March 26, 2012: Megan Draper Sings a Little French Song (Mad Men)
Zou Bisou Bisou..... Zou Bisou Bisou.....
Hi! And welcome to another edition of Big Little Moments! Hope you had a lovely, restful holiday. Today’s lil post is about a scene from one of my all-time favorite TV shows - Mad Men - and a scene that’s always stuck with me. Moderate spoiler warning for Seasons 1-4. Read at your own peril!
Mad Men is a show about appearances. It follows the story of Don Draper, who superficially projects the image of the perfect man. Don Draper is a creation - an illusion - literally. Don is actually Dick Whitman, who assumed the real Don Draper’s identity after he died in the Korean war. Don is rich, handsome, and excels in his career, but due to the trauma of his early life, Don can never find fulfillment. He drinks, he spends money, he sleeps with every woman in sight, but nothing plugs up Don’s interior void.
By the premiere of the fifth season, Don has already ruined his own life a couple times over. We’ve seen the pattern, though: Don is a magician. No matter what, Don can rebuild his life into something better, more glamorous. He picks up the pieces and builds a shinier, prettier facade. This time around, Don has moved into a swanky high-rise in Manhattan and married his secretary, Megan. Where there once was a picket fence, two kids, a washing machine, a refrigerator, and a wife waiting at home, Don now finds himself in a new target demographic. His new home is rich with plush white carpets, glass tables, and plenty of room for entertaining. Kids visit on the weekend. He’s found a new archetype to fulfill, and a wife to help him do it.
Mad Men, though, is a story about an addict. Don is just coming off the high of a new marriage, a new wife, a new life, and the high has already begun to fade. Don’s work is slipping, excusing himself and Megan from the office whenever he pleases. It’s clear he doesn’t take her position as a copywriter seriously (considering he got her the job anyways), and he’s comfortable wielding his status at the company to let them both slack off.
Have you ever met someone who’s hot and cool, but also, infuriatingly, a good person? Like, it shouldn’t be possible that someone sext AND talented wouldn’t at least be annoying about it. That’s Megan Draper. Played by Jessica Paré, Megan exudes “Cool Girl” energy. The other characters of the show, insecure in themselves, project their issues onto her. Peggy resents her for climbing the ladder through Don, fearing her own accomplishments may be minimized. To Don, her independence and sense of self reveal his emptiness and urge to control.
Megan, a part time actress, plays life like a set of roles. She’s transitioned from secretary to copywriter, and we’re beginning to see the cracks in her work. She’s uncomfortable with the time away from the office, fearing she won’t be taken seriously. At the same time, she transitions from girlfriend to wife, and tries to follow her lines the best she can.
The scene in question happens midway through the premiere. Don’s birthday is approaching and Megan decides to throw him a surprise party, despite his friends’ warnings. Don hates surprises, and especially the scrutiny that comes with them.
Megan persists, and surprise surprise, Don hates it. He tries to put on a good face while coworkers sneer and stare in the background. Then, Megan calls everyone to attention and announces she’s giving Don a gift.
The gift is a song and a dance in front of all of his friends. The song - Zou Bisou Bisou - is an infectious brainworm (sorry, it’s stuck in your head forever now), all in French. Megan wears a short black dress and dances suggestively, leaning in close to Don for the final beat.
This scene is a masterpiece in tension. In between shots of the cutesy, upbeat performance, the camera cuts each of Don’s closest friends and coworkers grimacing. Megan’s greatest sin is her optimism. Unlike Don and his cynical friends, a part of Megan still believes in the sentimental, picture-perfect life they sell in their ads. Megan isn’t just performing a song - she’s performing the role of the young, exciting wife. The French singer. The cool girl. As the audience, we know Don hates this kind of attention, and it’s all the more heartbreaking to see Megan try, and fail, to please him.
But Zou Bisou Bisou isn’t all appeasement - it’s also Megan staking her claim as a vibrant, attractive person. It’s Megan claiming her sexuality - or at least trying to. In the days after the party, Megan overhears Harry (who’s the worst, by the way) make sexually explicit comments within earshot of her. Megan’s fantasy is shattered as she and Don fight over a permanently stained carpet.
If we remember Mad Men at all, we’ll remember Zou Bisou Bisou among the weirdest and most profound moments of the series. Through a song meant to be a birthday present, we see the first signs of a marriage doomed to fail. It’s the kind of agonizing dramatic irony that makes Mad Men among the greatest TV series of all time.
I know I’ll remember Zou Bisou Bisou, but mostly because I can’t fucking get it out of my head.
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