Why We Love Mad Men

I love Mad Men. I've watched the the show since day one and am counting down till the season three premiere on August 16. And I'm not alone. The show has received 16 Emmy nominations, is a hit with critics and countless friends have recreated themselves in '60s style thanks to the Mad Men Yourself application on their website. I think many of us wish we could live in that era, even if for a day or two.

Matthew Weiner's Sterling Cooper is a microcosm for what was going on at the time (warts and all) and he tells it in a cerebral, dramatic and edgy way. Some don't like the show, because it's full of privileged white men and objectified women, with minorities pretty much sidelined altogether. But this was Madison Avenue in the Sixties and yes, there was sexism, racism and four martini lunches. The men of Mad Men may misbehave, smoke too much and cheat on their wives, but are men today really all that different? Or women for that matter?

If anything, getting to peek in on gender and office politics during the transitional 1960s is a treat. For young women especially, the show teaches about the conditions that led to a generation of feminists, and makes you feel lucky for the strides that have been made. Mad Men has already dealt with interracial relationships, abortion, depression and birth control, but I'm dying to know if Salvatore will ever come out, where Peggy's ambition will take her and what will be of Don Draper with his moody behavior and secret past?

But one of the main reasons I love the show is for the fashion. January Jones' Betty Draper is like an incarnation of Grace Kelly with her Hitchcock blond 'do and full skirt dresses. But it's Christina Hendricks portrayal of Joan Holloway that has everyone talking. The curvaceous actress has single-handedly brought back the hips. It's all about the hourglass figure again so get ready to dust off your pencil skirts and fitted blouses for fall. It's lovely to witness men in hats and suits with pocket squares. There's not a trucker hat, Ed Hardy shirt or ironic mustache in sight. Forget about soap stars. I have a feeling Don Draper is the object of many a woman's (and man's) fantasy these days.

So while it may seem like watching Mad Men is like opening an archive to the past, I think we watch it because its themes are symbolic to the present. Race is and will continue to be a huge issue in America, gays and lesbians are still discriminated against, the religious right is stronger than ever and women continue to struggle with motherhood and their own happiness. The advertising agency may have changed, but isn't the game still the same?

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Comments

[mombabytiger]

Best show on television. Hands down. The writers didn't invent the abhorrent behavior of the men or the objectifying of women...that is a historical fact. People smoked everywhere. Remember finding an ashtray in your hospital nightstand? I worked in an office in the early 70's and it was still pretty much the same thing. Thanks to the women (and men) who helped to change these attitudes.

[Usama]

I know Jon Hamm and he's not acting, he IS Don Draper....lol.

[NyukNyukNyuk]

I'm 60, and I think Mad Men is the best TV show I have ever watched. Followed by Third Rock From the Sun close second. I can't remember watching a movie as good as an episode of Mad Men.

I bought Mad Men Seasons 1 and 2 on DVD, and I can't wait for Aug. 16.

The acting is gripping and vivid, the writing brilliant, the directing is outstanding.

The smoking and drinking are a little overdone, although I'm old enough to remember flying on a plane with a smoking section.

When 46 minutes are up, I feel it's gone by too quickly, I want more. I hope they can keep up the quality of the writing.

I worked in a bull-pen type environment at Xerox as late as 1979, with offices all around the outer wall, and open desks in the centre.

Don Draper is an interesting character. Like a classic greek hero, he has a fatal flaw. I wonder if Duck Phillips will survive his outburst in the boardroom?

[jobecky20]

Christina Hendricks and January Jones....GORGEOUS women, not to mention very complex characters, and the main reason I watch the show. Why didn't these women get nominated for emmys?

[francois2]

I'm 48, so the era of this show slightly predates me. It's my older friends who are in their late 50s and early 60s who have all said that the first time they watched an episode, it was literally painful, it brought up such tangible, awful memories and feelings--and the show doesn't portray the full sexism and racism that existed because it would simply make the characters too unlikeable to modern viewers. I do love the show, but it's a very cryptic, understated portrayal of the times. I am hoping they make it to 1968 in future seasons...the character I'm starting to notice beyond the adults is little Sally Draper...

[WilliamRC]

I find the behavior of the male characters on the show to be abhorrent at the very least. If the world of Mad Men is still prevalent in 2009, then that is down right depressing. I can't watch the show regularly. The only good I see coming out of it is, to show how far we have yet to go in society and why we should not emulate the behavior of decades past.

[Decorina]

The leering, obnoxious behavior of the men on MM, especially in the office, is terrible. I would never wish a return to the days when you were nothing but a sex object just because you were female and working for a living. I watch MM with horrified fascination as I recall my own journey through that time period. So happy it is over and that some progress has been made.

[iamleisureman]

Great piece. I too love Mad Men. I wonder if all of the hard living (smoking, drinking) will catch up to the characters on the show?

[abliss2379]

It's begun catching up to Roger ...