Hump: Mad Men loves a big reveal in the final moments of a season premiere (remember the end of the pilot where — surprise! — this successful ad exec who snuck off for a little afternoon delight with a bohemian gal is actually *gasp* married with a wife and kids in the burbs?), and the two-hour opener on Monday dropped another one on us. In the continuing saga of Matt Weiner’s favorite final exam question — “Is Don Draper a complex, sympathetic anti-hero? Discuss.” — we learned that our boy is back at it. That’s right, he’s sneaking off for quickies with a neighbor whose doctor husband is conveniently out all the time.
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And Sylvia Rosen isn’t just any bored wife seduced by the ol’ Draper charm; she’s Linda freaking Cardellini, who played Lindsay Weir on Freaks and Geeks. From James Franco and Jason Segel to Jon Hamm? Some people have all the luck — even if she is playing the other woman.
Marry: It is a travesty that ABC has relegated the delightful magic of Happy Endings to the Friday night TV graveyard. And, to add insult to injury, they’re burning them off two at a time, which makes each episode seem less special and unique. One of the eps that aired last Friday, however, was a total gem. In a send-up of Romeo and Juliet, Max starts sleeping with the son of a Brazilian man who owns a rival food truck to Dave’s Steak Me Home Tonight. In the end, true love (and by love, I mean casual hook-up) conquers all, though, and Adam Pally does some quality Notebook-style making out during an epic food fight.
Kill: Pro: She applied to MIT for Lip, and he got in with a full scholarship. Con: She mowed Karen down with a car and didn’t seem to care at all. Also: Her brother sent Ian running off to the Army for four years. Can we agree to ditch Mandy and the rest of the Milkovich family when Shameless comes back for season four?
Photo: Courtesy of Michael Yarish/AMC; Courtesy of Jordin Althaus/ABC; Courtesy of Chuck Hodes/Showtime.