Mad for Men

4, count 'em, 4 more days until Don Draper graces the small screen for the second season of Mad Men! I can hardly contain myself. OK, so maybe only my screen is small. We are those technology laggards without a movie screen-size flat screen taking up a whole wall in the family room. But, oh, do I covet one! So far Santa's elves have not been listening. Ahem.

Don Draper looks absolutely grand in a hat (Who's going to bring back this fashion?!), and his wife, the lovely Betty Draper, makes suburban angst look downright stylish. John Slattery is hotter than ever; he epitomizes a sexy gray haired gent. That facial structure is the stuff that day dreams are made of, with whipped cream and a dollop of hotness on top. Ooh la la! Many of the mad men make my heart go aflutter. Don Draper looks unlike anyone I've ever worked for in an ad agency; he is divine. I can't wait to see what devilish Pete Campbell conjures up this season. And what's to come of Peggy and her baby?! The illegimate one!

If you have missed out on AMC's new series Mad Men, you must run, RUN I tell you, to get the DVDs to get up to speed. The whole show is eye candy; not just the actors, the way it's shot is gorgeous. Amazing cinematography, set design, and costumes. Oh, the clothes are to die for! Why is that all the outfits in 1960 cinched in a woman's waist just so? Surely they didn;t really have a 17-inch Audrey-esqu waist. The kitten heels, dainty handbags, and flouncy skirts are fab.

Smoking cigarettes is indeed one of the main characters, and the smoke adds a lovely ethereal element to the screen shots. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I am totally against smoking. I abhor it. But it makes a big bang in Mad Men.

Mad Men is clever, intriguing, provocative, enchanting. It depicts a genuine example of the work force in 1961 and does an even better job showing us how much life must have sucked for women back then. Martinis and crystal decanters at the office. Sultry cigarette smoke galore. Redefining family values. Office politics. Seduction. Infidelity. Even if you never worked in an advertising agency or commuted to New York City, you won't regret spending an hour a week with Don Draper.