Mad Men: The False Promise of Megan Draper

[@thetake]

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[@citycrusher9308]

1) Don never controlled Betty. She did what she wanted. 2)There is no such thing as a mature relationship. That's just a code term for the man submitting to the woman. 3) Don knows instinctively that Megan would leave him if she achieves success equal or greater than his. So keeping her around means hoping that she doesn't get to far.

[@Senate300]

Why not do one for Killing Eve?

[@anitafrieda]

I stopped watching Mad Men because I can't stand the character Don Draper.

[@subversivelysurreal3645]

Well: ‘The Affair’ seems right up your alley. I enjoy your focus on each character.

[@andrewthezeppo]

Obviously Peggy and Joan will be everybody's favs but Megan and Sally were both great

[@daniellaokon1278]

As was said in the show "Don only likes the beginning of things."

[@glenncordova4027]

Shiney and new is always exciting. It shows Don's immaturity that he quickly moves on to the next new and shiney.

[@eliasqueen4020]

Hmm which much like how advertisements entice us.

[@a.r.8954]

Fayeeee

[@SovereignStatesman]

Daniella Okon: I think that's a metaphor for advertising.

[@shivammishra-vw6eb]

Well things do ended good(promising) having peace of mind for him

[@RobertMorgan]

One thing that always holds true on Mad Men: Joan is always right.

[@kaylasheppard7746]

Except when she was hard core hating on Don. I do love her tho

[@trappnest4490]

@@kaylasheppard7746 She was right to hate him at this time. Don risked the whole agency's fate

[@proserfina21096]

Am I right that Joanie still felt mad about Don's jaguar and she wanted him out of the company afterwards? she's kinda hostile at him .

[@ardenaudreyarji]

@@proserfina21096 Jaguar was Joan's sacrifice to the company, Don just threw it away the first chance he gets because he was frustrated that they didn't get it in his own way.

[@alrightythen759]

Except when she crossed Jim Hobart.

[@swifty1147]

He falls in love with her with the milkshake, falls out of love with her with the sherbet.

[@andreamoreno-diaz1253]

Wow, so true!

[@swifty1147]

Even though there's a lot of writers, from interviews it seems like Matthew Weiner had a lot of control on the show and was pretty firm on where he wanted the show to go and had character arcs planned out. So he probably had a defined arc for Megan right from the beginning and the writers used that as a guideline for their scripts. Seems like it anyway.

[@christmansonpunk2927]

Her milkshake brought Don to the yard

[@msdisco85]

and you wonder, how cheefully nonchalant betty was the first time the kids spilt milkshake in a restaurant. When the show meets her, she's had so many years of spilt milkshakes and don disappointment.

[@hallofmirrorsnetwork]

msdisco85 perhaps....although Betty by nature was a hard on herself, and others, perfectionist who was highly strung by nature. I assume.

[@felixwalpole8206]

Roger: "why dont you sing like that" Jane: "why dont you look like him?" hahahahahaha

[@crissymae13]

Love it!

[@lzzygraves1317]

Best moment ever! LMAO!!!

[@hannesboos1549]

@Gerrit Peacock try Sopranos!

[@libertasinveritas3198]

I personally find Roger to be more attractive than Don. :P But Rogers question was ridiculous nevertheless.

[@DemonDraKe682]

Jane: "Deal with it (put black glasses)"

[@supaman321123]

Faye was perfect for Don, which is exactly why he chose Megan.

[@RTCMAHL]

100% correct on that!!

[@jasonlefler3456]

Faye wanted him to face his past. Megan didn’t care about his past. What was it Don said about there being no American history, just the American frontier? Don is America in a bottle.

[@soooofiaa]

No one was perfect for him. He would fail and destroy that relationship, or any relationship that would come along.

[@jasonlefler3456]

ziggy So long as he doesn’t know himself, yes.

[@serenabramble260]

Agree. Don's marriage to Megan only made sense when it wasn't working since he clearly sabotages all his chances to be a full, happy person, and because Don and happiness are the biggest will-they-won't-they relationship; the show ceases to have a core emotional thrust if he finds a loving, stable relationship halfway through the series. But still, I wish he'd chosen Faye.

[@hannah6034]

Megan's mother (who else?) summarises her the best: " you have an artistic temperament but you are not an artist."

[@lijiawang43]

I love her mom, much more interesting character than Megan

[@subversivelysurreal3645]

Hannah : i understand that Woody Allen has had a fall from grace, but it seemed to me to have reminded me of his film, ‘Interiors’. The sister who was an actress in Television was the healthiest of the daughters, and what a fantastic person Jean Stapleton played. Still, that Mother was an ass, saying, ‘Not all of the girls can be the ballerina.’ It really made me think about how women were perceived in the 1960’s-glad I missed it.

[@iamV10010]

I wish my parents had been this honest with me.

[@DodaGarcia]

Megan's mom was fucking savage

[@glenncordova4027]

Burn. 🥺

[@sacdigitaldesignweb]

“Her dream wasn’t deep enough. Her work ethics wasn’t durable enough. Her sense of purpose wasn’t clear enough.” Well said.

[@k.anderson5039]

BOOM!!!!!!!

[@patriciacathcart6710]

Her father summed it all up perfectly when he expressed his disappointment with her choices. And her mother saw it all so clearly, too. Great writing.

[@chaichaitee]

sounds like an analysis of my life tbh

[@weezus2618]

chai chai for real like why you exposing me like that

[@DodaGarcia]

It's obvious now but it's really telling how the show never seemed to show Megan actually studying acting, understanding it, immersing herself in the craft. She would read for auditions and hope looking pretty and knowing the lines would be the enough.

[@tommytigerpants]

I wish you'd conduct this analysis on me and my life.

[@prachioza]

right?!

[@sharatrunsalot]

She could, but it would be more than you could bare. Its only after years of therapy and your own inner work that you could get this succinct an analysis.

[@jarrodhall3686]

You’re a narcissist. That’ll be $300.

[@pitachitas]

Jajaja me too

[@dcryan1985]

I know. Everyone needs an honest look at themselves like this.

[@ivanmoreno137]

Whenever Betty and don slept together after the divorce in the cabin, Betty said “poor Megan, she thinks by loving you she is getting to you”. True words

[@MrCamateo]

She actually says "Poor Megan, she doesnt know that Loving you is the worst way to get to you."

[@leahhart3585]

Betty would know.

[@PotatoWiz]

They were not divorced then, I mean Megan and Don

[@AsAventurasdeGui]

@@PotatoWiz after Betty an Don’s divorce

[@-chenlanying5818]

@@MrCamateo what ep was it ?

[@suziequzie]

When Don started cheating again, I wasn't disappointed in Megan. I was disappointed with Don.

[@jenlindley7780]

I was happy, cause that showed everyone that it wasn't Betty's fault for not 'accepting' his background, cause Megan knew and still was cheated on. ..

[@jenlindley7780]

@True Gooner Megan resents Don because of the whole moving/not moving for California fiasco. She quited her show, he changed his mind, than she failed. And even when he got fired, he didn't go live with her. She found out, that was the deal breaker.

[@kaylasheppard7746]

@@jenlindley7780 Betty was a piece of work, she was a selfish narcissist that didn't know how to receive or give love. I'm sad for her ending tho, she didn't deserve that

[@haneenhawash1739]

suziequzie meee tooooo

[@prokkle]

@@kaylasheppard7746 I think Betty is a sad character as she was a perfectionist, so she could never be really happy as life is never perfect. She became a little warmer and more human after marrying again, because she had the big house and husband with status and old money, and felt protected, just like being back with Daddy. The episode where she goes to look for Sally's missing friend in a crappy part of New York shows that she has grown more caring. Don's Betty would never have done this or even cared about the girl.

[@suk4honesty]

LMFAO the way he said “really 😐” after she rejected the sherbet was so hilarious and immature

[@m.h.1593]

Dealbreaker lol

[@m.h.1593]

Dealbreaker lol

[@scottclaudet]

It really was lololol

[@farewellpalace2457]

Except that no one in that era would use the word “really” like that.

[@DeadlyDeadlyBeees]

@@farewellpalace2457 any chance you can explain what you mean?

[@spookymadeleine]

"I don't want anything of yours" *quickly takes the one million dollar cheque from Don*

[@spookymadeleine]

@stonem001 these are facts

[@LOVER24680]

Hell yeah!!!! She deserved it all plus more with all the crap don put her through!

[@spookymadeleine]

@@LOVER24680 i absolutely agree she deserved it! i just thought the proud delivery of that line then quickly taking the money was genuinely hilarious

[@abramsullivan7764]

She earned it she can do whatever it is she can do with that money.

[@walterbonilla8143]

@@LOVER24680 what about her twsting his arm to get the acting part?

[@user-mi5xq8zj7u]

Also...he didn't love her, or his first wife. Just another example of people looking to others to fix their problems, fill holes in their lives, instead of loving their partners for who they are. There seems to be no intentionality behind it. Loving someone as long as he or she makes you happy is no love, it's consumerism. How fitting that they're in the business of advertising.

[@marymiller6188]

Alicia Palenyy You hit the nail on it's head.

[@carlval11]

Alicia Palenyy aww man I think I have done this, and probably still doing it now. My love feels so temporary but convenient.

[@lanielannister]

Remember Don only “ loves the beginning of things”

[@MisterDutch93]

Some people only seem to 'love' the fact that they are in a relationship, rahter than loving their significant other. I've seen this lots of times with some of the people around me. They hop from one relationship or hook-up to the next, failing to see why they all end up in breakups. They romanticize loving someone more than actually being in love. Atleast that's how I see it.

[@user-mi5xq8zj7u]

We want to be loved, unconditionally, fully, relentlessly, eternally. And we're foolish enough to suppose that a mere mortal is capable of loving us this way.

[@naheemquattlebaum2267]

Megan was essentially the 60s version of Betty when you think about it. An embodiment of an era. I think on a fundamental level Don was attracted to Betty and Megan's tropes rather than who they were as people.

[@ericalwilkins]

This is idiocdic. The main point of mad men is Don is a narcissist. Meghan couldn’t have changed anything with better or worse behavior. He abuses all women similarly from having sex with his young daughter’s teacher in their same neighborhood, to hiring a secretary and having sex with her on a paid vacation. The point is to evaluate his failings not hers. Stop finding fake reasons women deserve abuse. Having coercive sex in or outside of marriage is abuse. Don is a narcissist and sexual and physical (to Betty at least twice we see) abuser.

[@maggiec83]

@@ericalwilkins...who is this comment directed at?

[@paulinegallagher7821]

I think so. Betty in a lot of ways was stuck in the early 1950s, the era in which she and Don married.

[@oooh19]

@@paulinegallagher7821 well the early part of the 60s would be more similar to 50s. like early 90s was like 80s, early 80s was like 70s etc

[@paulinegallagher7821]

@@oooh19 Yes exactly. I think the sixties really only became its own decade from around 1964.

[@fehzorz]

Betty is a child and Megan is a teenager. Don never ends up with an adult.

[@anthonywilliams6002]

Exactly like a big sister for his kids

[@HiddenWen]

Rachel Menken was the adult, but she rejected Don, because he would be the child in the relationship.

[@UnchainedMelodie92]

@@HiddenWen Very true! I *always* believed Don should've ended up with Rachel.

[@alepolait]

Totally. Roger ending with Marie was a surprise but so refreshing, he finally got with an adult, Marie is adventurous, exotic, and a little bit crazy, but she is mature and smart.

[@Marc28031984]

Cause Don is a child himself...🤷🏼‍♂️

[@veronicajude]

“But as exciting as he finds this modern woman, Don is not a modern man”... that’s the basic reason for their unraveling that I never realized when I first watched the show. The disillusionment on both sides was so sad because I was rooting for her. I blamed it all on her chasing the dream of becoming an actress.

[@afonsolucas2219]

Don is much more contemporary. Modern and contemporary is different in my opinion.

[@TonyB2279]

I remember seeing a graphic somewhere when the final season came out, showing how all the characters' physical appearances had changed drastically... long hair, beards and mustaches, sideburns, "mod" clothing, etc. Hell, even Pete had the good grace to go bald. But Don never budges an inch.

[@masonz7162]

Yeah clearly Don wasn't perfect that's why all of his other relationships crashed and burned. Dude needed to work on himself But she got with him anyways and overlooked any issues because that's her personality She feels entitled to an amazing relationship so she goes after it. But because she also hasn't had to work on herself she has trouble dealing with extreme adversity. She saw his as the easiest path to what she desired and just assumed like everything else up to that point for her that she would succeed and it wouldn't be an issue

[@mrs.kramer4387]

Tony Baker For some reason I never noticed that! lol

[@AxelQC]

Don would have cheated on her if she'd stayed a housewife. He is incapable of fidelity.

[@ZANZANMANMAN]

Do every single mad men character please. It helps me understand the show better.

[@TheTrueSolesurvivor]

z a Sorry, but who doesn‘t understand those stereotypes?

[@ZANZANMANMAN]

I understand them but not as well as I thought I did because this video just makes it so detailed and pleasurable. Mad men is my favourite show.

[@TheTrueSolesurvivor]

z a Oh yes, i also love that series.

[@kimbuhler1444]

I was too young to really understand the characters and development in the show when I first watched it while it aired. I need to rewatch the series now! These videos help me see things I didn't see before.

[@georgeadkins2166]

I agree. I'm binge watching the series right now, myself .

[@leamanc]

So glad you’re not done with Mad Men. Two words for you-LANE PRYCE

[@Messenger33]

Yes!!

[@hectorornelas6182]

Please. Then sally!

[@DreamOfTheRebel]

Ken Consgrove please! Or Trudy!

[@Messenger33]

Or Ginsberg!

[@sint0xicateme]

I'll hang around for Lane's character study... And now I feel gross for typing that.

[@blaisewinterhalter2758]

"Not every little girl gets to do what they want. The world cannot support that many ballerinas." My god that's beautiful

[@Unownshipper]

For a while, I was firmly on the Dr. Miller side in the Faye/Megan debate, but then I eventually realized the debate itself is wrong. It's easy to believe that Don stood a better chance of finding happiness with Faye: theirs was an age-appropriate relationship, both could keep up with each other's pace professionally and intellectually, and Faye could push back and challenge Don to change. But it's not up to women to "fix" men. Don made an attempt to be a better husband to Megan and I'm sure he'd have done the same for Faye, but it's just as likely he'd return to his wandering tendencies eventually because that's what womanizers do: they never find satisfaction. And Faye was only slightly less of a modern woman than Megan, and she certainly would've resisted Don's attempts to be controlled just as Megan did. In the end, neither would be able to change him; if he couldn't change himself, a new wife certainly wouldn't be able to either.

[@ikeilajackson7884]

Yes!!! Don is the issue, they were all good women and he would have ruined it with each one.

[@nyposturebar6638]

@@ikeilajackson7884 Exactly! That's why Rachel was the smartest one, just by recognizing him as who he was and finding a better guy.

[@ultrapaiva]

Faye’s career would come in the way eventually. Remember that Don tried to use her and that generated some sparks already. He preferred Megan, the one he thought he could control.

[@ericalwilkins]

Exactly. Faye was less easily abused and therefore not a suitable wife for a narcissist

[@majestical15]

Remember: Jane Austen said *‘I respect the “I can fix him” movement but that’s just not me. He’ll fix himself if knows what’s good for him’*

[@ltngirlll]

I wouldn't say she's a modern woman. She was more of a fantasy. Don thought he wanted a woman like her to fill his empty void but she became like the rest. I would say peggy is the modern woman. She works hard to get what she wants and doesnt care what anyone thinks of her.

[@jameslowe8141]

Both are modern women by the standards of the 60s and 70s

[@lalouloune6156]

Humm, I am pretty sure Peggy would have love to marry a rich man too. But she is not pretty enough that's all. In the serie she never said no to any men who wanted to sleep with her whether they were married or not. Personally I don't find her better than Meghan or Betty at all.

[@ltngirlll]

@@lalouloune6156 No she does what Don draper does in where they sleep with these people but they don't need or depend on them. she makes her own money. She never needed a guy. Yea she isn't as attractive as the other women in the series but that has nothing to do with her being a modern woman.

[@alepolait]

Peggy is a weird mix of conservative and modern. She has modern ideas, but she never fit in with the "hippies" or younger crowd. Her relationship with Abe ends up because he is truly progressive, and she wants her Manhattan appartment. She doesnt starts anything with stan, until he is a little less stupid. I'll say not of them are truly a "modern" women, they are stuck in the middle of a transition, thats why they are so interesting.

[@alepolait]

@@lalouloune6156 The world is not divided in "hot girls that want to marry rich" and "average girls that get stuck working" in her first day, all the guys were lusting after her, she was "fresh meat", but she was "stuck up" and dressed very modestly, no one knew what to do about her. Joan offered her advice, but Peggy never took it. She is usually divided between what she is supposed to do, what the times are telling her to do, and what she really wants to do.

[@Carpenter4134]

Your Mad Men reviews are always so succinct. Makes me want to watch it again for the literal 7th time.

[@afonsolucas2219]

I'm on my third.

[@SwornInvictus]

Nice vocab my friend.

[@cooleffectsfilms]

Same here and it never gets dull

[@kimberlys8422]

I'm binge watching it on Netflix for the third time. Woot woot

[@jeanblack1250]

So true.

[@12martin12rojas]

Honestly the only mature person in the show was Sally. She was the only one who saw everyone is stupid and that her life was going to suck.

[@keithklassen5320]

That only seems mature if you haven't hit puberty yet. That's a maladaptive teenage attitude.

[@inferiorinferno8859]

@@keithklassen5320 Not per se. I rather think it's a misanthropist kinda view, and teenagers tend to have misanthropic qualities.

[@ShushaSofia]

Childish and disrespectful kid who deserved a smack in the face.

[@12martin12rojas]

@@keithklassen5320 literally all characters act like children making life changing consequences, that aside Sally is just a kid whose story ends in the teens. Her final scene reminds me of me when I see people complain about their own mistakes. Wisdom can cone early or never at all, but thats the way I see it. 🐖

[@paulinegallagher7821]

Whhaaat? she was a simpering little brat

[@DodaGarcia]

That scene when Megan's friend calls her out on her privilege, to which Megan says "That's not fair!" and the friend says "No, it isn't" always gives me chills. The writing on that show is fantastic.

[@merkury06]

Yes. She told Megan the cold truth.

[@laurie_guilbeau]

It's like the line Madison says in Promising Young Woman: "Back in college, men wanted to date feminists because then you're dating someone who actually cares about something. But once they're married, they don't want a feminist anymore."

[@pp-bb6jj]

Nobody wants a feminist. Ever.

[@sXePunkV2]

@@pp-bb6jj quiet down, incel

[@CoyoTWil3]

@@sXePunkV2 its true idiots like you are worse that communists

[@sambrian174]

You'd be surprised how many men DON'T want to date feminists. And it's not a male thing. It's a human thing. I'm a woman and why the hell would I date an argumentative person who's hell bent on lecturing me over everything.

[@neosoontoretro]

The tragedy of Megan Draper is that she takes shortcuts to success because she doesn't have enough faith in herself to make it on her own. And in many ways she's modern woman who was born in the wrong era, I have feeling that Megan is really a 70's woman born a few years too soon.

[@derekjohnson4190]

neosoontoretro She really is the reverse Betty in many ways. Just on different spectrums. But they wind up in the same destination: irrelevance

[@neosoontoretro]

@Derek I don't know, I think there is still hope for Megan, I don't think she's destined for "irrelevancy". If there still hope for Don to start fresh in a new era then the same can be true for Megan.

[@AmazingJayB51]

Similar to the IG women of this generation!

[@bluemooninthedaylight8073]

I think you're not giving Betty any credit for her personal growth. She started the series as a very childish and selfish person, but by the end, when she knows she's dying, she tries to keep the news from her children and Don. She makes choices for herself, accepts her fate, and does what she has to in order for her boys to have a stable upbringing. Betty in the end might be dying, but as a human being she's grown quite a lot.

[@luckybenny8871]

@@neosoontoretro Don WORKS for a living. He hustles for his, with that Midwestern nose-to-the-grindstone ethic. Megan thinks work is something that is wished for. She got her million. She'll blow that in less than 5 years.

[@HEARTMACHINEPLUSULTRA]

I would love to see an analysis of Ken Cosgrove's character. His arc in the show is really interesting from being one of the "boys" to wanting to look for something more.

[@jenlindley7780]

Perfectly put!

[@m.h.1593]

galaxytides I wish they focused more on Ken on the show. He seemed like he was just *there*, but I was really interested in his character.

[@ykMMD]

YES

[@bathasleftthecave]

I always thought he was the least sympathetic character on the show. He always pissed me off haha.

[@partycitydumpster]

I like how he just sorta stopped caring about his work. Like he still did his job, but he stopped looking to it for any sort of fulfillment. The show is full of artists, but he was the only one that made art for art's sake.

[@benjamin6194]

The one thing you missed is that when Don was weighing Dr. Faye vs Megan, the good doctor proved herself unable to calm Don's kids when they were upset, while Megan excelled at that. This warmth and motherliness was presented as the main reason that Don (initially) proposed to Megan. Although oddly, we never saw Megan interact with the kids much after that.

[@ingvarhallstrom2306]

This. Faye had no maternal instincts whatsoever, it would never ever have worked with Don's kids.

[@fureyhiggins3289]

That was the deal breaker right there.

[@redhood444]

@@ingvarhallstrom2306that doesn’t make sense because Don barely sees his own kids and doesn’t care about them

[@ingvarhallstrom2306]

@@redhood444 It does makes sense because it's all about projection. He doesn't care he isn't good at parenting himself, what is important to him is the thought of projecting good parenthood to the outside world. Betty understood that, that's why he had no problem with her parenthood even though she sucked as a parent, because she could project success to the outside. Faye sucked on it and knew she sucked on it and couldn't lie about it and that was the dealbreaker right there.

[@redhood444]

@@ingvarhallstrom2306 doesn’t that sound insane tho. She doesn’t have any kids why would she instantly be good at parenting and also once they got marrried he realized Megan didn’t like it either 😭

[@mordecai1476]

While Betty was clearly very rigid and dramatic, her reaction to finding out about Dons real identity was normal for her situation. She spent many years with this man, had 3 kids with him, suffered through a lot of his controlling and manipulative behavior and his many lovers. On top of that the discovery of his identity comes after he stubornly tried to make her feel crazy for realizing his latest affair. And as Betty put it herself when she demands he shows her the drawer, ''she respected his privacy for years'', she waited for many years for Don to tell her what ever huge secret he was hiding. At least he didnt repeat the same mistake with Megan and told her.

[@a.utobotm7233]

Moral of the story - Joan is ALWAYS right .

[@DodaGarcia]

Joan is easily the most world-weary character in the show. She always sees through the bullshit.

[@Amy-nl7sf]

@@DodaGarcia and that's exactly how and why her self-started business at the very end was very likely successful af

[@MellowLady222]

Hmmm....what about the husband; sure she divorced him but she married him AFTER he raped her. No one is ALWAYS right, even our favorite tv characters.

[@Amy-nl7sf]

@@MellowLady222 it was also the 50s and 60s. She was limited by the times.

[@fhowland]

Joan is the worst

[@eciyk]

Megan was a reconstruction of Manic Pixie Dream Girl trope. Don saw her as a breathe of fresh air to take him out of his sad bachelor pad and his divorced life rut yet but because she is a person, she had her own hopes, desires and personality. I think the great tragedy of Meghan also stemmed from her bourgeois (or somewhat upperish middle class?) and intellectual family background. The idea of "fighting hard fir what you want" was not natural for her because she did not have a painfully middle class and traditional background as Peggy. Peggy knew she had to fight like there is no tomorrow to get where she was at the end of the show. Meghan grew up with certain comfort and she seeked and kept the same comfort while she was married to Don. Yes launching her acting career was hard but she did it while sitting in her beautiful apartment in Manhattan. I hope she learnt to be a fighter in her 30s and made a fresh start in the new era because as she stated before "she was so young"

[@neosoontoretro]

But wasn't Megan's dad a Marxist? I never got the sense that Megan was only with Don because of his money and status. I think Megan decisions stem more from her insecurities than her work ethic because I think she proved she was willing to prove herself when she worked under Peggy.

[@eciyk]

Well her dad was an academic and while her family never gave me the impression that they were filthy rich, her family creates a big contrast when mirrored with Peggy. For Peggy, not succeeding in advertising meant staying in Brooklyn forever and eventually being pressurized into marrying some guy. That is why I think Peggy created her own destiny while Meghan also pursued her dreams but from a more comfortable starting point. Yes she has clashed with her father about her acting dream for her, but she got it easy compared to Peggy. That is what I meant :) I think it was clear that she had both talent and charm for the advertising and yes she did worked under Peggy but again: She got the job immediately after marrying Don plus she was Don's wife! It would be really hard to challenge her in the writer's room -hence there is a scene where she walks in on Harry being Harry but he would never ever dare to do that to her face bcs he is terrified of Don. So while I also don't think Megan's main motivation was money, I also think that she liked and wanted the comforts Don could provide her. As her rando actress friend told her " You are looking for auditions while living here". I am not dismissing her struggle, she just had an "easier" struggle compared to other women in the show

[@neosoontoretro]

@eciyk But you can also say the same thing when comparing Peggy to Dawn. The reason that Peggy even got her job is because someone took a chance on her, she was offered an opportunity that women of color are less likely to get, especially during that era.

[@eciyk]

Well we can conclude Megan had it easier than Peggy and Peggy had less struggle compared to Dawn. This does not hurt my argument. Yes someone take a chance on Peggy but Peggy strived for that chance by "refusing to be one colour in a basket of kisses". She did not ask anyone to "get her an interview" yet Megan asked Don. Any rational person with the same network as hers would have done to same thing obviously but this again confirms ScreenPrism's point: Megan took shortcuts

[@neosoontoretro]

Well, Peggy didn't strive for anything back then. She seemed to be content with just being Don's secretary, it was only when she got her first account is when she became to strive because she wanted to prove she deserved it. Sure, Peggy didn't take shortcuts but she at least she was able to get her foot in the door, which is more than most women had especially women of color.

[@JoshuaFagan]

Don's biggest problem is that he's so image-centered. He sees the artifice, not what lies underneath. He buys into what he's selling. When the nuclear family no longer fulfills him, he moves on to Megan, the "new woman," but he's only pursuing a different image. He refuses to change his pursuit of these images, these ideals.

[@luckybenny8871]

You're talking about Betty. Don absolutely hates flash and is about substance. Anna died, and left him her wedding band. Don got sentimental, and married someone who is sooooo not for him. Not because of the image, but because he longed for a connection after Anna, and thought he.....could......find....it.....with.......a........girl......15.......years........younger. SIGH. Don is stupid. But image isnt moving him at all.

[@emcgrew2]

@@luckybenny8871 no, Don THINKS he's a man of substance. His actions prove time & time again he's not. Name something of substance he did on the show - pretending to take a stand on smoking & later going against it? Fucking over his own brother & later Lane to the point they kill themselves? Cheating on both of his wives yet calling them whores? Being a dick to his employees? He's hardly ever even nice to other people let alone actually improving their lives unless they're a business partner or wife & he can make/give them money.

[@luckybenny8871]

@@emcgrew2 Easy cowboy. Lane STOLE AND FORGED Don's signature for a substantial sum of money. Had Don let Bert get to the bottom of it Lane wouldve been in jail for at least a decade. Don gave him a way out WITHOUT humiliation. And HE fucked Lane over? Dude. Don stood up for Joan during the Porsche madness, on principle. Not money. He was the only one to visit Peggy in the hospital. This dont make Don the fuckin Dalai Lama, but being nice is not a pre-requsite for anything, especially business. You think hes an asshole, and I dont. He could've stood tall for Sal. At the risk of their biggest account, though? That's a tough ask, but maybe Don couldve smoothed over Lee Jr. who was a REAL asshole. Who knows. Don wasnt good at relationships, because he didn't value them. Out of straight fear.

[@itiswhatitisbitch]

Don likes to be seen as hating flash, I wouldn't call him substantive

[@itiswhatitisbitch]

Just realized the irony...he forged the signature that Don was already forging for decades!

[@verillo14]

I'm happy you still do the mad men characters. Please do Sally draper, apart from Anna draper, she's the only woman who he really cares for, and they have such an strong relationship. With his other children he barely speaks but with Sally he changes

[@andromedastar4900]

Funny how the two women he has the best relationship with, are both platonic relationships. Sally is his daughter, and Anna is like a big sister to him.

[@MJ-sj5dv]

Don’t forget Peggy! lol Don only sucks at romantic love!

[@itiswhatitisbitch]

He's not great at (half) brotherly love - he left Adam Whitman hanging!

[@bathasleftthecave]

@@MJ-sj5dv Also Joan, another woman he has managed to not sleep with (probably ruled out as an option due to her past with Roger)

[@hookedonrae]

@@andromedastar4900 I think it's because he was raped by that older woman at the brothel house when he was 13 or 14 I assume? I think that, his abusive stepmom(not really but the closest thing I can think of) who beat him after she found out about that, and losing his mother made him have a really messed up attitude towards women and relationships.

[@schmules101]

I think what this video slightly overlooks is that, despite Megan’s flaws, her decline is at least partly linked to how Don Draper treats his wives. Look how sad Betty ended up too. Don is broken and he breaks the people he loves, that’s part of the tragedy of Megan, she thought that she could fix him and instead he broke her like he breaks everyone.

[@EricaRossini-s3b]

This whole “he’s broken and everything is his fault” bs is the dumbest thing I’ve ever read. Seriously get your beta brain checked out because it sounds like it’s leaking out your ears.

[@LovelyMiss90]

"And if I had known her first, I would have known not to throw it away." It pissed me off to hear that from Don. He was basically saying it was Betty's fault that he was an asshole to her. That is so not true!

[@ikeilajackson7884]

I think he was more so saying that the second time around was right to him. He appreciated Megan and knew not to throw it away because he actually wanted to be with her, unlike Megan... obviously he messed it up anyway

[@elainecrane2860]

I love Rogers humour

[@andrewcutler1380]

I see “ScreenPrism” and “Mad Men” and I click.

[@trinapowell4436]

Immediately!

[@filmbuff7130]

I watch your Mad Men reviews while sipping on an Old Fashioned.

[@МаринаСмаль-г4р]

I just LOVE your Mad Men videos.

[@chanmarr8118]

Never liked Don. I remember when Betty tried to go back into modeling and he squashed her chances of being the face of the company. He’s an a-hole.

[@kaylasheppard7746]

He didn't do it on purpose!! McCann forced his hand, he didn't want to work for that scumbag, and McCann was the dick that fired Betty

[@qaadirakhan7686]

I really loved how much Betty smiled during that time of wanting to go back to modelling ... It made me so happy

[@paulinegallagher7821]

She was a pawn in the mans bid to get Don to do work for him, he was never interested in Betty.

[@CinnCity78]

There was always a lot to unpack with this show. You could literally write a thesis on the dissection of these characters. Loved it.

[@JayJay-nc7pr]

Please do one in Sally Draper: the archetypal baby boomer, born in the mid 1950s, teen years in the mid 60s-early 70s, probably had children young then became a working career minded mother in the 1980s

[@AC-ze1nh]

I'd like to imagine Sally became the product of her parent's true desire. Freedom. In my mind, Sally becomes a traveller and embraces her parents true spirit of adventure, of which we saw a glimpse of when they were in Rome. This is also what Betty sets up for her. She sends Bobby and Gene to live with her brother because she doesn't want Sally responsible for them. She wants Sally to have a different kind of life. Betty was a better mother than she knew how to express.

[@debbiebasche5337]

I was/am Sally Draper...

[@SnowTheJamMan]

Yay more Mad Men videos, i love this channel

[@pixiebells]

This was great! PLEASE do a video on Sally. About 80% of the time she's seen through adults reacting to her and even in cast interviews, I've never seen her actress explain her interpretation, only the creator Matthew Weiner talking about her and it would be really good to take a look at her for several reasons, partially because she's technically a baby boomer and because of plotlines like the shades of her sexual maturation, her friendship with Glen, her hatred of her old-fashioned mother and how rebellious she is. It would be an absolutely fascinating look at what she sees as normal which shocks people around her, along with a lot of other things. I've always liked her.

[@sykoelf]

I LOVE Sally so much - she's so rebellious and independent minded but also focused on doing best for herself. I can really see her growing up and becoming an extremely successful career woman

[@pixiebells]

@@sykoelf Same! She's so determined & won't take anyone's shit. I could even see her be really passionate about social causes and protest in the 70s ❤️ ♀

[@ultrapaiva]

She was her best when the milkshake spilled and she took care of it without a fuss. Don fell in love there but he forgot people are people and have their own ideas, aspirations and desires.

[@3AmigosMustang]

The scene of him walking away from her, on set, and into the bar, was the end of them.

[@zaddyshome_]

Love this. I think my favourite reading of Megan Draper is E Prices for Medium: “1969 Megan Draper equals 1959 Betty Draper”. A short passage from the article: “Megan’s career has torpedoed. Where once she was ambitious and tenacious, she is now desperate, hungry for any role, begging and fuming in parking lots. She’s getting haplessly drunk and sexually desperate. She’s telling Don he should just stay away. She’s becoming unhinged by her own insecurity. Sound familiar? If you’re paying attention, you’ll notice this is the same pattern of desperate, lonely behavior that defined season 1 Betty. Betty whose hands went numb and crashed her car, Betty who held her emotions in until they caused her to puke, Betty who sauntered around the house in a bikini, vying for Don’s eye, Betty who accepted any affection she could get, whether it was from a 9-year-old who wanted a lock of her hair, or a pilot in a random bar who just wanted to screw in the back room. Now look at this week’s Megan, standing coolly in the doorway, facing Stephanie. Megan who used to be all smile and hugs and open, friendly encouragement. She looks Stephanie up and down and icily pronounces her “beautiful”, her insecurities poking out like shards of glass beneath her skin. She forces herself to hug this woman, this relic from Don’s past, but it’s stifled and perfunctory. She tries desperately to be warm and welcoming, like when Betty used to host Don’s colleagues, but her face winces with sadness. When Don calls, she observes again that Stephanie is beautiful, egging Don on. She makes the pregnant, famished young women a steak. In season 1, when Roger dropped by the house unannounced, Betty gave him her steak. She went hungry. She sulked the whole night and next day”.

[@ericalwilkins]

How long does it take to recognize rape culture? This is idiocdic. The main point of mad men is Don is a narcissist. Meghan couldn’t have changed anything with better or worse behavior. He abuses all women similarly from having sex with his young daughter’s teacher in their same neighborhood, to hiring a secretary and having sex with her on a paid vacation. The point is to evaluate his failings not hers. Stop finding fake reasons women deserve abuse. Having coercive sex in or outside of marriage is abuse. Don is a narcissist and sexual and physical (to Betty at least twice we see) abuser.

[@brynmcclennan973]

@@ericalwilkins this is not saying they deserve abuse, work on your critical reading skills. It’s just explaining the result of two women who entered into an emotionally manipulative and abusive relationship and how it can have deep psychological effects.

[@jesscline9661]

I swear I never get excited over new video uploads, except for this channel. Thank you SP! You're work is always spot on!

[@RebeDrawsStuff]

I'm glad that you also made a video about Megan and I look forward to help you with the subs in Spanish. I really enjoy doing them for the women of Man Men videos. Usually people only think of Joan, Peggy and Betty (because obviously they've been on the series since the beginning) but I personally consider Megan as another important female character simply because she was the opposite of Betty in a lot of ways.

[@sarairuiz2369]

Sí! Sería genial tener subtítulos en español, veo todos los videos con subtítulos en Inglés (para poder comprender mejor obviamente) pero a veces puede que no entienda una que otra cosa, y no creo ser la única :)

[@ddiamondr1]

At 65 I've learned that nothing is set in concrete, certainly not the future for a character as young as Megan still is at the end of the series. As disappointing as it was to see her so embittered at the end of the series, I have no doubt someone like Megan would pull out of it and go on to discover a richer life and more independent life.

[@bryanstein9240]

I think she ended up getting her groove back and had a fantastic life she reminds me of a bisexual bold foul mouthed old hippy chick her first ex was worse than don

[@sexyblackcharlery]

Well said

[@TechnicJunglist]

She thought she could change Don but towards the end realized she just became Betty 2.0. How ironic especially after talking shit about Betty in previous seasons. Karma.

[@msch7620]

TechnicJunglist Betty was just like her before marrying Don. She was a successful model and educated (spoke Italian) and Don took that away from her, just like Meghan’s acting career. Betty became bitter.

[@lovelife5965]

Piper Black this was the best analysis of Betty! Nailed it!

[@mz0g]

@@msch7620 the common denominator is don. he's like a vampire, sucking the life and joy around him to fuel himself. when he's sucked it all out he moves on to another target. don is 100% to blame in all these women losing out in life.

[@studiostyx7075]

@j mula Who are these gold diggers you speak of?

[@brianwilson1074]

@@msch7620 Ah yes, Megan was so successful before Don, i wonder how she ended up being a fucking secretary in a mid level ad company? and the show kinda imply that she was never a good actress to begin with it, she basically nedded Don to put her on a commercial in order to get some real job as an actress. lmao you people are hilarious

[@shabbamims5]

This is an excellent video Screen Prism! Probably one of your best I've never viewed Megan as such a tragic figure.

[@myishenhaines1706]

This KZbin channel, from the start, has been a great one.

[@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254]

I wonder if Megan is supposed to be refuting the idea that all it takes for a man to change for the better, is to be with a very fascinating woman. Like even Megan theorized it was probably Betty's fault that Don would stray away, but he also cheats on Megan. Whereas with Betty, he cheated on her with these career ladies (Bobbie and Rachel) or just plain societal rebels (Joy, Suzanne, Midge); with Megan, it was with that one brunette (probably) and with the very housewifey neighbor whose style is so early Sixties. Gloria Steinem said that the problem with sexual liberation and male-female relationships is that there aren't enough sexually liberated men around with the sexually liberated women. I keep wondering if Mad Men is supposed to be critiquing the idea that being movie star gorgeous and glamorous would bring you true happiness. Like non movie star looking or acting people end up happier and in relationships and better jobs at the end. True Peggy and Joan work very hard. Joan could have used Roger to finance her lifestyle but she mostly took presents and stays at hotels and restaurant meals with him, but I think part of her sees that luxurious lifestyle as something that she should just visit "you leave what you came with". I wonder if Megan's and Peggy's contrast was supposed to be about 2 unconventional beauties (by say Betty and Joan standards) in the Sixties, it seems that decade seem to favor taller and Slimmer and "exotic" women who were chesty. Peggy's end was a short gal victory Hopefully Megan thrives in her thirties, forties, and beyond

[@violetraven8323]

Jessica Victoria Carrillo that was very insightful, I believe it thoroughly. Even with its setting a century ago it's relevant to today. That habitual attention and praise brought up by a societally deemed "glamours life style" making people want to be you won't make you happy. While I LOVED THAT A DYSFUNCTIONAL MAN ISN'T MAGICALLY CURED BY "TRUE LOVE". It's a trope I'm sick of seeing, it degrades women to have the expectation of "fixing men" and justifying men being self-centered assholes and even being abusive. While it expects men to feel AYE OKAY when they LIKE a specific woman. Again very insightful and why I love how Mad Man subverts toxic tropes.

[@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254]

@@violetraven8323 And when you look at it: Betty was practically the perfect wife for that era, she unfortunately was married to someone who pushed her away. I always thought it was easy for Carol Brady to be Carol Brady and June Cleaver to be June Cleaver because of the men they were married to.

[@josersandoval]

Jessica Victoria Carrillo your comment was written with a golden typewriter. PS. Great season 1 reference!

[@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254]

@@josersandoval Thank you, I always try to keep up with the video

[@caerulea0]

That was really interesting

[@grantwilson4506]

Madmen is the kind of show you need to watch at least 3 times to at least mostly understand all of it

[@carolannaitken5812]

That's why the show is brilliant. It's like a book that can read over and over for new meaning.

[@katep973]

What's crazy for me, is watching Mad Men a second time has shown how I have changed because I disliked Megan when I first watched the show, but when I watched it for a second time, I thought she had every reason to be mad when she was mad, and I could understand her frustrations and childish behaviors due to Don's response to her.

[@concontech343]

She was every right to be frustrated with Don. Probably you disliked Megan the first time, because you compared Megan/ Don relationship with Betty /Don. Don was 1000xx worst with Betty and Betty complained 1000xx less than Megan, because Betty kept almost all her frustrations for herself (that is why Betty was so broken). So every time Megan complained with Don, it was Like Come on! You are working, you can wear a bikini, you can talk with other men, he told you about his past. But he still was a terrible husband (very manipulative, a cheater, reserved etc).

[@misterwhipple2870]

He gave the hoe a million bucks when they broke up (which is 8 million in Biden-bucks). She has no God-Damned right to be mad about anything ever again as long as she f*cking lives. Like he said to Peggy, "that's what the MONEY is for!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

[@oliverallen5324]

Mad men was such a masterpiece.

[@truthshallbethevictor9241]

In the words of Roger Sterling “ they’re all great girls, until they want something “

[@locotx215]

Freaking love Roger Sterling

[@ericalwilkins]

The main point of mad men is Don is a narcissist. Meghan couldn’t have changed anything with better or worse behavior. He abuses all women similarly from having sex with his young daughter’s teacher in their same neighborhood, to hiring a secretary and having sex with her on a paid vacation. The point is to evaluate his failings not hers. Stop finding fake reasons women deserve abuse. Having coercive sex in or outside of marriage is abuse. Don is a narcissist and sexual and physical (to Betty at least twice we see) abuser. If it sounds good to defend someone without empathy it is an opportunity to reflect on your own humanity.

[@Wyrd__One]

Something I never realized before: Joan is kind of a modern stand-in for the myth of Cassandra. Like Joan, she was nearly always right but she was usually dismissed or disbelieved.

[@truthof7382]

How many times did Draper say “what do you want me to say” when talking to woman.

[@pamelalansbury94]

“The world cannot support that many ballerinas” I’ve always loved that line

[@readergrl56]

Watching Megan pre-California trip is fascinating. There's one moment that always sticks out: where she's still working reception and Peggy's friend comments about her magazine. Megan responds that she tried reading a novel, but SCDP thought it looked odd and told her to switch. Also, isn't it funny that her mother turned out to be a happier divorcee than Megan?

[@triciajohansen9295]

I also thought it was extremely hypocritical of Megan to call Joyce pretentious when it was her who was the big phony!😎

[@jonathanjacob5453]

“Not every little girl gets to do what she wants, the world could not support that many ballerinas” That’s all the analysis you need to do on Megan Draper. She tried and it just did not work out.

[@geniehossain3738]

I started out really liking her, then came that point in season 5 when she took her dad’s words about “skipping the hard part of life” and not having to struggle at all by giving up on acting and working with Don waaaay too much to heart. And then when she does go into acting and actually has to struggle, she throws a big fit when Don won’t just hand her an acting career.

[@theswitzer-songshow769]

This show was a flashback to my grandparents. Males belittling women at every turn while the women struggle for crumbs. Such a style show pointing out such a harsh world.

[@pinkcashmeres]

ZoSo221 And the women of that era DID fight for it, now YOU shut up.

[@sexyblackcharlery]

Still the same today

[@zylo999]

@@sexyblackcharlery Not quite. Things have obviously changed. Still not perfect of course, but far better.

[@Ratchet2431]

@@sexyblackcharlery Not at all. Obviously there is still a lot to solve but there has definitely been a gradual change.

[@MellowLady222]

@@sexyblackcharlery ....I'm with you on this. The many components of controlling behavior (a.k.a. domestic violence) such as emotional, psychological, financial, sexual, as well as physical abuses still run rampant in today's relationships. Woman still have to "fight" being controlled, one way or another, in too many cases.

[@pn7134]

I see myself in her. She is so optimistic and easy-going until she is confronted with shitty people and unfair circumstances. That's just how the world is.

[@jualiet2212]

Finally! Meghan has one of the most interesting story arcs on the show and it’s such a shame that so many people think she’s bland...

[@kaleemk0406]

Don fell into his older habits because, when He first saw Megan as free spirited, independent and takes challenges as they come, but at the end of season 5 with her growing insecurities she asks Don to recommend her in an advertisement, which his first wife did in the first season. She has become modern version of Betty. And also Betty used to be an aspiring model before marrying don and Joan mentions this and quotes ‘that’s the kind of women don married’. It’s a foreshadow for what’s gonna happen with Megan in the snow. And With the added guilt of Pryce's death Don flipped into his old habits.

[@deezxc]

kaleem shaik Betty was a working model (Italian speaking no less) but your point still holds. She and Megan were cut from the same fabric to an extent.

[@FreyaEinde]

Don is also kind of an emotional vampire he tends to suck the air outta other people by trying to bend them around an ideal.

[@magwit123]

The coca colla guy hired Betty to blackmail Don . Betty didn't ask Don for help. I thought thats why Don was so disappointed in Megan. She was worse then his first wife in a way.

[@jaythegreenling]

Don fell into old habits because they arr not old habits. It's what he does. And always will.

[@SaddenedSoul]

@@ossamamostafa3319 The characters take on lives of their own. Don in particular has a largely fleshed-out history and orthodoxy that can be analyzed by viewers. Weiner isn't making him do arbitrary things for no reason; there's a warrant in the show for why he behaves the way he does, and it's in analyzing that warrant that the viewer deciphers the message.

[@dollydagger4306]

I think Megan had a little girl quality like Betty did she was just more modern. I think Don Draper could be a very toxic man, who will never change for anyone and he killed Megan's innocence, and her joie de vivre. Megan started out as a Bon vivant and Don has never been seen as a happy person, a truly happy person. It's something in refuses to be/stay happy. I think Megan is a little young for Don personality wise. There was nothing wrong with her pursuing acting, but she seems to fall apart when she bombs an audition. When she does land a gig Don tries to control her and make her feel mad. It always amazes me how hypocritical Don could be. He cheats all over the place, kissing people here and there, but if his wife looks to sexy, or is flirty or may have missed a man he's furious! Anyway Megan was cool and Don should never get married.

[@anastasiah8683]

This. Exactly this.

[@jxyzbxt2355]

your analyses of mad men are amongst your favourite content. They are so spot on and very insightful.

[@kerrajohnson3203]

*So in other words...* *Megan is your 20's.*

[@Edward_T_Martin]

This is absolutely brilliant. Thank you for referencing the quotes that are the basis of your observations (e.g. 92nd Y interview), thus making your presentation more grounded and scholarly. Nice job putting the Audible ad near the beginning, too! Best of luck and continued success. ETM

[@lydiaanderson2870]

@Hello Edward T Martin, How are you doing?

[@alm5966]

Roger Sterling singing Frere Jacques and mincing up the corridor the day after Megan sang at Don's party was hilarious.

[@ryenwthomas]

This series is one of the best things on KZbin.

[@madisonsiciliano4439]

The fact that Don leaves Betty, a hallmark of the 50s, for Megan who embodies the 60s is *chefs kiss*

[@aivlysplath]

Ugh "I feel like myself when I'm with you" is another form of "you make me a better man" it's just bull.

[@ah-ie9dy]

Definitely. It's that whole thing of not loving the person for who they are, but only for how the person makes THEM feel.

[@triciajohansen9295]

I had a dear friend who said "you make me want to become a better man". We were both 15 at the time and he did become a better person. This was, and still is to me, the greatest compliment I ever received from the opposite sex. We are still friends after 35 years.😎

[@studiostyx7075]

Broken narcissists only see the people in their life as tools for their own personal gain; they almost never question how they can help others.

[@DodaGarcia]

I dunno, I mean obviously we know in Don's case it's all smoke and mirrors but I have definitely seen myself wanting to improve so I could match the image a significant other had of me. That didn't mean I was putting it on them to improve me, only that their being in my life made me want to.

[@BrokenGodEnt]

Well if someone made me feel like shit, or made me feel that I had to put on a show to be around them I'd probably not like them eh? I get what you're saying, but it's not always a bad thing if someone makes you want to be better. Of course in Dons case he mostly sucks people dry then throws them overboard, but if someone makes you feel good it tends to be because they're a person you care for deeply. It doesn't always have to be that you're sucking their soul away. It can be a mutual love and appreciation where both of you are inspired to be better people because of the relationship you have. I think a big issue with Don is despite him saying he can finally be himself with someone, he still continues to put up a front. He's never honest with anyone. Besides a couple occasions that is.

[@TheCusita93]

You guys are awesome. Every time I see a new notification for one of your videos I stop what I'm doing and watch. Mad Men is one of my favorite shows and Megan was also a favorite of mine. This video helped me realize why I felt so sad for how things turned out for her.

[@Mic-Mak]

I never liked Megan for Don. Never. She is probably my least favorite of all the women he’s had relationships with. I can’t believe Don dropped Dr. Faye Miller for her. Faye was by far the best woman for Don. I rooted for them. And the way Megan evolved was unbecoming she was too entitled in my opinion. Between Mrs. Draper #1 & #2, I will always prefer #1 despite all her flaws. I expect a video on Dr. Faye and on Sally Draper.

[@Sheep_Pepper]

Perhaps Dr. Miller was a good choice for Don. But Don obviously didnt care to see it.

[@FreyaEinde]

Don never would’ve been able to stay with Faye, he doesn’t appreciate having an equal in his life, this pops up over and over again in the show with Don and his subordinates, his daughter, his so called rivals, eventually they have to bend or get wrecked.

[@TheSuperNats]

Faye was simply too good of a person for Don.

[@andromedastar4900]

@@TheSuperNats just like Rachel.

[@Mic-Mak]

Nathan Holstrom Really? You checked out of the show because of that?! So you never finished it? It’s totally worth finishing. Trust me.

[@cianap.281]

I think Megan is running from being jaded and manipulative like her Mom by leaning in to idealism and integrity, but suspects deep down that she is more like her Mom than she wants to be (and is right). With Don she gets to have her cake and eat it, too: her shrewd socialite side is comfortable with him but at the same time he's willing to see her as the wholesome "breath of fresh air" she longs to be. If she really wanted to lean into the part of herself which embodies integrity, she wouldn't have gone for someone like Don, but someone more sincere and idealistic like early series Ken Hardgrove. Actually Ken makes a great comparison with Megan: they were both bright-eyed artists who destroyed themselves willingly by marrying Don Draper (in a sense) and staying in that "marriage" way too long. I think Don and Megan both were willing to see each other as their aspirational fantasy-selves, but Don betrayed the arrangement first because he saw Megan as the independent idealist she aspired to be AND rejected her for it. Megan actually liked Don for the self that he aspired to be.

[@jasonlefler3456]

St. Rhinocéros I think she tells Don what he wants to hear. She looks past his flaws, for a time, because he’s rich and paying her way.

[@cianap.281]

For sure, she looks past his flaws-- the money sure doesn't hurt but I think she also has that ego driven "I'm the special one who can handle him / he's met his match in me" idea that a lot of very young people have. But I never get the feeling that Don gives her flaws enough thought because he's too preoccupied with his own gargantuan shame.

[@DarrenH001]

Such profundity. The use of primary and secondary source quotes is fantastic. Whips along at a great pace too.

[@jeremiahonwubuya5366]

As always, a splendid analysis. When you have the time please do an analysis of Trudy Campbell. She is one of the best characters in the entire show.

[@Hiphop4life7083]

Thank you once again for your insightfull and reflective analysis on our favorite characters and tv shows. You always bring a new perspective that I never seen before. Thank you for opening my eyes. ✌

[@hahdhsjsjrkfn]

Do Sally next!! Or Chrissy Moltisanti from The Sopranos too.

[@AbRosenbaum]

the fact you wrote such a hateful comment on a fictional character only proves he deserves a video. Christophurrrr was a deep character for sure.

[@AbRosenbaum]

That is true but it also doesn't mean they are not fascinating. No doubt Chrissy was a scumbag but his whole storyline (his father, relationship with tony, addiction, movie business, death of adriana, fights with paulie) made him the most fascinating character in the sopranos after Tony. For me at least.

[@AbRosenbaum]

Aha i see. I guess what I meant to say was that there are a lot of different opinions about him

[@AbRosenbaum]

True, for me it's the best series i have seen, but honestly can't think of one recurring character who was morally good or even likeable.

[@elenabrambilla95]

exactly, you don't have to create an emotional bond with mafia criminals. The show wants you to see the uglyness of mafia, and it's pretty well done.

[@TheStingling]

Lol i just watched every madman videos you guys have and there is a new one o-o

[@amysteriousviewer3772]

This video-series really makes me realise how literally every character in Mad Man is memorable in some way or another.

[@igorpaulo7499]

Dude, I didn't think this one would be the best video of mad men. This is my favorite channel!!

[@AUisGoLd98]

Sally Draper next, pleaseee

[@xeagaort]

StrawberryPenny but why

[@verillo14]

Because I would love to see an analysis about Don parenthood. And because he has a really strong relationship with her, is like, apart from Anna draper, she is the only woman he truly knows him and get along with him

[@Blue.1889]

Sally, lane and sal in the future would be cool

[@AUisGoLd98]

Aside from her connection with Don, she arguably represents the era that came after Megan Draper - the one that had to deal with having grown up under all of these contrasting influences

[@jamielaurengarner]

BUT WHY?! What. Sally is an incredibly important character, she’s the next generation Draper picking up the pieces of broken and self-obsessed parents.

[@patriciogomezleguizamon531]

Amazing and interesting analysis, that's excellent content right there! I always thought Megan was somewhat of an interesting character, which brought a different dimension to the show with her liberal persona, and to see her decline towards failure is hypnotizing to watch. Superb analysis. Keep 'em coming!

[@davidbush9274]

The. show. is. so. good. So much subtext. Not only is the show solid on its own, but I totally appreciate the decade of the 60s through that show in a way that seems to really ground it, despite its cultural mythology.

[@hollywoodshopaholic]

I remember rolling my eyes when Megan Draper first appeared on the show. Imo she was just another generic, beautiful woman for Don to add to his trophy collection.

[@nathandomke2721]

Madmen just made me scared of marriage LOL

[@jshepard152]

You should be scared.

[@Dani-px4qb]

me too

[@anunfiItered]

SAME LMAOOO

[@raivichalves]

Great analysis, as always! Megan is so underrated as a complex character. Cant wait for the Sally Draper one

[@charlesphilips2045]

This character breakdown of Meghan Draper was perfectly done. It was a scene between Don and Meghan that got me interested in watching Mad Men.

[@MsDoxma]

Meghan was always a little too saccharine for me. And, how could she not know that birthday party would turn him off? I think it was more important for her to be the center of attention. The party was really for herself. Don showed that he was a jerk, though, by putting her down for it. He could have had more tact. These two were very mismatched from the start. She was too capricious for him. Don thought he liked that at first, but knew he made a mistake.

[@pp-bb6jj]

Don wasn't a jerk for putting her down when she deserved it. That was inappropriate.

[@kratino]

I totally disagree about the birthday performance. He was a total d-bag about it.

[@kratino]

​@@pp-bb6jj It was a cultural misstep, but also most men's wet dream.

[@andrewroberts8139]

Really enjoyed this - not just the criticism but the split screens, which worked really well

[@shannoncrescent4422]

This analysis is spectacular! Very watchable and well elaborated points!

[@boradmay]

Please Do an analysis on Sal. His story was sad and ended so abruptly.

[@Beaver_Monday]

... who? (Geddit?)

[@JMilutinify]

I kinda don't agree with the study. Megan wasn't taking shortcuts, she was taking every oportunity that was afforded to her. And who wouldn't? She was just at the right place in the right time, and with enough talent to make the oportunity justified. I think her dowfall started when she let go of theose oportunities in order to make Don happy (quiting the acting job in NY). She was also surounded by very bitter people who were looking for any way to belittle her. Peggy was the only person who actually appreciated her for a person who is good at so many things. She could have also continued acting after that but for the price of sleeping with producers in order to book jobs. Yet she refused that.

[@criskp6861]

Yes I completly agree!!

[@anastasiah8683]

YES to this! I also loved that Peggy was supportive of her, even though people expected her to be jealous.

[@brianwilson1074]

She was talented as a copywriter, but definitely not talented as an actress, which explains why she couldn't find a job of her own capacity, she nedded Don to get that big leap.

[@simonboccanegra3811]

She wasn't that talented as an actress. She got a part on a New York-based soap, which a lot of aspiring actors in those days rode to bigger and better things, and she flailed. A costar (the daytime vet who had the crush on her) said she was struggling with scripts a child could understand. We hear in the final season that she was resorting to stalking casting directors to make something happen, and her agent was alarmed about it. A few years post Mad Men, I see her married to some other rich guy in L.A., with some minor acting credits in her past, "secure" but not all that happy.

[@ericalwilkins]

Agreed this “study” is woman hating and idiocdic. The main point of mad men is Don is a narcissist. Meghan couldn’t have changed anything with better or worse behavior. He abuses all women similarly from having sex with his young daughter’s teacher in their same neighborhood, to hiring a secretary and having sex with her on a paid vacation. The point is to evaluate his failings not hers. Stop finding fake reasons women deserve abuse. Having coercive sex in or outside of marriage is abuse. Don is a narcissist and sexual and physical (to Betty at least twice we see) abuser.

[@cheche9528]

Done is narcissistic. He sees Megan as his extension. He even use classic traits as gaslight and projection.

[@GG1Productions]

I would love to see a video essay on Trudy Campbell. She is one of the best characters on the show. Completely in control of her life and someone who can put Don Draper in check. In a show full of characters who can't seem to win, Trudy can't lose