Monsters of Television

“Oh, good. I got you while you’re vulnerable.”

I don’t like to read the advance reviews of a show, not necessarily for the spoilers but because I don’t like things to skew my perspective, making me pay attention to things that are within the bias of a reviewer that gets paid to consume. That’s not to say anything bad about professional reviewers. It might end up that I become one someday for all I know. This is mostly a warning for you, the reader. I did not receive an advance copy of this episode like so many did weeks ago, as evidenced by some hub-bub over a reviewer’s responsibility with spoilers, so my thoughts on the episode might be rudimentary and not as thoughtful as those who have been able to ruminate on content of season premiere.

Did that come off spiteful? I didn’t mean for it to come off spiteful.

Although there is a lot of spite in this episode so maybe it’s rubbing off on me. With the divorce and Betty and Don sniping at each other plus everyone in the office being angry with Don for a botched PR opportunity compounded with Don getting angry with clients for being prudes, and we can even say the new agency itself is in spite of their former corporate owners, this is an episode based in spite. Even the actresses Peggy and Pete hire for a publicity stunt are spiteful toward each other.

Oh, did I mention that, with all the hype going on about and around Mad Men that I assume you don’t mind a spoiler or two if you’re reading this review? I didn’t? Oh well. You should be watching it live anyway since it probably is the best show on television never to get above a 1.0 in Male 18-49. Let that be your lesson.

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“With you or without you I’m moving on. And I don’t know if I can do it alone. Will you help me?“

I ignore my epiphanies for the sake of dramatic conflict

This, for those who want to manage their reading, will be significantly shorter than my season 1 recap. Part of this stems from the fact that I just have very little to say, on the whole, about both seasons. A large part of this lack of thought goes back to the issue of quality I discussed during season 1, and seem little need to recover that ground.

Of the two, I’d rather watch season 3 than season 2. As Jeremy Mongeau pointed out, season 3 at least remembers to be entertaining, whereas season 2 is very much about how much QUALITY and IMPORTANT MESSAGES and SYMBOLIC WALKING INTO THE BEACH TO CLEANSE AND BE REBORN can be squeezed into 13 hours of television. Season 3 has some of this (could Betty’s couch have been any more symbolic?), but it also has a guy’s foot getting lopped off by a riding lawn mower, complete with excellent blood splatter reaction shot, so it balances out.

There were things I did like about season 3, including Sally Draper (the only truly interesting character on the show), “My name is Peggy Olson and I’m here to smoke some marijuana.”, and all the scenes of “Shut the Door, Have a Seat” that didn’t involve Don and Betty’s relationship. But, all in all, I’m kind of glad I’m not reviewing Mad Men for the site. Read more »

“Round and a round, and back home again. To a place where we know we are loved.”

Sexism and wood paneling. Pretty much sums it up.

I gave Mad Men a run back when the first season came out on DVD in 2008, but the show and I weren’t connecting, and I didn’t feel compelled to at least finish the series, a rare occurrence for me. So my rewatch of Mad Men is technically just a rewatch of the first 6 episodes. Everything after episode 6, “Babylon,” was a never-before-watched, and thus brand new. (I kept the term “rewatch” just for the sake of organization.)

My decision to revisit Mad Men was motivated by a number of factors. First and foremost was simply that it had been on my list of things to watch for some time, and to stay at least somewhat up-to-date on “quality” television , and I opted for Mad Men over The Wire (off the air) and Breaking Bad (wrapping up its most recent season). Second was a desire to try and see why I didn’t like the show, despite the fact that it is incredibly well-made. Third was simply to get recaps on the blog in the lead up to the show’s fourth season (which Nick will review).

So, light up that unfiltered cigarette and have your secretary hold your calls. Read more »