Amph [MAD MEN] Guy walks into an advertising agency...

I don't watch this show, but this made me lol.

 

Betty is a silly woman, but that's been the case the entire time.

 

I think she gets an unfairly bad rap. Don's better with the kids than she is (then again, he was never around them nearly as much), but in every other respect he's a worse person (or has made worse choices, whichever you prefer). Only he's so charming in-universe that he charms the audience as well, so they side with him against Betty-- even though Don himself doesn't seem to blame her for most of her behavior toward him.

 

Betty has a weird grip on reality.

And I still don't think the show has given me a very good reason for Don's infidelity. It seems so random...is that the point? Because they hardly ever address it in the show without the exception of Betty finding out and freaking out about it.

 

It was simply more common and more accepted for married men at the time. In addition to Don, we've seen Pete, Roger and Harry sleep with women who are not their wives, and only Harry seemed to feel truly remorseful about it. Also, Betty knew (or suspected) that Don was cheating on her long before she found out about his true past, probably since before the time of the pilot. She mentioned it in the season 1 finale to her shrink and at a couple points when she and Don were in bed she implied that she knew about his infidelity and she wanted him to stop (and he pretended he didn't know what she was saying). She freaked out more about the fact that he was lying to her about his very identity than his infidelity.

And Don's a strange guy with a lot of issues. Infidelity is but one of his many flaws. He seems to know it, too; he couldn't look at himself in the mirror after that comedian's wife told him he had a reputation.

 

I was talking more about Betty freaking out about it in the second season, not the third.

I have a hard time reconciling Don's infidelity for some reason. I love his character so much and I just can't accept that flaw. I also really believe that he does love Betty and his children and I get so mad at him for sleeping around. But now I am more mad at Betty for the Draper blow-up. I liked happy Drapers in Rome!!

 

In Seasons 1 and 2 especially he seemed to repeatedly realize that he loved his wife and wanted to spend more time with his family. But for some reason he also repeatedly ignored it.

 

The moments where he realizes that he loves his family though, are my favorites. Like the picture viewer thing at the end of season 1?

And when he cries in season 3...made my heart break.

 

Didn't he cry when talking about his brother's suicide?

I like the end of one episode where he imagines getting home in time to go with his family on a trip, but then it cuts to him sitting alone on the stairs in a dark house.

 

Yeah. I loved that part. He was so vulnerable and so penitent. But I liked how he left the teacher in the car, haha...!


Oh, I also liked in this new episode where Francis tells Betty she hasn't even tried looking for a new house...I don't think she wants to let go of the house because that's where she built her life and her family...and to some extent, I don't think she's fully let go of her marriage to Don, either.

 

Probably not. There wouldn't be enough drama if she were completely over him, now would there?

 

So has anyone besides me actually *watched* this premier?

 

This show reflect the times they are set in, the early 1960's. This was a time when MEN were kings of the castle and also set during the cold war. Here is a clip from the 1950's;

The role of women in the 1950 was repressive and constrictive in many ways. Society placed high importance and many expectations on behavior at home as well as in public. Women were supposed to fulfill certain roles,
such as a caring mother, a diligent homemaker, and an obedient wife. The perfect mother was supposed to stay home and nurture so society would accept them. A diligent housewife had dinner on the table precisely at the moment her husband arrived from work. A wife was a "good" wife only if she carried out her man's every order and agreed with him on everything. In fact, even if she wanted to voice an opinion, her education, or rather lack of thereof would not allow it. Another reference is the 1950's American High School Home Economics textbook. An essay found in the book is entitled "How to be a Good Wife." The television shows aired at this time reflect the public's need for stability and conformity. The main character of the most watched show at the time, I Love Lucy, portrayed a woman as the stereotypical woman-in-distress, who always needed her husband, the man, to bail her out. She also was symbolic of the inept woman: the "woman driver," the "over-spender" who cannot budget, and the basic downfall of man.

Pleasantville's Betty was an appropriate example of a 50's mother. Following is an excerpt that applies to motherhood. Prepare the children: Take a few minutes to wash the children's hands and faces, comb their hair, and if necessary change their clothes. They are God's creatures and he would like to see them playing the part.

Minimize all noise?eliminate the noise of the washer, dryer, dishwasher or vacuum. Try to encourage the children to be quiet.


I guess these days were what my great uncles and older male relatives referred to as "The Good Old Days" ....before the dark times.... before the Empire!

Tough to look at today, but that is the way it was. This show reflects that. Wish I had Doc Brown's Delorean right now.

 

what? I have watched it.

 

I watch David Cameron through his windows.

 

That's not a premier! That's a Prime Minister. You're getting Canada and the motherland confused again.


I hope this season that Don gets knocked down a peg, isn't quite super human anymore. I think there are hints this might be happening. Him failing at a pitch. Him getting shut down by the woman in the cab (who, by the way, is awesome). I see promising things.

 

If the end tail of season 3 isn't Don getting knocked down a peg or two, I don't know what is.

 

Sorry, I was confused because some countries use the titles interchangeably. I still stalk Mr. Cameron, though.

And yes, the very fact that she flatly rejected Don's advances made her awesome.

 

Is it okay to discuss spoilers here without hl?

 

I guess. Maybe a mod could add a spoiler tag, but I think the title already makes the spoiler-ridden content rather obvious.

 

Well, the title of the thread is Mad Men premiere, so I have been assuming it's okay to talk freely about it...but if not, oops.


Bethany refusing Don is overrated IMO, just because I think she's just playing him.

 

Even if she is, though, it's still someone Don doesn't just get when he wants her. I think it has been a good point that it seems *every* woman is puddy in Don's hands, and that's not very realistic or a good view of woman-kind. I hope with Bethany we might see someone who's a little more self-possessed. And seeing it drive Don crazy is nice.

 

I was really hopeful that the teacher would continue standing up to Don and not give in, but then...she did. It was so awesome that she was dropping coy comments and messing with Don's head, but then it was all a waste.

 

The Jewish woman who ran the department store also resisted (because he was married) but still gave in eventually.

 

Resistance is futile.