Mystery Date (Mad Men)

"Mystery Date" is the fourth episode of the fifth season of the American television drama series Mad Men and the 56th episode of the series overall. It was written by series creator and executive producer Matthew Weiner and writer Victor Levin, and directed by Matt Shakman. It originally aired on the AMC channel in the United States on April 8, 2012.

The episode takes place in July 1966, featuring much discussion among the characters about the Richard Speck murders in Chicago. Don runs into an ex-lover and cannot seem to escape her presence. Joan's husband, Greg, returns from his tour of duty in Vietnam only to reveal that he is being sent back for another year of service, later over dinner it comes out that he actually volunteered to go back for another year. Sally becomes frightened after reading stories on the Speck murders, leading her step-grandmother to educate her on the concepts of fear and defense. Dawn spends the night at Peggy's apartment after becoming too afraid to return home because of racial violence near Harlem.

The episode's title is derived from the 1965 Milton Bradley board game for teenage girls, Mystery Date, wherein several female players draw cards to advance to opening a door, hoping to find one of a variety of desirable male dates on the other side, while simultaneously hoping to avoid the lone undesirable one. A vintage television commercial for the game is viewed by Don's daughter Sally during the episode.

The storylines involving Joan, Sally, and Peggy were well received, although some felt the dream sequence was a heavy-handed way to have Don deal with his past infidelities. "Mystery Date" had consistent viewership with the previous week, with 2.8 million overall viewers and 1.0 million viewers in the 18-49 demographic. Critics noted the dark atmosphere of the episode, with Weiner comparing it to a horror movie. The episode carried themes of sexual violence and the concept of masculinity.