Spoilers, obviously…
Mad Men
came to a close last night, and the long-anticipated Don Draper death did not happen. I suspected it wouldn’t happen, since it was so long anticipated. There’s something satisfying about predictability, but it’s also so boring.
A good story ending will be unexpected, yet inevitable. It’s hard to pull off.
In the Mad Men finale, Don flames out at his hippie retreat when he hits bottom while confessing to Peggy on the phone. His life has been a lie and a waste. He’s squandered his talent, or so he thinks in his darkest moment.
Then he has a moment of realization while listening to Plain Sweater Guy’s story about the refrigerator and wanting someone to notice him… I’m not exactly sure what Don took from that.
Maybe he realized that he’s been seeking approval and recognition his whole life, and putting that responsibility in the hands of others is the cause of his misery? Maybe he realized that all his brilliance and hard work in advertising has all been nothing but a plea for attention?
Then, in our last shot, we get a smiling, oming Don sitting on a coastal mountain top. Then cut to one of the most famous commercials of all time. Buying the world a Coke.
Like Tony Soprano’s fade to black, the question is: did Don make this commercial?
Of course he did.
I think you could look at Don’s ending as either one with hope or despair. Assuming he made the Coke commercial, you could look at it as “Don made the ultimate commercial and fulfilled his destiny.” Or, you could look at it as “Don came so close to escaping that advertising pain-mill, only to get sucked back in at the very end.” That ambiguity makes for a good puzzler for after the credits roll.
I think it’s the second one. But also, it’s genius because it fulfills Don’s arc back in the pilot episode: he was trying to come up with the perfect ad campaign. And he finally did it.
You can see Don’s final arc in his wardrobe choices in the last few episodes. He leaves New York for his aimless road trip wearing a suit. As he gets further away from NY, his clothing relaxes.
By the time he’s in California, he’s wearing jeans and a flannel. Then, in the last shot, when he’s ready to go back… he’s wearing his white button down again.