29 July 2008

Mad Men, Season 2 Premiere

Mad Men is back! I'm so excited! The season two premiere aired on Sunday but I had to wait to watch it because ABM is not a fan of the show. Here are a few of my thoughts.

Perhaps I have been watching too many old movies lately, but the costuming and set design didn't bowl me over the way they did last year. Everything was still on point, but it wasn't as fresh and exciting to me as it was the first time. Perhaps that is a good thing. So much fuss has been made in the press about the look of the show that I think it detracts from the plot.

I finally got a chance to see all the vintage ads that people said were shown last year. I guess if you don't watch the show during the first Sunday-night airing, they don't repeat that stuff. I've also read that some of the scenes themselves are shaved in repeat airings. Watching the first time is key, apparently.

Anne Dudek is back as Betty Draper's neighbor and friend. I saw her for the very first time on this show, so you would think I would associate her with this character. However, the whole time she was on screen I kept thinking about the character she played on House. Cutthroat Bitch kept seeping through. I wonder if Dudek filmed this episode while she was finishing up her run on House?

I am so glad that they didn't have Peggy keep the baby. I don't care if they make mention of the baby in a future storyline, but I didn't want to see her trying to juggle motherhood and a career. The fight to be taken seriously as a female copywriter in 1962 is a strong enough story without bringing single parenting into the mix.

As much as I love Mad Men, I know that it isn't for everyone. This show has the same issue that made me abandon Lost: there is lots of mood and atmosphere, but at the end you realize that very little happened. I think I am willing to excuse the slow-moving plot because I enjoy the writing and the setting so much.

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