05 August 2008

Hard as I try, can't really be madder about Mad Men

As much as I wanna jump the bandwagon, I still cannot get into all the Mad Men frenzy. It's getting all the Emmy buzz that it might just win Best Drama this year, there must be something good to it, right? So, I tried watching another episode recently, actually forced myself... but like always, I just can't sit and bear watching a full hour. Something about the series is off and because I couldn't stay with the show like I've mentioned many times on this blog, I started doubting how much TV has dumbed me down. How stupid was I to not get this one? Why does Mad Men not interest me?

I got the answer today. In this article.
Adam Simon, a film and television writer and cultural critic, agrees that Mad Men is beautifully executed, but says: "I really can't bear (that) it is so certain that it, and by extension its viewers, are so morally and culturally superior to the characters we're watching — in fact, to the whole era it depicts," he says. "You get to revel in the cool atmosphere while feeling smugly superior to it. Oh, so sexist, so racist, so anti-semitic. So desperately in need of the sexual and cultural revolution waiting round the corner. It feels cheap in that sense, allowing us to pat ourselves on our backs for merely living on the other side of the great awakening."

So, it is official. I am giving up with my wanting to understand the series.

AMC's Premiere Of "Mad Men Season 2" - Arrivals