Mad at Men?

Warning: if you have yet to watch the season finale of MadMen and plan to, stop reading now. *Spolier Alert*

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This was truly a bizarre episode. As I watched the second half with my mouth open and brows knitted, frequently yelling/angry fist shaking at Don Draper, I might have muttered the phrase 'they jumped the shark.' But, the more I thought about it, the more I realized that perhaps Season 5 is salvageable and this finale did in fact, fit with the rest of the odd season, opening up lots of storylines (and making for a very long 8-9 month hiatus!). A few thoughts, since you didn't ask for my opinion: :P

One of the things I love about MadMen are it's time gaps. Either between season, episode, or scene, you're never really sure how much time has passed and what transpired with the characters. What holiday? How long have they known each other? How long were they in California?

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Did you notice that all the career girls got shafted? Joan got a promotion but no raise. Peggy got a new account and saved the business but was trumped by Don's news. Faye, poor Faye, got dumped for a younger secretary who, oh by the way, got the ring.

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I proclaimed loudly, and multipley that Megan's character was not developed enough to show why Don supposedly fell in love and proposed to her. There was the scene with the milkshake...

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...and we know Don is a mess and doesn't know what he wants. Plus, he made googly eyes at her in the Whiskey a Go Go outfit. So, I'm now undecided on this, as it was pointed out that perhaps Megan is all the things he thought he was getting with Betty, who turned out to actually be a psycho 11 year old...

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(did you see her crazy eyes and erratic head bobble whilst firing Carla?!). So, she's both the Anti-Betty and the Betty-hit-on-the-head-with-a-well-adjusted-adult-stick. So, maybe its not that I think Megan's character was underdeveloped so much as she's just not a very deep character (or maybe, I just don't like the actress or identify with her on any level).

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I LOVE Sally Draper so much. I love the song scene where she is off key and trying desperately to spit the words out on cue to please her dad. I love when she begs him to go swimming with her and when he crashes on the bed...

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...(was it just me or was there an extra pause there that made you think Don might have really passed out?) I love when she doesn't make move on Glen...

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(who, just so happens to be Matthew Weiner's son! Who knew? And, even more creepier) and offers to send him postcards instead. I really wanted to see her have one more fit and fall in it this season, though (guess she left all those for her mom).

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And, I love that Lane was the first to congratulate Don having shared the waitress/Bunny lady he fell in love with also. He clearly doesn't fit it in with the other boys (where is Cooper? Did he abandon ship altogether after the Jerry Macguire letter? Why has no one else pointed out that letter was totally Jerry?). I can't quite figure him out yet. He's so...un-mad man.

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At the end, as we're all willing incoming mortar for Joan's husband (does he even have a name) or even just waiting for him to spontaneously combust, it occurred to me that what if he DOESN'T die in the war? What would happen to the baby? How can he just ignore dates? Now that would be a plot twist! And, as much as I dislike the hubbs, I even more dislike the way Joan talks to him.

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I really want to know what Faye is going to do with Don's secret and the fact that she lost her job for him. That can't be pretty, but who knows if she'll be back next season, her super insightful 'You only like the beginnings of things' might have been the nail in her character's coffin.

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Speaking of things, un, the scene with Joan and Peggy was so...un-MadMen, too. We've seen little camaraderie among the women of SCDP, and even less catty-humor. I can't decide how I feel about this, since it's not a sit com. Also, when did Peggy start smoking?

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This scene with Don and Bets was one of my favorites of the season. Maybe just for the nostalgia...and Betty's cunningness. And Don drinking his hidden liquor from a bathroom cup.

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Everyone keeps saying Peggy felt hurt at Don's news because he never made a move for her, but I disagree. Peggy doesn't and didn't want that. Her comment about saving the company is an indication of her ego, and her similarities to Don. They both have big bad dark secrets they're trying to overcome, they're both the creative type, they both have ambitions that get the best of them sometimes. There is no chemistry between them INTENTIONALLY!

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I think this is the first time we've seen baby Gene's face up close and personal as a character. Does anyone else think he could be Betty and Henry's kid? He's the spitting image of them (poor Bobby got the raw deal with his scene stealing sister and adorable toddler brother). I hope he is back in Season 5!

Bottom line: This is such a complex, character driven show. The fact that I reacted to this episode as such might mean it's really good...or that Matthew Weiner is in a life raft with a bleeding foot.