Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

[Amor de Cosmos]

Early episodes do little more than establish the plotting of a series, and plot is the least important and weakest aspect of this show, so I'm still waiting for the really good stuff. Don’s affairs come and go, Peggy’s inevitable rise to becoming Sterling Cooper’s first female creative director is pretty much locked in. Pete will either kill himself with his warm gun, or win an ADDY, Sal will come to terms with his sexuality or (probably) not. No, the continuing strengths of the series lie first of all in it’s character — ambience, mood, atmosphere — and its characters, almost all of whom are theatrically strong and, with one exception, continue to be so. Its second strength is in particular individual scenes, we talked about Kurt’s casual acceptance of his homosexuality. Another from last season was Joan’s response to the death of Marilyn Monroe. I remember my mother being in tears over that, in a way she wasn’t over, say, the Kennedy assassinations.

So the new season. The one (small) scene that stands out for me so far is Pete’s meeting with the new Brit senior exec, Pryce? It was a beautiful little verbal dance of miscommunication. Pryce has the potential to become an interesting addition however his assistant — who’s name I can’t recall — is a catastrophe. He’s a British public school cliché, a caricature in a show that has rigorously avoided stereotypes. Both the writing and portrayal of this guy are dreadful I hope he goes, and soon. Finally, I miss the two Smiths I hope they’re still around.

[Ek weet nie]

Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

The second episode was noticeabley free of Moneypenny, I hope that his appearances will be kept to a minimum. It's the first time I've seen the show go for cheap and easy laughs without trying to explore something deeper.

What did people make of Don feeling the grass as the hot teacher danced? Everywhere I've read seems to suggest that it was because he had the hots for her but I thought it symbolised his desire for the free and easy time he had in California.

The conversation on the plane between Sal and Don has been the highlight so far with Peggy's mimcry of Joan a close second.

[Amor de Cosmos]

Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

I think the "feeling the grass" was a harbinger of change type of scene. Don never does that, his world is one of steel and asphalt, the media of progressive projects like the new Madison Square Garden. But the mid-sixties are approaching, the young bare-foot proto-hippie teacher signals the coming cultural shift. Don is "Mr Jones," with an inkling something's about to happen. He doesn't yet know quite what it is, but maybe suspects it'll be more like grass than concrete.

[Ek weet nie]

Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

That makes a lot of sense and would fit in with the theme of the show and that particular episode.

[Heliotrope]

Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

On the Television Without Pity forum, some people were theorizing that the grass scene was Don's creative process again, so maybe we'll see something about that in Patio ads, but I agree with both Amor and Nil that it probably had something to do with Don's wish for and/or possible evolution toward a less corporate way of life. I still think the whole show has a lot to do with caged birds, even though I won't say that it was Matthew Weiner's whole intent.

The barefoot teacher reminded me a lot of Midge, Don's mistress from season 1, who seemed strangely bohemian for him, but there might be a lot more bohemian to him than I'd have guessed back then.

As for English stereotypes, I noticed a bowler hat on the rack in Price's office. I wondered if that was just an American cliché, but I did see something recently from the '60s--maybe when watching the movie Darling the other night--with a lot of British middle-aged men in bowlers.

[Amor de Cosmos]

Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

Ah yes, could well be part of the Patio campaign, never thought of that. A more natural young woman, barefoot in grass rather than an Ann-Margret lookalike. It would certainly fit with Peggy's notion of providing a model that would appeal to women rather than men. BTW has anyone checked to see if Pepsi really did launch a diet-cola in the early 60s?

Don's a coward so his affairs are all with strong non-Betty type females (though she's already turned out to be more alpha than he expects) to whom he can confess or reveal his weakness. As self-defined outsiders Bohemians, like Midge, may sometimes be included but so are successful businesswomen. He flirts with the counterculture — Mayakovsky's poems last season — but he'll never commit to it, or anything in the realm of ideas. He's too much the existential chameleon.

[Amor de Cosmos]

Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

Pryce would have very likely worn a bowler hat in London but in New York he'd have known better, it would look foolish and someone as urbane as he is would realise that. I didn't notice it, maybe it's just a keepsake, let's hope he doesn't show up wearing it in the elevator.

[Ek weet nie]

Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

Patio was launched for real - wiki. Note the slogan - 'dances with flavour'.

Good point about Don himself being a coward, there is a tendency to describe Don and Dick as being completely separate as if Dick was wiped clear when he decided to impersonate Don and create his new persona. He can't wipe away twenty plus years of behaviour.

Jack Lemmon's character buys an executive bowler hat in The Apartment. That was out in 1960, I couldn't quite make out if the scene was meant to be funny because the bowler hat was out of fashion or whether it was because he bought himself an executive hat.

[Ek weet nie]

Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

Jaw dropped to the floor and nervous laughter. That was my reaction to *that* scene in episode 3, what was yours?

[Heliotrope]

Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

I've read recently about how late blackface was accepted, although the examples from the '70s I read about were in Mississippi, but it's another thing to see it in action, even in a fictional work. I think I averted my eyes for a second.

Of course, you couldn't miss Don's discomfort, but after other people mentioned Pete, I went back and watched the scene again, and he too had a bemused expression, not really tickled by it. I should watch it a third time for Trudy's, because although I never disliked her before, I really warmed to her this time. You could tell she was a bit wistful about Betty's pregnancy and Jennifer's baby, but she didn't sit around pouting, and her and Pete's dance was so cute.

[Amor de Cosmos]

Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

I've only just got around to watching episode three.

As a Brit the "blackface" routine came as no particular surprise. The Black and White Minstrel Show on Sunday prime-time TV was a weekly staple well into my teens. It'd be more emotionally loaded in the US of course, even in 1963. I was reminded mostly of the hilarious Putney Swope my all time favourite ad-industry movie. Made in 1969 it posits a black takeover of an agency and, stacked against the Mad Men version of six years earlier it's clear why many of us believed the revolution had truly arrived.

The Pete and Trudy dance was fun, and required in an episode that seemed dramatically a bit flat I think. It was somewhat incongruous though. Random bits of surreality haven't been the show's trademark. It was bit like coming across a blob of jam in a jar of pickles.

[Amor de Cosmos]

Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

OK, almost halfway through the season. What do we think?

It's clear now that the Brits, except Pryce, have been a mistake. They appear to have been constructed out of old Avengers episodes, there's no psychological authenticity there at all. Frankly I hope we've seen the last of them.

Betty's incremental slide into madness is the most powerful dramatic thread at present. I'm constantly expecting her to throw the baby out of the window or stab her daughter to death with a bobby-pin.

The agency scenes are kind of marking out time, Change is in the air, for Joan certainly, Peggy perhaps, Don too and others. It's the uneasy calm before Kennedy's trip to Dallas and the sixties proper get underway. Vietnam was mentioned for the first time this week (who is that ugly little dude with the glasses? The spirit of sixties yet to come.) Good to see Kurt is still around. Who's the body on the floor in next week's show do you think, Don?

[WOM]

Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

All I'll say is that the silhouette of the guy squeegeeing the office window after the John Deere scene was one of the subtlest unsubtle things I've seen in a long while.

[Amor de Cosmos]

Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

Yes indeed, much more effective than the incident itself in a way. The blood splattering was a very un-Mad Men type of event — a bit like the Pete & Trudy dance. I wonder if they're an attempt to build "action" into the show, or an ironic response to critics who think they should?

[Heliotrope]

Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

So is Joan gone for good now? It seems logical for the times, i.e., that a doctor's wife wouldn't be working, but she'll be missed.

As for the Brits, it seems weird that they look askance at all the drinking, considering they come from much more of a drinking culture. I can only think they were added to the show so that there could be a Swinging England storyline sometime. Can't have the sixties without it.

[Amor de Cosmos]

Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

I'm guessing Joan will stick around. Hubby has said she must keep working, and the series has spent a fair amount of time building the nuances of their relationship, I doubt they'll let that go so soon. Besides Moneypenny might be her intended replacement at Sterling-Cooper but dramatically he's a cartoon (do you think he could be the "man on the floor?" I do hope so.)

I think the drinking thing is right. England might be a drinking culture now but it was less so then and particularly not in the office — which I think was the objection.

[linus]

Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

I totally missed out on S3, what with not having a TV and all... Is there a good place to watch the series online or will I have to wait for the DVD?

[Amor de Cosmos]

Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

You can download via a torrent, there are 4-5000 seeds for the most recent episodes so it should only take a few minutes. The DVD will take forever, I'm not even sure series 2 is out yet.

[WOM]

Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

linus wrote:

what with not having a TV and all...

[Cavalry Trouser Tips]

Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

I'm finally caught up so I can join in this thread - I love this show.

I'm 29, so have no idea how 'authentic' it is, but man, this looks like it was a time to be alive. It almost makes me want to take up smoking and have a selection of whiskies always available in the house.

[Amor de Cosmos]

Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

I dunno, the pressure to conform was massive, much more powerful than it is these days. Which the mid-late sixties saw a reaction to of course.

[linus]

Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

Worn Old Motorbike wrote:

linus wrote:

what with not having a TV and all...

Yeah I know, WOM, it's bad. I do have a big old Sony tube that works great with DVDs, but I get no sound with the rabbit ears. I figure I'll upgrade by the time the next World Cup rolls around. Or maybe the next Euro, if Domenech manages to screw things up in the barrage match.

[Amor de Cosmos]

Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

If you haven't seen it this is kinda fun...

...with more than a grain of truth.

[Heliotrope]

Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

What do we think is going to happen with Sal? My heart broke for him the other night. In fact, the last couple of episodes have been hard to watch.

[Cavalry Trouser Tips]

Mad Men 3 — Spoilers oozing everywhere.

Right, so two of my favourite characters (Joan and Sal) have left the office. If Kinsey goes, I'm going to get real mad. It shouldn't be all about Don fucking Draper shagging anything that moves.