Coke and Sympathy: 10 Thoughts on ‘Mad Men’ Series Finale
1. “Do you want the door open or closed?” “Open.”
2. Mad Men is my favorite show ever. I’ll miss it. The finale sucked, yet that’s nothing to get exercised about — that’s what finales do. Series finales always suck, and everyone knows it, but TV shows still feel obliged to keep attempting them. The idea that a show needs a finale is just one of those daffy ideas America took to heart in the 2000s, like MySpace, the Zune, the Audrina/Justin Bobby romance or the concept of Paula Abdul judging a singing contest. It was a confused time.
3. If you enjoyed the Mad Men finale, please keep enjoying it — I have no desire to change your mind. It was clever (what finale isn’t clever?) and it was heart-tugging (what finale isn’t heart-tugging?) even as it left hugging-and-learning stains all over the screen, forcing phony resolutions (oh, so Joan has really respected Peggy all these years? “How fascinating,” as the 1960 Joan would have said) and contrived fan-service bonding. It looked far more like a 2020 Mad Men Reunion Special than an actual episode.
4. The last scene was definitely clever: Don Draper gets his mystic crystal revelation, in the shape of a sales opportunity. He does his sun salutation by the sea and you see the lightbulb go off over his head; he gets an idea for the Coke ad. A smile flickers on his lips, and he knows it’s time to chant what will always be his mantra: Back to work.