The backdrop for last night’s episode, “Mystery Date,” was the mass nurse-murders that took place in Chicago in 1966. Eight out of nine victims were brutally stabbed or strangled to death. The ninth escaped because she hid beneath the bed — the killer had lost count. New York is somewhat removed from the horrific event, but the shock reverberates and disturbs each character. This glint of sheer brutality against women colors the episode’s events a sickly shade of fear. The employees of SCDP are unable to comprehend what people are capable of — including themselves.

There are two things you should have noticed within the first minute of last night’s episode of Mad Men. First, it was directed by Jon Hamm. Second, Betty Francis, formerly Betty Draper, is fat. That’s right, folks, fat.

I couldn’t believe how much this traumatized me. January Jones is half the reason why I even watch this show. Now I guess it’s more like three-quarters. I was so accustomed to seeing the modelesque Betty smolder and fume in gorgeous 50’s attire. The opening scene has Betty feigning illness to skip her new husband’s event because she can’t fit into her dress. Formerly a model, she has “gotten comfortable” as a housewife and mopes in front of the television in the middle of the day in her robe and slippers. She’s still pretty, but she’s plump, and the depression and disappointment is written all over her face. Hamm handles Betty’s transformation subtly, but without losing any of its shock power. Shadowed cuts of her full form and brief glimpses of a more rounded arm communicate her condition quietly. As he should, Hamm glosses over the status quo of ideal thinness, because obesity and using amphetamines for weight loss are still unexplored territories for the characters.

After almost a year and a half sabbatical, Mad Men has returned to television, with more alcohol and licentious behavior than ever. Accruing over 2.92 million viewers and 19 Emmy nominations last season, Mad Men sought to continue their lucky streak with a boldfaced advertising campaign for its long-awaited return, “Adultery is Back.” New York residents complained that the iconic billboards of a man falling through the high rises of New York City was insensitive to the events of 9/11. Whether or not the producers of this AMC hit needed to resort to such shocking ads, we’ll never know, but it certainly set the tone for the season five premiere this Sunday.

Praised for its visually pleasing set and periodic costumes, America has become quite attached to the cheating, drinking, lying, brown-nosing men, and women, of New York’s Madison Avenue c. 1960. Banana Republic even rolled out a Mad Men-inspired line of sheath gowns and sharp suits. The past four seasons have been a rollicking ride as the characters confront adultery, blatant sexism, various countercultures, identity crises, and racism, all while puffing at that ever-present cigarette and clinking that whiskey on the rocks.