Mad Men on AMC

[Babytoxie]

I had been iffy on this season until the last 3 or so episodes. That was a run of greatness.

I fully expected Don to spill his guts to Megan about Sylvia once he got home, but I suppose that would have been too much after everthing else. Darn.


Only one more season to go!

[protector2814]

Don's "departure" in his great pitch to Hershey and where his speech ultimately led to was amazing to me. Seeing the other partners disdainfully digest what it was he was saying was, in a weird way, fun to watch. "Was that true?" asked Rodger ... man, that was a great moment, Don coming clean. I loved it. But, not as much as that final scene, where Don takes his kids home. That moment, & his exchange, through eyes, with Sally, was oddly beautiful and actually caused me to well-up for a moment. Did Sally & Don's facial exchange, in front of that old house, mean that a little bit of her father's behavior over the years was finally explained? Sally, for me, seemed to express a look of understanding in that final moment.
An excellent episode and boy are things being set up for a huge final season.


* and on a sidenote - The Pete tragedy is somehow hilarious to me in its own weird way. Great writing on his side.

[protector2814]

So, the 2-year final season kicked-off last night, and ... I gotta say, it didn't feel too fresh. Characters felt bogged down by variations of situations that have happened during the past 6 seasons, often more then once. AMC plugged so many commercials into this 1st show of the seventh season that it felt like they were attempting to just stretch-out the show as if the decision to elongate the final season comes at a price of shortening the content of actual episodes. I can remember when "with limited commercial interruptions" used to be a tease used w/ Mad Men.
The California stuff felt fresh & we can discuss w/ more detail as more of you have the chance to see this ep.

[Babytoxie]

I was annoyed with the S7 premiere. Almost a year break, and we get... that? You're right - everything seemed like well-tread territory, same old stuff. And the commercial breaks drove me crazy.

So we have only 6 more episodes until the mid-season break. Then it's more waiting until spring 2015 for the final 7 episodes. It's hard to get excited about it, and I have fears that this show won't wrap up in a satisfactory manner.

Though I got a kick out of California Pete. He's definitely found his element.

[protector2814]

For me, Don always seemed most-complete and at peace when he visited the original Mrs. Draper in California. There were a few almost Jack Kerouac-ian scenes while Don visited out there & he felt right in those scenes. I've always wanted Don to finish in CA, where he seems to be most fulfilled so I'm hoping this season 7 shift to the west will bring him closer to figuring his sh&% out.

What I'm not really interested in anymore is more torrid affairs & benders which result in guilt-crashes, which then result in momentary Phoenix rising from the ashes scenes ... rinse & repeat.

Where I'd like to see the show end, & I realize this is just wishful thinking on my part, is Don Zenning out in CA, maybe as kind of a Dharma Bum . w/ a now 50 something Sally Draper recalling the whole show & it's ending w/memories her Father, from her front porch from her life now. She too, having closure & a happy life. W/ us experiencing the entire show from her memory & conclusions.

I want some sort of closure after faithfully & enjoyably following this show since day one. Will I get it? Nope, I doubt it.

BT - California-Pete was just great. Pete is so much fun to watch, I'm starting to think he stole the whole 6+ seasons.



* side note - I saw another Bewitched reference while re-watching last season. Don, before he clocked that born-again Christian at the bar & ended up sleeping it off in the slammer, was watching Bewitched on the bar-tube before it all went down.

[ParisDean]

I liked the premiere. The complaints I'm reading sound similar to last season which also started slow, but ended great so I don't know why one would doubt this season would end well too.

[Babytoxie]

I'm venting, of course, but I don't see why we can't hit the ground running instead of having to build up to something. After a long wait, and another long wait not too far away, I just want more. Last season certainly did pick up, but for me, it didn't come soon enough.

Of course, my frustration could be amplified by the fact that I watched the Mad Men season premiere right after GoT, which, after only two episodes into the current season, has blown my mind.

[nbr3bagshotrow]

Wife watches this but it does nothing for me.

[wktf]

This season opener was not worth waiting for.

[ParisDean]

I liked the premiere, but last night's episode was much better. The ending might be the greatest Don/Sally moment in the entire series.