'Mad Men' Keeps Season 3 Shocking
By Lizbeth Scordo | Friday, November 6, 2009, 2:13 PM
Don's shady past unfolded on Season 3 of "Mad Men."
AMC
I've said it before and I'll say it again: "Mad Men" is the best show on television. OK, so I'm not the only one to hold this opinion -- the drama has won multiple Golden Globes and Emmys. But with the third-season finale premiering this Sunday, I thought it might be a nice time to remind those of you who don't watch why you should. (It's not too late to join us, but watch out for spoilers below!) And for all of you fellow fans, let's take a look back at the juicy third season's biggest, baddest, and boldest moments that shocked us into loving the series even more madly.
5. Peggy Does it with Duck
You'd think secretary-turned-star-copywriter Peggy might have learned her lesson about sleeping with colleagues. Her last office fling, with account weasel Pete, ended with her being told she was pregnant and giving birth on the same day. But maybe she's looking at her new paramour, the middle-aged Duck, a little differently since he no longer works at Sterling Cooper. (His scheme to move up the ranks at the company by devising a plan to get a British company to buy Sterling Cooper only partially worked. The firm was sold, but Duck was pushed out.) He hasn't yet been able to woo the conflicted Peggy away from Sterling Cooper, but he has been able to woo her into bed — a jolting sight indeed. The worst part? Peggy seems to really like him. Sorry, but I still can't get past the fact he abandoned his family dog in the middle of Manhattan last season.
4. Joan Has a Smashing Evening
You'd be hard-pressed to find any "Mad Men" fan who's also a fan of former head secretary Joan's new husband, Greg. Where did he come from, anyway? One day last season we learned that Joan and this doctor are engaged. The next thing we know he's raping her (in the series' most disturbing scene ever). Then this season, they're suddenly married, and he's got her quitting her job, then telling her to get another. But it doesn't stop there: Soon we discover not only is the guy a jerk, he's also a real loser and can't seem to get his medical career going. Well, it wasn't just viewers who got fed up with Dr. Downer. After the ever-sulky Greg returns home one night, whining to Joan that he's screwed up his latest interview for a psychiatry residency and that she can't possibly understand what it's like to want something so much, Joan (who has been trying so desperately to be a good little housewife, even though it clearly doesn't suit her) loses it and bashes her haggard hubby over the head with a vase of flowers. Ouch.
3. Sal Gets Canned
The fact that Sal is gay wasn't shocking by itself; his sexual preference became clear (even if he didn't want it to) long ago. But it was during Season 3 that Sal actually had to start dealing with the fact that he's living a lie. During the season premiere, a hotel bellhop comes on to him, and Sal finally cracks. Unfortunately, a fire alarm not only interrupted their kiss, but Don spotted the makeout session in progress. Fast forward eight episodes. Sal is alone with a client: a cigarette company magnate. The guy starts hitting on him, but Sal spurns his advances. When the client (whose account is worth $25 million to Sterling Cooper) asks that Sal be fired, Sal explains to Don exactly what happened. Surely he'll understand what an awkward position Sal was put in. But guess what? Don chooses the bottom line over a loyal employee, and fires the stunned Sal on the spot … but not before mumbling a bigoted "you people" line, adding insult to injury.
2. Betty Unlocks Don's Past
OK, so we may have already known all about Don's past. (That his real name is Dick Whitman, that Don took over a dead man's identity after he died on the battlefield, that he had to get divorced before he could marry Betty, that he had a half brother who committed suicide.) But Betty has been in the dark all this time. Even 45 years ago, when marriages weren't quite an equal partnership, a locked drawer full of secret stuff that only your husband could access might raise a red flag. Fragile Betty, however, is quite good at looking the other way. But when she stumbled upon the key to the drawer while doing her housewifely laundry duties, she couldn't resist. And finally, Betty knew what we knew. The most shocking part? Don confessed to everything... but he left out the fact that the woman he was currently sleeping with, their daughter's former teacher, was waiting for him in a car out front. Hey, you gotta start somewhere.
1. A British Executive Loses his Foot in a Freak Office Lawn Mower Accident (Seriously!)
This incident may not have had a major effect on the direction of the show, but boy-oh-boy, I don't think anyone saw this scene coming. In a show stocked with subtleties, symbolism, and societal statements, the sight of blood spraying several employees after the company's new English boss, Guy MacKendrick, gets his foot severed by a lawn mower (in the office!) during Joan's goodbye party, was truly the shocker of the season. Leave it to Joan to be the one to triage the man's mangled wounds at her own shindig. In a true sign of the times, not only aren't the rest of the executives concerned about a lawsuit, they decide to demote poor Guy, because a man with one foot can't possibly represent their firm very well. Oh, "Mad Men," you've done it again.
Surely you're going to think other events from Season 3 deserved to be on this list. So chime in!
Talk About It: Which scene from Season 3 do you think was the most shocking?
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