so, did you watch it? did you? i don’t normally host reviews / discussions on here, but i am DYING to talk about Mad Men! spoilers within, you can access the full post after this rare image of don smiling (it’s like looking into the sun)
edit: to all the French readers, i know that it’s actually zou bisous bisous – the title is just a bit of fun…
first of all, visually, i’m amazed at how sixties everything looks all of a sudden. i know it was slowly creeping up on us, but Don’s new pad and of course his swinging sixties lady really drives the time shift home.
i also loved that peggy wore a pretty fifties frock at don’s party, in such contrast to all the other retro babes.
the highlight for me was Lane impersonating Megan’s performance to cheer Joan up. “i saw his soul leave his body.”
also, can we talk about THIS scene:
i think these two are going to have some interesting developments…
… as will these two (always):
i love peggy more and more with every season. “i don’t recognise that man. he’s kind and patient.”
so what did you think?
OMG – that last pic is SO telling of what is to come! Bring on the scandal!
I’ve had zoobie zoobie zoo stuck in my head ALL day. Probably not ideal that I’m reminded just before bedtime.
It had been so long I forgot about all those cringe worthy conversations & wildly inappropriate banter. Might need time to readjust so I don’t short circuit every time I watch it.
Also forgot how funny it is. Favourite conversation “why don’t you do that?” “why don’t you look like that?” Too good!
Overall, enjoyed it and can’t wait til next week!
I am convinced now more than ever that Lane and Joan will have a serious romance.
And dude! Yes! The post-party underwear clean-up forceful love scene! I actually really like those two together…
lane & joan… mmm. i wonder i wonder. she’s definitely buxom enough for him.
finally new mad men to knit to, you can’t imagine how many times i’ve re-watched & analysed mad men.
i adore don’s french canadian wife, hope he can keep up…
excited to see more of peggy too.
i’ve watched each season at least twice. so good for rewatching & analysing!
The dynamic between Megan and Peggy, Megan and Don and Don and Peggy is so interesting. It feels like such a shift since last season. I can’t wait for Betty to come back too. And I feel like Sally’s not only getting SO BEAUTIFUL, but now she’s older, they can really develop her character.
I like that the first episode was a slow burner. I think it’s doing what The Sopranos did so well and building the suspense. We’ll get our arses kicked soon enough and hopefully in ways we couldn’t even have imagined.
i’ve been thinking about your twitter comment all day whilst mulling over my thoughts on this episode. you’re definitely right… it’s slowbrewing up to something. and they were probably very deliberate about that.
I LOVED it. It’s nice to see Don mildly happy for once, and Meghan seems to be handling him well, althoug is it me ore did she looks supper floppy in that blakc lacy underwear? Also what kind of house is Betty’s new home? It looks horribly rediculous, can’t wait to see inside.
Material Fixations
I sort of feel like Don and Megan are headed down Roger and Whatshername’s route. Megan seems too volatile for Don, I think she’ll cause some trouble in the future.
And I think Lane and Joan is definitely a go! Those lonely souls would be good together too.
yes there is definitely some stirrings of potential unhappiness in that relationship!
I can see that I am going to love the interiors more and more and the fashions less and less. I’ll probably have to watch the episodes three times to catch everything though – the clothing is much louder and attention grabbing and the interiors have all these super cool elements drawing my attention.
I can’t wait to see how the develop Sally’s character and wonder how long Meghan will be able to hang with the new “old” Don…
i actually thought of you during the party scenes! i was wondering if Peggy’s dress actually was early sixties or what… and then i thought, “Lauren would know…”
oh yes i think Sally is going to get up to a LOT this season.
I am a boy and yes, I’m looking forward to it. For the interiors, of course. And maybe that brunette.
I WANNA WATCH IT NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOooooooowwwwww
Oh my GOD! LOVE this post! You captured all of the best facial expressions of the episode! I had been waiting for Mad Men to come back for sooo long, and wasn’t disappointed with the opener. I was pleasantly surprised that Megan and Don’s relationship seems to be more than superficial, but I have to agree with Lauren – I think the early 60s fashions are more swoon-worthy. My only disappointment was that there was no Betty??
apparently Betty was absent because January Jones was pregnant at the time … but perhaps they are working that into the plot line. GASP.
Zou bisou bisou available on iTunes. Boom!
I loved that Roger wasted his morning on that red herring.
i don’t think i could listen to that tune more than once!
also loved the Roger / Pete dynamic…
the only show i die over. just bought the zou bisou bisou song yesterday and all i want to do is dance and sing in french
First of all, I LOVED it. Not sure if “happy Don” will last – I think his old self peeked out a bit towards the end there. Really love his new wife Megan, she is like a breath of fresh air but can’t say I’m not disappointed by Betty’s very obvious absence. I have a strange feeling there might still be something between her and Don. Oh, I can go on for hours! Maybe it’s because the show has been gone for so long but I feel like Roger and Pete’s characters are running on overdrive – Roger is heading fast in to “dirty old man” territory and poor Pete is as neurotic as ever. And then there’s Joan, or rather – Joan’s dress! That black/pink number she wears for her first post-baby office visit is KILLER, and yes the moment she has with Lane raises some questions. Wow, thanks for letting me geek-out for a minute there!
<3 Kate
www.theforgetfulwife.com
P.S. great geeky episode 1 & 2 analysis by the Hollywood Reporter, very good read!
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/bastard-machine/mad-men-spoiled-bastard-episodes-304059
Surprisingly, I am one of the only people I know that watches Mad Men and I’ve been dying to talk about it too! I think that Megan is going to do to Don exactly what he did to Betty. They are heading into the 70’s and times and women are changing. Megan is much younger than Don and I don’t think she will stand for his treatment of women.
There’s my 2 cents!
i think you hit the nail on the head! either that or she will change him…. but if we know anything about Don it’s that he doesn’t really change at all, does he? his east village beatnik piece couldn’t do it, rachel menken couldn’t do it (“i think you’re a coward”), the sensible teacher couldn’t do it, even FAYE couldn’t do it!
i was sooooo looking forward to this and it was oddly not what i expected at all, for better or worse! i think i so loved the 50s setting and the slow, moody way of how they shot the previous seasons that the shift to the 60s was almost shocking. there’s a lot going on (the patterns on the clothes!) and the editing seems to have really sped up, no? i was a bit disappointed in the story itself, but i suppose they set up a lot of plot points to come in this first episode for sure… don and megan, peggy and megan, joan, lane being creepy and sweet, roger and pete… and it’s so funny how peggy really knows don so much more than megan in a way. i am loving megan’s wardrobe though, stunning! anyone notice sally’s voice and another “new” bobby?!
oh, you must watch this great roundtable on charlie rose with the cast! jon hamm mentions that he directed the second episode! and the men are all bearded… i imagine they must hate all the shaving for the show!
http://www.charlierose.com/view/interview/12256
I don’t know…
I have never watched.
*bows head in shame.
I love this tv show very much it really involves watching it. Actors are brilliant <3 story also
Looking forward to seeing how Betty embraces the 60’s fashion.
I cannot get enough of the interiors, all that built in joinery, beautiful
Zoobey Zoobey Zoo
I’ve been singing that for days.
But remind me … Joan’s baby … is that Roger’s little bundle?
she confirmed it was his in the previous season, but gave him the impression she was going to get rid of it. so… i don’t know if he realises it is his (or if he’s too drunk too notice)
But Joan’s husband was already at war when she got pregnant with Roger’s baby, so he must know the baby’s his, because her husband didn’t come home since, did he…?
I think he can do the math, eh ?
My favorite part was Roger imitating Megan’s dance and singing Frère Jacques… Priceless !
So glad they’re all back, I’ve missed Joanie !!
Such a guilty pleasure this show, and I am a totally into it. BUT, I am just not into the “no means yes” scene…it was not sexy or dramatic only disappointing.
I’m so glad it’s back on!
Didn’t like the clean-up “love” or shall we call it borderline rape scene? If she had continued resisting him, do ya think he would have stopped? Also, Peggy’s dress is more early 60s (50s dress would be far longer) and everyone else is moving into a late 60s look, (I think it is now 1967 in the show?) but yeah, I noticed the dramatic change in aesthetic too.
LOVED every minute of it! As for the ‘no means yes’ scene, I think it definitely fit the times! I love the feel of this season and cant wait for more.
People it’s bisous!!! Kisses in french. Not zoo be zoo be zoo :)
yes, the title is just a joke about her performance.
LOVED the two hour premier. I’m still singing Zoobeezoobeezoo and yes, the 60s visual impact was super sudden… I kind of miss the 50s vibe I associated so strongly with Mad Men. The new look will take getting used to. Can we address that (awkward?) Megan cleaning in lingerie/sex scene? I thought it was…odd…I think you’re right that Don and Megan will be having some “interesting developments” indeed.
soo good. the perfect number of “what the–” moments too. Peggy’s always my favorite; I love how she’s so socially awkward. her dancing in the corner (your gif) was my favorite moment.
Late on this but I thought the most interesting thing was sudden shift in power to the younger generation: Peggy and Pete doing all the work, Meghan being so ‘of the moment’ that Lane’s strange old wife wants to know her decorator, Meghan starting out on a journey to one day have Don’s job. Don, Roger, Lane, that really old guy who wears socks in his office, and BETTY… they all seem so old. It’s not that they’re old in years, simply that time and change and the mood has moved on and left them behind.
Other observations: I physically gasped when they opened the door and the lobby was filled with firm, confident, talented people waiting for their equal chance. A wonderful image.
Oh, and how sad was it when Pete’s friend said, “soon you’ll get the 7 train back, and then the 9, then you won’t even go home at all.”
And lastly, I have started to love Joan so much. I don’t know when it happened but now I admire her.
Can we please have a Mad Men convo every week?!
I’m a french reader… the song is actually “sou bisous bisous” Bisous means kiss… Lovely!
bisou = kiss
bisous= kisses
:)
Am I too late to comment? The more I watch and think about Mad Men the more I think it’s all about humiliation. Avoiding it, causing it, suffering from it, fearing it.
I find your blog yesterday, what a good day.
I’m reading all your post, now i’m here and …. your post it’s …myblog!
I really like the strange word of zoobezoobezoo in the sofia loren’ s version.
so. it’all.
i really love coincidence and elective affinities.
nice to meet you!
thezoobezoobezoo.blogspot.com