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Mad Men - Season 6 - Sundays on AMC

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W

Wes

venison crêpe
I've never been so unsettled by a character not speaking. I'd love to read some write ups by reviewers on what they believed Don's silence at the start "meant". Especially as the first time he felt comfortable enough to talk was to a drunk guy in the Army.

As soon as they return from holiday a guy collapses who they don't know the real name of? Then cuts immediately to him being ok? My mind is full of what.

What the fuck at Betty trying to "spice things up"?

The static on Don's TV because the hoover was going. Nice touch.

"Everything turns you on doesn't it." - Haha.
*Don throwing up during the eulogy* - Hahaha!
"This is my funeral." - WOAH!

The Adventures of Betty in hoboville. She's finally found her level.

Peggy is too awesome.
 
L

Linius

Member
y7n.gif


ibi3sqqF4OnR8Y.gif
 
I

Ignatz Mouse

Banned
Too much to respond to, but I'll just agree with the observation that this is the vanguard of the 70's we are seeing. The hair, the colors, fondue (nice touch).

Weird episode but also completely great.
 
D

Dance Inferno

Unconfirmed Member
Why do you guys not like the Sandy storyline? I thought it was more about Betty than it was about Sandy, to be quite honest. Betty sees a little of herself in Sandy, and she's trying to prevent Sandy from making the same mistakes that she did. After like 3.5 seasons of Betty being a completely unlikable and passive aggressive nuisance, she's being shown in a positive light and it's going a long way towards making us not constantly hate her every second she's on screen.

Anyway I actually really dislike the new hairstyles. I'm not a fan of the wavy hair of the 70s and much prefer Don & Co. with their early-mid 60s hairdos. Roger's hair was pretty awesome though.
 
B

Bladenic

Member
The worst part about the premiere was Joan being in only one scene.

I hope that new guy (Bob? I can't remember his name) sticks around. Ken was also mean for like the first time ever to that guy too.
 
Jackben

Jackben

bitch I'm taking calls.
ilnadmy said:
Anyway I actually really dislike the new hairstyles. I'm not a fan of the wavy hair of the 70s and much prefer Don & Co. with their early-mid 60s hairdos. Roger's hair was pretty awesome though.
Click to expand...
Was about to say, it's the 70s mayne, but you got that covered.
 
I

Ignatz Mouse

Banned
Sandy story was weird mostly because she was the random character that wasn't well introduced. Look at all the confusion about who she actually is.

Also, what's this about Betty not wanting her to "make the same mistakes"? Betty went to the city after college, and had a job. She wasn't a 15 year old with nothing. She's trying to keep the girl from being robbed or raped.
 
C

Cornballer

Member
Content roundup for "The Doorway Part 1 & Part 2":

hyMk4sm.jpg


Reviews:

Video:

Other:
 
V

VeryGooster

Banned
Yeah I'm surprised Betty's plot wasn't better received. I thought it was a pretty good character growth moment for her. Man, that scene with Henry in bed though...

I don't know if my favorite scene was the funeral or the Hawaii pitch.
 
turnbuckle

turnbuckle

Member
Cake Boss said:
The Peggy scenes were fucking terrible, the story line is very week and the scenes didnt feel like Mad Men at all, they just felt weird.
Click to expand...

I thought the Peggy scenes were fantastic. The scene with Stan on the phone, her channeling Draper's authority over her subordinates, how she handled the Koss account guys, and her scene at the end with Ted were all very good.

The show only doesn't seem like Mad Men to me in the way that it doesn't seem like a show about the late 50s/early 60s anymore, and it's not.

Fantastic opening episode even though I was a little confused during the first 20 minutes or so with the heart attack flashback / vacation with Don & Megan and a new couple I didn't recognize / Sally's new friend all coming right away.
 
D

Dance Inferno

Unconfirmed Member
I can definitely see Peggy and Don going up against each other later in the season for the same client/pitch. That would be an electric episode.
 
S

Skiesofwonder

Walruses, camels, bears, rabbits, tigers and badgers.
ilnadmy said:
I can definitely see Peggy and Don going up against each other later in the season for the same client/pitch. That would be an electric episode.
Click to expand...


I was thinking this as well, but then again this is Mad Men where the predictable rarely happens.
 
L

Linius

Member
ilnadmy said:
I can definitely see Peggy and Don going up against each other later in the season for the same client/pitch. That would be an electric episode.
Click to expand...

Not sure if I want that. I just want Peggy back at SCDP, we're missing the amazing chemistry between Peggy and Don now.
 
J

jett

D-Member
I didn't think the premiere was that good. Don with dem suicidal thoughts though, that's interesting. :p

Gooster said:
Yeah I'm surprised Betty's plot wasn't better received. I thought it was a pretty good character growth moment for her. Man, that scene with Henry in bed though...

I don't know if my favorite scene was the funeral or the Hawaii pitch.
Click to expand...

Am I supposed to care about Betty? Cuz I don't.

And WHO is Sandy supposed to be?
 
G

GQman2121

Banned
I honestly thought butters and Francis had adopted that girl. She mentions that her mom is dead when they're pulled over, so it seemed likely. But then it didn't. I don't know, I didn't hate any of it and it actually made Betty interesting for a change.
 
Y

Y2Kev

TLG Fan Caretaker Est. 2009
jett said:
Am I supposed to care about Betty? Cuz I don't.

And WHO is Sandy supposed to be?
Click to expand...
I thought sandy might have been the step daughter but I was like HEW at the end of the episode.

I kinda liked the betty stuff. I would have had her be a little more involved with making th goulash so we could see her develop as a being a little but that's not her character and would be hokey writing. She is just a bystander in life. At least her nearly getting robbed was cool.
 
T

Talon

Member
jett said:
I didn't think the premiere was that good. Don with dem suicidal thoughts though, that's interesting. :p
Click to expand...
The episode was pretty masterful in the way it played on the theme of the door. We're passing through into the 70s, and you're seeing a cultural change initially exemplified superficially in the fashion of the times.

Roger's inability to change his person, whether it be from his heart attack, his mother's death, and now his ultimate feeling of hopelessness from changing the inevitable. He tries to change the way he is framed with his daughter, and we see how that ends up. He finally loses it as he comes to a greater realization of how insignificant his passing will be.

Don has lived this transformative experience, obviously, and it completely frames who he is as a human being. He's a pantomime of Don, which is why they called back that Carousel moment again. Here he is again, observing his "life." It's why he's overwhelmed with self-loathing as he continues his contemptable lifestyle. He's awestruck by that surgeon...but not enough to be a decent person.

And now Peggy is a completely new human being. She's the front-facing Don Draper without the baggage of a false life.

Really loved the episode.

Betty's stuff was great. Loved the moment where we as an audience were rolling her eyes at that girl as she was talking about how "authentic" those hippies living in the tenements were. Then we see those same kids trying to recreate Billy's mother's goulash. A constant motif in the show and the episode.

We see these moments where she wants to be a good mother - again, "good intentions...yada yada" - but outside of the auspices of her family unit.
 
B

Bladenic

Member
People need to stop getting hung up on Sandy, I doubt she is of any importance or that she will even appear again. She was just there as a catalyst for Betty.

I have to say though, the fact that Linda Cardellini's appearance was kept so well under wraps is mind blowing in this day and age. Matthew Weiner doesn't fuck around.
 
G

GoldenEye 007

Member
Talon said:
The episode was pretty masterful in the way it played on the theme of the door. We're passing through into the 70s, and you're seeing a cultural change initially exemplified superficially in the fashion of the times.

Roger's inability to change his person, whether it be from his heart attack, his mother's death, and now his ultimate feeling of hopelessness from changing the inevitable. He tries to change the way he is framed with his daughter, and we see how that ends up. He finally loses it as he comes to a greater realization of how insignificant his passing will be.

Don has lived this transformative experience, obviously, and it completely frames who he is as a human being. He's a pantomime of Don, which is why they called back that Carousel moment again. Here he is again, observing his "life." It's why he's overwhelmed with self-loathing as he continues his contemptable lifestyle. He's awestruck by that surgeon...but not enough to be a decent person.

And now Peggy is a completely new human being. She's the front-facing Don Draper without the baggage of a false life.

Really loved the episode.

Betty's stuff was great. Loved the moment where we as an audience were rolling her eyes at that girl as she was talking about how "authentic" those hippies living in the tenements were. Then we see those same kids trying to recreate Billy's mother's goulash. A constant motif in the show and the episode.

We see these moments where she wants to be a good mother - again, "good intentions...yada yada" - but outside of the auspices of her family unit.
Click to expand...
Good points. But to be fair, Peggy certainly does have some fairly major baggage. Never know if that could rear it's head in the future.
 
L

Linius

Member
Bladenic said:
People need to stop getting hung up on Sandy, I doubt she is of any importance or that she will even appear again. She was just there as a catalyst for Betty.

I have to say though, the fact that Linda Cardellini's appearance was kept so well under wraps is mind blowing in this day and age. Matthew Weiner doesn't fuck around.
Click to expand...

And I didn't even recognize her while watching. And I consider my self to be a huge Freaks and Geeks fan.
 
I

Ignatz Mouse

Banned
jett said:
I didn't think the premiere was that good. Don with dem suicidal thoughts though, that's interesting. :p
Click to expand...


In a lot of ways, this episode is a return of all sorts of bad aspects of Don. Early in Season One he gets close to suicide, for instance (parking on train tracks). He's cheating again. He's haunted by Dick Whitman again. And he's also publicly, embarrassingly drunk again, for the first time in over a season.

The chief difference, though-- is that when Don was all existentially messed up and had suicidal thoughts before, he was also on fire at work. Here, he seems to be off his game. That's not good. He can't ride on reputation alone forever.

I see some sort of big fall for him this season.
 
V

VeryGooster

Banned
Bladenic said:
People need to stop getting hung up on Sandy, I doubt she is of any importance or that she will even appear again. She was just there as a catalyst for Betty.
Click to expand...

Absolutely. I doubt this is the entire Betty "arc" this season, although I wouldn't be surprised if we hear from Sandy just one more time.

I have to say though, the fact that Linda Cardellini's appearance was kept so well under wraps is mind blowing in this day and age. Matthew Weiner doesn't fuck around.
Click to expand...

This AV Club comment made me laugh.

ZdJn2vA.png


For the historically curious, here's a list of events that went down in 1968 per Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1968#Events
 
G

GQman2121

Banned
Well said Talon.

The death theme throughout was handled in a way that almost went unnoticed for me up until Roger broke down in his office. That moment, combined with Don's extended shots where he's just staring, almost lost in his thoughts (out of his office window, Roger's gathering, conference room pitch); plus the idea of this Sandy girl who Betty is seemingly trying to save, but for all we know could be or will be dead - brought it all together for me.

What was the line that someone used towords Don referencing who he is? Maybe it was the doctor or the door man....? I can't remember, which is ashame because it was very profound and setup/summed up Don's portion I felt.
 
S

Shagwell

Member
CassSept said:
- Why don't you go in there and rape her? I'll hold her arms down.

Hahaha.... wait whaaaat

- You can stick a rag in her mouth and you won't wake the boys

WHAAAAAAAT
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Yeah that scene made me wildly uncomfortable. Not sure how I felt about Weiner's explanation either:

How should we read Betty jokingly telling Henry (Christopher Stanley) to rape Sandy (Kerris Lilla Dorsey)?


"Betty is—as we have always perceived—a perverse person with a sense of humor, and Henry is a straight arrow. As creepy as what she’s saying is, you’re getting someone who is playfully perverse. She’s not a bland, distracted human being. She is teasing him in a way that shows the force of her personality. I’m aware of the fact that that will make some people uncomfortable, but I also felt it was Betty Draper being playful. She is being herself with him. I also love it because it just felt very much like a slight scratch beneath the surface of what we always assume is the most bland and TV-ized relationship. But these are people who are in a relationship for a long time, and that is Betty Draper. It was, believe it or not, in my own way, a symbol of the health of their relationship and her confidence in it, honestly."
 
B

Bladenic

Member
Linius said:
And I didn't even recognize her while watching. And I consider my self to be a huge Freaks and Geeks fan.
Click to expand...

I didn't either until a friend I was watching with said "she's in everything." And I still didn't recognize her right away after that.
 
J

jett

D-Member
Is there an alternate dimension where this Linda Cardellini is a big deal? So what if her appearance was kept under wraps?
 
L

Linius

Member
jett said:
Is there an alternate dimension where this Linda Cardellini is a big deal? So what if her appearance was kept under wraps?
Click to expand...

Well she had one of the biggest roles in Freaks and Geeks. To me it would have been exciting news to know she'll be in Mad Men.
 
Sapiens

Sapiens

Member
Linda Cardelini - I'm so used to seeing her on FaG with no/little makeup.

I had no idea it was her. Mind blown.
 
T

Talon

Member
GQman2121 said:
Well said Talon.

The death theme throughout was handled in a way that almost went unnoticed for me up until Roger broke down in his office. That moment, combined with Don's extended shots where he's just staring, almost lost in his thoughts (out of his office window, Roger's gathering, conference room pitch); plus the idea of this Sandy girl who Betty is seemingly trying to save, but for all we know could be or will be dead - brought it all together for me.

What was the line that someone used towords Don referencing who he is? Maybe it was the doctor or the door man....? I can't remember, which is ashame because it was very profound and setup/summed up Don's portion I felt.
Click to expand...
It was the photographer that said, "I want you to be yourself."

Hits back to the start of last season when the reporter asked, "Who is Don Draper?"

After the episode(s), I loved, loved, loved the title. Every major character arc was about reinventing yourself when walking through that door, and then we have Don regressing to his base instincts (drunkeness, cheating, etc.). Even his pitch to Sheraton was about reinventing yourself.

Don from The Summer Man: "When a man walks into a room, he brings his whole life with him. He has a million reasons for being anywhere, just ask him. If you listen, he'll tell you how he got there. How he forgot where he was going, and that he woke up. If you listen, he'll tell you about the time he thought he was an angel or dreamt of being perfect. And then he'll smile with wisdom, content that he realized the world isn't perfect. We're flawed, because we want so much more. We're ruined, because we get these things, and wish for what we had."

If only his actions reflected his words...we wouldn't have a tv show.
 
T

Talon

Member
That sweater on Peggy's dorky coworker with the Carson bit might be the ugliest thing worn on the show in history.
 
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