Episode Report Card Couch Baron: A- | 6 USERS: A YOU GRADE IT Good Night and Good Luck
By Couch Baron | Season 1 | Episode 5 | Aired on 2007.08.17
Don walks back to his office with an expression that suggests he fears all eyes are now upon him. He rejoins the meeting, but we hear nothing of the dialogue, much as Don isn't hearing anything either, until Joan asks him if everything's set for the Liberty Capital people. After a long pause, Don tells her yes, and with that, Roger dismisses everyone. Don strides purposefully toward the elevator, observed by Peggy.
Adam's waiting in a booth when Don walks in and joins him. They shake hands and sit back down, and then Don asks what Adam wants from him. Adam can't believe that's all Don has to say to him. "I thought you were dead, and you're right here!" Starting to realize that this isn't going to go well, he stops smiling and asks Don why he did it. "Why did you leave me?" Don drops the charade and says he couldn't go back there. Adam smiles again and says he knew Don wasn't dead -- he saw him in the window hiding in his uniform. (If you're watching this in order and want to avoid spoilers, here's a helpful tip: Don't click on hyperlinks.) He jokingly asks what kind of name "Donald Draper" is, but Don won't play, saying that people change their names. Don asks what happened to "her," and when Adam asks, "Mom?" Don dismissively says she wasn't his mother. "She never let me forget that." That sounds like a painful memory. It's good that when you're in one of the other ninety-nine compartments of your life, you don't have to think about it. Adam says she's dead of stomach cancer, and Don spits, "Good." Adam adds that their Uncle Mack is dead too, and then says that he's too choked up to eat. He heartbreakingly stares at Don for an eternity before asking if Don missed him at all, and whether he did or not, Don answers, "Of course I did." You might think this proves Don has a heart, but the episode ain't over yet.