Did Betty leave Don the day Kennedy was shot?

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Did Betty leave Don the day Kennedy was shot?

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no but it was soon after. So yeah don seeing the old newspaper would be a reminder of his divorce.

Welp, wild start so far

Great last number. Next year will be interesting.

Confused. What was the symbolism behind the Bert song & dance?

Mad men just jumped the shark.

Seems like they tied up all the loose ends. Everyone got rich, Jim is going to get cashed out and the old team is back together. I guess they start with a whole new crises nest year.

W
T
F

What happened to Lou?

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What happened to Lou?

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Nothing yet but he'll obviously be let go immediately.

Lou and Jim are toast. When we return next year, SC will be part of McCann, and both of these guys will be gone.

Roger owned everything, great episode for him. He always has the best lines, but he took Bert's influence and became the leader he needed to preserve the company.

I liked Peggy's pitch to Burger Chef. Not quite at the level of Don's Carousel pitch in (I think) season 1, but that was a great moment for her.

Looks like the boob duo of Cutler and Lou are going to be pushed out (the former very rich). I laughed that Harry got screwed by waiting so long to sign his offer. LOL

Was Ted scaring the client guys in the plane his way of trying to get fired? I thought he was going to kill himself, but it turns out he's needed.

That last shot of Sally, arms crossed, with cigarette... carbon copy of Betty!

That last number was a tribute to the actor rather than the character- a move that Mad Men rarely makes. It was so WTF and weird that I found it funny.

That was everything I could have asked for and more.

In fact, it was almost too perfect. Where do we go from here? I can't think of a single unresolved relationship, or single dangling plotline, I want answered. That was it. That was everything.

- Don finally passed the torch to Peggy.

- Don and Megan are finally done, amicably so.

- Things are finally good/"normal" between Don and Sally.

- Don has seemingly, finally defeated his demons, at least as much as can be reasonably expected.

- Roger lost his mentor, but in doing so, finally took back the company.

- The entire crew is finally back in New York.

- And they're all finally about to be rich (rather, richer).

In the final seven episodes, will a "new" crisis now feel somewhat manufactured? Emotionally, where else can these characters and relationships possibly go? As for the '60s, we've still got Woodstock, the Mets winning the World Series, and various Vietnam occurrences left to go, but the moon landing is basically the last "major" event of the decade, as far as I can remember.

Honestly, if Bert singing and dancing in that last scene was the final scene of the entire series, I would have been beyond content.

Either way, tonight only solidified this as my favorite show of all time.

Mad Men is still king.

[This message has been edited by TCTTS (edited 5/26/2014 12:06a).]

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In the final seven episodes, will a "new" crisis now feel somewhat manufactured? Emotionally, where else can these characters and relationships possibly go? As for the '60s, we've still got Woodstock, the Mets winning the World Series, and various Vietnam occurrences left to go, but the moon landing is basically the last "major" event of the decade, as far as I can remember.

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There will certainly be a new crises, but the tied up all of the short season loose ends with this episode.

I think next year will be a struggle for them to
keep their independent spirit, but the focus will be the transition from the 50s way of life to the 70s way if life. The 60s are over. Don will either adapt or be lost in the shuffle.

Lots of speculation that next season will focus on Don Draper v. Dick Whitman. I could see this being Don's last big challenge.

This ending, bringing Ted back to NYC, gives him a chance to hook up with Peggy.

Great tribute to Robert Morse.

Is Don/Dick still even an important issue any more? Betty knows, his kids know, Megan knows, Pete knows, Bert knew, Anna knew, and her niece knows. How much more reconciling can Don do in that regard? He's already accepted his past, as have many others. Seems he's already faced that challenge and come to terms. The only thing left would be to actually go by the name Dick Whitman now, but that just seems pointless.

As for Ted/Peggy, yeah, that's definitely a dangling plotline. In fact, maybe Don's story is basically over. Maybe the final seven episodes are now more about Peggy and her happiness? I could get on board with that. Her personal life is still in shambles, for the most part.

[This message has been edited by TCTTS (edited 5/26/2014 12:04a).]

Another route to consider...

The pilot opened in March, 1960. It didn't begin in January. In that sense, they technically don't have to end in December, 1969.

So what if we're actually done with the '60s?

What if Weiner pulls a Parks & Rec, and when we come back, it's something like three years later? What if we're smack dab in the middle of the '70s? I don't know if there's a thematic reason to go that route, but it's something to think about.

Then again, there's a reason the halfway point of the final season ended at the halfway point of 1969. We're almost assuredly going to play out August through December over the final seven episodes.

Still, catching up with these characters a few years later might "solve" the issue of there potentially being nothing left to solve with these characters where we've currently left them.

[This message has been edited by TCTTS (edited 5/26/2014 12:18a).]

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That last number was a tribute to the actor rather than the character- a move that Mad Men rarely makes. It was so WTF and weird that I found it funny.

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either that or he was taunting don for signing the 5 year contract with McCann, something that Don has managed to avoid going back to year 1 and what would seem to be a major sign of defeat for Don's pride and independence.

History of Don vs McCann. They have always represented the big bad corporate agency that he despised.
Season 1: they tried to lure him by giving Betty a modeling gig
Season 3: they bought Sterling Cooper from the British but Don led the escape to form SCDP

Something else that just hit me..

This is super-nerdy, but the two best finales of the year, for my two favorite shows of the year, have ended with the main characters either being told about, or referencing, stars...

Bert to Don (via song):
"The stars belong to everyone. They gleam there for you and me."

Rust to Marty (in True Detective):
(after a lengthy conversation about the stars)
"Once there was only dark. You ask me, the light's winning."

I have no real point with that, other than to say I'm really into space, stars, Mad Men, and True Detective.

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Is Don/Dick still even an important issue any more? Betty knows, his kids know, Megan knows, Pete knows, Bert knew, Anna knew, and her niece knows. How much more reconciling can Don do in that regard? He's already accepted his past, as have many others. Seems he's already faced that challenge and come to terms. The only thing left would be to actually go by the name Dick Whitman now, but that just seems pointless.

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I think this is a bigger issue. From the government's standpoint, he's a deserter. That's an offense that could land him in prison.

From the personal standpoint, is the man Don or Dick? Is he the wealthy bourgeois Madison Ave. exec or is he the son of a ***** farm boy? He can't be both. At the end of season 6, he seemed to want to shed the Don Draper persona (via his pitch meltdown). By the end of this recent half season, he's back to being "Don." Which is he?

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either that or he was taunting don for signing the 5 year contract with McCann, something that Don has managed to avoid going back to year 1 and what would seem to be a major sign of defeat for Don's pride and independence.

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History of Don vs McCann. They have always represented the big bad corporate agency that he despised.
Season 1: they tried to lure him by giving Betty a modeling gig
Season 3: they bought Sterling Cooper from the British but Don led the escape to form SCDP

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So is Don finally embracing McCann a good thing or a bad thing? I wonder if the show will try and endorse his conformity, or if he'll try and rally against it one last time?

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I think this is a bigger issue. From the government's standpoint, he's a deserter. That's an offense that could land him in prison.

From the personal standpoint, is the man Don or Dick? Is he the wealthy bourgeois Madison Ave. exec or is he the son of a ***** farm boy? He can't be both. At the end of season 6, he seemed to want to shed the Don Draper persona (via his pitch meltdown). By the end of this recent half season, he's back to being "Don." Which is he?

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That could definitely be interesting. Combine that with the McCann thing, and I feel like there's potentially a final thematic push having to do with Don's independence/conformity and the Don/Dick persona, as you pointed out. Those two threads do feel thematically related.

[This message has been edited by TCTTS (edited 5/26/2014 12:43a).]

Joan's making 1.5 million? That's about 9.5 million in today's dollars.

6 million for Don & Ted? That's around $38 million in today's dollars.

Holy crap!

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So is Don finally embracing McCann a good thing or a bad thing? I wonder if the show will try and endorse his conformity, or if he'll try and rally against it one last time?

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in the short term I guess by agreeing to it he made amends with Joan and Pete and gave Roger a big power boost, while also getting rid of Lou and Cutler. But surely next season a main source of conflict will be don vs McCann.

Random - I've noticed all season that every time they cut to commercial following a reference to the Computer they immediately go to a halt and catch fire promo. Then tonight they skip passed the subliminal stuff and have a commercial directly relating the two - "you've seen a computer in the 60s...now here's a show all about computers in the 80s"

Pretty sure I'm not watching that show.

Peggy's Burger Chef pitch was the best scene.

-when she said she would be going home to a 10 year old watching tv at first I cringed thinking she was going to have some confessional meltdown over not understanding suburban moms.

- I think she made up the idea that morning of the shared experience of watching the moon landing leading in to the pitch

-she'll finally get her Clio award for the commercial

Great minds, re: my earlier post. Via Sepinwall...

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I can certainly imagine a version of season 7.1 that picks up in August of '69 and takes us month-by-month through the rest of the year and a little bit into the new decade — seven episodes that would feature the satisfying comeuppance of Lou Avery (who has no place in an agency where Don is back in power and Ted is trying again), a glimpse of the benevolent rule of Roger Sterling, more metaphorical pratfalls by Harry and angry ranting by Pete, Peggy again trying to figure out if she can Have It All, etc. And based on these last couple of episodes, especially, I can imagine that version being very satisfying.

But I do wonder if Weiner might not be ready to pull a "China Beach" on us and use those final seven episodes to explore what happens to these characters over the next several decades: Bob Benson bumping into Sal at Studio 54, Joan adopting big shoulder pads and bigger hair in the '80s, Peggy being resentful of Apple's "1984" ad, and Don Draper somehow living to a ripe old age where he can feel annoyed about everything that's wrong in media and society — and maybe having a song of his own to deliver to the next generation on his way to slip the surly bonds of Earth.

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http://www.hitfix.com/whats-alan-watching/mid-season-finale-review-mad-men-waterloo-the-best-things-in-life-are-free
(as expected, another fantastic review)

I freaking hate half-seasons.

And there is something so funny to me about Harry getting screwed again.

Roger dismissing Harry from the partner meeting at the end was hilariously! And while I don't like Cutler, his line, "what? That's a lot of money." Made me laugh out loud

[This message has been edited by Oilag03 (edited 5/26/2014 7:19a).]

Several seasons ago Burt remarked that the elder secretary who died "was an astronaut" Bert himself died during the moon landing.

The whole moon landing scenes were spot on. I remember lying on the living room floor watching tv just like them.

I was 20 in 1969, and everyone I knew was glued to the TV that night.

I cannot believe they are going to make us wait another year to end the series.

Peggy mimicking the show's silhouette logo of Don (again) highlights that these last episodes are about Peggy being the future and the looks/comments from Don show him fully embracing that future, his mentor relationship with her and realizing that it's more important to share your gifts than hoarding them for yourself.

There was a similar shot after Don got put on leave at the end of last season, but obviously ****ty Lou was one final road-block for her to go through.