"Mad Men" on AMC (US) - (Spoilers Within)

[Wire9Vintage]

Oh so much in last night's show! What, pray tell, will next week hold??

Sally and Glen... hmmm. Sally seems to be OK, and Betty almost met the child on equal ground! Almost. Glen... not sure what's up with that. The kid has problems, but it looks like they're just talking. But he was trying to turn Sally against Betty, so yeah, I guess that's what he's up to. But my goodness, January Jones is WAY too skinny.

Midge! Wow. I did NOT see that one coming. Another glimpse into Don's soft side, which is always fascinating.

The letter. Awesome stuff, very out on a limb. But what was up with Cooper's reaction? I understood his main problem to be, not the letter, but the fact Don's name was the only one on it? Hmmm. So he quit... (Love the line.. "I didn't think they'd start with HIM!")

Also LOVED that Faye was cleaver enough to put Don on the spot so sweetly: Hey we can date openly now... have your girl make dinner arrangements! hee hee! Somehow, I don't think Don's going to ask Megan to do that!

Both looking forward to and dreading next week! We'll be MONTHS without the show!!

 

[fortworthgal]

I don't care for Faye, but I must admit "have your girl make the reservation" was both clever and amusing.

I hope we haven't seen the last of Bert Cooper! "You! Get my shoes!"

Loved that Don paid Pete's share - sort of a recognition of how he "owes" Pete, per se.

Midge - bleh. I never cared for her character to begin with. Still, I was a little surprised she turned into a junkie. I thought it was very sad when she asked Don if he thought her art was any good and he just replied, "Does it matter?"

Glenn gives me the creeps in a serious way.

Looking forward to the season finale!

 

[Young fogey]

Does anyone watch the NBC show "Community"? One of the cast is Alison Brie who plays Pete Campbell's wife on "Mad Men".


By the way, this is my first post.

Chad

I do. Alison's lovely but IMO prettier as Trudy.

Welcome.

 

[Mr Vim]

I love at the end how Don and Roger are sitting smoking and talking about the American Cancer Society... and I really want Ted Chaug-ga ga to get his due for being a worm.

And dammit, I want Connie Hilton back, he could save the day... and it would kind of be awesome.

But then again, the last episode is titled Tomorrowland, now that was the name of a Disney weekly show about the exciting promises of the future, I think the first episode had Werner Von Braun (the man who made the Saturn rocket that took us to the moon) on it... so is that the tease? Will SCDP start running with Disney? That would be a twist.

 

[dandelion-vint]

I can't wait to see what kind of cliffhangers they come up with to torture us! There's going to be so many things hanging.
I really loved Sally this year and hope to see more of her next year too.

 

[Doctor Strange]

The big question for this weekend's finale episode: will (some of) it take place during the great NYC blackout of November 1965?!? Last week's episode seemed to be taking place in late September/early October...

 

[LocktownDog]

Each character seems to be degenerating ... almost spinning down into their own personal hells. Except Peggy. She's the only one left that I have any respect for.

Kind of a disappointing season.

 

[Tomasso]

I can't fault him.That's some sweet meat. And rebounding from a nut case........

 

[Doctor Strange]

I thought the finale was filled with surprises and moved like a shot. If it lacked the excitement of last year's "Shut the Door, Have a Seat", it was still very satisfying - and nicely upbeat after so much very intense drama through the season.

Many of the ongoing plot threads and character developments were, if not exactly wrapped up, turned in satisfying directions (e.g., Joan and Peggy finally commiserating in a sisterly way rather than being snappish). The honeymoon's clearly over for Betty and Henry, the firm will survive, Joan's having the baby (I was pretty sure that she didn't have the abortion, and I was right!), and - at least at this point - Megan will be just what Don, and his kids, need. A strong finale to a very strong season, perhaps the series' best.

But I'm a bit worried about Faye eventually making trouble for Don: she was unceremoniously dumped, she (kind of) knows Don's biggest secret, she's very clever, and there's her "two-bit gangster" father to consider...

 

[AmateisGal]

Ohhhh boy. Good episode. I am SO GLAD Joanie kept the baby! I knew it, I knew it! LOL

And I must admit, I like Don and Megan together much more than Don and Faye. Though yeah, I agree that Faye may make trouble for them. But Megan loves the kids and Don is relaxed around them all. Loved seeing that side of him.

Sigh...I hate having to wait so long until the next season, though!

 

[DetroitFalcons]

I really thought Don was going to get involved in a threesome out in California.

Faye was already married...to her work. Don picked the right girl.

 

[Wire9Vintage]

Excellent season ender! This show simmers, it doesn't explode. I thought about the episode all day!

I gasped when Sally asked, "Who's Dick?" That was just fantastic! Megan is the woman those kids need to have around... remember Faye saying she didn't know what to do with children? Don, I hope!, has picked the right girl...

But remember, this show is about consequences as much as the difference between reality and appearance. And there are several consequences that have yet to happen. Shows this good don't need a big flashy cliffhanger to keep us ready to tune in!

I'll now start watching the whole season over in the next 13 weeks (love a DVR!). Anyone else going to do that?

 

[Mr Vim]

The last episode was a very classic Mad Men episode.

My favorite line is Roger's response to Don saying he is engaged to Megan (I cannot remember her last name but that's how Don puts it)
"...who the hell is that?"
"Megan."
"Megan? (Points out at her desk) that Megan!?!"

And you know what, I liked Faye, I do not see what all the hate was about. Her character was honest about where she was in life and she was mature... Megan seems like another Betty to me. Pretty, young, and with some interesting surface features, but what else is there? Her and Don have not had any of the interesting interaction (that we've seen) as have Don and Faye. We saw Faye's surface, her business like attitude, and we saw what was underneath. And the way Don behaves around her reminds me of the starry eyed demeanor he had when he was telling Anna about how he was going to marry Betty. Exactly to a T.

So on to my next point, Don doesn't deserve Faye, he doesn't really deserve anything. I'm military, I have a special spot on my right knuckles for deserters. And Don/Dick is a deserter, he's a coward hiding behind a dead man's name. Nothing is more craven in my opinon and if Faye sticks it to him, good for her. He should be punished. Look what he did with the name he took, set up an agency, made a lot of money, does he give anything back to the country, nope. Jon Hamm is fantastic in this role, but he is not my favorite character.

I'm looking forward to the next season, mostly to see where it goes.

EDIT: I've been reading the Lipp Sisters blog on Mad Men, and they have some very interesting things to say about Fay versus Megan, things I agree with and they put forth their argumentative points far better than I can.

 

[FRASER_NASH]

Loved the last episode...as someone said in here, it 'simmers..!!!' or 'fizzles like a fuse...'

Can someone point out to me just when/how Joan explains to her husband that there's a 'bun in the oven?' (as I seem to have missed it somewhere!).

I was disappointed by both Joan and Peggy being backroom b**ches after Don had delivered his good news. Actually Peggy especially let me down a bucket load!! As she and Don have a special relationship, and no sooner had she been so nice and huggy with Don, then she goes to the office, lights up, and does the b**ch routine!! (or is that just the way women are generally...?).

Megan seems lovely and just the right person for Don. I'm hoping he will mature into Dick with her (as he says something to the effect that "with you I can be myself, the self I want to be..").

And isn't the cafe scene lovely when the milkshake spills after one of the kids knocks it! We are ALL waiting for the usual EXPLOSION from Don and Megan (as are the kids, because Sally in that position would have just gone ballistic!!). But SURPRISE....(to both Don and the kids), Megan calmly gets some napkins, starts wiping, and just quips, "Hey, it's ok, it's only milkshake" (like it's no big deal). I find that THE DEFINING MOMENT where Don thinks, this could be the 'one!' And it's a lovely, underplayed, natural moment.

The part I had a real lump in my throat, was seeing the scribbles on the wall in the house...so, so sad (it just reminded 'me' of something in my own life).

All-in-all, I just cannot wait for the next series. Do we really have to wait until 'next year' now...??!!

 

[fortworthgal]

Love this show!

1. I knew, just knew, that Joan hadn't gone through with the abortion. I'd pay real money to see Roger's reaction when her big news is revealed at the office, but knowing the way the show jumps over time between seasons, I'm guessing we won't be given that luxury. I guess that makes two SCDP partners who now have secret love children with other employees. lol

As far as her pregnancy goes, I suspect she either dropped down to quickly visit her husband wherever he was in basic training, or she'll just fudge the dates a little. In the mid-60s things weren't that precise, and he had only been gone a couple of weeks before her encounter with Roger. A little "oh the baby's 2 weeks late" and she's home free.

I also have to admit that I had my first moment of sympathy for Joan's husband, while he was sitting on the phone with her discussing her pregnancy. For a brief moment, I felt like they genuinely loved each other and I hope he'll make it back from Vietnam (although I doubt it.)

2. I was taken aback by Don and Megan's engagement - and also by Don's unceremonious dumping of Dr. Faye. However, I must admit I was at least glad to see that Megan is good with the children. I laughed out loud when he called Faye to dump her and announced his engagement, and she said, "Are you kidding me?"

3. Betty's beeotchitude grows with each episode, if that's possible. I felt badly for Carla but was glad she got a couple of digs in on her way out. Glad Henry is finally seeing Betty's true colors.

4. I think Peggy and Joan's private discussion about Don's engagement had less to do with Don and Megan, and more to do with their own roles in the agency. Joan - who practically runs the office - is given a promotion "in title only" with no pay raise. Joan herself even commented on how she was pushing the mail cart (an entry-level duty) at the time. Then Peggy lands the first new account since the Lucky Strike fiasco - but it is all overshadowed by Don's announcement. Joan and Peggy both work very hard and put many hours in at the office, with considerably less "goofing off" than most of the men. Yet their own legitimate achievements are (once again) trumped by one of the random flights of fancy of one of the men. Joan & Peggy work hard and get little recognition, but Don turns around and decides to marry a secretary and is rewarded. I don't believe this piece was intended to show women as gossipy b**ches, as much as it was intended to point out inequalities and their dissatisfaction with the situation.

5. I still have a wicked crush on Roger Sterling.

Mr. Vim - Your assessment of Don - "Jon Hamm is fantastic in this role, but he is not my favorite character" - I believe that is precisely what the writers and creators of this show are trying to achieve. Yes Don is very handsome, a smooth-talker and financially successful - but he's a total cad and not a very nice person at all.

 

[MrBern]

Matthew Weiner Closes the Books on Season 4 of ‘Mad Men’

http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/10/17/matthew-weiner-closes-the-books-on-season-4-of-mad-men/

 

[MrBern]

‘Mad Men’ Versus Domesticity


http://douthat.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/10/21/mad-men-versus-domesticity/

 

[Bruce Wayne]

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0802119891/ref=nosim/0sil8

 

[MrBern]

U R what U watch

http://adage.com/article?article_id=146779

To find out which personalities are attracted to which TV shows, Mindset Media recently analyzed self-reported data from about 25,000 TV viewers across more than 70 TV shows. What they found were common personality traits among many of the shows' audiences of people who answered that they regularly tune in.

'Mad Men'
Creative people are 41% more likely to watch "Mad Men" than less creative people. While that certainly could apply in the marketing world to the typical "agency guy," creative people are also emotionally sensitive and intellectually curious types who tend to more often be dreamers rather than realists. Advertisers with strong appeal for them include Apple and Audi A6, while Microsoft and GMC Sierra would be less likely to grab their interest. "Mad Men" watchers are also more likely to be liberal. Liberals, in fact, are a whopping 124% more likely to watch the ad drama than other people. Social liberals, as defined by Mindset, disdain moral authorities and believe children should be exposed to moral dilemmas and allowed to draw their own conclusions. These people prefer brands such as Blue Moon and American Express, while they would likely not be as interested in Campbell's soup or a Cadillac Escalade.

 

[MrBern]

From FLICKR

A Manhattan CHildhood
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sangroncito/sets/72157604669598051/with/4823974799/

(Photos above: On the right Don and Betty Draper, on the left my mother and my stepfather (who was a television executive, a field related to advertising) in a photo taken in 1960.)