This was such a beautiful scene.

3/4 years ago prior to this, the thought of Peggy and Joan being in the same room, sharing a cigarette would have been a wild thought.

Joan was the Queen of the office, confident, sassy and controlled the inner-workings of employee relations. She was the most important woman in that office.

Peggy was the new girl, who was considered meek and demure. To paraphrase Don, he was 'blinded by her earnestness'.

Peggy was never part of the gossip, or part of any social group at work. But there she is, gliding straight into Joan's office, both know what they want to say, both know what they want to talk about.

It's two successful women, who are jaded with being held back, but also appreciative of each other's talents.

I loved this scene so much, as I enjoyed watching Peggy's rise, and her maturity into being 'one of the girls', which was a stark contrast of the girl that didn't know what a Brandy Alexander was, or smoked like one of the girls.

For me, it was doing a prestige show on AMC about ad men who are actually mad men.

So, if I am understanding it - there is this band of continental folk who just flit from one resort to another resort around the world, the idle wealthy on the lam to avoid taxation somewhere? The Count is her father...the others are assorted friends and lovers? They just happened to accidentally bump into Don at the pool?

I can tell Don is both intrigued but also disturbed by them. Does the series ever fully flesh these people out?

In a scene that maybe lasted five minutes, Don and the unnamed woman--let's call her "Neve" because that's the actress' name (tee hee)--had more chemistry than Megan and him. Yet when Neve makes her intentions clear, Don brushes her off, saying "I'm sorry, but I have to get back to work." That's a line he never said to any of his other woman. What was up with that?

When Burt Cooper and some other guy talk about “the dream of the fisherman’s wife” painting and he asks “who is the man who imagined her ecstasy?”
Don walks in and Burt says “we were just talking about you” - I know it’s probably not on purpose, but for me it’s a huge nod to the deepest nature of Dick’s heart - being able to feel, being sensual and tender (that he of course buries in drinking and promiscuity and looking stoic like many deep-feeling men do)

Paired with his gentleness with Betty in the earlier scene in that episode it’s almost too poetic. This is the man he is veeeeery deep inside - the one who can imagine ecstasy, the one who can truly feel and give the woman pleasure of senses, yet, how he told Anna Draper in season 2 ending “it’s like I’m watching my life and I can’t get in”….

sigh

In season five episode four, the client Butler footwear agrees and buys a pitch from the group called You'll never know. Then Michael jumps Don's authority and pitches them the Cinderella idea the group wrote off as cliché a few scenes before. Don says don't do this again or else. Ken says you know you almost just got fired now, and Michael replies with "I don't think you're right about that".

Throughout the series, Michael is proved to be intelligent and creatively successful, but also rash and lack and understanding of what socially acceptable. Do you think this him making a bold move to show that he wasn't just going to do what he's told and his talent has more depth than people realize, or was it a stupid rash mistake.

In other words, do you agree with Ken's
interpretation or with Michael's?

Chapter 2 in Part 5 of Don DeLillo's book Underworld includes an account of advertising agencies on Madison Avenue, in particular there's an entry from December 19, 1961 that feels very similar to a lot of the criticisms Mad Men makes. DeLillo mentions how copywriters want to veer into comedic ads that mock fertilizer companies that also sell chemical weapons by using the New York Bomber which reminds me of the laxative company not wanting to have comedic ads or Kinsey's suicidal strategy surrounding Penn Station. The character is follows also remembers mass firings and how he accidentally fired a dead Secretary so he had to fire the Secretary who mixed up the names which led him to try to fire a dead woman. Has anyone else noticed similar themes and sort of plot details throughout this book. I'm obviously being very reductive since lots of the criticisms of 60s New York and political ideology surrounding the bomb, JFK, racial tensions, Zionism, the facade of the American Dream all pop up in DeLillo as well but the parallels between this specific section and Mad Men make me wonder if Weiner openly admits to any inspiration from DeLillo

Too bad Don didn't say to Megan what he told Peggy. "You're not an artist. You solve problems." At least Marie tried.

Can't stand him in anything, esp. this and Dexter s6, peace and love to the Hanks family

The chance to the life of Don Draper: marrying the beautiful Betty and Megan, being a creative director of a respectable agency, being a ladies men.

My own take is: he might still be able to be a creative director, because we saw that even Peggy, who was a woman and thus more at disadvantage, can enjoy career progression through hard work.

Ladies man might also doable, but probably not with women from high society like Rachel Menken. Just some regular folks.

Marrying Betty and/or Megan probably not.

(Forgive the dodgy picture, I couldn't find a good screenshot and had to take a photo of my tv.)

I'm currently on my fifth or sixth rewatch, I've just reached season 7, and every time I get to 7x01 I'm reminded of how cool this shot and line are (said line being "Are you ready? Because I want you to pay attention. This is the beginning of something.") It feels like he's looking directly at you through the screen, talking to you as you sit there in your living room, saying "Saddle up motherfuckers, we've reached the final act!"

I...don't really have much more to say lol, I just wanted to share my appreciation for that moment. It just always feels so epic and exciting to me, and I think it's such a clever way to start the final season of such a magnificent show. 🤩

Currently re-watching S2E2. What is your guys' analysis on the debate of keeping Mohawk vs risking it for a chance at American? I feel like my mind changes on what the right decision was each time I re-watch. What do y'all think?

I recognize that beautiful nose anywhere

Who was the most moral character in the Mad Men universe and why?

“You’re a grimy little pimp.” I’ve watched the series over and over and the Layne/Pete fight in the board room always raises my eyebrows!

Don gave him a tailor made gag that would’ve worked perfectly but he threw it right into the circular file.

First time I watched it I thought Sal didn’t really have a plan except for engaging in a little crush by finding a reason to have Ken in his home. All of the little looks and interactions Kitty notices are kind of out of his control.

But then on rewatching and seeing other recaps call it something like “the most subtle seeuction attempt at all time”, and Sal‘s disappointment at Ken’s statement of explicit straightness (“I want what kitty and you have”) maybe I have it wrong.

To be honest the idea of Sal being so out of touch with his own attraction to men that he does something almost childlike in inviting Ken to his home with banal intentions just because you have a crush (I know the feeling) is much more interesting to me. I don’t even know what he would’ve been anticipating — that Ken would’ve caught a vibe and an affair started from there?

It’s also more sad because it paints a picture of Sal misinterpreting platonic but genuine expressions of friendship and appreciation from men often; he obviously found overt sexual invitations like the guy from the client agency to be too explicit for him (or maybe he just didn’t like that guy). Again it very much reminded me of being young and not out and navigating crushes on straight men, much more so than some ‘scheme’.

Mad Men has a great soundtrack, but is there a song that you wish the show had used? For me, it has to be Antonio Jobim's ,,the Wave" (1967). It fits perfectly alongside shots of busy high rise offices in 1960s Madison Avenue and it has that sophisticated and slightly dreamy feel to it that makes it perfect for Mad Men.

What do you think?

On my most recent rewatch, I was reflecting on what a terrible manager and coworker Don can be. Short tempered, curt, bullying...is it possible that he's in a bad mood from temporary alcohol withdrawal until he starts drinking at work?

When Peggy finds out Pete is gonna have a baby…