Fantastic points, Mike and Kevin!

What an interesting theory that the show will ultimately be Sally Draper’s. I’m not sure how I feel about that. Sad. Angry. Possibly lied to? I need to swirl this around a little bit. Although I’m not ready to concede that Don was, is, and shall forever be the center of the show. Yes, it took a few minutes for him to physically show up in the season premiere, but remember, he was operating Freddy Rumsen like a marionette in that opening scene, so in essence, Don was with us.

I think we could get a better sense of this theory once we finally meet Season 7 Sally. I am very curious, and hopeful that it will happen in the next episode. As it seems to go in the last few seasons (although I haven’t re-watched all lately), it seems to take a few episodes for Betty and the kids (and Francis) to show up. I find this curious as I’m every bit as interested in the Draper kids as I am the people who populate SC&P. Of course, we could all be wrong and the show will belong to Baby Gene.

I had forgotten about the Megan-being-killed-off theories. Thanks for the reminder. There is always a fear/thought that main characters will be killed, but to me it never felt like Mad Men’s m.o. However, that was before the painful and untimely Season 5 death of Lane Pryce, a man of basic moral integrity who made a series of small mistakes and paid the ultimate price. Bert Cooper seems a fit for the next death, both as the oldest character in the story and as a partner in the firm, ripe for replacement. But I’m not sold yet.

Amid Don’s continuing swim upstream and Cooper’s natural aging, we have Roger. For me, his current tailspin is every bit as dangerous and damaging as the one being experienced by Don. Roger is losing his grip on his needy, passive-aggressive daughter, losing his grip on his illegitimate son with Joan (although this remains to be played out), and seemingly losing grip on his place in the world. Was there a scene in the first episode more depressing that Roger, dejected and drunk after a brunch with his daughter, stumbling into bed with two strangers? I wouldn’t rule out Roger’s demise as these finals episodes play out.