bbb Posted June 5, 2012 Share Posted June 5, 2012 Good analysis............I actually just thought about the fact that there are only 27 episodes left. Meanwhile stuff I hate like The Real World goes on and on and on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KD in CA Posted June 5, 2012 Share Posted June 5, 2012 The only two characters I can't live without are Don and Roger. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buftex Posted June 5, 2012 Author Share Posted June 5, 2012 The only two characters I can't live without are Don and Roger. Yes, Roger moment of the week: Don: "So, what happened to your whole new "awareness"? Roger; "Eh...it wore off." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HopsGuy Posted June 5, 2012 Share Posted June 5, 2012 Reading the reviews, they keep harping on how the theme for this season has been "Every (Wo)Man for Him/Herself". When you think about it, that's really been the case. Peggy realizing that Don just won't give her her due Roger ending his marriage Lane's embezzling/suicide Ken continuing to write under a nom de plume after being told to stop Just about everything Pete does Megan quitting to concentrate on acting Joan selling herself for a piece of the company Betty being Betty Harry doing whatever it is that Harry does - actually Harry does try to help Paul escape Mother Lakshmi... that's something I'm guessing we'll see a lot of movement in the finale to set up the next season. That's sort of the MO in these cable shows. That was certainly the case with Game of Thrones this week. Sad to see you go, Lane. The way you brokered everyone's departure from the original SC/PPM was brilliant. And we'll never forget your time at the steakhouse. Yeaahhh-hawwww, indeed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KD in CA Posted June 5, 2012 Share Posted June 5, 2012 Interview with Jared Harris: http://entertainment.time.com/2012/06/05/post-script-jared-harris-talks-about-whats-next-after-mad-men/ Great point from the actor about his spiral to the bottom perhaps beginning with his awful night on the town with Don when Don was at his lowest post-divorce point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buftex Posted June 11, 2012 Author Share Posted June 11, 2012 (edited) Great finale. Seems like Don may go back to his old ways, or will he? Getting dressed down my Mrs. Price seemed a bit sobering. Not sure what to make of the whole Megan story line. Is she supposed to be good, or no? Can't really tell...as smart as she is, it seems Don isn't all "in" with her chosen profession...he seems to be longing for some real happiness. Not sure if he is going to get it with the new marriage. The only thing that was a little..uh.."off" to me, was the whole thing with Pete and the mistress. It just didn't seem to fit...almost like they had to fit that story in, to illustrate how unhappy Pete really is. But, is he any different than anyone else on the show (except maybe Cosgrove, and a hallucinating Roger?), in that regards? Loved the choice of "You Only Live Twice" for the seasons' swan song. Kind of strange, I suppose, to use a song so identified with James Bond, but the lyrics seem to fit Don Draper (and Peter Campbell) better than Bond. Edited June 11, 2012 by Buftex Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HopsGuy Posted June 11, 2012 Share Posted June 11, 2012 Pretty solid season that kept with the theme of how the rapid cultural changes that happened in the 60s affected our characters. Roger made a point early on about how it's "every man for himself" and it really was. Don's observation that "happiness is just a moment before you want more happiness" was something I thought about during this episode. Megan wants to work as an actress, even in ads after quitting the advertising game. So much so, she'd steal an idea from a friend and get her husband to get her an audition. The two people that revered Don as a professional over the years have attained those accouterments that go along with success, but to vastly different levels of satisfaction. Pete has the pretty wife and the house in the 'burbs but longs for Beth, wife of his train-riding/life-insurance selling companion, Howard. He ends up getting punched in the face by two different guys after revealing his affair with Beth. Tough year for Pete's face. Peggy, OTOH has gained the authority at the new firm and gets a shot at Virginia Slims. "You've come a long way, baby" might be a bit too 'on the nose', but it's completely apt for Peggy's growth. Then again, Richmond isn't Paris and a couple of dogs banging in the parking lot probably isn't her idea of a view. Also, Stan & Mike struggle with the Topaz pitch because they don't have a woman's point of view for that product. After Megan gets the ad part, we see Don in a bar being approached and asked "Are you alone?" Pretty poignant. Don had a moment at the dentist when he saw his brother Adam. He hadn't thought about Adam since the first season and now Adam was showing up in his mind quite a bit. That's a lot of guilt that Don really hasn't confronted. It might have flipped a switch that sends him back towards the old philandering Don who was always looking for that bit of happiness with women that Betty couldn't deliver and apparently he doesn't seem to be getting from Megan. The view of the SCDP partners looking out the window of the second floor they'll look to expand into was probably the shot of the season. It's a look forward for the principals (well, maybe not so much for Bert) who have all had big life changes this season. 26 more episodes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KD in CA Posted June 12, 2012 Share Posted June 12, 2012 After Megan gets the ad part, we see Don in a bar being approached and asked "Are you alone?" Pretty poignant. No matter what else changes, for Don the answer is always 'yes'. He's carrying a lot of guilt over Lane, which makes the reappearance of Adam (and his guilt over that suicide) bubble back to the surface. Plus, Peggy left him and he's not sure he's happy with Megan. Good to see Peggy in the finale. The dog humping shot was funny; just a little reminder that no matter how good she is she's still got to wade through the crap that comes with being a professional woman in the 60s. Pete -- what a mess, but he always has been. Clearly the most unhappy character. Great season, I'll be a long wait till season 6. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HopsGuy Posted June 12, 2012 Share Posted June 12, 2012 Here's a good read on Vincent Kartheiser (Pete Campbell). Really good actors tend to be strange. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SageAgainstTheMachine Posted June 15, 2012 Share Posted June 15, 2012 My thoughts on Don Draper's development over Seasons 4 and 5. Give it a read. http://www.entertainment-bureau.com/mad-men-is-don-draper-a-good-guy/2076 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buftex Posted June 15, 2012 Author Share Posted June 15, 2012 My thoughts on Don Draper's development over Seasons 4 and 5. Give it a read. http://www.entertainment-bureau.com/mad-men-is-don-draper-a-good-guy/2076 Sage...will read the entire article when I have a few more minutes...but the question of Don Draper being a "good guy" or "bad guy" is yes and yes. The whole Ayn Rand philosophy of "dual truths" and objective moralism run strong through show. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SageAgainstTheMachine Posted June 15, 2012 Share Posted June 15, 2012 Sage...will read the entire article when I have a few more minutes...but the question of Don Draper being a "good guy" or "bad guy" is yes and yes. The whole Ayn Rand philosophy of "dual truths" and objective moralism run strong through show. Totally agreed, hadn't thought of it in a Randian way though. As I point out, he does some dastardly things but he's a conflicted work in progress of a person. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bbb Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 Here's a great article on The Killing from Grantland yesterday. I know some of you have set that you like the feel of the show, but I said, and it was mentioned here, that the incessant rain and "not one recorded smile in 26 episodes" just added to the misery for me!" http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/8072330/the-killing-finale-went-wrong-amc-drama Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buftex Posted June 20, 2012 Author Share Posted June 20, 2012 Here's a great article on The Killing from Grantland yesterday. I know some of you have set that you like the feel of the show, but I said, and it was mentioned here, that the incessant rain and "not one recorded smile in 26 episodes" just added to the misery for me!" http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/8072330/the-killing-finale-went-wrong-amc-drama You know what is so funny? About 5 episodes into the first season, after one red herring after another, my gf and I joked that the killer was going to be either Jamie (the blonde haired assistant of the "mayor") because he was so smarmy, but seemingly unrelated to the whole murder...or the father, or sister in-law....bingo! Turns out we were 2/3 right! btw- I did see a few minutes of the second season here or there, in preperation for "Mad Men", or after...I can tell you, the red-headed cop lady did add a "sardonic smile" to her repitoire in the second season. Totally agreed, hadn't thought of it in a Randian way though. As I point out, he does some dastardly things but he's a conflicted work in progress of a person. Sage, read your article...good stuff. This show can be viewed as a "soap opera", or something far more complex. I think you see it like me, a bit more complex! Draper/Whitman is an amazing character, his dual id's written rigth into the script. What I have always wondered, and something I had a little issue with, early on in the series, was how Dick Whitman, this clumsy, farm kid, scared of his own shadow, transformed into Don Draper. We all know how he assumed the Don Draper identity, but how did he become that person? So in tune with everything going on around him, and a great reader of people. Dick Whitman and Don Draper really are two very different personalities, from what they have shown us. As for the Randian angle, I don't know if you recall, early in the series (first season), I think it is Cooper who urges Don to read some Rand...IIRC, he tells him something like "everything you need to know is in here" or something like that... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bbb Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 I used to wonder that about Don, too. That really should have been explained how he can change not just his name, but his whole person. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HopsGuy Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 You know what is so funny? About 5 episodes into the first season, after one red herring after another, my gf and I joked that the killer was going to be either Jamie (the blonde haired assistant of the "mayor") because he was so smarmy, but seemingly unrelated to the whole murder...or the father, or sister in-law....bingo! Turns out we were 2/3 right! btw- I did see a few minutes of the second season here or there, in preperation for "Mad Men", or after...I can tell you, the red-headed cop lady did add a "sardonic smile" to her repitoire in the second season. Sage, read your article...good stuff. This show can be viewed as a "soap opera", or something far more complex. I think you see it like me, a bit more complex! Draper/Whitman is an amazing character, his dual id's written rigth into the script. What I have always wondered, and something I had a little issue with, early on in the series, was how Dick Whitman, this clumsy, farm kid, scared of his own shadow, transformed into Don Draper. We all know how he assumed the Don Draper identity, but how did he become that person? So in tune with everything going on around him, and a great reader of people. Dick Whitman and Don Draper really are two very different personalities, from what they have shown us. As for the Randian angle, I don't know if you recall, early in the series (first season), I think it is Cooper who urges Don to read some Rand...IIRC, he tells him something like "everything you need to know is in here" or something like that... In season one, Bert points to "Atlas Shrugged" sitting on his desk and says something like, "Right there... that's the one." Later he tells him, "I'm going to introduce you to Miss Ayn Rand. She'll love you." Part 2 comes out this fall and they've really upgraded the cast. Esai Morales will play Francisco and DB Sweeney is John Galt. They must have bumped the budget based on how Part 1 did. I used to wonder that about Don, too. That really should have been explained how he can change not just his name, but his whole person. I've been wondering the same thing. I think there was one flashback to him selling cars, but maybe I'm just remembering the fur store flashback differently. There really needed to be a transformative event. The Dick Whitman that peed himself in Korea is a far cry from the Don Draper that got Roger drunk and convinced him that he had offered him a job, right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bbb Posted July 28, 2012 Share Posted July 28, 2012 The Killing was officially pronounced dead today. I LOVE this eulogy!: http://www.grantland.com/blog/hollywood-prospectus/post/_/id/54063/requiem-for-the-killing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KD in CA Posted July 28, 2012 Share Posted July 28, 2012 1340220007[/url]' post='2489630']I've been wondering the same thing. I think there was one flashback to him selling cars, but maybe I'm just remembering the fur store flashback differently. There really needed to be a transformative event. The Dick Whitman that peed himself in Korea is a far cry from the Don Draper that got Roger drunk and convinced him that he had offered him a job, right? yes, he was selling cars when Anna Draper first confronted him about her husband. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMadCap Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 FYI. Netflix added season 5 today! Great news for those who are late comers to this party, and need to catch up before the season 6 premier on April 7th! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bbb Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 Wow - it's coming up soon. Excellent! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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