Why this latest episode of Mad Men earned a ‘B,’ I won’t ever understand.

Despite the relatively average scoring the show received, “The Chrysanthemum and the Sword” seems to have been the episode this season which most deftly swings between plot lines.

It’s true that Betty has become something of a caricature of women scorned, but even the characters who seem two-dimensional have some basis in reality. And while the Betty character hasn’t gotten too much screen time this season – or at least as much as in previous season – her visit to the child psychologist went a long way to reminding viewers that she’s an actual (tv) person with a back-story and a handful of baggage she can’t ditch anywhere. Again, though, since Mad Men takes place during the sixties, women maneuvering in society, whether it’s at home or in the work place, was beginning to change.

While Sally has cutting her hair off and asking a baby sitter about doing it, Don was out on the town, half on a date and half scouting cultural differences at Benihana. Being in the running to land a Honda motorcycle campaign led to the interest (as well as the title of this episode). With all the anti-Japanese sentiment Roger spews over the course of the episode, it’s almost surprising that there wasn’t included any culturally relevant stuff – the honor angle, which got SCDP noticed by the Honda folks was a bit farcical and reductive. But it was good to see the assumed hero of the show go forty some odd minutes without too big a screw up. We’ll see if Don actually accomplishes something next week.

Best Moment: Did you think I was going to get through this without mentioning Sally having a go at masturbation? Nope. There are few moments in television watching that warrant a jaw to drop – news stations included. But watching the ten year old slide her hand down as her legs gently opened easily counts as one of the most surprising scenes of any show in recent memory.

Notes: This sounds awful, but I really want Betty’s marriage to fail. And fail miserably. Certainly, Don’s not a good husband. But Betty’s proved to be a tiny minded, high strung wretch. And there’s no excuse for that – even having your heart broken.

Episode Rating: 4.75 (There’s no such thing as perfect, but this particular episode is probably going to stand as the most entertaining of the season. Seriously.)