Mad Men

[Reaper16]

Season 4 premiered tonight. I would have bumped the season three thread but I titled it "season 3," which no longer seems appropriate.

Who saw it? It was a stupendous hour of television. All sorts of shit has happened in the eleven months that have passed (in-story) between the formation of Sterling Cooper Draper Price and the beginning of season 4. The premeir was stepped in the juices of the sexual revolution. It also had a lot to say about the increasing role of the media in the success or failure of things. It was great to see Don fail a little bit, and it was exciting to consider the future implications at the end of Don crafting a public/media persona that is completely unlike his actual personality.

[NewChief]

So is there 1 more episode left?

[mikeyis4dcats.]

Originally Posted by NewChief

So is there 1 more episode left?

2

[BigRedChief]

Like most here, feels like an epilogue. Should have ended with McCann buying them and the soft shoe.

But, I'm use to shows not giving their fans the endings they want.

[Red Brooklyn]

Originally Posted by BigRedChief

Like most here, feels like an epilogue. Should have ended with McCann buying them and the soft shoe.

But, I'm use to shows not giving their fans the endings they want.

What ending do you want? What you said above? Is that really your absolute ideal ending for this show?

[DaneMcCloud]

Originally Posted by Red Brooklyn

What ending do you want? What you said above? Is that really your absolute ideal ending for this show?

I can't think of a single dramatic program that has ended with a resolution that's made me happy. Whether it was The Soprano's or LOST (which I hate to this day) or even Breaking Bad (I still think Walter's a alive), nothing ends well.

The worst (or maybe the best?) was Six Feet Under. Nate dies and the final episode feels like an epilogue, describing how each character lived and died, beyond the show.

But in terms of your question, I'd have rather seen it end with Bert's soft shoe than what's happened this season. Everything has been one gigantic "Duh" of a let down for me.

[Baby Lee]

Originally Posted by DaneMcCloud

I can't think of a single dramatic program that has ended with a resolution that's made me happy. Whether it was The Soprano's or LOST (which I hate to this day) or even Breaking Bad (I still think Walter's a alive), nothing ends well.

The worst (or maybe the best?) was Six Feet Under. Nate dies and the final episode feels like an epilogue, describing how each character lived and died, beyond the show.

But in terms of your question, I'd have rather seen it end with Bert's soft shoe than what's happened this season. Everything has been one gigantic "Duh" of a let down for me.

6FU was a great final 6 minutes.

But as for a great ending in terms of culminating over the course of a season in a comfortable and satisfying place, too bad you missed Justified. It really [re]set the bar.

Its small coterie of fans were already high on the series, but how it came to a close has them thinking it might be among the best series in TV history.

[DaneMcCloud]

Originally Posted by Baby Lee

6FU was a great final 6 minutes.

But as for a great ending in terms of culminating over the course of a season in a comfortable and satisfying place, too bad you missed Justified. It really [re]set the bar.

Its small coterie of fans were already high on the series, but how it came to a close has them thinking it might be among the best series in TV history.

I'll get to Justified this year for sure. I've seen the first three seasons and will catch up after Fright Night Lights, which I just started last night, although that it's for research more than the show itself.

[Red Brooklyn]

Endings are difficult. Especially for shows with rabid fans.

We, as a TV watching culture, put way too much stock into them.

[NewChief]

Look who is in Bentonville, AR for the Bentonville Film Fest (to support her movie Fan Girl, which is being screened here).



Note: guy in picture is not me. Just a dude I know in the area.

[DaneMcCloud]

Originally Posted by Red Brooklyn

Endings are difficult. Especially for shows with rabid fans.

We, as a TV watching culture, put way too much stock into them.

I'm sorry but I could not disagree more.

The very first, and I mean THE VERY FIRST thing that ANY Film/TV screenwriter should create/present is the beginning and ending for each every character, especially the main characters.

Now, that said, I had a highly successful TV and film screenwriter/producer over all day Saturday for a hang and he said, and I quote "I've often found that the TV or film will 'speak to me'. The show knows where to go, especially after characters have been established. But that doesn't mean that I should betray the original fate for characters because it's veered off course a bit".

Damon Lindeloff and Carlton Cuse finally revealed publicly that they had no idea where they were going with LOST. I think David Chase just gave the fans and HBO a big giant "**** You" with the ending of The Sopranos.

Obviously, Chuck Lorre wouldn't have killed Charlie Sheen had their relationship not become so incredibly volatile. And while Chuck is known to be the biggest asshole dickhead in town, no one cares because he's the most successful Show Runner/Producer/Writer in TV history and can sit down and write an amazing Act in 2 hours, where it takes a room of 10 writers a week to write three acts.

The bottom line is that the viewers deserve a satisfying ending.

[Discuss Thrower]

Maybe we missed something....

[DJ's left nut]

How I Met Your Mother had an ending in mind when the series began. They even filmed part of it so the children wouldn't have aged.

And by the time that series wrapped up, that ending was awful. Didn't matter - Bays and Thomas stuck with their original ending and as far as I was concerned, made the entire show difficult to watch in re-runs.

Having the ending figured out in advance can be a really bad thing if you're unwilling to veer away from it.

[DaneMcCloud]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

How I Met Your Mother had an ending in mind when the series began. They even filmed part of it so the children wouldn't have aged.

And by the time that series wrapped up, that ending was awful. Didn't matter - Bays and Thomas stuck with their original ending and as far as I was concerned, made the entire show difficult to watch in re-runs.

Having the ending figured out in advance can be a really bad thing if you're unwilling to veer away from it.

It's only a bad ending because they continually said that Robin wasn't the Mother. The writers screwed themselves. It's the same reason why LOST was so ****ing awful the final season. They lied. To everyone.

That's the reason why the Friends finale works: At no point did Ross & Rachel EVER say they wouldn't end up together, nor did the writers ever emphasize that point.

[Red Brooklyn]

Originally Posted by DaneMcCloud

I'm sorry but I could not disagree more.

The very first, and I mean THE VERY FIRST thing that ANY Film/TV screenwriter should create/present is the beginning and ending for each every character, especially the main characters.

Now, that said, I had a highly successful TV and film screenwriter/producer over all day Saturday for a hang and he said, and I quote "I've often found that the TV or film will 'speak to me'. The show knows where to go, especially after characters have been established. But that doesn't mean that I should betray the original fate for characters because it's veered off course a bit".

Damon Lindeloff and Carlton Cuse finally revealed publicly that they had no idea where they were going with LOST. I think David Chase just gave the fans and HBO a big giant "**** You" with the ending of The Sopranos.

Obviously, Chuck Lorre wouldn't have killed Charlie Sheen had their relationship not become so incredibly volatile. And while Chuck is known to be the biggest asshole dickhead in town, no one cares because he's the most successful Show Runner/Producer/Writer in TV history and can sit down and write an amazing Act in 2 hours, where it takes a room of 10 writers a week to write three acts.

The bottom line is that the viewers deserve a satisfying ending.

Right, but you're not a writer. So it makes sense that you feel that way. I'll just respectfully disagree.

And I don't really care whether or not Lindelof/Cuse knew where they were going. Either way I enjoyed it. But we don't need to rehash all of that again and again and again.

I would like to request a link that shows they "finally revealed publicly that they had no idea where they were going," though. If you have one handy.

[Discuss Thrower]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

How I Met Your Mother had an ending in mind when the series began. They even filmed part of it so the children wouldn't have aged.

And by the time that series wrapped up, that ending was awful. Didn't matter - Bays and Thomas stuck with their original ending and as far as I was concerned, made the entire show difficult to watch in re-runs.

Having the ending figured out in advance can be a really bad thing if you're unwilling to veer away from it.

HIMYM's ending while infuriating, at least made sense from the point that Bays and Thomas alluded to it for the entirety of the show through allusions to Bertold Brecht and "Love in the Time of Cholera." They just didn't show their hand until the episode where Ted imagines the conversation between himself, himself from the future, Barney and Barney from the future.

Really, what ****ed up HIMYM was the fact that it shouldn't have gone beyond the seventh season.