The Mad Men Season 7 premiere is less than a month away. This is not a drill. We’ve already seen the first teaser and the trippy-ass poster and everything. And now you can add “uh… more airplane stuff!” to that list, because AMC has just released the gallery images for the final season. This is where’d I’d usually type “BUT WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN????” in all caps (and maybe bold, too), but Matthew Weiner was double-timing it to run my fun this time, and confirmed that the extent of the meaning is basically “Hey, look at these pretty people doing old-timey stuff!”
I’ll be honest, the gallery shoot that goes before the show, we’ve done it every season and it really is a bit abstract and intended to whet your appetite for the world of the show and remind you how incredibly glamorous these people are. And to set the tone for the environment we create on the show. I don’t know if they’re telling much of a story. All of those actors are still on the show. To me, part of this is saying, there’s an aspect of the world that has not changed. Which is, here’s our cast and this is a very glamorous environment that is no longer so.
Ugh, fine. I won’t speculate. But you can’t stop me from doing something equally stupid, like, say, RANKING THEM FROM WORST TO BEST. HERE GOES!
MEGAN: I’ll miss you, Don. Have fun in California. And when you get back, I think we should talk. Can we talk? We don’t talk anymore. Don? Are you listening to me? It’s hard to talk to you when you don’t listen. Why don’t you listen? Why can’t we talk? Let’s talk, okay?
DON: [continues silently staring at a child holding a balloon and having vivid flashbacks about war or hookers or something]
I like this picture because it makes it look like Don and Peggy are spies in the middle of a secret rendezvous that will end with them picking up each other’s bags and boarding planes headed in opposite directions.
ROGER STERLING: Yes, is that my gin? Oh, good, great. What kind of gin do you got on this flying tin can, anyway? Ah, listen, I’m just kidding. Roger Sterling. Pleased to meet you. That’s quite a dress you’ve there. Two more of these and I might try to talk you out of it. Hey, what can I say? I like what I see. Anyway, here’s $100. Keep ’em coming. And send one to the pilot, too. What?! I’m kidding again. Geez, you’d think she’d never heard a pilot joke before, right Don? Don?
DON DRAPER: [continues silently staring at beverage cart, which is also giving him vivid flashbacks about war or hookers or something]