lbh'er zrnag gb fvqr jvgu Crttl zber va gung fprar; rira Wbna eryragf naq tenagf Crttl'f cerzvfr ("gura lbh unq rirel evtug gb or uneq ba ure").
Kev
2026-01-04 04:30:17 +0000 UTCYbir gur Mbzovrf fubhg bhg urer. Nabgure UBS Znq Zra arrqyr qebc pbzvat hc j/ gurz va n srj frnfbaf.
Mike
2026-01-04 04:24:04 +0000 UTCV nccerpvngr gur tveyf qrsraqvat Zrtna naq oryvrivat va ure, naq V haqrefgnaq jul gurl'q vagrecerg Wbna'f pbzzrag nf rail/ovggrearff. Ohg jung gurl snvyrq gb gnxr vagb nppbhag vf gung Wbna vf nyjnlf evtug nobhg gurfr guvatf yby. Ure vafgvapgf ner nyjnlf ba cbvag
Taya
2026-01-04 04:23:08 +0000 UTCMegan's outfits are so modern looking, I'd happily wear them today. How did we go from poofy 50's dresses to this in only a few short years?!
Taya
2026-01-04 04:17:40 +0000 UTCI always interpreted that in conjunction with her rolling down the window to clear the heart, as, yes, her covering up the "evidence", but also as a message of "This was nice but it's over". The gloomy romanticism borders on being manic-pixie-dreamy, but the housewife context grounds it for me.
Kev
2026-01-04 03:59:19 +0000 UTCI do wonder how much of Don's different response to Megan's dream of acting vs Betty's dream of modeling simply comes down to the context of each situation rather than an attempt to be better. With Betty's return to modeling in 1x9, it wasn't simply a case of her taking agency of herself and once again pursuing her dream. She was actively being used as a pawn by McCann Erickson in order to manipulate Don, and with Don valuing his sense of autonomy above all else, he relunctantly shut down Betty's dream. None of that exists with Megan's return to acting. Don isn't being put in a box or made to feel like a puppet on a string. It's much easier for him to try playing the role of the supportive husband in this case, even if he still doesn't like it.
Father of the Year
2026-01-04 03:58:48 +0000 UTCMad Men does cringe very well, and that "Just try it" (ahem, I mean "Just taste it") scene with Peggy and Don has to be one of the most unbearable ones for me.
Kev
2026-01-04 03:56:40 +0000 UTCMy two readings about Beth: 1. It's Pete getting a taste of his own medicine. She initiates, gets her fix, says "I'm fine now" and dumps him. 2. V qba'g xabj vs nalbar unf bofreirq guvf orsber, ohg V guvax Orgu gb Crgr vf jung Enpury vf gb Qba.
Kev
2026-01-04 03:48:32 +0000 UTCAMC and the Mad Men crew paid $250,000 for the rights to use a Beatles track for 30 seconds, only to have the main character turn it off in disgust 💀 They're truly the greatest to ever do it... What happens when there's a misalignment between "what you're good at" and "what you want to be good at"? It's a tough one. As a dirt-poor traumatized self-made man, Don struggles to understand how Megan could ever give up something she has raw talent at. All he can see is her in ten years, as good or better than him. But it's extra interesting because Don's entire life is a misalignment. For the first time perhaps in years, Don is at peace. He's in love with a woman who loves him back and he isn't even cheating on her (wow!). He's still drinking but not as bad. Work is mostly good, the darkest points of S4 are in the rear view mirror, new clients arrive and leave happy. Pete got skis! Don even has enough introspection to say it himself: Why shouldn't Megan do what makes her happy? It's a tough question because the misalignment isn't between what Megan wants and what she has, it's ultimately between Don Draper and The World. As the sixties progresses, as fashions change, as Don's beautiful modern wife rocks up looking like a "Sixties Movie Star" from our collective imaginations, as clients request trendy songs and kids riot and Peggy rips a blunt in the office, there is Donald Draper. Still standing rock solid, drinking his Canadian Rye brown in a two-piece suit built like knight's armor. The tank man. Don's livelihood is built on knowing what people like and desire and perhaps for the first time ever, he feels that insight slipping away... how can he know what the average consumer wants when he doesn't even know what his own 26yo wife wants? And in the end, he turns the trippy new Beatles record off: it's not just a metaphor for Megan, it's a representation of the world moving past him towards something new and away from his folksy car-whistling nostalgia of "I wanna hoold your haaand". Don is a man built perfectly for 1960 but it's now 1966. Bonus Thoughts: PIZZA HOUSE! "I think she's good at everything, she's just one of those girls" has stuck with me... some people ARE just like that, it's cool. Joan settles into a nice background supportive role here, it's nice to see her sniping a little out of pocket again... she wants to gossip and be mad but Peggy is having a little enlightened moment, yeesh. Lola mentions the music picks being great and I think it's half true but also half that we're getting into an era where we still listen to the songs - Gimme Shelter, developed Beatles, Stan + Ginsberg even mentioned The Zombies etc. Sure Pete is a loser, but he's not the worst person Rory Gilmore has slept with.
Kara
2026-01-04 03:47:21 +0000 UTCMoney well worth spending. Impossible to tell the story of this decade without featuring The Beatles, and using this *exact* moment, with Revolver and "Tomorrow Never Knows" specifically, where -- and I don't think I'm exaggerating -- the band *changed* music... It speaks so perfectly to the way that the world, and the country, and SCDP is changing, and how Don might be getting left a little behind.
Mike
2026-01-04 03:41:20 +0000 UTCYeah, everyone in this plot -- except Trudy, obviously -- is cheating. "Pete is a creep", and rolling your eyes at his conversation with Harry, is not giving enough credit to the storyline.
Mike
2026-01-04 03:32:39 +0000 UTCTrudy is an ICON and literally perfect, and that is wayyyyyyyy too much for Pathetic Pete so he has his moments of control and manipulation elsewhere. It's disgusting.
Scott
2026-01-04 02:32:27 +0000 UTCIt was a small moment but I like that we’ve gotten to the point where Peggy can straight up tell Don to shut up. In front of Ken and loud enough for others to hear, no less. And he did.
Jamie
2026-01-04 02:25:14 +0000 UTCJust like the last episode showed us Sally come SO CLOSE to having a good evening with her father, here we see Megan & Don come SO CLOSE to having a healthy marriage. Meagan lies to Don, but she feels bad and confesses very quickly. Don accepts her explanation and doesn't suspect that the lie is covering up something deeper. He avoids paranoia, and doesn't even get angry at the lie itself. He listens to Meagan when she says she wans to quit, and supports her even though he doesn't understand her desire. SO CLOSE. But despite not showing his anger with Meagan, Don is internally exploding and so he lashes out at everybody around him. Don "supports" Meagan in quitting her job, but it's a thoughtless support that doesn't take into account the fallout of their actions (For example, Meagan should not have left that day. She should have helped the rest of the team transition to a new person, and finished what was on her desk). He's saying Yes To Everything instead of thinking about it and making an informed decision. So they avoid a fight right here, but it's still not open communication. I was shocked at Pete's awareness that Beth was intially only having sex with him to get back at her husband. He dropped it very quickly, and latched onto an obsession with continuing the affair, but even that brief moment of Seeing is more than I expected from him. Not related to the show, but the insurance conversation here always reminds of how proud I was a few years ago when my workplace got no-cost life insurance for all personnel. It's not a MASSIVE amount, but it covers every permanent employee and pays out to the beneficiary of their choice with absolutely zero cost to them. And when I hear how other companies do things like have insurance pay THEM, I'm glad that we cleared that low bar.
JBK405
2026-01-04 02:11:28 +0000 UTC"They're exactly what they're supposed to be. But they're not 'it'." Basically sums up the entire episode (Pete having everything he should want, his work life going well, 'perfect' home life and still unfulfilled and miserable, Megan with the job Peggy and Don both think is perfect for different reasons yet she's still unfulfilled and miserable. ) Had to laugh at the reaction when Beth drew the heart on the window. It's whatever, not gonna get into a big thing about it, but always makes me smile when conclusions are jumped to and then proven wrong.
Jay Craig
2026-01-04 01:59:01 +0000 UTCWith how obvious the small cracks in Megan and Don's relationship are, I do appreciate Don's conversation with Roger because it proves that he is self aware. It doesn't mean that he's going to 100% act on that awareness as usual but it makes his relationship with Megan so much more complex and indeed different than the one he had with Betty
bondbond53
2026-01-04 01:07:47 +0000 UTCYou can name the woman – Alexis Bledel – they know her already
bondbond53
2026-01-04 01:04:54 +0000 UTCThe traffic is ungodly and then you get on Metro North and watch the cars go faster than the train. You would think service has improved but every time I watch Mad Men and they're on the train I wonder if it was actually faster in the 60s.
Jamie
2026-01-04 01:03:19 +0000 UTCTomorrow Never Knows cost them $250,000 over 10 years ago so more like $350,000 in today’s money. It was about 10% of the average Mad Men episode's budget. So yes, quite a lot!
Jamie
2026-01-04 00:51:09 +0000 UTCYeah, having your license only means you drive to the train station here. I wish I could convey the nightmare of traffic now in the NYC/CT corridor. The horror! The horror!
Scott
2026-01-04 00:35:49 +0000 UTCPete was (as usual) awful here but no comment about the manipulation of the insurer's wife (making the first move / heart on the window despite saying she wants him to move on)?
Dhaval Kale
2026-01-04 00:21:09 +0000 UTCRory!
Jason
2026-01-04 00:11:26 +0000 UTCJust taste it!
Taya
2026-01-04 00:00:11 +0000 UTCFun fact: the woman Pete has sex with is Pete’s actor’s real life wife. Also it’s rare for the Beatles to give shows rights to their songs but I’m happy they got a chance to cause it’s not the 60s without the Beatles
Jude G
2026-01-04 00:00:00 +0000 UTC
