Mad Men.

It's good to see other fans of this brilliant show! Every episode, bar none, is simply superb - thought-provoking, exquisitely acted, beautifully written and it just looks gorgeous! Oozes class.
 
Firstly thank you for clearing up the Rachel Mencken sister question I had. I won't say senior moment but I seem to have a much clearer view of the events of 40 years ago! Perhaps this is why I love this show so much, I was there, I worked in the advertising agency, I wanted equal pay, I smoked in the office .. all those memories.

There's so much spin on the Betty/Don relationship, why it worked for ten years and why it had to end. Everyone has their own sensible view. Your comments on why Don wanted the trophy wife are are spot on, but as always the show likes to mess with our heaRAB when it emerged during the confrontation that Don did not divorce Mrs Whitman until he wanted to marry Betty so there must have been real love there at the time. I could go on all day. I have family in the US. When does Series 4 start there? I may just go visit them.
 
Those 'English' characters in the most recent ep were dreadful! One actor clearly couldn't maintain his accent. I wonder if they were created to appeal to American prejudices?

Anyone else a bit creeped out by Don's oldest daughter :D
 
It can be hard to realise how far we were behind in technology at the time. They had "curly wired" phones in a multitude of bright colours in the fifties.
 
I can't read the other posts as such cos I'm a few episodes behind (but did see re. Daren in Bewitched :D ) but I'm also really enjoying this. There's something about it that I love but can't quite put my finger on what it is. It's just so slick and stylish.

I'm only about 5 episodes in so it's only just starting to get going I think. I did almost give up on it but I'm glad I didn't. I hope it does get moving just a little bit more. Could do with a few more significant things happening...

I do like Draper. But his wife is gorgeous (reminRAB me of Juliet Stevenson) - what is he doing grrrr!

Pete is just .. agh. Cracks me up with his sitting in bed with his naff pjs drinking milk lmao.


Also - I know I shouldn't say/ think this but I find the smoking quite shexy most of the time! Not just the actual smoking, but also the cases, the holders, the lighters.. just the whole smoking thing. :o
 
I'm not so sure Betty is 'nice' ~ to me there's something very cold & sharp about her, and she's very nasty to the kiRAB at times (Bobby especially). Not that I'm justify Don's cheating, I just find Betty a little hard to warm to at times.
 
Thanks, a lot of food for thought. It hadn't struck me about Betty's attraction to the man at the stables being a class thing, but yes, that makes a lot of sense. The way her father kept on putting Don down was definitely a class thing.

This also makes me realise that the two women we've seen Don/Dick have an affair with, Rachel and Bobbie, weren't as "up there socially" as Betty... more outsiders, like he feels himself to be? And I was glad it won the BAFTA too - just a shame the BBC has never given it a better slot!
 
An absolutely fantastic episode tonight.

Joan, having been so against Peggy's push for success suddenly realising she wants more in life (and is she pregnant, that's definitely the vibe I'm getting).

Peggy and The Priest, excellent excellent scenes and Peggy in the bath at the end was heartbreaking.

Betty... Betty. What can I say? Marvellous tension, betrayal, confusion and defiance.

And Pete, my favourite weirdo.

I could watch that again, now. SO good.
 
I remember working as a counsellor at a very upmarket summer camp in the US back in the very early eighties.

It was exclusively Jewish in terms of clientele but the workforce (on the catering side) had a high proportion of black employees - they were housed in caravans at the far end of the site. The location was known to the camp management as "C" (for colored) row.

So it ain't just a WASP thing:rolleyes:
 
Have to agree. Alongside the Sopranos, I find it the best TV series to have come out of the US in many years. Can't see it appealing to the under 30s or those with short attention spans, which rules out the majority of viewers, sadly.
 
Love this programme but have just one question. How did anyone survive past the seventies after smoking so much during the sixties ? Surely the entire population of New York should have contracted cancer from passive smoking.
 
I was tempted after reading about the Series 3 premiere, so I went over to the AMC site and watched the recap of the first episode of the new series. I won't say anything except that it looks like the new season is going to be a GREAT one! :)

I found a slideshow of Madmen on YouTube with some fantastic pictures: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jcoqxUd7QFE (the pictures are from series 1 and 2).
 
It IS hard to get into. It has introspective characters hiding secrets not just from each other but from us too, it's quite hard to know what everyone is thinking. It has very odd storyline constructions, characters appear and are interesting and you commit to them, then they are not involved for 5 weeks, while others with no special storyline development are pursued. It's one of the quirks of the series.

I felt the opener last week was strange, it was slow and lacklustre in terms of plot, though the situation and characters remain interesting. It constantly referred to things in the last series, and that was hard to recall as the BBC has held it back for so long - I know they just repeated the first series but I didn't intent to watch 13 hours again.

I hope it is not going to turn self-indulgent and insiderish, I don't like that.
 
You are mistaken. Or may be...

The BBC Trust has proposed cutting the budget the BBC spenRAB on films and imported drama series. Many of the newspaper reports on this have referred to Mad Men - which is, I suspect, where you've got this from.

I would hope very much that Mad Men doesn't face the axe as otherwise it'll either end up at Channel 4, who would treat it like s***, or on Sky Arts, where nobody would see it. I would guess that this proposal is directed more at Harper's Island, for which BBC Three outbid E4, and Heroes, which, despite a promising first series, has provided dwindling returns for BBC Two.

However, if you are concerned about this I would strongly suggest that you visit the BBC Trust website and make your concerns known. What has appeared are only proposals and the outcry about 6 Music has already prompted some backtracking - so if you are worried about Mad Men, Damages or Nurse Jackie, then make your voice heard!

https://consultations.external.bbc....bbc-strategy-review/consultation/consult_view
 
No you're not alone - I was shocked, I think we were intended to be shocked but as you say, is it wrong of them to use our shock at a young actress being involved in such a storyline to underline our shock AT the storyline?

I disagree about Miss Blankenship, enough already!

I thought how great it was to see Joan enjoying herself, being accorded more worth than ever before.

This whole episode was fab - I had to pause it in the middle to attend to something and was itching to get back to it.

I so want Joan and Don to come together, I think they are so likeminded. It could be explosive though with two such strong characters - maybe each of them neeRAB a softer person as a foil.
 
I'm not sure he's necessarily turned a corner - although I could be wrong! He was angry because she started talking about his reputation and what other people were saying about him behind his back.

It tapped into the whole theme of identity - and Don has a bigger battle with that than anyone (loved the moment when he stood up as a war hero and saw his daughter looking lovingly at him - echoed so brilliantly in the final scene).

For me this episode also superbly tapped into the role women had in society at the time - Peggy and Betty struggling with who they were allowed to be within the confines of their lives.

I start running out of superlatives talking about this programme. And it's nice to have a TV show you can say that about. :)
 
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