Mad Men

[I. J. Parker]

Not quite on topic, but I'm absolutely bowled over by the quality of that show. It took me a while to catch on, though I thought it a good program from the beginning, but now into the second year I see it's absolutely brilliant.  I didn't know television had it in it.  In fact, I was convinced that "mediocre" was about the best one could hope for.

 

Who knew in the age of reality shows?

[I. J. Parker]

Police procedural?  I don't care much for gangs, at least not when I'm supposed to see things their way.

 

I may not be able to get BBC America.  I know I don't get Justified and Shield.

 

Alas MAD MEN seems to have run out of shows for the rest of the summer.

[Raymond Embrack]

Followed the entire last season, didn't miss an episode. Still trying to figure what people see in it. If it were set in the present no one would care. The period setting is hypnotic. Maybe it's a way of watching our parents through a time machine. There was a moment or two where Don Draper reminded me of my father. Now that's acting. People seem to like catching the themes and motifs in each episode but is that writing or cleverness? I don't need to see bloody teen panties or Babyface getting knocked out again, I want to see the  commercials made by the firm and something larger to say about anything. The show seems to be about nothing more than the themes and motifs written into it and the emmy winning formula of seeming more than it is. At the same time so many smart people love this show I wonder if it's just me....

[I. J. Parker]

It's social commentary and satire.  It says a lot about corruption in high places and about how people treat each other.  A sideline deals with discrimination against women and sex in the workplace.  Not much has changed in either area.  As for Don Draper, he's someone who is simultaneously fascinated and repelled by this world.  Haunted by his past, he is a womanizer who sees his private life disintegrating.  Can't say I was happy with the panty-episode either, but the show frequently shocks viewers out of their placid watching mode.  To make up for that, it usually has a topnotch ending with appropriate music from era.