You know when you watch or read or see something, and you just can’t stop thinking about it? That’s how I feel about Mad Men in general, and one plot line specifically.
There’s a subplot in season 5 (spoilers, I guess? The episode aired in 2012, so if you haven’t seen it by now, not really my problem?) in which Joan is coerced into doing something she doesn’t want to do because of her loyalty to the company and also because she feels like the people she cares about have betrayed her. Just when you think she backed out at the last minute and Don comes to tell her not to do it (and Joan plays it off like she didn’t), you find out she’s already done it. So her helplessness is replaced by the feelings of care and concern from Don and also disgust with herself. Yeah, she gets some power within the company for having it done it, but at the cost of her dignity – and she did it for people she loves who care more about money than her when it comes down to it. And she is the only one who has to live with the reality of what happened – she’ll never tell anyone else.
This storyline has haunted me ever since. I think about it all the time.
So what is it about a show that sticks with you? Is it the plot, the acting, the “heart,” some combination of all three? I find that, while good shows have these characteristics, it’s often more due to an undefinable quality that has nothing to do with plot or setting that makes a show stick with you. It’s some quality that is intensely relevant to you, maybe for reasons you can’t really put your finger on. These aren’t even necessarily shows that you want to watch over and over – maybe once was enough. Or it might be your favorite show ever. Either way, they don’t leave you alone.
Here are the shows that have stuck with me (in no particular order):
- Mad Men – Watch for the costume and set design, stay for the human drama.
- Gilmore Girls – A tried and true favorite. Never gets old. #teamjess
- Buffy the Vampire Slayer – Much digital ink has been spilled about Buffy, feminism, its effect on popular culture. It’s all true.
- Twin Peaks – I’ve seen the first season probably 5 times, and every time I watch I notice and consider something different. Especially in light of Twin Peaks: The Return, which aired in 2017.
- Broadchurch – This is frightening because it really could happen to anyone.
- American Horror Story – Specifically, the first season Murder House. Each season follows a different story, time, and setting (show theories postulate that all seasons take place in the same universe). But the first season really stands out because the plot is so tight, and the big twist was totally unexpected. It’s creepy and weird, and I still think about it.
- My So-Called Life – One of those shows, like Firefly, cancelled before its time. Although it only lasted one season (and I didn’t watch it until I was an adult), My So-Called Life tackled many contemporary issues, including having one of the first queer characters who is totally normal.
- Shameless – Arguably the best show on TV right now (I’m not sure anyone is arguing this except me). This dramedy follows a family from Chicago’s south side. They are poor, marginalized, and just trying to get by with a little help from their friends. I think it really highlights the barriers to getting out of poverty and how systems are designed to keep people where they are, without being preachy and while showing that people do what they have to do to survive.
What shows have stuck with you?
pieces of paper (cranes & airplanes) 