Mad Men: Season 2 – DVD Review

Step back into yesteryear with the ad agency Sterling Cooper. It’s 1962 and Don Draper finds himself in more sticky situations as American Movie Classics continues to strike gold with this fantastic series.

Season two takes up roughly a year after the events of season one. Don Draper (Jon Hamm) finds himself under fire at both home and at work. At work, Sterling Cooper has merged with a London firm and “Duck” Phillips (Mark Moses) has been given a more prominent role in the agency and he doesn’t get on well with Don. At home, Don’s wife Betty (January Jones) is coming into her own life and this usually ends with her arguing with Don.

Roger Sterling (John Slattery) has returned to work following his heart attack, but that cardiac infarction doesn’t seem to have changed him of his old habits as he takes up with Don’s secretary Jane (Peyton List) and drinks like a fish. Pete Campbell (Vincent Kartheiser) is trying to conceive, unsuccessfully, with his wife and finds out that his father was not the man who he thought he was. He was able to get another woman pregnant, but that was in an affair with Peggy Olsen (Elisabeth Moss). She has returned from her abscense, but gave up the baby for adoption. She begins to have a more prominent role in the agency as well as falling under the council of Father Gill (Colin Hanks). Office manager Joan Holloway (Christina Hendricks) finds her sexy office persona fading as she becomes engaged and ages. The show is an ensemble cast and there are storylines for all. Who would’ve thunk that American Movie Classics would have one of the best series on television? Mad Men is of the caliber of the fine series that you’d find on HBO. Oops, wait a minute some knucklehead there passed on Mad Men and AMC stepped up to the plate.

I hate to give them much cred since they put commercials in their movies now, but HBO’s stupid loss is their gain. Though it’s set in the 1960s, Mad Men has a certain modernity to it as we watch the rise of feminism in the office. Though I do enjoy the copious amount of booze swilled in the office and a cigarette on everyone’s lips, the signs of an era passed (not that those things were exactly good for getting work done, but sometimes we might need a stiff drink at the office). It’s a fine show and the characters will keep you watching, and looking forward to the next season. The show has one six Emmys and I’d imagine that it will wrack up some more before its run is through. In keeping with the time frame, the show is presented in a mockup of a 1960s shirt box as the first season came in a reproduction of a lighter. It’s a nice touch. Mad Men is presented in anamorphic widescreen (1.78:1) and enhanced for 16x9 televisions. Special features include a gaggle of commentaries with each episode getting two. You get to hear from series creator Matthew Weiner, Jon Hamm, and many of the stars as well as the people behind the camera. Other special features include a soundtrack sampler, a two part (totaling 40 minutes) documentary on the “Birth of the Independent Woman,” the 22 minute “Era of Style” on the costume design and era’s fashion, and there are several short documentaries on historical events of the 1960s (including the Cuban Missile Crisis, Marilyn Monroe, the Kennedy’s, etc.). Mad Men is one of the best shows currently on television and basic cable. It’s won many awards and is sure to win more. Season two only continues the fine tradition set by the first season and adds some wonderful, and numerous, commentaries to the mix.