Mad Men has plenty of mad moments. Roger Sterling collapses while trying to make love to twins, Freddy pees in his pants before a meeting, and Pete fights Lane in the office while everyone cheers on. It's easy for viewers to forget that this is a story about business executives in the world of advertising.
While most of the outrageous moments are easy for the eye, ears, and heart to digest, a few are guaranteed to make viewers really anxious or uncomfortable. That's what happens when the story arcs are too good. During its run, the AMC series received 14 Emmy nominations for the "Outstanding Writing In A Drama Series" award.
Don's Murderous Fever Dream
Matt Weiner loves incorporating weird dreams into his shows and in the Season 5 episode "Mystery Date," he does just that. The beauty of it all is that at first, viewers don't realize that what's happening is just a dream.
Don bumps into a former lover named Andrea. Since he is married to Megan, he tries to ignore her. Andrea isn't backing down. She sneaks into his apartment and seduces him into getting intimate with her. Don becomes angry when she tells him he will always be hers and begins choking her. When she dies, he moves her body under the bed. In the morning, he realizes he was dreaming.
Lois Mutilates Guy MacKendrick's Foot With A Lawnmower
In the Season 3 episode "Guy Walks Into an Advertising Agency," Ken Cosgrove makes a grand entrance at the Sterling Cooper offices while riding a John Deere lawnmower. He is excited because he has just convinced the giant manufacturer of agricultural machines to work with Sterling Cooper.
Later in the day, there is an office party to celebrate Joan leaving and Guy MacKendrick becoming the new head. Everyone gets drunk and a couple of employees drive the lawnmower around the office. When it's Lois's turn, she is unable to control the mower. She runs over Guy's foot, causing blood to splatter everywhere.
Betty Discovers That Don Is Dick Whitman
In Season 3's "The Gypsy And The Hobo," Betty gathers all the clothes to take them to the drier while Don is away. She finds a key to his desk drawer in one of his trouser pockets. Curious, she proceeds to open it. At that moment, viewers can feel that she is about to find something that might destroy her relationship with the man.
She sees a box and goes through it. Inside it, she finds Don's Korea tags. She realizes that his real name is indeed Dick Whitman. Don tries to explain it to her when he comes back home but her trust has forever been eroded.
Peggy Stabs Abe
Peggy's boyfriend Abe gets attacked and stabbed in Season 6's "Better Half." She finds police questioning him at their apartment and the incident makes her paranoid. She improvises a bayonet to make a spear for her own protection and argues with Abe about moving to a safer neighborhood.
In the night, she hears men arguing in the streets and thinks it's an intruder. Abe's movements in the dark scare her further so she grabs the bayonet and stabs him with it in the abdomen. Poor Abe gets stabbed twice within hours and he can't take it anymore. On the way to the hospital, he breaks up with Peggy.
Joan Is Forced To Sleep With An Executive To Close A Business Deal
Most of the men at Sterling Cooper consider Joan as out of their league, so it's a shame that she is reduced to a pawn in order to get a business deal. In Season 5's "The Other Woman," Jaguar manager Herb Rennet insists that he won't do business with Sterling Cooper unless Joan sleeps with him.
Jaguar's account is worth a lot of money, so a dilemma pops up. Don is against the idea but his colleagues aren't. Pete and Lane convince Joan to go ahead and give Herb what he wants. Lane even advises Joan to ask for a 5% stake in the company for her sacrifice. Despite Don's last-minute attempts to make her reconsider, she goes ahead and sleeps with Herb.
Grandma Ida Attempts To Burglarize Don's House
Sally is left alone at home with her brother in Season 6's "The Crash." During those few hours, the series embraces elements of the horror genre. Sally hears a noise in the house and when she goes to check what's happening, she bumps into an old woman walking around. The woman identifies herself as Grandma Ida and claims to have raised Don.
Grandma Ida asks several questions in an effort to learn where the valuables in the house are located. When she goes into a different room, the suspicious Sally dials 911. Grandma Ida rushes over to her and stops her. She considers harming Sally but walks out of the house instead.
Lane's Suicide
When Don discovers that Lane Pryce has been stealing from the company, he asks him to resign. Lane is heartbroken and has no idea what to tell his family, including his ruthless father Robert.
Lane goes for the extreme option and hangs himself in the office. He makes sure to leave a letter of resignation. Ironically, the company benefits financially from Lane's death since he was under a special life insurance cover for key employees. SCDP is awarded a lot of money since the policy doesn't rule out suicide in the settlement terms.
Ginsberg Freaks Out Over A Computer
Ginsberg starts out as a star employee who has the audacity to challenge Don Draper but he starts getting worse and worse. When the company buys a computer, he becomes very paranoid. He believes the machine is changing people's personalities. He also believes it is going to replace all of them.
He concludes that his nipple is attracting signals from the computer and making him crazy so he cuts it off. He then wraps it up perfectly and gives it to Peggy as a gift. Eventually, he gets hospitalized.
Sally Has A Plastic Bag Over Her Head
Betty has never been a good mother. Sally reminds her of this when she is grown and wants nothing to do with her. She only warms up to her father. An example of poor parenting is seen early on in the first season when Sally walks over to Betty wearing a plastic dry-cleaning bag over her head.
She informs Betty, who is gossiping with a friend, that she is playing Spaceman. Becky doesn't seem to care. She only warns Sally not to ruin her laundry. Luckily, Sally doesn't suffocate in the bag.
Ken Cosgrove Gets Shot In The Eye
Ken is rewarded for his hard work when he is made the manager of Chevy's account at Sterling Cooper. The job requires him to move to Detroit. There, he becomes close to the Chevy executives who live life on the fast lane. They engage in dangerous activities for fun such as driving while blindfolded.
On another occasion, the executives ask Ken to join them during a drunk-hunting experience. One of the executives accidentally shoots Ken in the face, making him lose an eye. Ken asks to be removed from the Chevy account after the incident.