Episode Report Card Couch Baron: B+ | 464 USERS: A YOU GRADE IT Goodbye, Norma Jean
By Couch Baron | Season 2 | Episode 9 | Aired on 2008.09.28
They arrive in an obviously illegal casino, wherein some of the women are not letting Marilyn's death affect their hair, and sit down at a table. Freddy spies a famous boxer (Floyd Patterson, although his name isn't mentioned here), and after Roger orders them a round, Freddy muses, "Pete Campbell, huh? I would have never thought I was in his way." No offense, Freddy, but you're even a bigger drunk than I thought if you haven't noticed how desperately Pete wants to be on the Creative side.
Cross-fade to later, where Roger is counting his money and telling Don he bets badly. Don, with no money in front of him: "Obviously." Heh. Roger means, though, that if you win a few times, you have to press your luck, After an observation that Freddy, at a nearby table, is having a grand old time, and an encounter with a representative of the world's oldest profession, Roger adds up the clues -- Don's coming in too early, he's got drycleaning moving in and out, and he had no trouble going out on the spur of the moment. Don of course doesn't admit to anything, but Roger keeps pressing, saying he's been in Don's position before. "Do you want to be right, or do you want to be married?" I'm not sure he really cares about either, especially since, when Roger opines that marriage isn't a natural state, but you do it, Don asks, "Why?" Roger keeps talking, but Don's attention is diverted when he sees a familiar presence at Freddy's table -- Jimmy. You'll forgive me if I just take a break to make some popcorn for this, right? Freddy, not clued in, calls Don over, and when Jimmy turns and gives a typical Jimmy line, Don puts on this awesome fake smile before decking him. Don, I've got my problems with you, but that was aces. The bouncer lumbers over, but Roger quickly says they're going, and gets Don out of there as Freddy slips the guy some money: "Don't worry about it. I'm sure it's not the first time he's been punched in the face." Jimmy then gets up and is like, "Hey Floyd! How'd I do?" Heh. Everyone got off a good one there! And Jimmy got punched in the face!
Outside, a cab pulls up, and Roger says Freddy can have it. They embrace, which is touching, and then Roger says he's got to go give a Chinaman a music lesson. "Want to watch how I do it? Unzipping the fly and everything?" Aw, he taught Freddy that trick! That's so... well, it's so Roger, is what it is. He pats Freddy's face, and then Freddy goes over to Don, who's wrangling the cab, and shakes his hand. Freddy gets a little emotional as he says he's going to miss Don. "You're talented." Don thanks him, and sincerely says that means a lot. Freddy wonders what he's going to do, and what he's going to tell his wife. "If I don't go into that office every day, who am I?" This is super-poignant, because the biggest theme on this show has consistently been people's struggle to find their identity, and it's what Don is struggling with now, only it's his home life instead of work that's the catalyst for it. Don manages to evade the question and get Freddy into the cab, but in response to Don's "Goodnight, Freddy," Freddy responds, "Goodbye, Don." The cab pulls away, and that's all she wrote for Freddy Rumsen.