On this week’s Mad Men Men, we unpack "At the Codfish Ball." The episode centers on dinners, children, in-laws, and professional wins. More importantly, it asks what growing up really means. Usually, it means learning how badly adults can disappoint you.

We talk about Megan as her own person, not just Don’s fantasy. We also explore how the episode uses her family to sharpen that point. Her father resents Don for political and personal reasons. Her mother reads everyone in seconds and acts on it. And Don, for once, feels like a stranger in his own home.

Meanwhile, Peggy sees what success looks like when someone else gets it first. Then Roger treats spiritual enlightenment like a new sport coat. And Sally gets one of the show’s best storylines. She starts to see that adulthood does not mean sophistication. Instead, it means mess, compromise, and contamination.

Along the way, we dig into the Heinz beans pitch. We also talk about the sadness of professional validation. Then we get into Roger’s post-LSD self-regard and the comic horror of Glenn. Finally, we explain why this episode feels quieter than "Far Away Places" but hits just as hard. Every social ritual strips away a little more innocence.

Of course, because this is our show, we also wander into spaghetti, French accents, bean advertising, and Roger Sterling discourse.

If you’re new here, Mad Men Men covers Mad Men from three angles. First, we have a first-time watcher. Then, we have a first-time rewatcher. Finally, we have one man who turned Don Draper into a weekly podcast problem.

EXTRA CREDITS

Matthew Weiner created Mad Men, which aired on AMC from 2007 to 2015. The show stars Jon Hamm, January Jones, Elisabeth Moss, Vincent Kartheiser, Christina Hendricks, John Slattery, Robert Morse, and many more. Our intro music is "Mad Men Men" by Tom Davidson, which is an original remix of the show’s opening theme "A Beautiful Mine" by RJD2. Podcast illustration is by Jon Negroni. Our podcast hosts include Jon Negroni (Podcast Editor of InBetweenDrafts), Will Ashton (cohost of the Cinemaholics podcast), and Michael Overhulse (a guy who’s addicted to working at startups).

We’ll be back soon to discuss Season 5 Episode 8, titled "Lady Lazarus." Subscribe to Mad Men Men on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, or wherever else podcasts are, ahem, advertised.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

“Far Away Places” is one of those Mad Men episodes where the show quietly changes shape. This week on Mad Men Men, we dig into that Season 5 standout. First, the episode fractures a single day into three interlocking stories. Then, it follows Peggy, Roger, and Don as each tries to escape a life that feels unbearable.

Meanwhile, Peggy chases professional authority and confronts how lonely ambition can feel. Roger drops acid and stumbles into one of the series’ clearest emotional revelations. At the same time, Don takes a spontaneous trip with Megan. Yet again, he learns that fantasy is easy to build and nearly impossible to inhabit.

Along the way, we explore why this might be Mad Men at its most novelistic. We also talk about why the experimentation never feels gimmicky. Instead, it deepens everything. And likewise, the episode’s mirrors, doubling, and displacement turn three plots into variations on one theme.

There’s also room for what our show does best. Yes, we riff on orange sherbet, bad intros, and Howard Johnson’s as a site of psychic collapse. And then we talk about the strange relief of realizing your life has become untenable.

If you’re new here, Mad Men Men recaps Mad Men through three perspectives. First, we have our first-time viewer. Then there’s our first-time rewatcher. Finally, there’s the guy who has to podcast about everything instead of going to therapy.

EXTRA CREDITS

Matthew Weiner created Mad Men, which aired on AMC from 2007 to 2015. The show stars Jon Hamm, January Jones, Elisabeth Moss, Vincent Kartheiser, Christina Hendricks, John Slattery, Robert Morse, and many more. Our intro music is “Mad Men Men” by Tom Davidson, which is an original remix of the show’s opening theme “A Beautiful Mine” by RJD2. Podcast illustration is by Jon Negroni. Our podcast hosts include Jon Negroni (Podcast Editor of InBetweenDrafts), Will Ashton (cohost of the Cinemaholics podcast), and Michael Overhulse (a guy who’s addicted to working at startups).

We’ll be back soon to discuss Season 5 Episode 7, titled “At the Codfish Ball.” Subscribe to Mad Men Men on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, or wherever else podcasts are, ahem, advertised.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Pete Campbell takes the wheel and crashes straight into an existential pileup in one of Mad Men’s sharpest, saddest hours. On this episode of Mad Men Men, Jon Negroni, Will Ashton, and Mike Overhulse unpack Season 5, Episode 5, “Signal 30,” directed by John Slattery and co-written by Matthew Weiner and Frank Pierson (Dog Day Afternoon). We break down Pete’s slow-motion unraveling, the infamous office fight, and what Ken’s sci-fi side hustle really says about corporate life.

In case you’re new here, Mad Men Men recaps Mad Men through the perspectives of three different types of viewers: a first-timer, a first-time rewatcher, and someone who thought the best way to deal with their feelings about Don Draper was to start a podcast.

EXTRA CREDITS

Matthew Weiner created Mad Men, which aired on AMC from 2007 to 2015. The show stars Jon Hamm, January Jones, Elisabeth Moss, Vincent Kartheiser, Christina Hendricks, John Slattery, Robert Morse, and many more. Our intro music is “Mad Men Men” by Tom Davidson, which is an original remix of the show’s opening theme “A Beautiful Mine” by RJD2. Podcast illustration is by Jon Negroni. Our podcast hosts include Jon Negroni (Podcast Editor of InBetweenDrafts), Will Ashton (cohost of the Cinemaholics podcast), and Michael Overhulse (a guy who’s addicted to working at startups).

We’ll be back soon to discuss Season 5 Episode 6, titled “Far Away Places.” Subscribe to Mad Men Men on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, or wherever else podcasts are, ahem, advertised.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.