"The Other Woman" is the eleventh episode of the
fifth season of the American television drama series ''
Mad Men
''Mad Men'' is an American period drama television series created by Matthew Weiner and produced by Lionsgate Television. It ran on the cable network AMC from July 19, 2007, to May 17, 2015, lasting for seven seasons and 92 episodes. Its fict ...
'' and the 63rd episode of the series overall. It is co-written by
Semi Chellas
Semi Chellas is a director, writer, producer who has written for film, television and magazines. She was born in Palo Alto, California and grew up in Calgary, Alberta. She is known for her work on the television series ''Mad Men'' and her film ...
and
Matthew Weiner
Matthew Hoffman Weiner () (born June 29, 1965) is an American television writer, producer, and director best known as the creator and showrunner of the television series ''Mad Men'', and as a writer and executive producer on ''The Sopranos''.
...
, and directed by
Phil Abraham
Phil Abraham is an American cinematographer and television director. He worked on all six seasons of ''The Sopranos'', initially as a camera operator, then as a cinematographer and eventually as an episodic director. He won the 2008 Primetime Emm ...
. It aired on
AMC
AMC may refer to:
Film and television
* AMC Theatres, an American movie theater chain
* AMC Networks, an American entertainment company
** AMC (TV channel)
** AMC+, streaming service
** AMC Networks International, an entertainment company
*** ...
in the United States on May 27, 2012.
The episode takes place in January 1967. Pete asks Joan to make a personal and moral sacrifice to ensure the company lands the Jaguar account. Meanwhile, the creatives work long nights to come up with the perfect pitch for the presentation. Don becomes furious after learning of the impact Megan's new profession will have on their life. Feeling unappreciated, Peggy has lunch with Freddy Rumsen, who encourages her to make a move. Peggy then meets with Ted Chaough, from rival firm CGC, and accepts an offer for chief copywriter.
"The Other Woman" was critically acclaimed, with some critics calling it one of the best episodes of the series.
Jon Hamm
Jonathan Daniel Hamm (born March 10, 1971) is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Don Draper in the period drama television series ''Mad Men'' (2007–2015), for which he won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Televisi ...
,
Elisabeth Moss
Elisabeth Singleton Moss (born July 24, 1982) is an American actor. She is known for her work in several television dramas, earning such accolades as two Primetime Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards, which led ''Vulture'' to name her the ...
, and
Christina Hendricks
Christina Rene Hendricks (born May 3, 1975) is an American actress and former model. With an extensive career on screen and stage, she has received various accolades, including six Primetime Emmy Award nominations, two Screen Actors Guild Awa ...
were lauded by journalists for their performances in this episode. "The Other Woman" was watched by 2.07 million viewers and received an adult 18–49 rating of 0.6, marking a slightly higher viewership than the previous episode.
Plot
The SCDP
Jaguar
The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large cat species and the only living member of the genus '' Panthera'' native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the largest cat species in the Americas and the th ...
team discusses
tagline
In entertainment, a tagline (alternatively spelled tag line) is a short text which serves to clarify a thought for, or is designed with a form of, dramatic effect. Many tagline slogans are reiterated phrases associated with an individual, so ...
s. Stan suggests one using the word "mistress", but Don reminds him the client would not want to hear that word in an advertisement and excuses himself. Peggy asks Don's approval of one of her projects but he tells her that she is in charge of all ongoing business until Jaguar is done. She watches as a lobster lunch is delivered to the Jaguar team.
Ken and Pete dine with Herb Rennet, head of the dealers' association and a member of Jaguar's selection committee. Herb suggests SCDP’s competitive standing might be improved if they arrange an evening for him with Joan. Pete tells Joan about Herb's proposal. Shocked, she asks how Pete would feel if someone asked that of his wife Trudy. He asks Joan how much it would take to convince her. She dismissively replies that he "couldn't afford it".
Subbing in for Ginsberg while he works on Jaguar, Peggy attends a conference call with
Chevalier
Chevalier may refer to:
Honours Belgium
* a rank in the Belgian Order of the Crown
* a rank in the Belgian Order of Leopold
* a rank in the Belgian Order of Leopold II
* a title in the Belgian nobility
France
* a rank in the French Legion d'h ...
Blanc. The company wants to pull the Hard Day's Night ad but she spontaneously comes up with a suitable change to the existing ad and wins the client over.
Pete presents Herb's proposal at a partners meeting, guaranteeing SCDP will lose the account if they do not comply. Don spurns the idea and leaves, but the remaining partners reluctantly agree to offer Joan $50,000 after Pete lies and says that Joan seemed open to the idea. They decide to withhold Christmas bonuses and extend their credit line to cover the cost, unaware that Lane had already extended the credit line by $50,000 a month ago.
Don instructs the Jaguar team to ditch the mistress concept because it is vulgar. Later, Harry praises Peggy's work on Chevalier Blanc. She tells Don the client ultimately went with the same ad as before, only in a Paris setting. Don says Ginsberg will take over once the Jaguar pitch is finished, prompting Peggy to quip that she is not in charge of everything. Don pulls some money from his wallet and condescendingly tosses it in Peggy's face, telling her to go to Paris. Ken tries to comfort her, saying that Don is just upset about Jaguar, to which she replies that she does not care.
Lane advises Joan to demand a 5% partnership stake in the company, adding that, when he thought he was essential to the future of the firm, he settled for much less than he felt was due him. Joan later tells Pete she wants a partnership, comprising 5% of the business and voting rights, in exchange for her spending the night with Herb. Pete asks how to make the arrangements, to which she icily and rhetorically asks if she has to do it all. Pete later tells Don about the arrangement with Joan. Don visits Joan's apartment to dissuade her. She thanks him and wishes him luck on the presentation, but it is eventually revealed that, unbeknownst to Don, her sexual encounter with Herb had already taken place.
Pete tells Trudy he wants an apartment in the city, but she refuses, telling him that his love affair with Manhattan is over and that they have not even been trying for a second child.
The next day, Megan tells Don that her audition gained her a callback for ''
Little Murders
''Little Murders'' is a 1971 American black comedy film directed by Alan Arkin, in his feature film directorial debut, and starring Elliott Gould and Marcia Rodd. Based on the stage play of the same name by Jules Feiffer, it is the story of a wo ...
'' and rehearsals begin shortly in Boston. He voices his displeasure at her being gone for three months. She accuses him of expecting her acting career to fail. When the callback does not go well, she tells him that, if she has to choose between him and the play, she would choose him, but will hate him for it. He assures her that he does not want her to fail, and they kiss.
Ginsberg observes Megan's freewheeling and confident behavior around Don when she visits the office, and he later approaches Don with a new Jaguar concept likening the car to an unattainable woman: "Jaguar: At last, something beautiful you can truly own." Don smiles. Over lunch with Freddy Rumsen, Peggy gripes about her exclusion from Jaguar. Freddy suggests she leave SCDP and offers to help. The next day, Don presents the pitch to Jaguar. Herb smiles as Don unveils the tagline. Joan inquires of Don about the presentation.
Peggy meets Ted Chaough from Cutler Gleason and Chaough to discuss job opportunities and he praises her work. She writes her job requirements, "Copy Chief $18,000/year", on a piece of paper and slides it across the table to him. Chaough crosses out $18,000 and writes $19,000. Peggy orders a chocolate shake.
The following day, Roger summons all the partners to his office to learn the fate of their Jaguar presentation. Don locks eyes with Joan when she joins them, realizing that she has, in fact, slept with Herb. Roger receives the congratulatory confirmation call from Jaguar, and the office erupts in celebration. In Don's office, Peggy informs him she has accepted a job with CGC. He thinks she is asking for a raise and attempts to negotiate with her, but she tells him it is not about money. She holds back tears as he kisses her hand. She walks out of the office and smiles as she waits for an elevator.
Production
The episode was co-written by
Semi Chellas
Semi Chellas is a director, writer, producer who has written for film, television and magazines. She was born in Palo Alto, California and grew up in Calgary, Alberta. She is known for her work on the television series ''Mad Men'' and her film ...
and
Matthew Weiner
Matthew Hoffman Weiner () (born June 29, 1965) is an American television writer, producer, and director best known as the creator and showrunner of the television series ''Mad Men'', and as a writer and executive producer on ''The Sopranos''.
...
, and directed by
Phil Abraham
Phil Abraham is an American cinematographer and television director. He worked on all six seasons of ''The Sopranos'', initially as a camera operator, then as a cinematographer and eventually as an episodic director. He won the 2008 Primetime Emm ...
.
Weiner said in August 2012 that he intended for Peggy's departure from SCDP to be in "The Other Woman", which is centered on Joan: "
he episode isliterally about the quantification and value of women in the workplace and the relationship of their sexuality to it. I knew that on a subconscious level at the writing stage, because of the way the stories went together. As these stories fold in together, it starts to become about that, but it was always about what you have to do to get ahead, in a very simple way, and the opportunities to get ahead."
The
nonlinear narrative
Nonlinear narrative, disjointed narrative, or disrupted narrative is a narrative technique, sometimes used in literature, film, video games, and other narratives, where events are portrayed, for example, out of chronological order or in other ways ...
involving Joan's storyline and Don's Jaguar pitch was "a solution to how to tell the story" according to Weiner.
"The ordering of those events really was a problem and we got to a point where we can either show Don doing the pitch, or show Joan being with the guy, but we can't do them both," he said, explaining that he felt "if Don gives the pitch after
he audience hasseen Joan do this, no one is going to listen to a word that he says. It doesn't matter how good it is.
he audience isnot going to believe he could have won."
Chellas "had this great idea, this elliptical thing, which we really loaded up with cues so that you would know at the end that Don was too late. Seeing Joan in there, taking the necklace off, and Joan's mother taking Don's hat into the room where Joan was, and then Joan putting on the green robe and coming out, seeing that behind-the-scenes moment the second time really cemented it."
Weiner said this allowed them to "show Joan going through with it 24 hours beforehand, and then show Don giving this pitch that the audience is convinced is a great pitch. Then you slowly dissolve back to the reality of Don coming in
o workpretty happy, Joan asking how it went, and Roger having this dead response—'it was one of his good ones'—and Don wondering why Joan's not more excited."
Abraham spoke about shooting a scene of the episode in August 2012:
While discussing the prostitution plot,
Christina Hendricks
Christina Rene Hendricks (born May 3, 1975) is an American actress and former model. With an extensive career on screen and stage, she has received various accolades, including six Primetime Emmy Award nominations, two Screen Actors Guild Awa ...
said, "This is a very confusing situation for Joan and for everyone involved. First off, it's just completely insulting. Second of all, it's quite an opportunity. Then all of a sudden you put the money involved or the opportunity involved or you put a label on it, then it becomes a scary road to go down."
Hendricks said that Joan's motivation was "protection
orher child."
Hendricks felt that Joan saw herself as an equal in a way to the other partners after going through with the deal, as Joan had seen them do worse things over her thirteen years in employment.
Vincent Kartheiser
Vincent Paul Kartheiser (born May 5, 1979) is an American actor. He played Pete Campbell on the AMC television series ''Mad Men'', for which he received six Screen Actors Guild Award nominations for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a ...
called the storyline an example of an "amoral" business tactic.
Kartheiser described Pete as doing "what he thinks he needs to do to get the account. I don't know if that's always such a good thing, but it's common in business. And I think in that situation, Pete represents that type of businessman."
Matthew Weiner and Jared Harris both characterized Lane's decision as two-fold—he gave Joan the best advice for her and for himself.
Jon Hamm
Jonathan Daniel Hamm (born March 10, 1971) is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Don Draper in the period drama television series ''Mad Men'' (2007–2015), for which he won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Televisi ...
praised the prostitution sequence as "Very elegant paired with Don's pitch to Jaguar. This idea of something beautiful that you could possess, that you could own. It's one thing when you're talking about a car. It's something else when you're talking about a human being."
Elisabeth Moss
Elisabeth Singleton Moss (born July 24, 1982) is an American actor. She is known for her work in several television dramas, earning such accolades as two Primetime Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards, which led ''Vulture'' to name her the ...
said she was not told by Weiner that Peggy would be leaving SCDP "until we were shooting
episode 10 Episode 10 may refer to:
* ''Episode Ten'' (Primeval) 2009 TV episode of ''Primeval''
* ''Episode 10'' (The Young Pope) 2016 episode
* ''Episode 10'' (Tá no Ar) 2015 episode
See also
* Episode (disambiguation)
* 10 (disambiguation)
* X (dis ...
, the one right before it. It was unusual that he didn't tell me. He usually tells me what's happening, pitches me things to ask me how they sound."
Moss' initial reaction "was just one of feeling like there was really no other logical way to go for her. After everything that had happened for five years, she can't just keep butting her head up against that wall.
..She's becoming her own person and she needs to have her own place not under Don." Moss also said, "I will thank
einerforever for not telling me. It would have made my life harder. I knew about Peggy's baby in
season one Season One may refer to:
Albums
* ''Season One'' (Suburban Legends album), 2004
* ''Season One'' (All Sons & Daughters album), 2012
* ''Season One'' (Saukrates album), 2012
See also
*
*
* Season 2 (disambiguation)
* Season 4 (disambiguat ...
. I fought against it, to play it as she was living it, feeling it, and not be in my head. Not knowing Peggy would quit allowed me to find it for myself, to really feel Peggy's growing frustration with Don all season."
According to Moss, Peggy "has the capability of being a Don Draper, and there can't be two of them in the office."
The goodbye scene between Don and Peggy was a difficult one to shoot.
Moss said, "That scene was a really, really tough scene to do. They didn't tell me they were going to do this, but they told Jon to hold my hand and not let it go. Then he did, and I lost it. Every single one of those tears were absolutely real. She wants to stay with all of her heart. She does not want to leave, but she knows she has to."
Hamm said there was "respect, understanding, and admiration between those two characters. This is the exact right time for her to leave."
References to other media
* Peggy pitches a
Lady Godiva
Lady Godiva (; died between 1066 and 1086), in Old English , was a late Anglo-Saxon noblewoman who is relatively well documented as the wife of Leofric, Earl of Mercia, and a patron of various churches and monasteries. Today, she is mainly reme ...
-themed ad for Chevalier Blanc.
* Herb mixes metaphors about
The Sheik of Araby
"The Sheik of Araby" is a song that was written in 1921 by Harry B. Smith and Francis Wheeler, with music by Ted Snyder. It was composed in response to the popularity of the Rudolph Valentino feature film '' The Sheik''.
"The Sheik of Araby" wa ...
and
Helen of Troy
Helen of Troy, Helen, Helena, (Ancient Greek: Ἑλένη ''Helénē'', ) also known as beautiful Helen, Helen of Argos, or Helen of Sparta, was a figure in Greek mythology said to have been the most beautiful woman in the world. She was believe ...
during his assignation with Joan.
* Peter reads ''
Goodnight Moon
''Goodnight Moon'' is an American children's book written by Margaret Wise Brown and illustrated by Clement Hurd. It was published on September 3, 1947, and is a highly acclaimed bedtime story.
This book is the second in Brown and Hurd's "cla ...
'' to his baby and later that night complains to Trudy there are no "goodnight noises" where they live.
Reception
Critical reception
![Christina Hendricks at PaleyFest 2014](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/26/Christina_Hendricks_at_PaleyFest_2014.jpg)
The episode received much acclaim from television journalists. The storyline involving Joan's prostituting herself to secure the Jaguar account for Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce came in for particular analysis and scrutiny among journalists, as related to its execution and use of themes of
female sexuality
Human female sexuality encompasses a broad range of behaviors and processes, including female sexual identity and sexual behavior, the physiological, psychological, social, cultural, political, and spiritual or religious aspects of sexual ac ...
and
sexual objectification
Sexual objectification is the act of treating a person solely as an object of sexual desire. Objectification more broadly means treating a person as a commodity or an object without regard to their personality or dignity. Objectification is most ...
.
Alan Sepinwall
Alan Sepinwall (born October 19, 1973) is an American television reviewer and writer. He spent 14 years as a columnist with ''The Star-Ledger'' in Newark until leaving the newspaper in 2010 to work for the entertainment news website HitFix. He th ...
fought with himself over the execution of the prostitution story in this episode, asking, "If you buy that the partners would be willing to sell Joan, and that Joan would feel the same way, then this is an all-time great episode of the series. But if you don't, then it's Weiner and company making the characters act against their natures to fit the theme."
Sepinwall described the story as "something that so fundamentally changes the way you view a number of major characters, and the show that uses them, that it has to be just about perfect to work, and maybe not even then."
Emily VanDerWerff opined that, "'The Other Woman' shouldn’t work. It’s so obviously constructed to be a 'message' episode, and the message is far from subtle: No matter what we try to do to make them equal, men are always going to turn women into objects on some level, because that’s just how men perceive them."
VanDerWerff compared it to the episode "
Employee of the Month" of ''
The Sopranos
''The Sopranos'' is an American Crime film#Crime drama, crime drama television series created by David Chase. The story revolves around Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a New Jersey-based American Mafia, Italian-American mobster, portraying h ...
'', even going so far as to call "The Other Woman" a stronger episode.
Weiner was "surprised" by the reaction to Joan's storyline:
In August 2012, Hamm said "The Other Woman" was his favorite episode of the fifth season of ''Mad Men'', and spoke about the reaction to Joan's storyline:
The final scene in which Peggy leaves both Don and the agency was pinpointed by critics as a standout sequence. Maureen Ryan said, "the scene between Don and Peggy was tremendous, but Jon Hamm and Elisabeth Moss are always magnificent together. It's no coincidence that their final pose—Don at Peggy's waist, kissing her hand—recalled Don's brutal reconciliation with Megan
a few weeks ago, kneeling, begging her to stay with him."
In August 2012, Moss said the final scene was her favorite of the season: "It would've been so easy to have it be tears and trauma and music, but it's so simple, almost over before you know it. It brings you to a dark, sad place then gives you this slap in the face when she turns to the elevator and smiles. Matt
einerand I didn't feel it was a sad thing. It says to the audience, 'No, you don't get to cry all night about this.
Accolades
The episode won the
Writers Guild of America Award
The Writers Guild of America Awards is an award for film, television, and radio writing including both fiction and non-fiction categories given by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America West since 1949.
Eligibility
Th ...
for
Episodic Drama.
This episode also received
directing and
writing
Writing is a medium of human communication which involves the representation of a language through a system of physically Epigraphy, inscribed, Printing press, mechanically transferred, or Word processor, digitally represented Symbols (semiot ...
nominations for the
64th Primetime Emmy Awards
The 64th Primetime Emmy Awards, honoring the best in prime time television programming from June 1, 2011 until May 31, 2012, were held on Sunday, September 23, 2012 at the Nokia Theatre in Downtown Los Angeles, California. ABC televised the cere ...
.
Due to their nomination,
Jon Hamm
Jonathan Daniel Hamm (born March 10, 1971) is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Don Draper in the period drama television series ''Mad Men'' (2007–2015), for which he won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Televisi ...
,
Elisabeth Moss
Elisabeth Singleton Moss (born July 24, 1982) is an American actor. She is known for her work in several television dramas, earning such accolades as two Primetime Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards, which led ''Vulture'' to name her the ...
, and
Christina Hendricks
Christina Rene Hendricks (born May 3, 1975) is an American actress and former model. With an extensive career on screen and stage, she has received various accolades, including six Primetime Emmy Award nominations, two Screen Actors Guild Awa ...
all submitted this episode for consideration for the
Lead Actor
A leading actor, leading actress, or simply lead (), plays the role of the protagonist of a film, television show or play. The word ''lead'' may also refer to the largest role in the piece, and ''leading actor'' may refer to a person who typica ...
,
Lead Actress
A leading actor, leading actress, or simply lead (), plays the role of the protagonist of a film, television show or play. The word ''lead'' may also refer to the largest role in the piece, and ''leading actor'' may refer to a person who typic ...
, and
Supporting Actress in a Drama Series, respectively, for the
64th Primetime Emmy Awards
The 64th Primetime Emmy Awards, honoring the best in prime time television programming from June 1, 2011 until May 31, 2012, were held on Sunday, September 23, 2012 at the Nokia Theatre in Downtown Los Angeles, California. ABC televised the cere ...
.
Ratings
"The Other Woman" was watched by 2.07 million viewers and received an adult 18–49 rating of 0.6, marking a slightly higher viewership than the previous episode.
References
External links
"The Other Woman"at
AMC
AMC may refer to:
Film and television
* AMC Theatres, an American movie theater chain
* AMC Networks, an American entertainment company
** AMC (TV channel)
** AMC+, streaming service
** AMC Networks International, an entertainment company
*** ...
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Other Woman, The
2012 American television episodes
Mad Men (season 5) episodes