Mad Men 2.05: The New Girl

Le bout que je préfère dans cet épisode, c’est le tête à tête entre Pete Campbell et le médecin que sa femme et lui ont décidé de consulter parce qu’ils n’arrivent pas avoir un enfant. En quelques répliques, on revisite sa personnalité au grand complet…

DOC
Did your testicles descend normally?

PETE
Absolutely.

DOC
And have you ever fathered a child?

PETE
No.

DOC
Have you ever had difficulty completing the sexual act?

PETE
Drinking doesn’t help. But no. I always reach home base.

DOC
Do you have difficulties with arousal?

PETE
Jesus. I’m a red blooded american male, okay?

(…)

DOC
Do you want to have a child?

PETE
What kind of question is that? Of course I do. What man doesn’t want a child. Although you think about the world right now. The bomb…

DOC
Do you worry about the world?

PETE
Occasionally.

DOC
Do you work with X-rays, radioactive material, or toxic chemicals?

PETE
I’m in advertising. Oh! We got a Xerox machine, but I don’t use it, not personally.

DOC
Advertising. It must be a lot of fun.

PETE
Are you kidding. I’ an account man. I spend half my day tiptoeing around creative crybabies and the other half drinking with ungrateful turnips who just fell off the truck. I’ completely replaceable, even though I just brought in a huge account. The you throw this baby-thing on top of it, the economy contracting, my in-laws…

DOC
Yes, it’s a lot. What about your parents?

PETE
My father just passed away.

DOC
I’m sorry to hear that.

PETE
Do you think that has something to do with this? It doesn’t. I mean… I try not to think about it. It’s been a few months.

DOC
It is a difficult moment in the life cycle. But we are part of a continuum, aren’t we?

PETE
So maybe I’m the end of the line.

C’est du grand dialogue dramatique parce que toutes les lignes de Pete sont riches en sous-texte. Pete ne dit pas toujours le fond de sa pensée, mais on lit quand même en lui comme dans un livre ouvert. Mes deux réponses préférés sont «Absolutely» et « Occasionally». La première parce que c’est tout à fait Pete de vouloir qu’aucun doute ne plane à propos de ses testicules. La seconde parce qu’il répond à une question philosophique comme si le médecin lui demandait s’il avait parfois du mal à dormir ou à avoir une érection.