Don is on the outside looking in on the forced indefinite paid leave from his job. While Ted heads back to New York for a few days, Don takes the opportunity to head to Los Angeles in part to meet with a California transformed Pete while he reunites with Megan, who is living full time there while pursuing what looks to be a promising acting career. Back in New York, Peggy avoids Ted at all cost while she learns to deal with the new Don, Lou Avery, most specifically on the Accutron account for which she is getting consulting help from Freddie Rumsen. On top of that, she is also having to deal with being a landlady to who she believes are overly demanding tenants. Ken feeling overworked leads to Joan taking over his scheduled business meeting with Wayne Barnes, the new Head of Marketing for Butler Footwear. Barnes' news results in Joan taking what she hopes will be seen as decisive and preemptive action in overcoming a potential problem, action which she hopes demonstrates that she ... Written by Huggo

It's Valentine's Day, but there is not much love in the air. Don is still not feeling the love from the other partners, his job situation of which he has not told anyone outside of the office, that including his family. Dawn at least has agreed to keep him in the loop of what is going on in the office as best as she can. Sally, who is in town unexpectedly for the day, drops in on him, which leads to a further rift between father and daughter. Peggy forgets that it's Valentine's Day until she sees a bouquet of roses sitting in her outer office which she assumes are from Ted. Peggy spends most of the day trying to figure out what to do with the roses and how to deal with Ted from afar. Pete is feeling neglected, by Ted but more by the New York partners, most specifically Roger and Jim. A coast to coast conference call also exposes a problem between Roger and Jim. These issues in combination lead to a problem for Joan in orchestrating a session of musical chairs, the problem which is ... Written by Huggo

Don has a less than satisfying telephone conversation with Dawn, the ultimate problem being Don's remote location and Dawn having other priorities in the office. Then, Don has a telephone conversation with Alan Silver, Megan's agent, which leads to Don making a last minute trip to Los Angeles to surprise Megan. The surprise also ends up being ultimately less than satisfying for both. Next, Don sets up a meeting with Dave Wooster to talk business, which again ends up being a little less than Don wanted. All these events make Don come to the realization that he wants and is ready to go back to work at Sterling Cooper. As such, he talks to the one partner he believes is on his side: Roger. After speaking to Roger, what Don anticipates when he walks back into the office and what happens are two totally different things. Beyond each partner's belief when Don was put on leave, what happens is affected by an earlier meeting in which Harry was required to put out a fire on behalf of Jim. ... Written by Huggo

In a chance meeting with George Payton, Pete not only learns some news about his father-in-law, but also that a new national account in the form of fast food chain Burger Chef might be up for grabs, which would be a major coup for Sterling Cooper. The strategizing about what to do about Burger Chef takes into account the fact that Don is back at work, albeit in a much diminished capacity, as among the many stipulations are that he refrain from drinking at work except with clients, and that he report to Lou. Regardless, Lou, feeling threatened by Don's return, spends an on-going $5,000 per year of the company's money solely to get the issue of Don off his desk. Peggy is ultimately assigned head of the Burger Chef team, about which she is honored until she begins to realize that the assignment had some ulterior motives. Despite being back in the office, Don feels isolated, especially as he has no partner to which he feels he can turn, as Roger, his one ally, is temporarily away, and as ... Written by Huggo

Either by design or by accident, Stan finds out about what Lou does in his spare time, this activity which Lou *seemingly* wants kept secret. Stan decides he cannot resist spreading the news amongst the creative staff. This action places Stan in an awkward position, but places Don in a bind with regard to getting away to Los Angeles for the weekend. That last minute weekend trip is to visit with Anna's niece, Stephanie, who telephones out of the blue with the news that she is well-advanced in a pregnancy, and implies that she has no money and the father is no longer in her life. As such, Don offers to meet her at the Laurel Canyon house, with Megan taking care of her until he arrives. Don's Los Angeles trip ends up not being anything like he envisioned. On the personal side, a drug induced incident takes place, which by the sober light of day makes all feel a little embarrassed. But on the professional side, Don, by chance, gets hold of some information about goings-on at Sterling ... Written by Huggo

Peggy is persuaded into assigning Don to deliver the pitch for Burger Chef, but she is reluctant as to whether the work is good enough. Pete visits Trudy and his daughter, the result of which doesn't please Bonnie. Meanwhile, Bob pitches a proposal to Joan, bringing bad news to the company.

The Apollo 11 space mission is in progress, which looms over the lives of those associated with Sterling Cooper. The success or failure of the mission will effect the existing feeling of brotherhood and camaraderie among the American populace, which in turn will have an effect on Sterling Cooper's business, especially how receptive the Burger Chef reps will be. But there is also much turmoil within the company. Jim has a vision for the company as being primarily Harry and the computer, as witnessed by Jim's approved motion to make Harry a partner. What has been bubbling under the surface but which has now risen above with a recent incident with the Sunkist reps is Ted's dissatisfaction with his life and his job. A unilateral move by one of the partners on behalf of all the partners leads to some divided loyalties among them, those loyalties between the people involved and what each may see as the good of the company. Regardless of the Apollo 11 mission, real life continues, an ... Written by Huggo

McCann Erickson's fifty-one percent purchase of Sterling Cooper has led to bigger changes to SC than most of the partners or higher account executives realize. The partners are now all millionaires, and they believe that they can leverage McCann's business to further their own. Topaz is one such account, which is causing problems for Joan and Peggy, the account leads. Topaz, whose primary business is affordable drug store hose, is being squeezed from below by Hanes' new mass market line, Leggs, which not only sells in drug stores but also supermarkets. In consultation with Don, Joan and Peggy go into a meeting with McCann account managers to discuss the proposal. The mixed results lead to an angry Joan evaluating the way she presents herself, while it affects a blind date Peggy has with Mathis' visiting brother-in-law. The Topaz account and another creative involving a commercial where the chosen model will wear a chinchilla fur coat makes Don think about someone from his past. What ... Written by Huggo

As his divorce reaches its final stages, Don learns from Harry that Megan is coming to town and wants Harry's help to find a new agent. Don stays clear of the apartment when Megan is scheduled to clear out her things, supposedly just a few boxes. Megan's mother Marie has something else in mind. When it comes time to sign the divorce papers, Megan tells him just what is on her mind. Harry meanwhile steps over the line. Don visits Diana the waitress who has relocated to the city and they begin a relationship. At the office Peggy and Stan disagree over the use of photographer Pima Ryan for a photo shoot. Peggy thinks she's an artist but Stan, also a photographer, thinks otherwise. Written by garykmcd

Don has several opportunities to reflect on the state of his life and his future. First, he's in the process of selling his apartment. Melanie, his real estate agent, tells him what the state of his apartment displays to the outside world. Second, he's asked by Roger to prepare some materials for a McCann retreat that Roger is attending in the Bahamas, those materials which is to include a look into Sterling Cooper's future. That reflection is influenced by unofficial discussions he has on the issue with among others Peggy and Ted. Third, he has dinner with Sally and a group of her friends, before they are heading off on a summer educational tour. Sally opens up to Don about her feelings toward their family based in part on that dinner. And fourth, he gets caught up in some internal strife on those working on the Peter Pan cookie account, those people being Peggy, Pete, Mathis and Ed. Meanwhile, Betty learns that Sally has maintained a friendship over all these years with Glen Bishop,... Written by Huggo

While working on an account with Stan that involves children, Peggy muses about how terrible a mother she would be. Trudy is facing a difficult time getting Tammy into the pre-school she wants - a school at which a Campbell has attended for as long as Pete can remember - and as such, Pete decides to help Trudy smooth the waters with the school's administration to get Tammy a placement there. These and other personal issues take a back seat when a crisis occurs at Sterling Cooper from what looked to be a simple but devastating clerical oversight. It was not an oversight, but rather a calculated move. The Sterling Cooper partners want the crisis placed under wraps from the staff until they decide how best to handle it. Through the worries of the partners, Don believes he has stumbled onto a solution, which may take some maneuvering to achieve. One of those more difficult manoeuvrings entails getting Ken on side, he who still has hard feelings about being let go by Roger. As they deal ... Written by Huggo

SCandP has made the physical move to the McCann Erickson offices. Some like Harry are looking forward to the new environment, some not so much. Several SCandP staff members are not going, some by choice, some not invited. One person's move that is delayed is Peggy, whose new office is not yet completed due to a mix-up. As such, she decides to stay at what is the largely empty and closed down old SCandP offices until such time as her new office is ready. She finds that it is a difficult period if only because of trying to do her work in a makeshift environment. Her final days at SCandP are illuminated by the few others who are straggling behind, one who is delaying the move by choice. Joan was anticipating a difficult move, being a partner at SCandP to a small player at McCann Erickson, which doesn't value the accounts on which she is working. Joan finds the transition even more difficult than she anticipated. One problem with a new coworker snowballs into another when she tries to rectify it on... Written by Huggo

After leaving Racine, Don decides not to return to New York, but rather drive around the country and Sally is one of the few people he has let know. He ends up getting stranded in Ava, Oklahoma with car troubles. As he waits for his car to get fixed, he gets to know Del and Sharon, the owners of the motel where he is staying, and Andy, the motel's young housekeeper. All three and Del's closest group of friends affect Don's life in different ways. Don, in turn, ends up affecting Andy's life in more ways than one. With Don AWOL, Jim Hobart has called in Duck Phillips to find a replacement. Running into Pete at the McCann offices, Duck thinks he has a mutually beneficial arrangement for Pete. Pete ends up humoring Duck partly out of a sense of owing him a favor, not wanting Jim even to know that he and Duck talked. But as Pete goes through the process, Trudy gets peripherally involved, which makes Pete think not only about what he is doing with Duck, but what he wants in his personal ... Written by Huggo

Many from Sterling Cooper are still evaluating their new lives at McCann Erickson and deciding if there is a future for them there. Roger makes two decisions in his personal life, one relating to his legacy. Pete has decided to start a new life with Trudy and Tammy in Wichita by taking the lucrative Lear Jet job. Peggy believes she's settling into her new McCann Erickson life, despite not finding the environment as easy to maneuver within as it was at Sterling Cooper. Peggy's professional path takes a possible turn with an offer by Joan, who seizes upon an opportunity initiated by Ken to reinvent her professional self. That new professional life may be at odds with Joan's personal life with Richard. What Peggy decides to do professionally may be influenced by a personal revelation that blindsides her. And Don is still traveling the country in his post-McCann retirement life. While doing some speed driving on the Bonneville Salt Flats, he finds out about Betty's terminal lung cancer ... Written by Huggo