Still Mad

Totally floored by the ending of Mad Men....even though I didn't originally understand it at all..

I watched twice and I thought the exact same thing: 'Oh wow...Don finally found his happy place and Peggy got her wish to create the next big idea'. I thought Peggy was sitting at the typewriter penning the song for Coke when she got her kiss on the head. And I thought Don was just smiling because the group leader was suggesting they find their next idea or identity and he had thought of his.

I was mistaken. Apparently, Don was actually thinking of the Coke ad, leading us to believe he returned to New York, was taken back in, and proceeded to prove what a fucking baller he was by creating one of the most iconic ads of our lifetime. This created quite the argument in my household. He was all "I imagine Don rocking back into the office like a scene out of a Michael Bay movie, shoving Peggy out of the way and pitching Coke with his new hippie tears rolling down his face". Firstly, I was insulted he added Michael fucking Bay into any sentence that also involved Mad Men. Secondly, I responded that I don't believe Don is a detriment to Peggy or her work and she is sweetly co-dependent with Don. Their relationship has been productive and evolving and truly worthy of a #relationshipgoals label for anyone that has ever sought a complicated and brilliant mentor. He just believes Don is a disgusting person who is terrible at life.  I don't believe that. I think Don is an intensely complex person who came from a terrible start in life.  People like that scratch and claw an they are survivors. That doesn't make them bad people. I admire people who fuck over their bad odds with how resourceful they can be.

My favorite quote regarding this last scene was "Mad Men makes its final pitch: For Hope". That makes so much sense. Hope to solve the world's problems for just an instant by buying them a Coke. Hope to find love, like Peggy. Hope to get a start at something greater for yourself, like Joan. Hope to finally get it right, like Roger. Hope for second chances, like Pete. And hope for acceptance, like Don.  People may disagree with me, but I think Don truly gained a new perspective out there in Big Sur. I'm not saying he won't be the same self-absorbed, philandering drunk we all hate to love, but I don't believe his internal struggles will be as pronounced as before. I think he felt he needed them to be good at his job and I think that little smile was a direct result of realizing he didn't. That he could find peace and art in the same mind where he had so much darkness just a few days before. It's the great struggle for creative types. Are we better when we're sad? Don can find vindication that he doesn't need the pain to be great or powerful.

If you're gifted, you're good. No matter what.

Ugh. I hate that this show is over. The world is so much less cool now. I'm gonna go paint some watercolor pics to feel better.

Staying Mad Forever

The imminent conclusion of the show Mad Men is carving a cavern in my heart that I have no idea how to fill!

There have been dramas I have loved, or at best, become addicted to, in my day. Breaking bad, Sons of Anarchy, Scandal (if you can call that a legit drama, more of a soap opera) but none have the magic of Mad Men. Sometimes it all becomes so dark that I am drug down into a hole with the characters. I don't feel that way with this show because even in their darkness, they are so inspiring.

From the writing, to the acting, to the art direction, to the casting, it's truly superb. The way they handle the events of the time period, the fashion, the mentality, the simplicity and the complication.

I just love it. Working in the creative industry, probably one of my very favorite quotes of all time comes from this show....

"We're going to sit at our desks and keep typing while the walls fall down around us because we're creative - the least important, most important thing there is." - Don Draper