I’m not entirely sure why I never gave Mad Men much of a chance. I only half remember trying to watch the premiere (and fully remember falling asleep twice). Since then it has become a fairly standard punching bag of mine, but not for any (real) reason. When summertime comes and we roll out the Virgin Diaries series, I always try to tackle one show I want to see, and one that people I trust say I will like. My journey through the world of Mad Men is this summer’s entry in the latter category.
It is surprising how little I actually know about the show in general, and the characters in specific. Kind of makes all of the joking seem misplaced … so here is my promise to you, fair reader: No jokes about the fact that only like six people and my dog watch the show (OK, none after that one). This will be a serious take on trying to enjoy this show that both of my friends have heard of (I was making more fun of me there, so it’s cool, right?). I promise.
Season One, Episode One “Smoke Gets In Your Eyes”
“Advertising is based on one thing … happiness. And you know what happiness is? It’s the smell of a new car; it’s freedom from fear; it’s a billboard on the side of the road that screams with reassurance that whatever you’re doing is OK … You are OK.”
The one thing I did know about Don Draper is that he is kind of a douche. He drinks too much, smokes too much, and apparently sleeps around too much. But he also defended Peggy, and smacked Pete around pretty good in their first scene (turns out Pete is more of the guy I expected Don to be). Based on the way the episode started, though, I didn’t expect for him to already be married. I wasn’t sure if that was something that happened over the course of this first season. Then again, I guess it fits with everything I’d heard about the guy.
I’ve always been a fan of Elizabeth Moss, but I’m not sure what to make of Peggy just yet. She’s obviously not dumb, but she’s much more naive than I think she should be. It is almost like a woman from the ’90s was transplanted back to the ’50s. It is a crappy world for a woman, but I just found it odd that Peggy seemed to be discovering that for the first time.
Joan was instantly my favorite character. She seemed to have a better understanding of how the business operated than anyone. Sure, Don came up with the last minute save with the tobacco guys, but making the trains run on time is much harder than it looks, and much less sexy. Unless, of course, it is Christina Hendricks with the stopwatch.
Season One, Episode Two “Ladies’ Room”
“We should be asking ourselves, what do women want?”
It will take me a long time to get accustomed to all of the smoking, in this case at the dinner table. I mean, I’m the grandson of two tobacco farmers, but personally I can’t stand the stuff. I guess I’m not in Don’s demographic, eh?
I know that we’re supposed to laugh at Sally Draper playing inside of a dry cleaning bag, and I did … but I’m not sure that the novelty of all of the funny historical differences won’t wear off, and rather soon.
Peggy is growing on me, though. I think I liked her more in the first hour than I realized, but probably was disappointed in her naivety. I like how she got pissy with Joan, even though deep down Joan was right about her work product. She didn’t cry. But she is a little too hung up on Pete for my tastes.
I’ve never been called a banner carrier for the feminist cause (Julia is laughing at that statement without even having read it). But it is just plain damn off-putting the way the women are treated. I get that it is historically accurate, and obviously a major part of the fabric of the show, but still. Just weird.
Notes & Quotes
Clacked by Ivey West 
on Jun 02, 2011 @ 15:00 EST5EDT
LOVE IT!
And not for nothin’, but I’ve never met a Bay Ridgean with particularly good manners. ;)
I always found the beginning of the show to be fairly engaging – but it took a few episodes before I was hooked on the show. Personally, the history porn isn’t a big thing for me (my dad likes the show because it reminds him of things visually), but I do quite enjoy the acting and at first, the mystery of Don Draper. I think you’ll probably find later episodes to work better, as some of these first parts were still a bit “figuring things out”.
Keep in mind that Peggy is very young, only 20 or 21…
When I first tried to watch Mad Men based off the good reviews I was honestly bored out of my mind after the 1st episode as well. Then out of stupidity watched a middle of the 1st season episode that just happened to be on and didn’t really like that one as much either and didn’t bother to finish it. But the show kept winning awards so I got the first season off Netflix and told myself that I am watching the whole thing. Around episode 4 I stopped forcing myself through the show because I no longer had to, I was finally enjoying it. I just had to let the characters grow on me. After that I was addicted, it was like taking up smoking. 1st few smokes are awful, but over time you find that you just can’t stop and can’t have enough of them.
Yes I just compared one of the best shows on TV to a habit that killed most of my relatives.
*POST AUTHOR*
Hey, I hear you. Like I said, I am the grandson of two tobacco farmers. Who both died of emphysema. But it is an appropriate reference considering how the act is so intertwined with the show.
It took me a few episodes to really get into the show, much like you, then I was hooked. I have to admit that I gave up the show midway through this past season. Suddenly I just didn’t find it interesting any more, it was almost as if pretty much the same things were happening over and over, just in slightly different ways.
As someone who is old enough to remember at least part of the 60’s I always enjoyed seeing things I hadn’t seen in ages and gaped at things I couldn’t believe happened during a time when I was alive. Some of the behavior was so different it seems like it died out centuries ago. I do remember my Dad smoking at the dinner table when I was very young, then later my Mom insisted he wait until we finished eating. Finally, Dad “decided” to smoke outside in the early 70’s and eventually gave it up a decade later. Even so, both his brothers and he were all in the hospital dying of cancer about 10 years ago; my Dad was the only one of the 3 who survived, and just barely.
. . . . .
Christina Hendricks. With a stopwatch.
*swoon*
Something about Mad Men (and you’ll see it quite a bit as you go on in the seasons) is that the sexism on the show reminds us 1). how bad things used to be for women who just wanted to do their work and be treated like human beings and 2). why we have to make sure that kind of stuff doesn’t get tolerated now either. It is the same with the racism in the show.
I won’t spoil anything, but Peggy is my favorite character. She really grows as a person throughout the show, and her naivety doesn’t drag on.
I am actually impressed by how fair you’ve been to the show so far. Good for you. :)
*POST AUTHOR*
Why wouldn’t I be fair? All of the jokes I’ve made about the show over the years have more to do with the seven people who actually watch it, and not the quality. Like I said, I feel asleep twice when I watched the premiere … Maybe that was a function of how tired I was that day, and not my appreciation for the show :)