Ah, finally a pinch of good news for The Great Depression ’09: Mad Men is coming back! A third season (set to premiere this summer) may seem like a no-brainer to readers of Entertainment Weekly, where we’ve been gaga for the Madison Avenue smokers’ lounge since it debuted in 2007. But undying love doesn’t always keep a show on the air (Exhibit B: the just barely DirecTV-rescued Friday Night Lights), especially when there’s a contract dispute like the one between Mad Men producer Lionsgate and series creator Matthew Weiner (AMC head Charles Collier says he’s optimistic about Weiner eventually coming on board).
I have to admit, I was a little put off at the beginning of season 2. I think after the first season (which I watched one-after-the-other from my DVR) I was just so pumped for it to come back that I sort of forgot that Mad Men is about slowly seeping into every pore, not blasting you in the face with an icy splash. Episodes end with a subtlety that sometimes takes me a couple days to realize how devastating it actually was (Don sending away his admiring daughter then collapsing on the bathroom toilet, silently peering at the man he saw staring back at him from the door mirror). I think what really hooked me on season 2 was how Don finally got some comeuppance. Betty (whose cold detachment is a bit too one-dimensional, for my taste) finally booted her cheating bread-winner, ostracizing him to the solitude of a sterile hotel room. As we saw Don lying on top of a shiny bedspread, missing his home, his kids, his life, I felt like we were growing ever closer to a vulnerability that he spends every smoking/drinking/car seat-humping moment to hide. I love Don as much as any other man, woman, and child with a pulse, and I don’t enjoy it when he fails or hurts. But Mad Men is at its core about people struggling to deal with themselves and each other in a changing, unpredictable world, and it was satisfying in the second season to see some piper-paying after all the crap he’s pulled.
Plus, how about that intense scene between Peggy and Pete they left us with? And don’t even get me started on Joan — I could watch an hour of Joan walking around the office delivering mail. Let’s just hope they don’t waste any time addressing that nastiness with her fiance. I don’t like how that was left hanging. So how about it, PopWatchers? More Mad Men! YES! What did you love most about last season, and what do you want when it comes back?
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soooooooooooooooo excited!
I LOVE Mad Men. It’s one of the best shows on TV, but they ned to sign Matt Weiner because he is a huge part of the show. My favorite scene of last season was when Peggy woke up in the hospital and Don was sitting there. I love the Don/Peggy relationship.
This was announced back in October!
http://spoilertv.blogspot.com/2008/10/mad-men-renewed-for-3rd-season.html
What gives Ausiello?
Was this ever in doubt??? I am experiencing retrograde anxiety … I knew Matt’s contract was up, but I never knew there was doubt about whether the show would be back.
I cant imagine living in a world with no Don or Betty Draper and thankfully I wont have to. Also thanks for reminding not to delete mad men episodes of my dvr cause it feels like forever since the season finale.
Haven’t seen much of season 2 yet I’m afraid. Boo!
I can’t believe there was ever a question about the best show on TV coming back. It is beyond brilliant — writing, performances, atmosphere. I a loved season two. It wasn’t as tight as the first season, but it was very raw and emotional. I also hope they address what is going on with Joan right away because that was left so open ended, and I feel so bad for her. Also dying to know what happens with Peggy and Pete. And I can’t wait to watch Betty pregnant, I hope they don’t skip over that. Awesome show.
Hallelujah, there is a God after all! Or at least a person with a brain at AMC.
I was just thinking about this show the other day, fretting about it not returning next season, so I’m really glad its been renewed…after suffering the loss of other faves (Pushing Daisies), I am reluctant to get hooked into new shows, but I just love Mad Men…I have all the eps on disc and go back and rewatch them when i get the need to revisit…can’t wait to see where they take us this summer…!
I’ll agree with Jenn, I love Don and Peggy. It’s easy to think with all his womanizing that Don is a misogynist, but as evidenced by Peggy (and his ability to articulate the chauvanistic into the humanistic), we see him clearly recognize potential in her and work to encourage it. I love that you could see how impressed he was when she finally called him Don, or his pride at her finally getting an office.
I loved Betty’s story the most in season 2. I agree she can be a bit one-dimensional and stoic, but her performance is so subtle and brilliant, like the way she so sweetly manipulated her friend to have an affair with the man from the stables, then acted so innocent when the friend called her on it, all the while enjoying it with an almost evil relish. It was refreshing to see how she fell apart after she kicked Don out of the house. So heartbreaking and so real. Who hasn’t gone through something like that and ended up not getting dressed and drinking wine all day? And I can’t wait to see what happens between Pete and Peggy. That last scene when she told him about the baby was just mesmerizing, how she told him with an almost unfeeling sense of liberation, and how his face gradually collapsed with every word she said. Honestly, this is the best thing that’s ever been on TV.
Thanks for the picture. I won’t get anything else accomplished today…
I would watch a full season of Don Draper reading the 1962 Manhattan phone book. LOVE ME SOME BAD, BAD, MEN!
oh lord i love this show. don draper… yummy
What a great summary of the amazing strengths of this show!