Mad Men - Is Peggy getting her groove back?

This week's Mad Men episode was a quiet episode; however it was pretty effective. But first...

The Drapers
Don and Betty's marriage is still pretty shaky, despite Betty's pregnancy. If anything, Betty's passive aggression has improved markedly since her pregnancy. Still... I can't understand why she insisted that her father move in - she can barely keep her household running right, even with the assist of a part-time housekeeper. Handling two children whom she clearly don't like, caring for a newborn, and now a senile old dude who's prone to groping her during his 'spells' - this could be a recipe for disaster... assuming that Don will continue to stand for it. Mind you, it was kinda awesome how he handled Betty's brother - Don can be very imposing and scary when the need arises. I think back on the episode when his half-brother found him - I was so convinced that Don was going to pull out a gun, instead of all of that cash.

The Sterlings
I was so relieved to see that Mona would still be on the scene and she made a pretty good impression. She looked decidedly more chic post divorce and dare I say... younger? While married to Roger, she seemed frumpier and more constrained, probably because she was married to Roger. Judging from her attitude, clothing, and Roger's insistence that he has to win the Jane goes to Margaret's wedding battle, I have to assume that Roger lost huge in the divorce. I hope so, because he was such a douche about the whole thing - pinning the blame on Don? Come on, dude. Anyway, I hope that Mona will be able to peep game and shank Roger when it's socially permissable i.e. not in front of Margaret, although I get the feeling that Margaret would want dibs. And since Roger is a bit of a freak and very much douche, he would probably get really turned on if Mona delivers some home truths, with a side of ice.

Plus, I can't stand Jane. She overstepped on Joan's turf i.e. the office and completely got away with it... for now. But I kinda got the feeling that Roger's pecker will resume its usual roaming soon and it will find its way to Joan. While she is married, a fcukup by her husband, Doctor Rapist, could make Joan very receptive to a hookup. Yes, doing it with Roger goes in the selling oneself short column, it would fcuk with Jane's head.

Now Peggy...
I find that any show that inserts a female film icon of that day into the plot usually ends up being an episode that stays with me. The female icon in this episode was Ann-Margret, specifically her turn in Bye, Bye Birdie. When Peggy summed it up as a 25 year old playing a 14 year old, I had to smile a little bit, because that's exactly how the men of Sterling Cooper expect every woman to act, despite knowing that the dirty that they perpetrate on these women can fundamentally change them. Peggy is a prime example.

Sure, the pregnancy changed Peggy to the core, but Pete's rejection of her after she landed the Belle Jolie campaign was the first real death blow. She was twisting and dancing, like a teenybopper, and Pete was so brutally cold and cruel towards her, just because he was jealous of her talent and potential. The tears that rolled down Peggy's face - and yet, she continued dancing. On Sunday's episode, Peggy tried to step up her efforts to rejoin the world by picking up some random dude that she will likely not call again. If anything, it was a test run, possibly motivated by Joan. Peggy watched how Joan masterfully handled the leering glances of potential Sterling Cooper clients and was playful while doing it. Given how Joan knew to send Peggy to the gyno on her first day of work hints at how many lessons she learned during her years at Sterling Cooper. We continue to see Joan experience disappointments and yet, she abides and sometimes, she gets even. Peggy's problems are a little more complicated, but she should continue to observe Joan, because despite the acquaintance rape at the hands of her then-fiance, Joan is probably the only female character who is nearly in charge of her own sexuality.

Besides... Peggy should get a firmer grasp on when to have sex and be very selective about who she does it with.

Because Pete... HUGE MISTAKE!!