Review: Mad Men
4 stars
After nearly a year and a half, America’s most mesmerizing advertising agency has returned to television. The two-hour opening episode of the fifth season of “Mad Men” premiered March 25 at 9 p.m. on AMC. With more than a year between seasons four and five, the ad agency, Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce, has progressed significantly from where it was in the final episode of season four. Jon Hamm has returned as the mysterious, yet charming Donald Draper. He is now a newlywed, and he and his three children share a unique and almost uncomfortable relationship with his new wife, Megan (Jessica Paré). The other three partners at the agency—Roger Sterling (John Slattery), Bertram Cooper (Robert Morse) and Lane Pryce (Jared Harris) also encounter personal issues that interfere with their work. “Mad Men” is known for its cunning portrayal of misogyny, and even racism, in the workplace. However, the season five premiere, set in 1965, suggests that changes are coming.
