The madness of Mad Men

So one of one of our summer projects has been catching up on “Mad Men” this summer.

We dove into the madness with the launch of Season 3 and fell in love with it. We could hardly wait for Season 4. But we only managed to catch part of it. Because our TV blew up. We lost track of “Mad Men” and other assorted television programs we liked to watch. Yada, yada, yada …

So thanks to AMC’s Sunday morning “Mad Men” marathons during the spring and the launch of Season 5, we managed to record every episode, from the beginning. We now know how it all began. We got to bask in the joys and sorrows of Season 3 again – I still say the Season 3 finale is the best episode of the series – and we are caught up on all of the latest drama of the Drapers and the venerable Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce.

In the meantime, here's the entire plot of the first four seasons in a handy, way cool 7-minute video ...



Hands down, “Mad Men” is my favorite show on television right now. Not since “Lost” ended have I been so entertained and addicted to a series. Once the excitement of Faye’s birth died down, Kates and I got rolling a few weeks ago and we were watching two or three episodes a night, sometimes staying up until 1:30 in the morning. If sleep wasn’t so important, we might have pulled a couple all-nighters. “Mad Men” is like a good book you can’t put down.

Last night, we cleaned the final two episodes of Season 5 from our DVR, and we’re eagerly anticipating Season 6, whenever that may be. Although, now that I think about it, the season sort of ended on a nice note, if, for whatever reason, it doesn’t make it back.

Then again, as Rolling Stone wrote of the finale ...

Joan has found a larger work space for SCDP, and the shot of her with Pete, Roger, Don and Bert all standing in a row, looking out at their new view, was not only an incredible visual, but it reaffirmed that despite all of their personal messes and the tragic loss of a partner, Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce – Sterling Cooper Draper Harris? – is here to stay.

Going all the way back to Season 4 and “The Chrysanthemum and the Sword” Kates and I had a “Whoa …” moment when we realized there were characters by the names of Phoebe and Faye in the same episode. If I remember correctly, I also think that was the last episode we watched in real-time before our TV blew up … And now. How could we ever have imagined establishing connections to both of those names?

Now I’m about to spoil some of the events of seasons 4 and 5. So this is your warning.

Oh, Faye. As Season 4 progressed, I thought Faye was the best thing to happen to Don. She had him opening up about his past and putting away his demons. I really liked her.

Then Don went and cheated on Faye with his secretary, Megan, and Kates and I questioned what the heck he was doing. Even though we should have seen that coming from the moment Sally fell into Megan’s arms at the office. Sally had run away from home and that was also the day Mrs. Blankenship died at her desk right outside Don’s office. That was a pretty classic episode, too.

Now, Don and Megan are married and living a pretty charmed life in an amazing Manhattan apartment that has me gazing around the rooms in every scene it appears. Don and Megan have had their disagreements, but their so darn cute together it makes me squirm thinking about what Don – or Megan – will do to ruin it.

Roger's office looks like the inspiration to George Lucas' Cloud City.

And I think one could develop a pretty mean drinking game based on “Mad Men.” Has anyone else noticed how much the characters say, “Jesus” ?

As we left the agency at the end of Season 5, Lane is gone. Peggy grew up. Joan is a partner after a questionable and shameful agreement to get the Jaguar account. And Pete is as slimy as ever.

Season 6, I can hardly wait.

Here are some good reads I collected during the spring ...

a ‘Mad Men’ Goes Back to the Office
a A Conversation With the ‘Mad Men’ Cast and Creator
a How ‘Mad Men’ Landed the Beatles: All You Need Is Love (and $250,000) ... The scene in which this song played was indeed a trip. And I loved it.
a 'Mad Men'-Era Decor ... Only on Pinterest.
a The Top Man at ‘Mad Men’ Isn’t Mad Anymore