Mad Men finally airs an episode that most of their fickle, impatient viewership could agree was “one of the good ones” (adding “about time”), filled with revealing character details and nicely shifting interpersonal dynamics and what happens? The Internet runs it through its decontextualization machine and reduces Jon Hamm’s Don Draper to a funny little puppet show meme for us all to play with. I don’t normally say this, Internet, but this week — you’re lame. And TV — I can hardly bring myself to say it — TV wins.
Tell me why it can’t be both things? It was a fantastic episode, no doubt. It’s about time we saw a little hubris. But look at his face, Danforth. Look at his face.
Look, all I’m saying (and I speak for Danforth because he keeps me on retainer for such purposes) is if you’re going to pick one of the highlights of recent television to decontextualize (Danforth’s word), make it funnier. That’s it. Be funnier, Internet. Because this shit was not funnier, it was lazier. Sad Draper was an unfunny branch off a slightly more funny tree (Sad Keanu), and Sad Keanu was mostly funny because it was an unplanned moment captured by an uninvited photographer, made clever in its recontextualizing. Duh.
But this? HAHA LOOK AT THE HANDSOME ACTOR MAN PRETENDING TO BE ALL SAD ON MY TV AND MAKING FUNNY CRYBABY FACE. OOH NOW LOOK AT HIM, HE’S CRYING NEXT TO A DINOSAUR. THERE’S A DINOSAUR RIGHT THERE! LOOK OUT FOR THE DINOSAUR, FAGGOT! OOH NOW LOOK AT HIM HE’S CRYING WITH A GUY FROM THE NEWS. AHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAGLORPGLORPGLORPBURP.
