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CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR THE FIRST THREE SEASONS OF MAD MEN.
If you’ve picked up any listings magazine over the last week, or browsed any TV-related website, you’ll have probably gathered that Mad Men is the greatest thing since sliced bread. However, it’s also quite possible that you don’t watch it. With the fourth season starting on BBC4 tonight – a glorious four months earlier than anticipated – here’s 10 things I think you need to know if you want to start watching Mad Men now.
1. The Mad Men of the title are 1960s advertising men. They work on Madison Avenue in a culture that’s full of booze, sexism and casual racism. For the first three seasons, the action focused on the staff on Sterling Cooper, but that all changed in the season 3 finale, when several of the key staff really amazingly stole loads of accounts to create a new advertising agency, Sterling Cooper Draper Price.
2. The Draper in that title is Don Draper. Except, he’s not. He’s actually Dick Whitman, the son of a prostitute who stole the identity of dead fellow officer in the Korean War. The revelation of this secret killed his marriage to the beautiful but cold Betty. He’s also: charismatic; a jerk; an advertising genius; exceptionally handsome.
3. Pete Campbell is ahead of the curve on most things. Pete isn’t really sure how to act like a proper human being most of the time, but he’s much more liberal than everyone else, particularly on the issue of race. I also love him.
4. Peggy had Pete’s baby. Having slept with Pete twice, at the end of season 1, Peggy found herself in labour with his baby. She gave it up and returned to the office to continue to rise in the ranks, but she and Pete will always be on the same wavelength.
5. Saying that “nothing really happens” isn’t strictly true. Mad Men is mostly about character development, but when things happen, boy do they happen. The ultimate example of this is the mid-season 3 episode ‘Guy Walks Into An Advertising Agency’: during Joan’s farewell party, the titular Guy gets his foot cut off by a lawnmower. In the office.
6. You can drink all you like, but never, ever wet your pants. If you do, you’ll share the fate of poor Freddy Rumsen – one of the old guard, and the first to see Peggy’s potential, when his alcoholism caused him to have a little accident just before a client pitch, he was “sent off to dry out”, never to be seen again.
7. Sterling Cooper was getting behind the game. As Mad Men began in 1960, Sterling Cooper was at the peak of its powers; by 1963 and the end of season 3, its 1950s culture of booze and sexism was starting to look seriously outdated. It’ll be interesting to see if the establishment of SCDP will reverse their fortunes.
8. Joan is the queen of the office. Divine red-head Joan is one of the smartest people in the office and rules her secretarial pool with an iron fist, but her dreams of a perfect life were shattered when her doctor fiancé raped her, and she was crushed further after their marriage when he turned out to be a less-than-brilliant surgeon.
9. Don sees Peggy as an extension of himself. He kicks her when he’s down and nearly lost her, but the two share a special bond. He’s allowed her the chance to rise from his secretary to copywriter, and the move to SCDP wouldn’t have been complete without her.
10. Roger always gets the best lines. Classic example: “You know what my father used to say? ‘Being with a client is like being in a marriage. Sometimes you get into it for the wrong reasons, and eventually they hit you in the face.’”
So now you have absolutely no excuse not to start watching Mad Men. Catch the start of Season 4 tonight at 10pm on BBC4.
"So now you have absolutely no excuse not to start watching Mad Men."
Yes we do - you just gave away LOADS. Why on earth did you think it was a good idea to list a bunch of plot details from various seasons?? I'm halfway through season 2 and you give away loads. Thanks a lot.
The point was for people who haven't seen any of it who want to start watching tonight on Season 4 - I'm sorry if that isn't clear, but it is pretty obvious from the first point what level of spoilers we're dealing with. I really am very sorry if you feel I've spoiled it for you, it was meant to be a helpful guide for people who've heard Mad Men is amazing and want to jump in now.
"1. The Mad Men of the title are 1960s advertising men." didn't warn me that you were about to say what happens in the season 3 finale, especially not before you put the 'warning spoilers' note up. At least other readers will know in advance. Otherwise nice article.
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