The Gypsy and the Hobo

(Caution: Mad Men spoilers...)

Guess I was wrong: Don seemed completely unprepared when Betty confronted him about the contents of the box. Some people seem surprised that this took place so soon, but after Betty got into the desk in last week's episode, I could not see her biding her time sitting on those unanswered questions for long.

I think last night's scenes between Don and Betty regarding the contents of the box were the finest moments the series has given us yet. I'm always prepared for something to come along and cause me to change that opinion: after season 1 it was the Kodak presentation followed by Don's return to the empty house; during season 2 it was replaced by Don's visit to Peggy in the hospital, and later in the season that scene was replaced by the one where Peggy told Pete she'd had his baby. There's no question that Mad Men is one of the all-time masterworks of American television, and it's thrilling to be able to witness it on a weekly basis.

When she surprised Don at home, Betty was clearly ready to let her anger loose, but for once she was able to keep it in check and act like an adult. Don was the one who was childish at first (his wounded, plaintive "it's private!"), but he realized that in order to have any chance to set things right with Betty he had to give her the (almost) complete truth, which he did (except for the part about the dog tags). This is not the Don Draper we're used to; this was a Don we've never seen before, one that Betty had never seen either. Amazing acting by both January Jones and Jon Hamm in these scenes. Hopefully this will earn Jones her belated Emmy nomination, and will bring wins for both of them next year.

And of course, looming over the whole evening was Miss Farrell sitting outside in the car. I need to go back and watch the whole episode again, mostly because I was distracted by that little detail, and kept expecting her knock on the door, which pulled me away from the story. And would Don have been so distracted by the illicit getaway that he'd fail to notice Betty's car, indicating that she had returned unexpectedly? I tripped over that too.