The End Of An Era

This Sunday the iconic AMC show that took viewers inside a New York advertising agency in the early 1960’s and 1970’s comes to an end after seven seasons.

Several of the characters are at a crossroads going into the season finale after being acquired by high-powered McCann Erikson.

Many of us are eager to know what will become of the infamous Don Draper.

The story of Don Draper required a lot of patience from viewers. For one thing, Don has trouble communicating. He never fails at turning oratorical skills on when faced with a potential client or advertising pitch. But with his family, lovers and co-workers he finds himself faced with a physical and mental barrier preventing him from expressing his feelings and thoughts. He is often short on words and maddened.

One of the best things about this engaging period drama is the creator’s, Matthew Weiner, ability to portray such a fine attention to detail.  Although Don is often at a loss for words, the surrounding details give us insight into a much deeper narrative.

To some audiences, this is frustrating; the man seems inexplicable. But in all truth, Weiner’s use of silence as a narrative tool is absolutely genius. Those moments of silence are filled with rigorous non-verbal clues to help us better understand the narrative and solve the perplexing question, “What is going on inside Don Draper’s mind?”

There has been much deliberation surrounding the build-up to Mad Men’s series finale. The “end of an era” is sure to elicit strong reactions and will most likely leave us with lingering thoughts in the mind.

In the end it doesn’t really matter how Mad Men concludes. The show is already a nostalgic legacy in itself.

Alexa Miller is an Account Coordinator at Flackable, LLC, a national public relations agency supporting the communications needs of registered investment advisors (RIAs) and other forward-thinking financial services firms. To learn more about Flackable, please visit www.flackable.com.