Mad Men Shoot (2007–2015) Online

Don and Betty Draper meet Jim Hobart during the intermission of "Fiorello!", one of the most popular musicals that year. Jim is clearly interested in getting Don Draper to come work for him at McCann Erickson agency. He is clearly attracted to Betty, who looks gorgeous in her evening clothes. Betty feels flattered by the attention she gets from the older man who compares her looks to that of Grace Kelly.

Don is being courted by Jim Hobart. The office is all aflutter with the rumors of Don leaving Sterling. Betty decides to try Mr. Hobart's offer and comes in to Manhattan for an audition. She is impressive, although a bit too dressed up for the occasion. The photo shoot goes well and the results for the Coca-Cola ads look stunning. Yet, Betty is not happy.

Betty's session with her analyst doesn't go too well. She becomes testy when talking about her mother. There has been an early incident when the Draper's dog killed one of the neighbor's pigeons. That night Sally barges into her parents' room because of nightmares.

Don finally has a talk about his situation with Roger Sterling. After weighing in his options, Don has decided he'd be much better off staying at his agency rather than to go to the larger one. They talk about a salary and Don is going to get a raise. Betty gets word that even though her ads were good, Coca-Cola decided to go for the Audrey Hepburn look and she is dropped. This decision smells as though it's Hobart's way to show his power. Betty is resigned to stay at home. The end of the episode has her going outside with a gun and begins shooting the neighbor's pigeons.

A good episode directed by Paul Feig, a man that has shown great style in the many shows we've had been lucky to catch. This installment in the series is the work of Chris Provenzano and Matthew Weiner. The atmosphere and the details are good, even if, as pointed in the goofs, no alcohol was ever sold in theaters at that time.

John Hamm and January Jones compliment each other well. We were nicely impressed by H. Richard Greene, who guests stars as Hobart. John Slattery doesn't have much to do. Elizabeth Moss, Vincent Kartheiser, and the rest of the supporting cast contribute to make this an enjoyable time in front of the television.

Following a much needed focus on the past, Mad Men's ninth episode, Shoot, brings in new developments for the present and - possibly - the future, while also adding to the period feel with an unusually unflattering portrayal of JFK and injecting some humor, courtesy of director Paul Feig (the creator of Freaks and Geeks).

The "unflattering" part is due to Sterling Cooper's commitment to the Nixon campaign, which means Kennedy is the enemy and something has to be done about his advertising strategy. While Pete comes up with a plan to turn the situation in the agency's favor, his mistress Peggy has to deal with an unwelcome weight gain. As for Don, he receives a job offer from Jim Hobarth, head of a larger ad agency, who also resorts to tempting Don's wife Peggy with a model gig to win him over, and Mrs. Draper might just take the proposal into consideration in order to get over everyday tedium.

The episode is very rich in detail, both for the eye and the mind, as the visual rendition of 1960 New York remains impeccable and the plotting stays as sharp as ever. In particular, the script deserves praise for how it merges the public (the whole deal about Kennedy) and the private, with the Hobarth scenes allowing for some truly great work from January Jones, the third woman on the show to gradually come in her own, promising many good things to come in future episodes and seasons.

After having an episode that focused much on the past, we go back to see how the characters are doing in their present lives.

Betty Draper seems to get an offer that makes her excited, but it soon becomes evident that it wasn't for her. Peggy suffers from weight gain, and her conversation with Joan makes her, and the audience, realize that every time Joan interferes with Peggy it is because she actually cares for her, despite the first instinct that tells us she is out to hurt her appearance. It all has to do with Joan's manner, and both Moss and Hendricks could not play each other better. Of course, Jon Hamm and January Jones keep proving how damaged they can be, and Jones especially shines here, showing her subtle and vulnerable side.

Betty gets a modeling opportunity but turns out it was just to get Don into their company. This was actually a great story. One could guess that Betty is not that happy with being a housewife. In this episode one sees it more clear than ever before. Her lying to Don at the end that she just doesn't want to do it was a great scene. Poor birdies, but I get that those shots were more symbolical than anything.

Peggy's story was a fun addition to the episode. There isn't really much in this story, just that she is gaining some weight but it gave us a moment of Pete punching a guy for making fun of her and a great scene with Joan where Peggy understand that she was just being nice to her.

The best thing about "Mad Men" is how much subtlety is in the show in every frame. In the show, it's all about the body language and the silences. Not by accident, the same can be said for advertising.

This episode is brimming with sublime mostly in the department of sexism and misogyny. In one plot line, Betty Draper gets a job in modeling, and considers this progressive. But if you think about it, it says a lot about the 60's that the one time a housewife gets a job, it's in modeling. Another plot in the episode is Peggy as a character. Peggy has been slowly developing since day one, and since she arrived in the pilot, I'm starting to think the show's about her.

Finally, the threat of Don leaving the company. It was surprising at first, but then I realized that this could be an evolution step in Don Draper. So when he didn't, I was reminded that character devolution in television wouldn't be invented for another two years, until the "Phoenix" episode of "Breaking Bad" aired.

Very skillfully shows that the woman's place is in kitchen!

Mad Men

Mad Men; one of the most acclaimed series by critics, loved by the fans and buzzed at the award shows, is a character driven series created by Matthew Weiner depicting the inner world of an ad agencies set in '60s in New York. The writing is sharp, elaborative, adaptive and exquisite that keeps the audience tangled in its not-so-likable and faulty world on the edge of their seat.

It is rich on technical aspects like projecting the chemistry among the characters, stunning cinematography, beautiful camera work, references mentioned in the conversations and the classic tone of the series that makes it supremely watchable.

The primary reason why the series stands alone is not only its nature to work in a metaphorical way but to weave out a poem from the sequence, is the genuine soul behind it that attains a certain closure in each episode. The performance objective is score majestically by the cast especially by the protagonist Jon Hamm who is supported convincingly by the cast like Elisabeth Moss, Vincent Kartheiser, January Jones and John Slattery.

The practical conversations, the whistle-blowing dialogues, three-dimensional characters, excellent execution, finely detailed set-pieces, alluring costume design are the high points of the series that helps it enter the major league.

Season 01

The first act is aptly written and executed that flaunts its skills through various sequences whether it be then office politics, emotional drama, love track, business tactics or thought-provoking policies which depicts the wide range of the series that it not only attempts to reach but grasps it and holds it throughout the course of it.

Shoot

The build-up of the whole episode was to the arc of the characters wisely using their characteristics offering a cathartic deep emotional drama that speaks volume than any other office meeting, gossip or politics can in here