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[Cornballer]

Mad Men returns this Sunday, April 5th for the final seven episodes of Season 7. Pour yourself a drink, pull up a chair, and let’s enjoy the final few episodes of a great television show.

If you don't have much time and just want a quick set of must-read/view content, check out the following:

• Trailer: The Party's Over: Mad Men: Season 7
• Sepinwall interview: 'Mad Men' creator Matthew Weiner: 'I feel a sense of accomplishment'
• THR: The Uncensored, Epic, Never-Told Story Behind 'Mad Men'

Set in 1960s New York, the sexy, stylized and provocative AMC drama Mad Men follows the lives of the ruthlessly competitive men and women of Madison Avenue advertising, an ego-driven world where key players make an art of the sell.

AMCís award-winning drama Mad Men made history as the first basic cable series ever to win the Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series in four consecutive years. Created by Emmy and Golden Globe-winning executive producer Matthew Weiner and produced by Lionsgate, Mad Men has riveted audiences with the seductive and intriguing world of Sterling Cooper & Partners. This season, the seriesí breakout ensemble cast continues to captivate as they grapple with an uncertain new reality.

Created by Emmy and Golden Globe winning executive producer Matthew Weiner, Mad Men is anchored by an award-winning ensemble cast, including Jon Hamm, January Jones, Elisabeth Moss, Vincent Kartheiser, Christina Hendricks, John Slattery, Jessica ParÈ, Rich Sommer, Aaron Staton, Robert Morse, Kiernan Shipka, Jay Ferguson, and Christopher Stanley.

The Premise: The series revolves around the conflicted world of Don Draper (Hamm), the biggest ad man (and ladies man) in the business, and his colleagues at the Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce Advertising Agency. As Don makes the plays in the boardroom and the bedroom, he struggles to stay a step ahead of the rapidly changing times and the young executives nipping at his heels. The series also depicts authentically the roles of men and women in this era while exploring the true human nature beneath the guise of 1960s traditional family values.

Links
General

• Wikipedia
• Wikipedia Episode Summaries
• IMDB

AMC

• AMC Main site
• AMC Episode Guide
• Videos from AMC
• Cast
• Desktop background, screensavers, and other downloadables from AMC

Videos:

- Trailer: Where to Start: Mad Men: Season 7
- Trailer: Nostalgia: Mad Men: Season 7
- Trailer: The Party's Over: Mad Men: Season 7
- Mad Men: The Final Season with Matthew Weiner (lengthy interview with Weiner)
- Weiner @ THR
- January Jones at People.com
- Kiernan Shipka @ Teen Vogue
- Christina Hendricks @ EW
- John Slattery @ The Wrap
- Vincent Kartheiser @ Variety
- Elisabeth Moss quick video via TV Guide
- Us Magazine: Elisabeth Moss, Vincent Kartheiser Reflect on Their Mad Men Journeys (two more short AMC vids)
- Jon Hamm talks about Don Draper (one more part of the roundtable series, youtube)​

News & Analysis:

- THR: The Uncensored, Epic, Never-Told Story Behind 'Mad Men'
- Analysis of the poster via NY Mag
- A History of Mad Men's Planes, Trains, and Automobiles
- TV Guide: Mad Men: The Drama Behind the Drama That Changed TV
- TV Insider: Mad Men's True Story, From Start to Finish (extended version of the TV Guide oral history)
- WSJ: Going Up? Elevator Scenes on ‘Mad Men’
- Matt Zoller Seitz on his favorite episode: ‘The Arrangements’ Is the Quintessential Mad Men Episode​

Interviews:

- Sepinwall interview: 'Mad Men' creator Matthew Weiner: 'I feel a sense of accomplishment'
- Slashfilm: 10 Movies That Influenced ‘Mad Men’, According to Matthew Weiner
- Collider (Carousel pitch, Betty shooting pigeons, etc...) - Weiner narrating a few fan favorite scenes, part 1
- Indiewire (lawnmower, Lane vs Pete, Peggy quits, etc...) - Weiner narrating a few fan favorite scenes, part 2
- GQ profile of Jon Hamm
- Boyhood Part 2: From Little Creep to Teenage Wolverine - The Glen Bishop Story
- Esquire: Matthew Weiner on Mad Men's Origins, Peggy's Baby, and Why There Will Never Be a Spinoff
- The Film Society at Lincoln Center: The Close-Up Podcast - ‘Mad Men’ Cast and Creator Look Back at the Popular Series
- NY Times: Growing Up on ‘Mad Men’: A Conversation With Matthew Weiner and Kiernan Shipka​

Images:

S7, Part 2 Poster:

Reviews

Where Weiner takes the remainder of the series is, obviously, the great unknown that’s so anticipated by fans and by critics who will be attempting, in short order, to place Mad Men in just the right place in the pantheon of brilliant shows. How this final season wraps up will go a long way toward those judgments, but it should be noted up front that getting closure on all of the Mad Men characters and themes may not be the single most important notion for Weiner. He may tidy everything up and shut the door with an audible click of the lock, or he might not – choosing instead to be more nebulous and vague (which would be in keeping with the show’s tone).

He need not go out with a bang of fireworks or some finale that makes everybody happy. He just needs to maintain the highest standards that have inched Mad Men to this place in the pantheon in the first place.

Like the previous seven episodes, there’s no evidence at all that Weiner or the series will stumble in that regard. Mad Men remains, for the viewers who have embraced it the most fervently, a richly rewarding, wholly excellent work of fiction.

With the advance restrictions imposed by series creator Matthew Weiner, up to and including the passage of time, reviewing a “Mad Men” premiere is a Nik Wallenda-worthy balancing act, which might explain why many prefer detailed recaps. Still, what AMC is billing as “The End of an Era” deserves a proper sendoff, starting with a general sense of whether this signature drama — the one that made “Breaking Bad” possible — looks headed in the right direction. Certainly, the first of the four-time Emmy winner’s seven final hours contains intriguing developments, without offering many clues about where this last campaign will lead.

The unsettled feeling on the screen is also distinct from the wistful resignation of viewers who know that some of TV’s sharpest characters are about to leave us. It’s hard to explain exactly what happens in the season premiere, because creator Matthew Weiner prefers to let viewers experience it themselves. And good for him. But it can safely be said that we’re not sailing into these last episodes like kids cruising in muscle cars with the tops down.

I am happy to report that the first of Mad Men’s final seven episodes is as fine as a silky fur, give or take a hilariously hideous period mustache and some too-on-the-nose lines and symbolism. I’d be sweating “We’ve seen all this before” tedium if this weren’t the last season. But it is, and so an episode that rephrases and forwards the show’s themes, conflicts, and concerns—especially the institutionalized sexism of our culture—powerfully launches Mad Men toward a final statement. A-

Weiner's craft should keep dedicated viewers' jaws on the floor. He does it with one fresh episode. That's the power of Don Draper. This generational proxy can stand in a room, staring into the distance, music cues haunting him like ghosts, and that adrenaline rush still kicks in. Mad Men is perfectly composed. It's already classic.

The final season premiere of Matthew Weiner's game-changing cable drama sets a tone both unique and familiar to the franchise. Don Draper is again on a journey of self-fulfillment in Episode 8, but the players, setting and his mentality have again shifted with time.

 

[Amir0x]

I can't believe this show is going to end now. I've got few staple TV shows I make sure never to miss, and this is one of the rare ones

 

[LumpOfCole]

This OT!

The Wardrobe / Makeup departments should win some sort of special achievement award for this series.

 

[Cornballer]

The Onion A|V Club is running "Mad Men" Week:

- For Our Consideration: Don Draper is no antihero
- 11 Questions: Mad Men’s Jay R. Ferguson on Zach Galifianakis and kids-only planes
- The tao of Don: 17 pop-cultural predecessors to Mad Men

Though Don Draper might be reluctant to acknowledge the shoulders upon which he stands tall, creator Matthew Weiner and crew have never been shy about revealing the list of ingredients that went into the Mad Men cocktail.

 

[phanphare]

nice OT! watched the first two episodes of the show last night after finishing up the first half of season 7 again. crazy how far the show has come.

 

[LaunchpadMcQ]

Brilliant OT. I had forgotten this was coming so soon, but I guess that's how crummy I felt about the whole splitting the season in two. Will definitely watch though. Hopefully the finale lives up to the show's standards.

 

[backflip10019]

Subbed. Looking forward to this tremendously.

 

[giga]

😭

 

[Loomba]

Beginning of the end.... I'm gonna miss this ;_;

 

[TheOddOne]

Awesome job with the OT as always, Cornballer.

 

[EloquentM]

Pouring one out for one of the best shows in recent memory.

 

[IronRinn]

Losing this and Justified in the same year, one after another, is gonna be rough.

Good job as always, CB.

 

[Altazor]

I can't believe this show is going to end ;_;

 

[BertramCooper]

God, I'll miss this show.

I don't think it will ever get enough credit for being as consistently inventive and daring as it is.

 

[Kraftwerk]

 

[Nyx]

As much Megan screentime as possible please.

 

[T Dollarz]

I watched the entire series on Netflix last year leading up to the beginning of season 7. It was truly an incredible experience. What a phenomenal series. I'm not ready to say goodbye.

 

[Prompto]

I feel like this show can go on another 5 years and still be great. I don't want it to end

 

[Kajiba]

Can't wait. Going to be great to see what happens to Don at the end.

 

[Mothman91]

Woah wtf, April 5th!?

 

[Niraj]

Nice work as usual Cornballer. Just finished my rewatch last night, so I'm good to go. Going to be a bummer with this and Justified going out this year.

 

[Lactose_Intolerant]

The eye patch cracks me up every time

 

[Amir0x]

God, I'll miss this show.

I don't think it will ever get enough credit for being as consistently inventive and daring as it is.

hope some of the main actors can be recognized in award season at least :/

travesty how that's gone for the last six and a half seasons

 

[Alpende]

Cannot wait for the episodes. Too bad it's ending but hell, seven seasons is great.

 

[wingwah]

I'd really like to see Michael Ginsberg one last time.

 

[Bobby Roberts]

I'd really like to see Michael Ginsberg one last time.

SAL.

 

[Real Hero]

Sad it's ending. It's up there with the Sopranos and the Wire.

 

[Krauser Kat]

I am going to be in such a funk after it ends. I need another drama with gorgeous suits in my life.

 

[TronLight]

So sad to see this end.

I want a spinoff with Sally as the protagonist.

Spoiler

Weiner, give me a call, I've got ideas.

 

[Arcteryx]

I'm going to miss the show that brought lawnmowers to the office.

 

[Ultimadrago]

It's almost over...

 

[Fuu]

Happy that this useless wait for the final 7 episodes is finally close to an end. Hope the hiatus pays off for AMC somehow...

 

[VeryGooster]

Time for me to revisit the first half of the season.

 

[lastflowers]

Wooohoo for bingewatching

 

[Ignatz Mouse]

What will I do without Mad Men?

 

[Strike]

Sad to see it go, but I'd much rather have a show I enjoy end on its own terms than overstay its welcome.

 

[SteveWinwood]

i feel like i need a massive recap for everything

i constantly forget people that showed up in the first few seasons

 

[Ignatz Mouse]

i feel like i need a massive recap for everything

i constantly forget people that showed up in the first few seasons

Wikipedia's list of seasons has decent recaps. Later seasons seem to have more detail recaps, but earlier episodes usually have their own article.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mad_Men_(season_1)

 

[Grisby]

This is it.

 

[PartlyCloudlike]

This is going to be one of those shows where the characters stay with me long after it's ended. From time to time I'll probably find myself wondering where they are, what they're up to, how they've aged, and so on.

 

[Steelyuhas]

Eye patch Ken cracks me up every time.

I want to watch the part 1 episodes before Sunday, but I doubt I'll have the time.

 

[Juz]

Already missing this show :/

 

[CassSept]

Here it is, so close. I'm gonna miss the show so darn much.

 

[LCfiner]

One of the best of all time. I'm confident they can stick the landing and still manage to surprise us. Can't wait for this to start

 

[f0rk]

In my top 3 of all time. Very enjoyable on multiple rewatching, even if you just pick out a random episode (unlike the wire where you need to have committed). Will be going through part 1 again this week.

That last promo picture looks like the Netflix image for a show I haven't watched and can't remember the name.

 

[Chase Lebowski]

Oh man, I can't believe this is the last season.

I already said farewell to Breaking Bad, and now this. TV series will never be the same.

 

[War Peaceman]

I'd really like to see Michael Ginsberg one last time.

Yeah. Always had a soft spot for him. Although his arc was disturbing and wrapped up, so I doubt we will.

 

[Pryce]

One of the all-time greats, of any genre. It'll be a long time before we see a show this good again.

(I'm not ready to put The Americans up there yet)

 

[Ravager61]

This might be my favorite show of all time. I'm sad to see it end but it's good that it's not overstaying it's welcome either.

I have faith that the ending will be satisfying.

 

[Real Hero]

If we see ginsberg again it will be in the final montage and he will be in a straight jacket in a padded cell or something.