Mad Men: The Final Season

[James]

pete campbell and peggy have been awesome, but i can't ditch the feeling this last season is more 'victory lap' than it is great television. TV shows last seasons are usually below their set standard anyway imo, other than breaking bad. Ive elected that sunday nights i tune into the silicon valley /veep hour since they premiered

 

[Dogdeacon]

pete campbell and peggy have been awesome, but i can't ditch the feeling this last season is more 'victory lap' than it is great television. TV shows last seasons are usually below their set standard anyway imo, other than breaking bad. Ive elected that sunday nights i tune into the silicon valley /veep hour since they premiered

I think you are partially right (certainly the prior week was a sequel-esque one last caper episode), the split-season has really hurt and there is little so far evidencing that Weiner has a new better ending. I know he's going to enjoy some ambiguity and open to interpretation is far more likely than straight closure.

But thinking more about it last night was very good for the combined 'full circle' tales of Joan & Peggy. Joan first created her own fiefdom accepting the male-dominated world, then threw off those chains, but was ultimately denied a place at the table and put back down by 'the man'. So from a female perspective it was exceptionally cool to see Peggy strut back into that office like a gangster poised to keep at it until she gains control.
The creepy background music that was actually being played & heard by Peggy was cool and the roller skating to organ music while drunk on vermouth was pure gold. For the men it was a setup episode.

 

[Fishy]

So Don Draper is going to blow off the agency and head to California with his f---ed up waitress to start a new life on the beach.

The plane flying west past the Empire State Building wasn't quite obvious enough for them, so they had a car heading west at the end, too. And they played Major Tom.

It's a train wreck.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

So Don Draper is going to blow off the agency and head to California with his f---ed up waitress to start a new life on the beach.

The plane flying west past the Empire State Building wasn't quite obvious enough for them, so they had a car heading west at the end, too. And they played Major Tom.

It's a train wreck.

Got a late start on work today and watched 712. Great episode. I watched the first 20 minutes of 711 when it was first on, so I hope I am not missing much.

Don was never going to end the show in the agency, or any other agency for that matter. That would have been tragic. Shaugh (sp?) looking at Don as he leaves and smiling was confirmation. My only disappointment was that Shaugh didn't follow Don out the door. Shaugh is one of my favorite characters in the show. I suspect that Don never finds the waitress.

Peggy walking in with the Octopus painting is awesome. Give the whole world the finger. Roger was right. Why make men feel comfortable around her? In that environment, she should want men feeling as uncomfortable as possible.

$250k is a boatload of money in 1972 for Joan to walk away from.

 

[ZooCougar]

Got a late start on work today and watched 712. Great episode. I watched the first 20 minutes of 711 when it was first on, so I hope I am not missing much.

Don was never going to end the show in the agency, or any other agency for that matter. That would have been tragic. Shaugh (sp?) looking at Don as he leaves and smiling was confirmation. My only disappointment was that Shaugh didn't follow Don out the door. Shaugh is one of my favorite characters in the show. I suspect that Don never finds the waitress.

Peggy walking in with the Octopus painting is awesome. Give the whole world the finger. Roger was right. Why make men feel comfortable around her? In that environment, she should want men feeling as uncomfortable as possible.

$250k is a boatload of money in 1972 for Joan to walk away from.

Shaugh said he likes it over there. I just get the sense that his drive is gone and that is a place where being mediocre can be masked by the power of a big agency.

I sort of came to the realization that McCann is basically the "bad guys" if there is such a thing on this show. I didn't see Don making it through the episode with them, box lunches and that research guy? Good lord. No creative spontaneity and post lunch naps? No way that's working.

The whole Joan thing was a bummer. She was perhaps the biggest climber of all and knew exactly what she wanted and she found the end of the ladder. Peggy has the emotional intelligence and patience to survive and continue her journey in that place.

The waitress reminds me of many of Don's former interests. The teacher, the addict artist and maybe some others I can't remember. I tend to think she has some sort of connection to his past or at least that is what is in his head. She's just as damaged as him. Where is he going? Who knows? but my guess is that his last line on the show will be something like: "My name is Dick Whitman".

I enjoyed it, and I can't wait to see what happens.

 

[ZooCougar]

So Don Draper is going to blow off the agency and head to California with his f---ed up waitress to start a new life on the beach.

The plane flying west past the Empire State Building wasn't quite obvious enough for them, so they had a car heading west at the end, too. And they played Major Tom.

It's a train wreck.

Whenever Don takes off on these all night drives, I can't wondering if there gas stations back then that were open all night. Yes, that is the kind of dumb stuff I think about.

 

[Dogdeacon]

Shaugh said he likes it over there. I just get the sense that his drive is gone and that is a place where being mediocre can be masked by the power of a big agency.

I sort of came to the realization that McCann is basically the "bad guys" if there is such a thing on this show. I didn't see Don making it through the episode with them, box lunches and that research guy? Good lord. No creative spontaneity and post lunch naps? No way that's working.

The whole Joan thing was a bummer. She was perhaps the biggest climber of all and knew exactly what she wanted and she found the end of the ladder. Peggy has the emotional intelligence and patience to survive and continue her journey in that place.

The waitress reminds me of many of Don's former interests. The teacher, the addict artist and maybe some others I can't remember. I tend to think she has some sort of connection to his past or at least that is what is in his head. She's just as damaged as him. Where is he going? Who knows? but my guess is that his last line on the show will be something like: "My name is Dick Whitman".

I enjoyed it, and I can't wait to see what happens.

Gotta remember with Joan though that her partnership was secured by her agreeing to sleep with the Jaguar guy so that they could get the account. So later the 'price' quadrupled when they tried to go public (ruined by Don who also quits Jaguar adding insult to injury) but then quadruples again when Roger sells the firm to McCann. So now Joannie's choice is take more (arguably double) what she thought she was prostituting herself for to begin with or work in misery and keep fending off and/or prostituting herself. Roger and her knew that her work environment would just be made worse until she was forced to accept .25/$1 so taking half the money was a no-brainer. Had Joan got her partnership simply by securing Avon and other accounts then it'd be really sad and a loss, given that she made a deal with the devil originally makes it easier for the audience and her to cash out on her career.

I agree that Peggy survives and prospers, absent the suicidal waitress I'm on board with Don's current path being true to what he'd do, but to this point he has always come back.

 

[Husky25]

I also believe there is a good chance Don reverts back to his Whitman persona. I just don't understand why these story arcs are being introduced now. Seems like a lot of loose ends to tie up in the next couple weeks.

 

[ZooCougar]

Anyone know how long the final episode will be?

 

[junglehusky]

Anyone know how long the final episode will be?

IMDB says 45 mins (same as other episodes / not a double).

 

[Ts5034]

I also believe there is a good chance Don reverts back to his Whitman persona. I just don't understand why these story arcs are being introduced now. Seems like a lot of loose ends to tie up in the next couple weeks.

Yes! It felt like last week was a mid season show of a normal 13 episode season. It seems like theres a lot more that they could do with whats happened up to this point. With only 2 episodes (90 mins) left in the series, I have no idea where they are going.

 

[Dogdeacon]

Yes! It felt like last week was a mid season show of a normal 13 episode season. It seems like theres a lot more that they could do with whats happened up to this point. With only 2 episodes (90 mins) left in the series, I have no idea where they are going.

They simply have to get into the meat of the what, where and how of Don and then only as it correlates to him, his family. Last two episodes need to be about Don Draper with others simply there to service that plotline or provide occasional diversion. We don't need resolution on every single character so really hoping they don't giftwrap Stan, Pete, Roger, TV guy (Crane), Teddy Chaugh into little bows and certainly no more on Joanboat. Its still a great show, but Weiner has us stuck in the trees.

 

[Scalito]

I watched the last four episodes marathon style. It worked for me. I felt none of the letdown or anxiety with new plotlines and what not some are complaining about. It was like . . . a good, ordinary dose of Mad Men. Just like the first time I watched most of season one, hung over in Bumblef-ck, Wisconsin, after a friend's wedding. If the shows gonna end, what better way?

I don't want a season of tying up loose ends. Go out the way you came with lots of extraneous plots and interesting characters. And fun scenes like Peggy rolling around drunk on roller skates, Don walking out of his first meeting, and Roger playing the piano like he's the Phantom of the Opera. No need to button everything up. An ambiguous ending fits the show.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

Another decent episode, although odd for the penultimate one of the series.

 

[ZooCougar]

Ugh I am getting that same feeling I had when The Sopranos ended. I thought they spend way too much time on Pete last night.

Wichita is beautiful? WTF.

 

[Dogdeacon]

Another decent episode, although odd for the penultimate one of the series.

I thought it was really good and struck a chord with me. Somehow the twist was unexpected. I think they'll get some criticism for that as a stereotypical or 'cheap' twist, but I was completely surprised by it and think it really adds to the finale in a very interesting way.

Only criticism a little too much time at the motel, I would have had Roger chase down Don and join him at the VA bender, that would have made the confession weightier and equally importantly the scenes funnier.

 

[ZooCougar]

So basically Don seems to be embracing the whole "Best things in life are free" mantra.

 

[Husky25]

What's the possibility that Don becomes the bum that his foster father reneged the quarter on in the first season of the series? All he needs now is a piece of chalk and a jack-knife.

 

[junglehusky]

Until he met Meagan, Don/Dick was constantly worrying about having his identity figured out, revealing that his Don Draper persona, war stories, career, etc. was a ruse. Then he got to be okay with Meagan, his daughter, and Sterling / Cooper knowing his "secret". Now he wanders off to the plains and finds himself amongst the nice, gentle midwestern folks and all of a sudden he has to worry about being found out again. I kind of thought the show was going to end with him dying in a ditch in Oklahoma. It still might happen, though maybe it'll be a ditch in Nevada or California. Or maybe he'll wander down to Tijuana or something. Who knows.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

Ugh I am getting that same feeling I had when The Sopranos ended. I thought they spend way too much time on Pete last night.

Wichita is beautiful? WTF.

I thought the last two episodes of the Sopranos were so good that they could have been put together as a feature film, so we will disagree on that.

Pete and Betty did 180's on their prior personas, which is always disappointing as a series nears its end. Pete wants to be a hitter, and he has as good business survival instincts as anyone at the agency. Dropping all that to live happily ever after with Trudy (who I could have sworn was at least implied to be a lesbian earlier in the series, no?) in Wichita seems like a stretch. More realistic would have been Trudy saying no because she realizes that Pete was FOS, as usual. Given how dislikable Pete is, it would have been fun if she actually turned out to be a lesbian, and said Pete was the reason. I give the ending to this arc a B-. They could have done a lot more with Pete.

Betty suddenly being stoic is also surprising, as is killing her off. I know that the purpose of that scene was for Sally to be able to compare a loving, giving husband like Henry to the cipher that is her father, but I would have preferred if Betty banged some college kid and hurt Henry that way rather than being the martyr. All in all, a solid ending to the Draper family story line.

Having Roger find Don and go to the VA party with Don would have been a great way for the two of them to part ways. I was a little disappointed by the new character and lame, transparent con that got Don beat up. Don should have beat that punk senseless, and it isn't clear why he didn't given the spiral Don is in.

 

[ZooCougar]

Until he met Meagan, Don/Dick was constantly worrying about having his identity figured out, revealing that his Don Draper persona, war stories, career, etc. was a ruse. Then he got to be okay with Meagan, his daughter, and Sterling / Cooper knowing his "secret". Now he wanders off to the plains and finds himself amongst the nice, gentle midwestern folks and all of a sudden he has to worry about being found out again. I kind of thought the show was going to end with him dying in a ditch in Oklahoma. It still might happen, though maybe it'll be a ditch in Nevada or California. Or maybe he'll wander down to Tijuana or something. Who knows.

I was sort of thinking the same thing. I was expecting someone from Korea would recognize him and things would escalate, or not.

I think one of the below is going to happen for Don.

1. He's getting rid of everything to focus on his own trauma just like the waitress.

2. Same as #1 but he's going to do it as Dick Whitman.

3. He's in the same neck of the woods as where Pete Campbell is headed. "Wichita is beautiful", coworkers and I are laughing about that over and over again this morning. Don's supposed to be headed west, but maybe he get's stuck-low chance on this.

4. Don's headed for Hawaii, "The Jumping Off Point". We saw the Hawaii book on the bedside table in the Motel. Don Draper will figuratively off himself and live his life.

 

[ZooCougar]

I thought the last two episodes of the Sopranos were so good that they could have been put together as a feature film, so we will disagree on that.

Pete and Betty did 180's on their prior personas, which is always disappointing as a series nears its end. Pete wants to be a hitter, and he has as good business survival instincts as anyone at the agency. Dropping all that to live happily ever after with Trudy (who I could have sworn was at least implied to be a lesbian earlier in the series, no?) in Wichita seems like a stretch. More realistic would have been Trudy saying no because she realizes that Pete was FOS, as usual. Given how dislikable Pete is, it would have been fun if she actually turned out to be a lesbian, and said Pete was the reason. I give the ending to this arc a B-. They could have done a lot more with Pete.

Betty suddenly being stoic is also surprising, as is killing her off. I know that the purpose of that scene was for Sally to be able to compare a loving, giving husband like Henry to the cipher that is her father, but I would have preferred if Betty banged some college kid and hurt Henry that way rather than being the martyr. All in all, a solid ending to the Draper family story line.

Having Roger find Don and go to the VA party with Don would have been a great way for the two of them to part ways. I was a little disappointed by the new character and lame, transparent con that got Don beat up. Don should have beat that punk senseless, and it isn't clear why he didn't given the spiral Don is in.

I didn't say they were bad. I am just concerned with how they are alloting the time.

A couple of other subtle points. Don is good with his hands. I recalled a scene with him doing yardwork when he was with Betty. He knows, what is wrong with his car, he fixes the typewriter and we assume the Coke machine as well. He's handy and in it is in his nature. Maybe that's how he ends up?

 

[Dogdeacon]

I thought the last two episodes of the Sopranos were so good that they could have been put together as a feature film, so we will disagree on that.

Pete and Betty did 180's on their prior personas, which is always disappointing as a series nears its end. Pete wants to be a hitter, and he has as good business survival instincts as anyone at the agency. Dropping all that to live happily ever after with Trudy (who I could have sworn was at least implied to be a lesbian earlier in the series, no?) in Wichita seems like a stretch. More realistic would have been Trudy saying no because she realizes that Pete was FOS, as usual. Given how dislikable Pete is, it would have been fun if she actually turned out to be a lesbian, and said Pete was the reason. I give the ending to this arc a B-. They could have done a lot more with Pete.

Betty suddenly being stoic is also surprising, as is killing her off. I know that the purpose of that scene was for Sally to be able to compare a loving, giving husband like Henry to the cipher that is her father, but I would have preferred if Betty banged some college kid and hurt Henry that way rather than being the martyr. All in all, a solid ending to the Draper family story line.

Having Roger find Don and go to the VA party with Don would have been a great way for the two of them to part ways. I was a little disappointed by the new character and lame, transparent con that got Don beat up. Don should have beat that punk senseless, and it isn't clear why he didn't given the spiral Don is in.

No idea where you got Trudy being a lesbian from (best guesses your hopeful imagination or the actress on another show) and although Pete will always be a climber I think its consistent that he's been loyal to people (Don, the firm) and headed back towards Trudy and some middle aged reckoning of his youthful ambition. If they picked a more attractive place than Wichita I'd have been 100% on board, but just his ridiculous declining hairline has convinced me he's more mature.

Likewise I think Betty has been a cold fish and emotionally complex, both a child and a stern adult. No question she cut ties with Don coldly and efficiently. Betty was also the 'grown up' in her relationship with her brother and managed her parent's estate. With age she too has had some growth and realizations about herself, certainly the degree is partially psychiatrist heel thyself. Betty's worst moments with her kids were her not being emotional available & instead being stern and selfishly not tolerant of her kids emotions. So now easiest to deny emotion in herself as the only way to deal with her own mortality. It is somewhat of a paradox, because she is emotionally immature she can only deal with death by ignoring it and going on with her life - it is a compensating for weakness stoicism that enable her to deal with Don for years and then seamlessly sashay onto the Francis lifeboat. So she is dealing with it stoically by not dealing with it (note she didn't tell Sally & ran out of the room before dealing with it) and if it were anyone other than herself Betty's stoicism would not prompt sympathy or admiration.

 

[Ts5034]

I really have no idea where they are going to go with the finale next week. It seems to me that most of the main cast could have already had their final send off and I wouldnt mind if the final episode is focused almost solely on Don. With all the time spent on pete in last nights episode, I cant see them wasting any more time of the finale on him.

 

[storrsroars]

I thought the last two episodes of the Sopranos were so good that they could have been put together as a feature film, so we will disagree on that.

Pete and Betty did 180's on their prior personas, which is always disappointing as a series nears its end. Pete wants to be a hitter, and he has as good business survival instincts as anyone at the agency. Dropping all that to live happily ever after with Trudy (who I could have sworn was at least implied to be a lesbian earlier in the series, no?) in Wichita seems like a stretch. More realistic would have been Trudy saying no because she realizes that Pete was FOS, as usual. Given how dislikable Pete is, it would have been fun if she actually turned out to be a lesbian, and said Pete was the reason. I give the ending to this arc a B-. They could have done a lot more with Pete.

Betty suddenly being stoic is also surprising, as is killing her off. I know that the purpose of that scene was for Sally to be able to compare a loving, giving husband like Henry to the cipher that is her father, but I would have preferred if Betty banged some college kid and hurt Henry that way rather than being the martyr. All in all, a solid ending to the Draper family story line.

Having Roger find Don and go to the VA party with Don would have been a great way for the two of them to part ways. I was a little disappointed by the new character and lame, transparent con that got Don beat up. Don should have beat that punk senseless, and it isn't clear why he didn't given the spiral Don is in.

I don't see Pete that way. I see Pete as a guy who, for a brief while, wanted to be Don. So he cheated on the love of his life, which was against his moral fibre. And she made him pay. The opportunity at LearJet, in Wichita, really does give him the opportunity to be a big deal while getting out of all the temptations of NYC and into a more stable family life. You can even see his resolve in the conversation with his brother. I'm taking Pete at face value on this. Seems like a good way to wind up his character. If anything, last night made me with we'd seen more of the old recruiter dude earlier... his role was great.

IMO, Don is now looking to amass good karma. I think he really enjoyed talking to Sally about his wandering. And I think Sally has a lot of Don in her, which we might see if Betty kicks in the finale.