Episode Report Card Couch Baron: A | 491 USERS: A- YOU GRADE IT A Change Is Gonna Come
By Couch Baron | Season 3 | Episode 12 | Aired on 2009.11.01
Oh, there's Harry in the kitchen, crowded around a TV with Bertram, Ken, Jane, and two randoms. Oswald is on the screen, and Jane wonders, "How would you know that's what a monster looks like?" Well, if some of the conspiracy theorists are right, you wouldn't. Roger comes in and wonders what everyone's doing, and when Jane explains that Oswald is about to be interviewed, Roger sends one of the randoms off to buy a cake, an errand that will be interesting given that he's not allowed to speak. Roger then tells Jane that he needs her, as he's about to give his toast, but Jane replies that she's heard his toast a million times. "The President is dead. And I'll tell you something else -- our table has no one at it." Heh. Roger impotently says he consolidated the tables before giving up and asking Bertram to keep an eye on Jane, presumably so she doesn't blurt out scandalous gossip at an inopportune moment. Bertram and Jane remain to watch the press conference, but Ken follows Roger out...
...as do we. Roger first says he's cutting the toast short in acknowledgement of what's happened, and if that's true there's something to be said for having weddings the day after national tragedies. He then asks if someone could get his wife out of the kitchen so he can say something nice about her in her presence, "but while we're alone, I want to say something nice about my ex-wife." How very Roger Sterling. He tells her she's a "lioness" before adding, "and thank you for resisting the urge to eat your cub." Mona's face is like, I could have done that? Roger continues that it could have been an awful day, but instead of sitting around the TV, they're all there toasting the happy couple. He gets Margaret and Brooks up front and says their love and hope is giving strength to everyone there, and after everyone toasts their happiness, the band leader sends Roger and Margaret out for the first dance before, approximately two seconds later, inviting everyone to join them. Not how things are usually done, but maybe the photographer's home in front of the TV as well. Don drags a reluctant Betty out to the floor while Roger and Margaret have a nice dance together. After he looks over at Mona, Margaret tells him her mother is happy, and he snarks, "That's because she doesn't know his net worth just dropped by half." No wonder he wants to exterminate a bunch of people. Meanwhile, Betty's doing a terrific job of not looking at Don even though their faces are about six inches apart, but he mistakes her Francis-centered reverie for more JFK sadness and gets her attention to tell her everything's going to be fine. In all seriousness, she asks how he knows that, and after a long moment, he answers by kissing her. Again, not a bad strategy as a general rule, but given that it translates to "Because I'm saying I love you, even though I've been lying to you from the day we met," I think it's coming up short here. He assures her that she'll see, and she doesn't look convinced but at least he got her attention for a moment. Nearby, Francis's daughter asks why he keeps looking at Betty, and he's like, "What are you talking about?" with slightly less guile than Bart Simpson saying "I didn't do it." Everyone keeps dancing...