AMC
Tuned In+Television | May 30, 2012

Mad Men Character Study: Cleopatra Joan

By James Poniewozik

Joan Harris was manipulated, played false and used on Sunday night. Not just by the men in her life, but by Mad Men itself.

+TV Recap Mad Men: Season 5, Episode 11 | May 28, 2012

Mad Men Watch: Dirty Business

By Nate Rawlings
Courtesy of AMC

Megan moves forward, Peggy moves on, and Joan moves up. This week’s episode proves anyone can be bought for the right price.

+TV Recap Mad Men: Season 5, Episode 10 | May 21, 2012

Mad Men Watch: Lane, Joan and Harry Dance the "Christmas Waltz"

By Nate Rawlings
Jordin Althaus/AMC

Kinsey returns, Don and Joan take a drive, and Lane screws up royally. This week’s episode had us forging checks in the dark.

Tuned In
Tuned In+Television | May 16, 2012

Mad Men Character Study: Sympathy for Betty

By James Poniewozik
Jordin Althaus/AMC

Sue me, but I like Betty Draper/Francis as a character. The problem is that Mad Men doesn’t. Betty’s not the worst character on the show, but she’s probably the worst-served.

+TV Recap Mad Men: Season 5, Episode 9 | May 14, 2012

Mad Men Watch: Eating and Competing

By Nate Rawlings
AMC

Betty weighs in, Don asserts control and Sally finds out the truth about her parents. This week’s episode was like a Sno Ball to the face.

Tuned In
Tuned In+Tuned In | May 10, 2012

Dead Tree Alert: Mad Men—Now in Color!

By James Poniewozik
Michael Yarish/AMC

My column in this week’s print TIME (subscription required) is a midseason update on Mad Men. In it, I look at how the show’s (literally) brighter, bolder 1966 color palette reflects (figuratively) the less subtle times it’s dealing with as well as the show’s bolder, more formally daring–and sometimes also less-subtle–storytelling this season. The show, [...]

+TV Recap Mad Men: Season 5, Episode 8 | May 7, 2012

Mad Men Watch: Phone Booths and Lies

By Nate Rawlings
AMC

Megan calls it quits, Pete has a fling and Don tries to recreate the magic with Peggy. This week’s episode had us staring into the abyss.

Tuned In
Tuned In+Television | May 2, 2012

Mad Men Character Study: The Education of Sally Draper

By James Poniewozik
Michael Yarish/AMC

Is it possible that Sally Draper is the secret protagonist of Mad Men?

+Television | April 30, 2012

Megan Draper and TV’s Best Female Characters: TIME Gives the Bechdel Test

By Stephanie Abrahams
COLLEEN HAYES / ABC (2)

How are women faring on television these days? We use Alison Bechdel’s famous litmus test to see.

+TV Recap Mad Men: Season 5, Episode 7 | April 30, 2012

Mad Men Watch: Daughters' Disappointments

By Nate Rawlings
Ron Jaffe/AMC

Megan scores, Peggy shacks up and Sally sees the dirty city. This week’s episode had us experiencing our first time again.

+TV Recap Mad Men: Season 5, Episode 6 | April 23, 2012

Mad Men Watch: Three Bad Trips

By Nate Rawlings
Jordin Althaus/AMC

One marriage is over, another is on the skids and someone gets lucky in a matinee. This week’s episode had us driving off from Howard Johnson’s in a huff.

+TV Recap Mad Men: Season 5, Episode 5 | April 16, 2012

Mad Men Watch: Domesticity and its Discontents

By Nate Rawlings
Michael Yarish/AMC

Pete goes back to high school, Don plays a superhero in plaid and Ken still has the habit. This week’s episode had us dodging fists in the conference room.

+TV Recap Mad Men: Season 5, Episode 4 | April 9, 2012

Mad Men Watch: A Dark Turn to the Uncertain Future

By Nate Rawlings
Frank Ockenfels / AMC

Don fights his past, Joan sleeps next to a new man and Peggy does it for the money. This week’s episode had us hiding under the bed.

+TV Recap Mad Men: Season 5, Episode 3 | April 2, 2012

Mad Men Watch: Time Is (Not) on Their Side

By Nate Rawlings
Michael Yarish/AMC

Betty returns bigger than ever, Don psychoanalyzes Stones fans and SCDP continues to diversify. This week’s episode gives us the munchies.

+Music | March 28, 2012

The ‘Zou Bisou Bisou’ Revue: Foreign-Language Songs on U.S. Pop Charts

By Joseph McCombs
Reg Lancaster / Getty Images

Megan Draper’s ditty may be heating up on iTunes, but here are 10 hits that already had us humming.

+Video Recommendations | March 27, 2012

If You Like “Zou Bisou Bisou,” Try Pink Martini’s “Sympathique”

By Katy Steinmetz

If you’re still wandering around the office in a bouncy, burlesque-inspired daze, contemplating the je ne sais quoi that made Jessica Paré’s rendition of “Zou Bisou Bisou” so lusciously haunting during the Mad Men premiere, this might be just the song for you.

+Television | March 26, 2012

Mad Men Stuck in Your Head

By Nate Rawlings
Ron Jaffe / AMC

Jessica Paré, who plays Megan Draper, talks “Zou Bisou Bisou.”

Tuned In
Tuned In+Television | March 26, 2012

Mad Men's Return: Surprise!

By James Poniewozik
Michael Yarish/AMC

The return of Mad Men used Megan to shake up the show’s dynamic, and let us see familiar characters through fresh eyes.

+TV Recap Mad Men: Season 5, Episode 1 | March 26, 2012

Mad Men: "All You Get to Do Is Watch"

By Nate Rawlings
Frank Ockenfels/AMC

The season five two-hour premiere finds our friends at Sterling Cooper tackling babies, race relations — and one soiled white carpet.

Tuned In
Tuned In+Television | March 23, 2012

TV Weekend: Mad Men Returns, A Nation’s DVRs Feel the Strain

By James Poniewozik
Frank Ockenfels/AMC

Once upon a time, Sunday was a nice evening to relax and take in a good show or two before the work week began. Now it’s more like a job in itself, even if you don’t watch TV for a living.