Mad Men

With the season three dissolution of Sterling Cooper, the Mad Men cast will likely look very different next year.

It's already been confirmed that Bryan Batt is most likely done with show. We'll miss him in the role of Salvatore Romano.

What other actors/characters are on their way out? Or returning to the award-winning drama?

The contract of Aaron Staton has been renewed for season four. Does this mean Ken Cosgrove will join Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce? It's unclear. But the laid back account rep will at least be around to make bug Pete Campbell a bit more. That's always entertaining.

As for Michael Gladis as Paul Kinsey? The actor was mum about his future when asked by E! News: "Though I'm flattered and amazed that you've taken any interest at all, I just don't know. You'll have to watch season four to find out.

Fortunately, creator Matthew Weiner has assured fans that Betty won't be in Reno for very long. January Jones will still play a key role on the series.

"She's [still] raising Don's kids. And I also feel that she was always in her own show," Weiner said.

When Mad Men viewers last saw Salvatore Romano, he had been fired from Sterling Cooper and was seen calling his wife from a park phone booth, seemingly about to engage in promiscuous behavior.

It sounds like this will also be the final time fans of the AMC drama see Bryan Batt in that role.

With filming on season four scheduled to begin in March, the actor told TV Guide Magazine he doesn't foresee a return to 1960s New York: “I was supposed to be notified by December 31, and nothing,” he said.

Creator Matthew Weiner seems to echo that sentiment:

“We don’t murder people on our show, but for there to be any stakes, there have to be consequences,” he said, adding that losing Batt “was a tough moment for the show, but that’s where we are. I know how people felt about Bryan. I obviously love working with him, and he has been an indelible character since the pilot.

"But I felt it was an expression of the times that he couldn’t work there anymore. It’s the ultimate case of sexual harassment.”

Mad Men creator Matthew Weiner gave a pair of interview this week.

We recap them below, but be warned: the writer reveals no real show spoilers. He's notoriously quiet about what's to come on his show, a quality we admire in an age where so many other series creator spill as many beans as possible in order to remain in the news (we're looking at you, Shonda Rhimes).

With that in mind, here are excerpts from chats Weiner had with E! News and TV Guide Magazine over the last few days...

On the conclusion to season three: "The show has traditionally ended on a down note, and I wanted to end with a sense of liberation and humor. You have to go to the dark place to get there, but part of the joy that people felt at the ending was because we had earned it."

On Don and Betty: "We’ll see when we come back, but I definitely tried to make it as unambiguous as possible that that marriage was over. She’s flying to Reno to get a divorce, with her baby and perhaps her future husband. It’s been a kind of education for me that people root for the structure of marriage. It’s never been clearer to me, two people who should not be together."

On Henry Francis: "He's a handsome guy who says, "You'll never have to work again." A lot of women like that. Lots of people don't know the people that they're marrying. She didn't know Don that well. But Henry has been good to her, and I think she knows what he's about, and he's a very exciting person for her."

On Betty's continued presence: "I don't like spoilers, but you will find out that January's contract has been renewed [and she remains part of the Mad Men cast]. She's raising Don's kids. And I also feel that she was always in her own show."

On season four: "I was very excited, when we finished, about the idea of how much would be new, and how much would be exciting, and how much would be the same, and where people would be when we came back and when we would come back, what year, what time, what month.

"I always say I don’t know. It’s not true, but it’s true on some level that I actually just try and cool my jets and get out of all of the mechanics of the show and go back to the things that matter to me, which is what you feel like when you’re watching the show. Because that’s what the show is about, believe it or not."

Good luck ever getting Mad Men spoilers out of creator Matthew Weiner.

He's more tight-lipped about his show than anyone on TV.

But in an interview he gave after the incredible third season finale, Weiner did address the future of Betty and Don Draper. How come? Because he doesn't consider this a spoiler. It's so clear, he said...

It’s so unambiguous to me that this marriage is over, but the audience seems to cling to the idea that they should be together because we want to believe in those things. The marriage was not good. It was built on a lie and the lie was exposed. In the end, Don coming clean really damaged his relationship with her, more than the lying, her seeing who he actually was.

I do believe when he says his mother was a 22-year-old prostitute that Betty is looking at something that is very far from what she had planned for herself... That was the whole story of the season. When Henry Francis came on to her… a switch went off in her head of what was missing in her life, which was a true, romantic attachment.

In the end, that combination with her gut feeling that something wasn’t right in her marriage and finding out the truth, they don’t belong together anymore, kids or not. You’ve got to take it pretty seriously when someone’s flying to Reno to get a divorce.

Will January Jones remain on the show as Betty? Viewers will need to wait a long time for that answer.

Hello to Sterling, Cooper, Draper and Pryce. Goodbye to Mad Men as we know it.

A new company, a new family arrangement and a new direction for Don Draper were all the focus of the show's season three finale. We've recapped "Shut the Door. Have a Seat" in full and share our opinion on it below...

How do those that criticized the show's early-season pace fell now? Creator Matthew Weiner always said he was laying the seeds for more dramatic action all along - and it all paid off this week. There wasn't a single dull moment, as it almost felt like a different series entirely, with a couple laugh-out loud lines and a quick pace that found Don and Roger making like Rusty and Danny Ocean.

The season was clearly building to these little conversations/recruitment pitches.

Don's previous outbursts at Peggy, for example, set the stage for both their conversations in the finale: the initial, terse exchange in which she stood up for herself; and the subsequent apology, in which Don channeled Dick and was as vulnerable as we've ever seen him in a professional setting.

Pete, meanwhile, just wanted to be praised by Don, his father figure. After being disappointed so greatly in the opening scene by the man that referred to him as a son, Don didn't hesitate to come through for Campbell when needed.

Let's tackle the rest of this recap/review via a series of pressing questions:

• Will the remnants of Sterling Cooper find their way back into the new agency? Like Bobby and Sally's reaction to their parents separating, the show depicted both sides of this professional "divorce," making us wonder if we'll ever see Ken and his haircut again.
• No way it works out between Betty and Henry, right? Right?!?
• Will Sal join Sterling, Cooper, Draper and Pryce? How many others were hoping he'd be called in to open the art department's door last night?
• How far into the future will season four jump? Here's to hoping we see a lot of the new company developing, as well as Betty realizing that Henry is just another self-created ideal of the man with whom she wants to be.

More than any episode of memory, the Mad Men quotes were incredibly funny this week. We've listed a few below and invite discussion on your favorites...

Roger: Peggy, can you get me some coffee?
Peggy: No. | permalink

Roger: How long do you think it'll take us to be in a place like this again?
Don: I never saw myself working in a place like this. | permalink

Roger: You're not good as relationships because you don't value them. | permalink

Don [to Betty]: You're a whore. You know that? | permalink

Don: I want to build something of my own. How do you not understand that? | permalink

Might this Sunday be the last we see of Elisabeth Moss on Mad Men?

The thought is almost too sad to ponder, but if her character of Peggy jumps ad agencies, there's a chance she'll no longer be featured on the show.

Heading into this weekend's season three finale, TV Guide Magazine asked Moss if her decision to join up with Duck's company will be addressed. The actress replied:

“It’s definitely a huge thing. It’s not going to be swept under the rug.”

In between showing off her engagement ring, presented by Saturday Night Live star Fred Armisen, Moss explained her character's recent thought process:

“Is [Peggy] supposed to be a mom? Work harder? Work less? Is she supposed to sleep around? One of my favorite lines is when she says to Don, ‘What if this is my time?’”

That was one of our favorite Mad Men quotes of the season, as well. We can't wait for Sunday's episode.

As soon as it became clear that the third season of Mad Men was based in 1963, fans have been curious about how the show would handle the JFK assassination.

Months ago, creator Matthew Weiner said: "The Kennedy assassination is very well-trod territory, and I just don't see myself adding [anything] new to that."

He clearly changed his mind, as "The Grown-Ups" dealt entirely with this historical tragedy. Follow the preceding link for a recap, and read on for our detailed review of developments from it...

Weiner was in an unenviable position here: you can't avoid the event entirely, nor can you only mention it in passing. The only way to tackle the assassination is head-on; which is what took place in "The Grown-Ups," but in a rather disappointing fashion.

As most Mad Men fans agree, last week's episode was likely the best in series history. We can't be alone in wishing this week's installment had given us more insight into how Betty and Don moved on - or failed to - following his Dick Whitman admission. The couple seemed to be on the right path at the trick-or-treating conclusion to "The Gypsy and the Hobo."

It makes sense that brief reconciliation wouldn't have lasted... but it would have been nice to have seen it actually fall apart. Instead, viewers were thrust into one of the biggest events in U.S. history, a difficult backdrop to use against the Draper's marital problems, considering the state of mourning every citizen felt during this time. Life goes on, even when a President is killed, we understand.

But Betty went from almost forgiving Don last week, to practically accepting a proposal from Henry last night - and fans scarcely got to view any interactions between the couple in between. That's very un-Mad Men like.

That said, the simple line "I don't love you" was startling to hear from Betty, and creates a myriad of questions heading into next Sunday's season finale: is this really the end of the Draper marriage? If so, will Betty actually end up with Henry? How will the show handle that relationship in the future?

Those are issues for next week. These are the Mad Men quotes we loved from last night:

Betty: I want to scream at you for ruining all this. Then, you tried to fix it and there's no point. | permalink

Roger: No one else is saying the right thing about this.
Joan: You're really upset.
Roger: What's that about?
Joan: Because there's nothing funny about this. | permalink

Don: Everything's gonna be fine.
Betty: How do you know that?
Don: You'll see. | permalink

Don: Why are the kids watching this?
Betty: What am I supposed to do, Don? Am I supposed to keep it from them? | permalink

What's your name?
Donald Draper. But it used to be Dick Whitman.

It was the conversation we never thought would take place on Mad Men. But it was also the anchor of the scene that highlighted "The Gypsy and the Hobo," possibly the best episode in the history of this great show.

Follow the link above for a full recap of events from the hour, and read on for our take on it.

This week's episode showcased our favorite characters, acting like the polar opposite of everything we're used to. There was Roger Sterling, entertaining a former lover by getting drunk and acting like a jerk (okay, we're used to that), but then turning down her advances.

Was this because he's actually in love with Jane, or because he admits this woman broke his heart many years ago? Either way, this was a soft, vulnerable side that viewers rarely see. Even the phone call he placed on behalf of Joan seemed to be made with nothing but benevolent motives. Talk about a change!

Joan, of course, finally stopped playing the role of submissive housewife. Hitting your husband over the head with a vase is always a good way to force him to notice you; and to join the army, apparently. We don't see this ending well for Greg, and we can't say we're bothered by that fact.

Then there was Don and Betty - and the talk. Earlier in the episode, Don had told a client that the only way to improve her product's image was to change its name. It's a message he knows from experience. But he was finally confronted about his former life as Dick Whitman, as Betty forced a confession out of her husband.

Continue Reading...

Joan returns to Mad Men this week, as she and her awful husband plan their future.

However, sorry, fellas, the clip below does not star this beautiful character; instead, it focuses on another storyline from ""The Gypsy and the Hobo."

A former client returns to Sterling Cooper and gives the firm a chance to earn back her business. After the jump, watch Roger exhibit zero tact and Don consider a marketing challenge.

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Welcome to the latest edition of the Mad Men Round Table!

Following a busy episode of the AMC hit, our staff is anxious to dish on the latest developments and happenings. We encourage readers to chime in with their opinions, as well. Let's get right to it...

Will Betty reveal what she knows to Don?
DapperDon: First let me say how shocked I was by her discovery. Mad Men typically shies away from actual suspense, choosing instead to build small moment after small moment. But I was on the edge of my suit when she found that shoebox. Yes, I think she'll confront Don with it.

PrettyBetty: Definitely. This is the new, assertive Betty. The information is too explosive for her to simply ignore it.

PeteSoup: No. She looked defeated at the Sterling Cooper party. She must know a confrontation over Don's past could end their marriage and, while she has come a long way, Betty isn't prepared for that.

How will Don and Ms. Farrell's relationship end?
DapperDon: I know it sounds bold, but I think this is it for the Draper marriage. I foresee a separation to end the season, based on the shoebox information discussed above, and Don actually moving in with Suzanne.

PrettyBetty: Badly.

PeteSoup: I don't know, but I also can't figure Ms. Farrell out. Is she sort of crazy? Or just more emotionally open and advanced that most people of that era?

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