On the surface, this is quite possibly the most asshole-y thing Pete Campbell has ever said. He has a charming, beautiful, loving wife who even the hard-to-win-over Don likes, an adorable baby that instantly wins the adoration of both the Drapers and the Cosgroves, and a spacious house in the country that any well-off family would be proud to live in. But Pete Campbell has nothing...at least nothing that he really wants.
From the start of Mad Men, Pete Cambpell has been set on making a name for himself, and--essentially--becoming Don Draper. And now, six years later, it seems as though he's accomplished this in a lot of ways. He's successful at his job, he's married with a kid, he has people working under him, and he cheats on his wife. But Pete Cambpell can never be Don Draper because Don Draper never set out to please anyone. Pete Campbell's transformation into Don Draper Lite has been for the sole purpose of pleasing everyone, and now that's he's reached the pinnacle of what "success" should look like, he's discovered that it's not what he really wanted at all.
Although the central character of Mad Men is certainly Don Draper, Pete Campbell has had an equally fascinating story over the course of the show. His discoveries in "Signal 30" came quite stealthily when you think about it. When we first meet newlywed Pete Campbell on the show, it's clear that he's not in love with his new wife Trudy (although she is an extremely likable woman), and although it seems like he's grown fond of her as the seasons have passed, I think it'd be very easy to argue that Pete Cambpell has never really loved his wife. When the baby plot is introduced, it's clear that Trudy's the one who wants a child, and if I recall correctly the words "that's what married couples do" are even used. When they make the move out of the city, it's VERY clear that Pete would rather stay in the city...but again, successful couples aren't supposed to live in the city, so out he goes. Now that he has amassed all this wealth and success and should be content with having everything, he claims to have nothing. No matter how much you love to hate smarmy Pete and his weaselly ways...it's hard not to feel bad for the guy--and it's going to be hard to wait and see what the hell Matt Weiner and co. have in store for this character.
I predict, much in the fashion of the Don Draper he's wanted so desperately to become, he's going to crash and burn.
Other thoughts:
-it's nice to see than Ken Cosgrove's still writing, and, in the sign of a true writer, won't ever stop despite being told to by an authority. I had a feeling that Ken's mealy-mouthed confessions that he was doing it mostly for Cynthia were untrue, and in the episode's closing I was glad to see my theory proven.
-Lane and Joan? Not so much, but I love the respect those two have for each other. Joan would've been completely justified leaving the room or even smacking him across the face after that unwanted smooch, but she took the kiss for what it was (the finally victory lap for a guy who rarely wins at anything) and handled it with much class. Bravo, Joan.
-another sign that Pete is Don Draper Lite? Don Draper could've totally scored with that high school girl if he wanted to. Or, at least the Don Draper of the first few seasons.
What did you guys think? Any predictions for how the season might end for Pete Campbell?
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