I’d heard many good things about Mad Men, but I missed the first few episodes and decided rather than start watching part way through the first season I’d wait and buy the DVD instead. Well said DVD arrived a couple of days ago and today seemed like a good day to watch the few episodes.
Right from the start Mad Men doesn’t pull its punches, it begins brutally setting the scene and within the first 20 minutes we’ve had examples of sexism, racism, homophobia, smoking, drinking and infidelity. There can really be no doubt about the era in which the drama is set, 1960’s Manhattan is exquisitely brought to life.
Sumptuous could equally describe the colour schemes, the furnishings, the architecture or the dialogue. The characters all have flaws, some more apparent than others, but this just makes them more engaging, more believable. The dialogue is good, possibly not quite the same level of polish that one might expect from Aaron Sorkin, but nonetheless appropriate forhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aaron_Sorkin the characters.
The tribal nature of office politics is nicely depicted and merges well with the underlying gender imbalance to create an unexpectedly complex narrative. So what might appear simply a drama about the lives of 1960’s advertising executives is really so much more.