Sunday, August 22, 2010

TV Profile: AMC's Mad Men

Let's venture into some familiar territory. Mad Men has been on the air for the past four seasons, and has been showered with awards and critical acclaim. It won the Emmy for the Outstanding Drama Series twice, awarded by the Screen Actors' Guild for the Outstanding Performance of an Ensemble in a Drama Series, and countless more nominations and wins spanning not just the acting, but the different parts of the production, such as set design, cinematography, and even opening sequence! There is reason behind all this success. Simply put, Mad Men is an amazing and high quality television show!

Mad Men is set in a post-World War 2 world, when Marilyn Monroe and John F. Kennedy were at one point still alive. Smoking could be done inside offices. Drinking alcohol during work hours were acceptable. Oh, and the women and African Americans were yet to achieve equal rights. The story finds it home in an advertising agency, Sterling Cooper, along Madison Avenue, New York. Even then, the frantic and glamorous life of advertising men were celebrated, and at the same time, shown for what it is.

We follow the life of Don Draper, the head honcho in the creative department, and his wheelings and dealings inside the advertising world, and his personal space, his home. The mystery, intrigue, and the interplay of the different facets of the characters bring to life this period piece and the people in front and behind the camera breathes to life the world these Mad Men lived in, and what they had to face.

Let me stick more to what makes the current season of this TV show a must watch. And I definitely think, it's the cast and characters that populate the show!

Read about them after the jump!

Don Draper
Jon Hamm plays the title character of mysterious ad man, Don Draper. Known for his creative brilliance, Draper wows clients and fellow ad men with his eureka moments. But apart from is seen in the offices and corridors of Sterling Cooper, many do not know who Don Draper really is. In the previous three seasons, the audience gets to know the man behind the supposedly perfect man. We follow his heartaches with his family life, marriage, girls on the side, and the drama involved with keeping up this idyllic front.
Betty Draper
The Grace Kelly stunner, January Jones plays the wife of Don Draper, Betty. She struggles with the philandering of her husband, and at the same time, she epitomizes the struggle of the women of her time. Much like her husband, we follow her journey towards an identity, but in a starkly different sense. Hers is the challenge of finding her place in a world where the men ruled society, and women were largely left to tend to the suburban haven, have babies, and leave the career and moneymaking to their husbands. But as we saw in the recent episodes, change is coming.
Peggy Olson
If Betty Draper struggles in finding her place in society, Peggy Olson, played wonderfully by Elizabeth Moss, is already challenging the norms of society. Terribly unconventional in not just her look and career, Olson finds herself looking for the how to live in man's world manual. From the secretary of Draper to a full-fledged copywriter of Sterling Cooper, she's also in search of love. Her short-lived tryst with Pete Campbell resulted into a love child, which she leaves to her family, to pursue career advancement. And if you've seen the last couple of episodes, there are still sparks between her and Campbell, which makes us squee in delight.
Pete Campbell
The snarky Pete Campbell is played by Vincent Kartheiser. The ultra competitive accounts man always finds himself over reaching, but in the end gets what he deserves. It's probably because everything was given to him on a silver plate, and he's not used to working for it. In any case, he's probably the person you'd love to hate, but also can't help but adore. He's married to Trudy (Alison Brie), who doesn't mean to undermine him, but always finds herself in such a position. The two had really funny moments at the end of season 3, when the show tackled JFK's assassination.
Joan Holloway
Christina Hendricks plays the queen bee of the office. She's big in the right places, and knows how to work the girls and boys of the office. In fact, she's the one that keeps Sterling Cooper's operations to run as smoothly as possible. She's the sometime big sister of Peggy, once the mistress of Roger Sterling, but always knew what she wanted in her life, to have the perfect family. I guess her charm comes from how different she is from Betty and Peggy, in that she is confident from the onset of the show. But of course, all isn't perfect with her, as seen in her tension filled marriage.
Roger Sterling
John Slattery is a veteran in the industry and it shows in his role as Roger Sterling. He plays the suave, philandering, and rich kid to a tee. Sterling is the stereotypical man of the 50's. What he wants, he gets. And I can't help but notice how true his lifestyle is even in our times. He's rich business man, who's got a healthy dose of humor, but also loves the new and shiny things like cars, and of course, young girls. He even suffered a heart attack while attempting to go for another round and followed it up with a divorce with his wife Mona, and marrying the very young Jane Siegel (Peyton List). Now, he has to deal with his own daughter, and the dynamic between her and the new wife. And it sucks for him.

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