My Guilty Pleasure: Mad Men
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The booze! The backstabbing! The illicit affairs and tawdry hookups! No, I’m not talking about my last family reunion. I’m talking about the brilliant drama Mad Men. Season 4 just came out on DVD and I am reminded again just how phenomenal this show is. If you are still a virgin to Mad Men, you are missing out. In brief, the show follows a group of Madison Avenue advertising executives at the agency Sterling Cooper Draper Price during the 1960’s. Anchored by super star creative director and lothario Don Draper, the ad men launch household brands, make questionable business deals and bed many, many women. Along the way alliances are made, secrets are uncovered, betrayals are revealed and untold quantities of cocktails and cigarettes are consumed. Quite simply, it’s the best damn television around.
The writing is sharp and the production quality is stunning in its detail. If you are a fan of 1950’s and 1960’s fashion and interior design, that alone is worth watching the show. At this writing , show creator and writer Matt Weiner is in a heated contract dispute with AMC channel over Season 5. Recent updates have the show returning in early 2012. But there is speculation the show may be cancelled all together. That would be a shame because in the desert that is television, this show shines. Lucky for you, you can rent or buy seasons one through four and find out what all the fuss is about. So go ahead pour yourself a cocktail, slip off your shoes and take a long, deep drag of Mad Men. I promise you’ll still respect yourself in the morning.
6 Comments
I have heard about this show, but I have never seen it. But that is because I never watch TV, all I get to see on TV now is Dora The Explorer (blame my toddler daughter :)) But I will check it out on Netflix, hopefully its on there.
Blessing, D2 LOVES Dora too so I record this show typically and then watch it late at night. I can’t watch a lot of TV but this is one show I can’t miss! It’s definitely on NetFlix and you can rent at least the first three seasons. Let me know what you think!
A little guilty pleasure here and there never hurt anyone! I know you love this show and I know so many others who love it, I just wasn’t able to get into it. Maybe I’ll try it again in my spare time! HA.
Stylishly yours,
Kalyn
Yes, Kalyn, you know how I love MM. The trick about this show is that you really do have to watch it from the beginning to get into it. May be one of the downsides to this show getting more viewers.
I’ve never known what the appeal was to this show until I read your post just now. Good job in motivating me to give it a try. I tend to think television shows as simply God-awful wastes of time and I am rarely entertained by them. You’ve made me question whether I’m off base…at least with Mad Men.
D. Rene, thank you! I feel like I’ve accomplished my mission then. A colleague of mine turned me on to the show last year while I was out on maternity leave and I got hooked. Most of TV is a wasteland but I appreciate a good drama that has great acting, great writing and fabulous production design. I really do hope you’ll check the show out.