bossymarmalade | (no subject)

(no subject)

This kind of article is why I don't bother talking about Mad Men with anybody but

glockgal. I mean, really? Betty is "acting out" by smoking during therapy and is "terrible" and "mean" to the children, but Don is "sad" and "wanting help so badly" and just wants to "be better"?!?

Fuck that bullshit! I don't even have anything more smart to say, just FUCK THAT BULLSHIT. And:

"But for Pete, he is more comfortable in his office skin, and his lack of emotional intimacy with Trudy is telling of that fact. When their daughter was born, Pete decided to attend an industry funeral instead of visiting the hospital."

Like, WERE WE WATCHING THE SAME SHOW?!?

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AUGH. I can't lie, I love Mad Men. It's one of the few shows I watch religiously every week. But the ideas people take away from it make me ill. The whole "Betty is a shrew" vs. "Don is misunderstood" argument drives me BATSHIT and speaks so loudly to how entrenched our culture is in patriarchal thinking. It's like, do you people not get the IRONY in you thinking that way?

Edited 2012-04-17 21:34 (UTC)

I was cold in S1, tepid for most of S2, and then rapidly fell in love with the show -- which is why I try not to engage with the masses at large about it. Because it ALWAYS comes down to how Betty (in particular, because I guess we're supposed to be identifying with/admiring Don to distraction of all else) is so horrible and a bad parent and a bitch and an ice queen and crazy and everything else you can throw at a woman. I LOVE Betty! AND I love Megan! And Dr. Faye!!

That comment about Pete is so confusing, given the way that he and Trudy have become this adorable little close-knit unit where he comes home and tells her everything that happened and what dilemmas he's having and LISTENS to her advice. I don't even know what the hell this "lack of emotional intimacy" thing is all about; it seems so disrespectful of Trudy, like she can't tell the difference.

Yeah, I love Betty and Megan both, too. From what I understand, there's been a fair bit of backlash against Megan, which is just beyond me. I think she's really interesting and I'm glad that she's clearly and quickly shown she has ambition outside of being with Don. This is one of the things I love most about Peggy (Peggy is so my hero), that she can be a woman with concerns relative to both her sex and the era, while being successful and ambitious in the workplace.

And yeah, that comment about Pete seems utterly backwards. It always seemed to me like Pete was putting on a mask at work because he felt like he had so much to prove. He and Trudy have always been a team, and most of the few moments when I feel like we've seen the real Pete have been around his wife. Even this last episode where he was getting all emo at Don felt a little false, as Pete often does, since his concerns largely come from being so focused on himself and how he appears to others. It's almost like he thinks he's supposed to be disenchanted with his life, so he is. But he lets down his guard with Trudy.

Oh, vomit. I am actively avoiding any and all Mad Men discussions and articles. Don just makes me sick but I find Betty so faszinating.

I've learned to love Don because I think they let Jon Hamm out of the "too cool for human emotions or tenderness" straight jacket, finally, and when he's allowed to make Don more human he does a good job, but Betty homg. I loved her from moment one and will love her devotedly no matter what.

I think it's too late for Don for me. I just can't empathize with him, and feeling like I should focus on him and empathize with him makes me actively not care. Betty on the other hand I love. It drives me nuts to see her hated with such venom, especially in contrast with Don worship.

The only character I've actively liked from the beginning has been Peggy, but they're all fascinating to me (which is why I keep watching).

-J

I *lurve* Peggy a lot! I love all of the ladies; I think "The Beautiful Girls" is one of my all-time favourite episodes.

. . . guhhhhh? Wait, there are people who write about Pete like he's not an inexcusable piece of shit? I DON'T THINK YOU'RE WATCHING THIS SHOW RIGHT.

I've never understood the Don worship, either. It's like, no, he's not supposed to be a role model even if he is hot?

Heee, I've made my peace with Pete SOLELY because he fixed his act re: Trudy. He was seriously the WORST in the first few seasons, such an awful little weasel.

I feel like the bro-heavy writers' room of the first couple of seasons was so invested in living out their ultra-macho fantasies through Don! Then, as I've read it, a lot of women joined the writing team and I think it's done a LOT for the show. I like Don and Roger, but the show no longer enrages me by having all these implicit messages that it's OKAY for them to be the way they are b/c "that's how it was back then".

I am not caught up in Mad Men (but obviously not spoiler-phobic) so I have yet to witness this, but I'll reserve judgment until I see it. Ugh I have rarely hated a fictional character as much as I hate Pete so far though, lol.

From the beginning I didn't think we were supposed to admire Don/his actions, but it shocked me how many people did anyway? I do think the later seasons are improving, though.

Unfortunately, that's not an uncommon view. :(

-J

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