Happiness
breaks out as TV's 'Mad Men' ends packed with surprises
Send a link to a friend
[May 18, 2015]
By Jill Serjeant
NEW YORK (Reuters) -
Television's "Mad Men" swigged their last drinks and
made a final, brilliant, advertising pitch on Sunday in
a series finale that saw many characters find happiness
in unexpected places.
|
After eight years and multiple Emmy awards, the 1960s era
show set in the New York advertising world, pulled down the
shutters on a turbulent decade with an ending that was one of
the best-kept secrets in television drama.
While the TV series that examined the sexism, racism and
alcoholism of the Sixties was notable for its dark tone,
Sunday's 75-minute finale turned unusually optimistic.
One time secretary turned ad agency executive Peggy Olson
(Elisabeth Moss) surprised herself by finding love, playboy
Roger Sterling (John Slattery) found a woman that was his equal,
ambitious Pete Campbell (Vincent Kartheiser) reunited with his
estranged family, and voluptuous Joan Harris (Christina
Hendricks) finally chose business over romance.
But the biggest surprise lay in the fate of star Don Draper (Jon
Hamm), the deeply troubled but genius ad man whose search for
identity and contentment was the driving force of the series.
Despite years of fan speculation, Draper did not end up dead.
Instead, after walking out on his ad agency and hitting rock
bottom emotionally, he finally found inner peace and a beatific
smile while practicing yoga at a California hippie commune.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2015/May/18/images/ads/current/hicksgas_sda_animate_040215.gif)
"Don was finally able to love. I loved him finding
enlightenment. It was a spectacular episode," said New Yorker
Liz Klein, who has watched every episode of "Mad Men" since its
first broadcast in 2007.
But there was also a tongue-in-cheek edge. "Mad Men" closed with
one of the most famous commercials of all - the 1971 "I'd Like
to Teach the World to Sing" ad for Coca-Cola - and the
suggestion that Draper returned to his agency and helped create
that blockbuster ad.
Judging by social media reaction after the finale was broadcast
in the United States, most fans left happy. #MadMenfinale was
among the top five trending topics on Twitter on Sunday night.
[to top of second column] |
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2015/May/18/images/ads/current/Symphony_lda_091814.png)
"Probably the most perfect ending to a series I've ever seen,"
tweeted Jeff Goins.
"That ending managed to be both cynical and sincere. Don is the
total ad guy," said Harold Itzkowitz on Twitter.
Not everyone was happy. "So: ending shows is hard," tweeted Linda
Holmes, National Public Radio's pop culture writer.
"Mad Men" creator Matthew Weiner has said he did not have a specific
ending mapped out when he first came up with the concept of the
series. The ending came to him about three or four years ago.
Known for the unusual secrecy surrounding all its plots, no-one
involved in the show had given away how the series ends, although
filming finished months ago.
The secrecy had led to rampant speculation and wishful thinking
about scenarios ranging from Don and Peggy striking up a blissful
romance to Draper throwing himself from a window in an echo of the
show's iconic title sequence in which a businessman falling through
the sky.
Architect Andres Lin, 25, said he was mostly satisfied with the
ending. "I think it gave us a sense of hope at the end which is very
fitting. I thought it was going to be pretty dark after the last
episode but it was a pretty fitting finale," Lin told Reuters.
(Additional reporting by Mary Milliken)
[© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2015/May/18/images/ads/current/charrons_bch041713.png) |