Stan finds a folder of cartoons Lou is drawing, and the creative team jokes about them. When Lou finds out, he makes the whole team work late.
Stephanie, Anna Draper's niece, who is pregnant out of wedlock and running out of money in LA, calls Don for help. Don asks Megan if Stephanie can temporarily stay with her. Megan accepts, but feels insecure when she sees how beautiful Stephanie is and by Stephanie's claims to know all of Don's secrets, leading her to write a check for $1,000 and encourage her to leave. After being held up at the office, Don flies out but is disappointed that Stephanie has left. Megan hosts a party for her acting friends that Harry unexpectedly attends. Sensing the awkwardness, Harry and Don go out to a bar, where Harry suggests Don should be working in LA because Ted Chaough is "useless", besides which, Lou and Jim are pursuing Commander cigarettes, a Philip Morris brand; should this go ahead, Don's job would be at risk as getting rid of him will probably be one of Philip Morris's conditions thanks to that letter. After the party, Megan involves Don in a threesome with her and her friend Amy.
After Sally and some classmates "sword-fight with golf clubs", she is sent home from boarding school with an apparent broken nose. This leads to another argument between her and Betty. When Betty voices her opinion on the Vietnam War at a dinner party, Henry tells her to limit conversations to "how much you hate getting toast crumbs in the butter".
The new office computer triggers Ginsberg's paranoia, which culminates in a psychotic break, leading him to cut off his own nipple and give it to Peggy in a box, before he is hauled away from the office on a stretcher.
After returning to New York, Don interrupts Lou and Cutler's meeting with the Philip Morris executives. He states that he wrote that letter purely to save his business and is now the only experienced cigarette man with knowledge of the competition (Lucky Strike being owned by American Tobacco, Philip Morris's rivals). He suggests they "force" him into service. After the meeting, when alone in the street, Cutler glares at Don, accusing him of attempting to save his own position at the firm.
This episode contains examples of the following tropes:
- Call-Back: To that letter, which Don wrote for the New York Times in "Blowing Smoke". Almost four years later, it still has repercussions.
- The Conspiracy: Lou and Jim actively court Philip Morris. With the increase in billings from the account, the agency will be able to afford to get rid of Don — which is likely to be something that Philip Morris will insist on, thanks to that letter.
- Evil Is Petty: After forcing Don to stay and work on a Friday night, Lou decides that he can see the work on Monday instead, ruining Don's plans anyway.
- Granola Girl: Stephanie always had shades of this but has now turned full-on hippie, wearing plenty of crochet, not eating meat and not having properly washed for a while.
- Green-Eyed Monster: Having seen how beautiful she is, Megan is envious of Stephanie even before the latter makes an offhand remark that she knows all of Don's secrets.
- Hidden Depths: Lou may be something of an unimaginitive martinet, but the "Scout's Honor" cartoons do show that he has some genuine creative talent.
- Improperly Paranoid: Ginsberg gets increasingly paranoid about the office computer. He sees Lou and Cutler having a secret meeting and assumes that the computer is turning the whole office gay.
- Mean Boss: Lou, who shows a vindictive streak after he finds out that the Creative team knows about his "Scout's Honor" cartoon strip.
- Oh, Crap!: Don's reaction when Harry accidentally lets slip on Cutler and Lou's plan to court Phillip Morris.
- Parenting the Husband: Gender-flipped with Henry, who breaks up an argument between Betty (his wife) and Sally (his step-daughter) by treating them both like children.
- Questionable Consent: Megan basically coerces Don into a threesome with her and Amy, despite the fact that he is drunk and outright says "I don't want anything right now" to her. Despite ultimately giving in, Don never actually consents.
- Sanity Slippage: Ginsberg's sanity, always somewhat fragile, complete erodes in this episode thanks to the computer increasing his paranoia. It culminates in him cutting off his nipple and presenting it to Peggy, who is totally shocked. Ginsberg gets taken away, presumably to a mental hospital.
- Self-Harm: Ginsberg cuts off his nipple under the deluded belief that it's receiving transmissions from the office computer.
- Wham Line: Harry accidentally reveals to Don that Cutler and Lou are pursuing Philip Morris, thus trying to get rid of Don:Harry: Cutler and Lou are pursuing Commander.
Don: Commander who?
Harry: No, Commander cigarettes. Philip Morris. - Wham Shot: Peggy opening the box to find Ginsberg's nipple.
