What exactly was the good news in Sunday night's episode?

Was it that Joan wants to start a family before Dr. Husband ships out to Vietnam who-knows-when? Or perhaps that the most good person in Don's life, Anna Draper, is dying of cancer and no one will tell her about it? That the ad agency is still under "precarious" conditions but they had a good year? Lane's rocky marriage? His uneven relationship with Joan?

Or maybe it was that we got an episode featuring characters who haven't had much to do plot-wise lately: Joan, Lane and Anna Draper.

My favorite, of course, is Joan. After two years of marriage, Joanie's ready for a family. I loved the subtle references to birth control and past abortions during her visit to the doctor. But the more I thought about it, the more I don't want her to start a family with her creepy, pretty-boy husband. (Remember when he sorta forced her to have sex with him in the Sterling Cooper offices?) I expect more of Joan than just what is expected of her. Women's lib, Joanie! Burn that large bra of yours! In any case, I have a feeling she's not going to choose/be happy with following a traditional marriage/kids/stay-at-home-mom path. (Her altercation with Lane being one indication; she does not like being treated like someone's fragile pet.)

This article appears in Aug 5-11, 2010.