Follow Up – Mad Men
Mad Men – AMC – 3 Seasons – USA
Season three is over and if you caught the fantastic season finale I think you can join me in answering the following question: Is Mad Men the best drama on TV? What do the contenders look like? Damages? Nah, that fell down in season two. Dexter? Nah, his antics got old. Sons Of Anarchy? It’s not as consistent or original as Mad Men. Friday Night Lights? Sure, it makes me cry every damn week but is it the best?
I’m sure you have your own picks for best drama on TV right now but I have to agree with the Emmys (for once) on this one. Mad Men is a damn fine series. While that other awards darling 30 Rock has tumbled in quality Mad Men has gone from strength to strength and continues to deserve all of those awards and all of that praise.
The last time I took a look at Mad Men it was just as the third season had kicked off. I threw around words like ‘captivating’, ‘brilliant’ and ‘toast’. I could spend the next five hundred words repeating those sentiments and normally I would but I thought instead we could talk about that finale and all of the questions it raised.
I don’t need to tell you that a discussion of the third season finale of Mad Men is going to contain spoilers to anybody who hasn’t seen it, but here I am saying that anyway. Was the season three finale the best episode ever? Who knows, but it was a damn fine one that more than excites for the fourth season. As if we weren’t going to be excited anyway; now we kind of feel like we have to develop a device that instantly wipes away all the days between now and the season four premiere. I suggest a yearlong hibernation… it will mean we miss out on all the other shows will like and will probably result in death, but signup sheets are in the lobby for those still interested.
So many things happened in the finale it’s hard to choose what was the most important. Obviously the Drapers divorce will hang pretty heavily over the fourth season. Will Betty really be done with Don? Will Don let another man come in and steal his wife? How is Sally going to cope with the divorce seeing as though she was already hostile and violent even before it happened?
Bleak times are ahead for the Drapers, but on the work front Don and Co. are branching out on their own. Word gets around that Sterling Cooper is going to be sold (again) so Lane fires Don, Roger and Bert so they’re free of their contracts and able to join Layne in starting up a brand new company. Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce is the name, and I think we felt the same kind of giddy energy watching this plan be put into action as the ad boys did making it happen.
Best of all Joan is back. Was it just me or did anybody else let out a little squeak when Roger said “Let me make a phone call.” Ever since Joan left her position at Sterling Cooper to become a housewife I think we’ve all been itching to figure out how they were going to work her back into the show, and all that time away just reminded us we may miss Joan nearly as much as Roger does. The only thing left to do now is find a position for Sal at this new company and everything will be okay in the world.
Okay, so not everything. We’re still left wondering what’s going to happen to Ken Cosgrove, Beardy, the secretaries, and all the others left behind at Sterling Cooper. By this point though I think we can have faith that Matthew Weiner will find a place for all of them in season four.
Mad Men is a funny, heartbreaking and brilliant series. John Hamm and January Jones are fantastic. Heck, so are John Slattery and Christina Hendricks… and Vincent Kartheiser… and Elisabeth Moss… HELL this is one of the best ensembles on television. Each and every one of them deserves some kind of award. Even the extras need an award for participation or something.
If you haven’t seen Mad Men yet… then what are you doing reading a recap of the third season… shouldn’t you be out hunting down the first season so you can get in on what is the best drama on television. That’s right, no pussy footing about, I’m just going to come out and say it. Best drama on television… but then again Friday Night Lights does have Tim Riggins…
