Mad Men: "The Gypsy and the Hobo" - Review

"I can't trust you. I don't know who you are." Betty Draper

With only two episodes left in the stunningly intense 3rd season of Mad Men the show has reached a whole new level of tasty goodness. The show has always excelled at intricate and sometimes frustrating storytelling but as it's closing in on the finale all bets are off. We had confrontation, ghosts from the past (no, not Gene), tested loyalty, vase smashing and Halloween all wrapped up into a not so tidy package. The dialogue is always excellent but this week it was exceptional.

"The Gypsy and the Hobo" was centered around the "will she or won't she" plot line of Betty Draper. Will she confront Don about his secret past or will she keep it to herself and destroy him a little at a time? There was also a nice subplot involving Joan and her hubby/rapist Greg. Roger got a little face time this week after being relegated to the sidelines after he and Don had their nasty blow up. The peanut gallery of Sterling Cooper barely made an appearance and for the 2nd week in a row Pete was nowhere to seen. But these are minor quibbles as the show was simply explosive and had it's fair share of twists and turns and brilliant performances.

-- Janaki Cedanna

Click Here for Full Review at TV Fodder.

Mad Men: "The Color Blue" Review

"My goodness Sally Draper, try not to take everything so personally" - Betty Draper.

Crazy family members, lots of bedroom talk and secrets revealed is whatMad Men was all about tonight as the pace (and plot devices) picked up just in time for the home stretch. With only three episodes remaining the table is set for more than one massive showdown.

"The Color Blue" was another wonderfully crafted entry in a universe that is becoming increasingly more and more richly layered with subtext and danger. Absent in tonight's proceedings were what became of Sal, Joan and her rapist/doctor husband and Pete with his superior people skills. We did get more of Betty's "Mother of the Year" stylings; Kinsey's attempted rise from mediocrity and hot teacher Suzanne's crazy brother. But more on that later.

It's amazing to me that no matter how sympathetic Don Draper becomes he is always Don Draper, even if he's not really . . . Oh, forget it. Mad Men works on many levels; the first and foremost it works as an impeccable character study of who people really are when they're cornered. It seems like there is always a test to pass; how they react is what makes it impossible to turn away from. Creator Matthew Weiner often states that he has absolute creative control with the show and if that's the case then he is one messed up dude.

-- Janaki Cedanna

Click Here for Full Review at TV Fodder!

Mad Men: "Wee Small Hours" Review

"But what about the moon?" Conrad Hilton to Don Draper.

Secret liaisons, unrequited love, miscommunication and filmmaking. These are the wonderful things that happened in the Mad Men universe, both in front of the camera and behind it.

In a day that brought the news of the unfortunate firing of an Emmy winning writer, Matthew Weiner & Co. has delivered another gem (read about the firing here). Lately I noticed that the episodes are doing lots of quick cuts as if to cram more and more info into an already bulging story line. Not that I'm complaining mind you but I find it a little odd and out of character for a show that thrives on the slow unfolding of major plot points.

"Wee Small Hours" was chock full of new developments with some old ones coming full circle. Characters fall back into old routines as tensions have never been higher. Remember when Don used to be unfaithful? Check. How about Sal's homosexuality? Double check. Betty reverting to a childlike state? Big check! Mad Men thrives on putting it's characters into uncomfortable situations and we as the audience can only yell at the screen in a feeble attempt to keep them on the straight and narrow. It's voyeurism, plain and simple.

-- Janaki Cedanna

Read Full Review at TV Fodder!

Mad Men: "Souvenir" - Review

"You don't kiss boys, boys kiss you." - Mother of the year Betty Draper to little Sally.

After all the explosive happenings on the last two episodes of Mad Menthere had to be some sort of let down, right? Wrong. Oh, how wrong. Even though the show didn't have any real "ah, ha!" moments it did comfortably settle into what makes this show great. Blank stares, people sleeping and characters being lonely and sad. Oh wait, I meant to say morally conflicted characters, deep introspective moments and sleeping.

When the season is over people may think that "Souvenir" was a throw away episode but in reality Matthew Wiener is laying the extensive groundwork for what's to come. Tonight he gave us more of Betty's immaturity, Sally growing violent tendencies, Pete's humanity (or lack thereof) and most importantly that Don is trying very hard to be a good husband and father. Too bad Betty doesn't see it that way. There were lots of smash cuts in this episode, so much in fact that for a moment it seemed that large parts of the show were montages. That's not a bad thing though. This episode was amazing but even more than that it only spent a few seconds at the office. No Roger, Peggy or Sal and only limited Joan and the guys. Wow.

-- Janaki Cedanna

Click Here for Full Review at TV Fodder

Entourage: "Give a Little Bit" - Review

The sixth season of Entourage has come and gone and what an epic season it was. Sure there were hits and misses along the way as the show struggled at times with direction but Drama and Turtle's "growth" were impressive, Ari and E's, not so much. Vince seemed to regress though . . .

Clocking in at an unheard of 34 minutes, "Give a Little Bit" left some indelible images. Stick a fork in Turtle's relationship with Jamie-Lynn Sigler as it's done; Ari finds his humanity in regards to Terrance and Lloyd; Drama's too old for the new "Melrose Place" but not for his own TV show; E finally wears down Sloan and Matt Damon guest stars as an overzealous and intense version of himself.

This episode (along with the last few) went a long way in redeeming itself for it's mid-season missteps and I liked it, a lot. It actually made me pumped up for next season even though it's more than 9 months away. Most characters finally got what they wanted, except for one glaring exception. In a break from tradition I'll highlight each character in this episode. Let's go!

-- Janaki Cedanna

Click Here for Full Review at TV Fodder.