All the women in the FtG clan love it. We all have the DVDs etc.
The show is not really sexist as it is showing how sexist things used to be and is walking us thru the changes that society experienced in that era.
The DVD extras go into this a lot.
I’m a woman, and I say with utter truth, the major thing I have to look forward to in my boring life is the July 25th return of Mad Men.
‘do women like Mad men’…what an odd question!
There are no 'splosions, guns-a-blasting, or nudity; there are no comical romantic hijinks. I like that in a TV show. It’s indeed a period piece which requires some knowledge of the past, some appreciation of the art design and fashion, and watching to see what it was like in the non-politically-correct era. It’s not for dummies who get bored easily.
I’ve never watched it but my Mom who is in her early 70’s loves that show. She goes on and on about the authenticity of the props and such and they they bring up things that she hadn’t thought of in years.
FYI Tom and Lorenzo from Project Rungay are doing an in depth look at the fashion of the female characters and how it defines their roles, the plot and the era.
Female, and love the show - both for the attention to detail in staging and costume, but also the soap opera storylines and the conflict between pre-feminism and the feminist movement. Boy From Mars is a fan too.
It’s my favorite show (I’m a she). John Hamm is delicious, the story telling is complex and both the mens and womens story lines, especially as they pertain to powerlessness, are compelling.
Did I mention John Hamm?
And here I was kind of wondering if many guys liked it. But I don’t watch it myself and most of what I hear about it is talk about the clothes (because I read a lot of blogs about vintage clothes).
Jon. Jon Hamm. Short for Jonathan.
After I went to all the trouble to look it up, this is the thanks I get.
Yeah, between the celebrated hunkiness of the star and the emphasis on design, I really thought it was aimed squarely at the ovarian demographic.
(I watched the first episode, and wasn’t remotely interested in seeing the second.)
I knew it looked wrong.
Not intending to say that guys can’t/don’t like it… but it’s definitely not a blokey, macho show catering for the male gaze…as the OP seems to think. I am not aware of a female character on TV quite like Peggy - she’s fantastic.
I was wrong, too. It’s Jon Hamm. I also misspelled Christina Hendricks’ name.
Intelligent scripts, attractive and/or interesting actors & outfits to die for…
(Yes, Girl From Mars, I’ve been following the excellent posts at Operation Rungay.)
Mad Men has one of the most female-dominated writing and directing staffs of any TV show:
I’m a woman and I love Mad Men. I can’t wait for the next season - it’s intelligent and Jon Hamm is gorgeous and I wish I was Joan. Wish, wish, wish.
Yes, you did. I thought about repeatedly saying Elisabeth Moss in return but I don’t have any dignity to waste. (Some would say none at all.) Also, my appreciation for her … how to say… partly in spite of her physical appearance, rather than because of it.
We may have discussed this at the time, but what are your thoughts on the interaction between Joan & her doctor husband–particularly the bit in Don’s office just before their marriage? Also, do you see Betty’s infidelity at the end of last season as more or less likely to make her dependent and vulnerable to the man she left Don for?
I am required by the Usage Fascist Bylaws (seciton 3, subsection q, paragraph 19) to point out that you should have written “I am not aware of another female character on TV quite like Peggy.”
Sorry, it’s not personal, just business. 
As to the gender issue, I suppose it depends on whether you think all guys like “blokey, macho” shows. My single favorite TV show of all time is thirtysomething, which tain’t a tiny bit blokey.
(Except for the tendency to show Mel Harris wandering about half-naked in the first season. I approved of that as a youth.)
Her story would be a perfect example of the powerlessness I was alluding to. Within her realm in the ad firm she was power personified. We saw this right off the bat. But over the seasons her power began to erode- Peggy rose above her and needed to be, superficially at least, deferred to. She was sleeping with the most powerful man there, until he moved to a secretary that she couldn’t even fire. Her new fiancee/husband rapes her to demonstrate his power (whether he realizes it or not, he sensed this was her domain and she was more successful there than he could be in his world). She falls into a subservient role at home and can’t even articulate why she is not happy. She doesn’t have the language for such a loss. I could go on.
Less- I think her story is the opposite- she is on a power upswing.
Regarding Betty: If she were a woman I knew & liked (the second is hard to imagine), I’d be more than a little concerned by
[spoiler]her presumable husband-to-be offering to support her entirely, especially as regards her NOT getting any alimony from Don. It leaves her entirely dependent on him, in a way she would not be dependent on Don if she had left him and gotten alimony; at least in that case there’d be some involvement of the court. Betty looks about 30 to me, which means that going back into modeling is going to be hard (I should think), and she has no other skills I’m aware off.
Moreoever, I think the PHtB is doing that on purpose. An unmonied Betty is easier to control.[/spoiler]
Good point! I see what you’re saying.
Wait … Burn Notice is mostly for men? The only people I know who like it are women.
I’m a dude, and I love Burn Notice so much that…
I’ve read rave reviews of the show but I’ve yet to watch an episode. Is there someplace online I can catch previous seasons?
Thank you.
Then you desperately need a new set of guy friends. 