The Anatomy of Betty Draper Francis

Betty’s much-anticipated return to Mad Men was cleverly orchestrated and appropriately effective. It is clear that the writers have mastered the art of storytelling by meticulously covering the gaping surfaces and cinching all the edges without sacrificing the quality of an already perfect product.

Betty Draper Francis, expertly played by actress January Jones, is not the same self-assured and immaculately preserved trophy wife that viewers loved to hate. This time we are presented with an emotionally and physically generous version of the Ice Queen., who seems to have melted into a puddle of low self-esteem, boredom and confusion. Her obvious weight gain which was brilliantly contrived to accommodate Jones’ late stage pregnancy, forces Betty to seek the help of a physician, with the hope that he will dish out the magic pills that will undoubtedly restore her back to her slender form. But during her checkup, things take an unexpected turn and Betty ends up wishing her weight issues were the only pressing matter. She may have a deadly tumor growing inside her. As she waits for the results of her test, we watch her become the kind-hearted and accessible woman we always wanted her to be. Not to mention a doting mother and considerate wife. Seeing Betty normalized and humbled was almost disconcerting but it was gratifying to get a glimpse of her more angelic twin.

As luck would have it the tumor turns out to be benign, and Betty promptly reverts back to her cooler demeanor as she sedately receives the good news while annoyingly recognizing the fact that her weight gain is obviously attributed to her lack of discipline.

It will be interesting to see how long it takes for the model-like Betty to re-appear, but so far Mad Men refuses to waver when it comes to pushing their characters to the limit and challenging the loyalty of their viewers.