Mad Men - Season 5

The fifth season of the American television drama series Mad Men premiered on March 25, 2012, with a two-episode premiere,[1][2] and concluded on June 10, 2012. It consisted of thirteen episodes, each running approximately 48 minutes in length.[3] AMC broadcast the fifth season on Sundays at 10:00 pm in the United States. The fifth season was released on DVD and Blu-ray in region 1 on October 16, 2012.[4]

Mad Men - Season 5

Season 5 takes place between Memorial Day (May 30) 1966 and spring 1967. The season explores Don Draper's new marriage to Megan, which leads him to ignore his work at the Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce advertising agency. Meanwhile, Lane, Pete, Roger, Joan, and Peggy learn that it is "every man for himself" in their personal and professional lives, as they each face painful new beginnings.

Lane Pryce struggles with his own demons as he is revealed to be greatly in debt and owing a good amount of taxes from when he moved his money to the US last season to help keep the firm afloat. When his scheme to use his Christmas bonus to pay off his tax debt fails, Lane is forced to steal from the company to pay his debt. Don discovers this and asks Lane for his resignation, who then kills himself rather than face the disgrace of resigning and returning to England. He hangs himself in his office, leaving Roger, Pete, and Don to cut him down. Nobody but Don knows the reason behind his suicide. Don takes it especially hard and has hallucinations of his brother Adam, who also committed suicide by hanging. In some ways, Don blames himself for both deaths.

The season ends with a montage of all the main characters having realizations about themselves. Pete, in the aftermath of his affair with Beth, is seen sitting alone on his couch with his headphones on and eyes closed. Peggy, having quickly risen through the ranks in her new career, is shown toasting a single glass of champagne to herself with a smile on her face. A naked Roger looks out the window of his hotel room at the city, in the throes of an LSD trip, and raises both of his arms into the air. And lastly, Don is seen at the bar, where a woman begins to flirt with him and asks if he is alone. He turns and looks at her ambiguously.

Series creator Matthew Weiner also served as showrunner and executive producer, and is credited as a writer on 10 of the 13 episodes of the season, often co-writing the episodes with another writer. Erin Levy was promoted to co-producer and wrote two episodes. Victor Levin joined as co-executive producer and wrote two episodes. Frank Pierson joined as consulting producer and wrote one episode. Semi Chellas was promoted to co-producer and wrote two episodes. Jonathan Igla wrote two episodes. Writing team Andre Jacquemetton and Maria Jacquemetton were promoted to executive producers and co-wrote one episode together. Other producers included Blake McCormick and executive producer Scott Hornbacher.

Jennifer Getzinger, Scott Hornbacher, Michael Uppendahl, and Phil Abraham each directed two episodes for the season. The remaining episodes were directed by Matt Shakman, cast member John Slattery, Matthew Weiner, who directs each season finale; with cast member Jon Hamm and cinematographer Christopher Manley each making their directorial debuts.

The fifth season of Mad Men has received critical acclaim. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reports that 97% of 34 critics have given the season a positive review. The site's consensus is: "With its brilliantly crafted characters, razor-sharp writing, and ambitious sweep, Mad Men continues to surprise and unsettle."[18] On Metacritic, the fifth season has scored an 89 out of 100 based on 24 reviews, indicating universal acclaim.[19]

The fifth season received three nominations from the Television Critics Association Awards for Program of the Year and Outstanding Achievement in Drama, while Jon Hamm was nominated for Individual Achievement in Drama.[20]

Although Peggy Olsen starts off "Mad Men" as Don Draper's quiet new secretary, by season 5 she has risen up the copywriting ranks and become Don's confident right-hand man. There's just one problem with Peggy's rise up the corporate ladder: Technically, she owes a ton of her success to Don, and Don's kind of a jerk. By the end of season 5, the characters have long since lost their post-"The Suitcase" groove, with Don taking Peggy for granted and Peggy growing increasingly frustrated. The last straw is at the beginning of "The Other Woman," where Don dismissively throws a bunch of money at her, in front of her co-workers no less.

Luckily, this wasn't the last scene between the two characters. Peggy's company merges with Don's halfway through season 6, forcing her in the same office as him and giving the two no choice but to work out their differences. But at the time, Peggy's resignation scene seemed like the end. It felt like we were saying goodbye to one of the most compelling character duos in the series. With Don and Peggy (and Hamm and Moss) possibly parting ways forever, no one can blame the two for making the scene far more sentimental than the script required. There are no bad episodes of "Mad Men," but this moment made "The Other Woman" one of the show's best.

Pete tries to convince Trudy that they ought to buy an apartment in the city; she refuses. In the season finale, Pete and Beth meet in a hotel room, where she tells him that she is going to undergo electroshock therapy the following day, which she hopes will help her depression, though it may erase her memories of their time together.

The season five finale of "Mad Men" ended on both a high and low note: although SCDP is rolling in dough (apparently it had a great insurance policy in case a partner died), almost everyone's personal life has gone to shit. Unless, of course, you're Roger and gallivanting around, butt-naked in newly-single bliss. See the slideshow for photo evidence.

Rory Gilmore/Beth and her side boob made another appearance in the show's season finale. She runs into Pete on her train into the city with her husband, who is checking her into a mental hospital to undergo electric shock therapy for being "blue." (Because this was a time when husbands could institutionalize their wives for the blues or, say, cheating).

Thanks to Nate Rawlings for writing his recaps all season while I was doing Game of Thrones, thanks to him for letting me guest on this finale episode, and thanks to all of you for reading. Now one last hail of bullets:

After a 17-month hiatus, millions of fans of the popular TV series, Mad Men, finally have another reason to linger at the water cooler. This Sunday, March 25, the two-hour premier of the fifth season comes with high expectations and a lot of pressure. Have the show and its producers jumped the shark? The retro-drama about an ad firm set on Madison Avenue in the 1960s has racked up 17 Emmys and four Golden Globes, and last year its creator, Matthew Weiner, renegotiated a contract with American Movie Channel (AMC) and Lionsgate for $30 million to create three more seasons.

1. Season 6 will be Mad Men's penultimate seasonIn an interview with The Daily Beast, Weiner confirmed that Mad Men will end after its seventh season, which means there are just 26 episodes left in the series. But Weiner also stresses that season 6 will have its own distinct arc, even as he looks ahead to Mad Men's ultimate ending. "I never had the guarantee of even one more season for the first few seasons I did the show. So I would just use all the story I had," says Weiner. "And it's a much better way to do it."

2. At least some of the season premiere will be set in HawaiiThe vast majority of Mad Men's narrative is set in New York. The season 6 premiere, however, will reportedly take Don and his wife, Megan (Jessica Pare), to the sandy beaches of Hawaii. It remains unclear why the characters have embarked on a tropical vacation, but photos at The Huffington Post reveal that Don is still a smoker and that Megan enjoys fruity blue cocktails.

3. Peggy and Betty will be backSome fans and critics had speculated that Mad Men would continue without January Jones, who played Don's ex-wife, Betty, in a reduced role last season, or Elisabeth Moss, who left Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce for a new firm near the end of season 5. But Weiner confirms that both actresses will be returning. "I can tell you their names are in the credits," says Weiner to TV Guide Magazine. "And none of the cast has been let go."

6. But season 6 will also reflect the modern era"I think the social environment and the general sense of anxiety and decay [in Season 6]" reflects how Americans are feeling right now, says Weiner to TV Guide Magazine. "I think it's about, whether we realize it or not, we have lost something recently, and it feels very different. There's a bit of a self-esteem problem for the country, and it's turned people inwards."

Season 5 of AMC's wildly popular series Mad Men has been nothing short of explosive. If you watched the latest season, you saw Layne Price hang himself, Joan Harris sleep her way into a better job, and Pete Campbell learned how to cheat on his wife in secret. And the show's Sunday night finale wrapped up in a similarly dramatic fashion. But I'll offer no (at least not many) spoilers here; you'll have to watch it yourself.

At certain points in season 4, Mad Men's enigmatic main character Don Draper was forced to deal with his past as a military deserter, who accidentally killed his lieutenant and stole his identity. So far, Draper has avoided owning up to his deception. But I expect that this part of his story could play an important role in the show's final two seasons.

Secondly, it wouldn't be surprising to see Draper reunite with his former wife Betty. For the entirety of season 5, Betty Draper (or Betty Francis) was portrayed as the bitter, overweight ex-wife. But she was still a prominent character throughout the season. For this reason, and because Draper's current marriage to Megan became increasingly tumultuous as season 5 progressed, I think Don and Betty may end up together again before Mad Men is through. 041b061a72