Mad Men Season 5 running thread

I think Jared Harris got caught up playing David Robert Jones in Fringe and that might have taken some Mad Men screen time away. Jones is now dead, so perhaps we'll have more Lane Pryce.

 

OMG Spoiler!

Kidding.

 

Too bad they never did a "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying " bit. Roger getting dragged to go to the theater to see it and Cooper telling him to avoid going.

 

Brilliant, Abbott, just brilliant.

And it's true, about half the actors only do six eps. They being Rich Somner (Harry Crane), January Jones (Betty), Chris Stanley (Henry), Aaron Staton (Ken Cosgrove) and I guess Lane Pryce (Jared Harris-Richard's son-seriously).

I think Don and Betty divorcing is due in part to January's lack of acting skills. She's a print model (and Bobby Flay's baby mama if you believe everything you hear). She's a one-note actress: cold, removed, bitchy and withdrawn. Lends itself to being very Stepford wifey. Good for Weiner and the writers for recognizing that in her skill set and writing to it. She waaaaas perfect for Don-in a different era of Don's life. I do like her being a thorn in the side from a distance, though, as she was this week (weak ep overall, btw, but I guess it sets up the rest of the season very nicely).

Jessica Pare/Megan is soooo much better and I really like the burgeoning relationship between her and Sally.

 

Waited for it during that time frame, but they never bit.

Morse/Cooper would NEVER say that. He'd say, "You HAVE to see it", with a clever spin. The show's his lifetime identity, and he can still sing every word of every song in it.

 

I don't think Jones' acting ability had anything to do with the divorce. Weiner comes from the school of "the characters serve the story, not the other way around." If you listen to, or read, his interviews, he felt divorce and remarrying was part of the story he wanted to tell with Don for quite awhile.

Jones is limited as an actress, but the first few seasons, she handled a number of small moments quite well.

 

As someone who is a bit late to the party (have watched seasons 1-2 and have started 3), is it me or is Don just an a--hole and not very likeable?

Don't get me wrong, he acts cool as hell and gets a bevy of women, but the philandering after he nearly lost Betty and the office antics makes him hard to feel sorry for. I know he's not as bad as Roger or Pete, but still.

 

I've talked to a lot of people who find him to be a terrible human being. Others think he's the coolest cat on Earth.

Since you're early in s3, I'll avoid spoilers, but be prepared to learn a lot more about what makes Don Draper tic.

 

I am greatly entertained when Don is being creative, or "I'm better than all of you" (but very coolly). And, of course, when he's a dog.

He is not a great human being, obviously.

 

Some of the best characters in all of literature aren't likeable.

I guess the interesting question is: Does it matter?

Chase often said he was appalled to learn people liked Tony Soprano. He was also fascinated by the fact that people were rooting for him to kill his enemies and obtain more power more than they were rooting for him to end up in jail. Thought it said a lot about our culture.

 

I believe Vince Gilligan has said the same about Walter White.

 

I always wondered about that when Chase would say it. Not that I disagree, but more that he would say it aloud.

The brilliance of Lolita is that through it all, Humbert is likable. You don't want to like him. But you do.

So, too, with Tony Soprano. The character is fascinating. And you do find yourself rooting for him.