‘Mad Men’ finale review: Don Draper’s notion of change
Warning: If you have yet to watch the season 5 finale for “Mad Men,” this is probably the time for you to stop reading.
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It’s been an interesting few weeks for Matthew Weiner and company. We’ve seen the exit of Peggy from SCDP, the death of Lane … and now Megan getting a part in a commercial thanks to Don pulling some strings for her. Yes, the show ended with a rather anticlimactic finale that did not really accomplish that much, but we were almost glad to see it rather than the show trying to do too much too fast with some of the characters.
Instead, we saw a few rather nice moments that may show some evolution for some of the characters. When it comes to Pete, he showed a tiny bit of a moral compass in standing up for Beth after her electroshock therapy erased her mind — though granted, it was hardly so effective when he was already cheating on his own wife by being with her. We also saw Roger Sterling take on a rather bizarre (but also funny in some strange way) habit that led to him posing in his birthday suit in front of the window, leading us to believe that the show runner may not know what to do with Roger anymore.
Really, though, it’s hard to deny that much of the finale was really all about Don Draper and Megan. We’ve actually loved the change of pace provided by Jessica Pare this season, and it showed something new from Jon Hamm’s character when he helped her secure an audition. Was he aware that he could lose her if she becomes a star? Definitely, but he also knew it was unfair of him to hold her back from her dreams when he has the resources to help her. Unfortunately, the very end suggested that Don could still end up reverting to his old ways courtesy of a woman at the bar.
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Moving forward into season 6, we can at least expect a few changes. Pete is getting an apartment in New York, Peggy is poised to become an ad superstar, and SCDP is going to have even more space to do business. Of course, none of this helps to make up for the question as to if Don is really doing something more with his life, or is his success irrelevant to the empty feeling that seems to constantly fester inside of him.
What did you think about the finale, and about season 5 as a whole?
Photo: AMC
Nix
June 12, 2012 @ 11:41 am
I think the last scene with Megan on set is pivotal. Despite what anyone says, including the writers, I think it means that Don is leaving Megan behind, not that Megan is gone. Did Don ever really know her or care about her dreams? He is ultimately selfish, ugly, and a festering sore dressed in a nice suit; he’s sleek but has a strong stench.
Im tired of his cheating. Yeah, it added to the story the multiple women, but how much more philandering will keep me watching? None. I think what the story needs is a character who sees directly into who Don Draper is, and responds with calmness, insight and slicing honesty. Is he really that hard to decipher? Megan’s desire to be an actress seems to say that she is still idealistic and hasn’t matured enough to understand that Don won’t be able to love all of her – that he doesn’t know all of her or care to.
I think an interesting turn of events would be to see Megan getting the success she wants, and turning into a female Don – She’s found success, but has seen the ugly backside of how it comes, loses her idealism, and becomes her own wound of bitterness and anger at broken illusions. She recognizes Don’s ways, and shows him that he’s not the only one who can be unreachable. Don gets bored with love, no? He doesnt know how to love or care to – he wants what he wants and love isnt it. I think Megan would confound him if he saw himself in her….
Season 5 kept me watching. Im still not sure why. I know that I want Lane back. What? did he want more money or something? Someone just had to die, huh? There’s no black main characters, so they decided to go with the foreigner? Whatever.