It would be a lie if I were to say that Mad Men hasn’t surprised me just a little bit. I should have expected it to be good, what with the sycophants and all. As much as I get knocked around here for being claim to be the resident “character” guy at CliqueClack HQ, I can’t dismiss that these are a group of well crafted characters. Some are clichéd, to be sure, but masterfully so. Is that enough to win me over to the show as a whole? That particular jury, my friends, is still out.
“Marriage of Figaro” Season One, Episode Three
“It wasn’t a lie; it was ineptitude with insufficient cover.” – Don
There’s just something about the thinly veiled contempt that Don holds for Pete that I just … well … love. The guy has a face I love to hate. Let’s not say that it is residual hatred from his stint on Angel, because at some point, piling on the fourth season is just overkill. That being said, I know we’re not supposed to like Pete … I’ll just say that they’ve done a good job making that happen.
Examining Don Draper is a bit of an odd experience. Most anti-heroes seem to have some redeeming qualities … but this one? Not so much (at least not yet). However, Betty and he have so little chemistry that he might be the exception to the rule (I’ve been told January Jones isn’t exactly the most talented actor on the block, so that might factor in). He has a better connection with both Rachel Menken and Midge Daniels. It is a little harder to fault a character for cheating when they so clearly are not with the right mate in the first place (note I did say “a little harder”).
What was the deal with the Dick Whitman bit at the beginning? As a person who watches way to many mysteries, a scene like that screams “he had another identity,” an idea that seems way to clichéd for a show as nuanced as Mad Men.
Yes, I said nuanced. I’m not sure just yet if the show is growing on me, but I have always been able to make the distinction between something I recognize is good, and something I like. Mad Men is clearly a quality show. I’m not yet sure if it is my cup of tea, but it is growing on me.
“New Amsterdam” Season One, Episode Four
“Direct marketing? I thought of that. Turned out it already existed, but I arrived at it independently.” – Pete
I have to confess … one of the reasons I signed to review Mad Men this summer is because of Allison Brie. I don’t watch Community (though I might start that at some point, too, for the same reason), but saw Brie in Scream 4, and loved her. Maybe it was the character, but I hope it was the actor.
A quick aside … Christina Hendricks, Julie McNiven, and Darby Stanchfield all on the same show? I wonder if The Mentalist’s Red John was a fan of this show….?
The exchange between Pete and his father was telling. Pete came from an odd household, and his relationship with his father in particular was strained at best. I’m not sure where he thought it would get him asking for help in the way that he did. I did like, though, how Trudy roped him into taking her family’s help. As much as I dislike him, I’m really going to like his wife.
Speaking of weird, Helen’s son Glen….? With a capital W (I’ll throw the bold in for free). Walking in on Betty was one thing, but asking for a lock of hair? And Betty actually complying? What was up with that? Her sessions with the therapist are such a load of crap, too. Other than Glen, she’s obviously jealous of Helen, not the other way around. Either way, she is an odd duck.
Clacked by Ivey West 
on Jun 07, 2011 @ 12:00 EST5EDT
The best part of the Glenn character (and, yes, he is completely creepy) is that he is played by head honcho Matthew Weiner’s son. If you were going to stick your son in your show would you ever give him THAT role?
Betty is a child dressed up and attempting to act like an adult. She occasionally manages to mimic a mother successfully (upcoming episode for you actually made me root for Betty temporarily), but then she loses it and returns to her state of acting like a brat. Early on I wasn’t sure if Jones was just a bad actress that ruined the character (Much like the blonde girl on The Event who just kept smirking for no reason) or not. In fact I’m still not sure and I doubt her role in X-Men 1st Class will sway that belief since her mutant character looks to be a literal ice queen.
And I’m still waiting for an episode of Mad Men where they find the bodies of hitchhikers buried in Glenn’s backyard. Thats the feeling I get from him every time he makes an appearance.
there is certainly something of The Omen about Glenn. As for January Jones, I think she is a good actress, but Betty is an utterly unlikeable character. But that’s important for helping to understand Don’s infidelity
What’s interesting about Glenn is he shows the sad side of the independent mother. I think as contemporary viewers we look at Glenn’s mother and think, “Look, she was brave enough to leave her husband and start her own life,” but some of this independence comes at the cost of her relationship with her son. Of course, not all children of divorced parents end up asking their adult babysits for a lock of hair (yeah, creepy), but Mad Men is very good about not making any one character into a perfect saint. Even this “new woman” doesn’t make perfect choices.
I watched Mad Men season 1 before seeing anything of Angel… I still haven’t seen much of that show, but I heard enough about his stint on Angel to know that the actor is really good at playing the guy you have the urge to punch.
Also, Alison Brie said some really interesting stuff about Trudy as a character when I interviewed her about Community a month ago. I’d check that out (that and Community itself).
Also, I love that Don sticks it to Pete so well, especially in season one. I forget the exact wording, but when Trudy first meets Don, Don gives Pete a very backhanded compliment that goes over Trudy’s head… I think I actually giggled at that part. The thing is, as awful a person as Don can be, Pete is on another level of scummy, and Don is one of the only people who acknowledges that to Pete’s face.