When the first episode of “Mad Men’s” final season premiered on April 13, 2014, fans were glued to their TVs, or at least the ones who didn’t DVR the show or later stream it online. The anticipation as to what would happen to the protagonist Donald Draper’s career and messy personal life had everyone anxiously waiting for the new season.
“I was really excited to watch the first episode, but I thought it was too long. I was disappointed,” Carmen Lopez, senior, said. “I still have yet to watch any other episode from this season.”
Lopez isn’t the only one who has had doubts about the award winning show. While the premiere had 2.3 million viewers tuning in, that number is down 30 percent from the season six premiere. This decline in viewers has unfortunately continued for the remainder of the season. Throughout this final season, fans have watched as Don Draper, played by Jon Hamm, has struggled to get his career back in order after a falling out at the end of last season, which left Don on a leave of absence from Sterling Cooper and with a bottle of his trademark whiskey permanently glued to his hand.
Much to viewers’ delight, this season Draper finds himself back working at Sterling Cooper, but this time, he reports to Peggy Olson, played by Elizabeth Moss, who Don himself hired and molded into the first female copy writer at the agency.
The AMC network decided that this final season will be split into two parts, which is similar to the way “Breaking Bad” finished its run. “Mad Men’s” creator, writer and producer Matthew Weiner said, “The break (between episodes) will allow audiences more time to process.”
The show’s first finale took place Memorial Day weekend and received one of its lowest viewership to date, as 1.9 million viewers watched the first moon landing take place and major changes happen at Sterling Cooper.
“I thought it was really cool to see the moon landing through the show,” Kimberly Denne, senior, said. “It made me feel a sense of what it was like to be able to actually witness it live.”
But don’t worry, “Mad Men” fans. The show will be back with another series of episodes before its time to say goodbye to your favorite Madison Avenue executives. The last part of this final season is set to air in the spring of 2015.