Not sure if I buy into this completely, but in broad strokes, it speaks volumes. It tackles the question every die hard and casual Mad Men fan has been asking increasingly with each step closer to the end of the series: what will happen to Don Draper? I'm not saying this article has all the answers (although she does make some really compelling points, especially about the prevalence of airplanes throughout the series), but it has set my wheels to turning.
I think the key is when the author asks, "What makes someone do something like that?"
I think we all want to examine Don's past to find out where he ends up. The thing is that taking evidence from the past and looking forward creates a fantasy future, even though we have the capability to create more grounded reality as people who actually live in that future. Lately I've been more interested in thinking about people I know who lived through this era and where they've ended up. With this perspective, it isn't hard to imagine Don as a washed up, alcoholic old man living in some hideous wood paneled ranch house in Florida, lucky if he gets a phone call from his kids on Christmas.
I think we've all known people like this, probably as an acquaintance or awkward, out of touch family member. For me, at 21 years old, this is the most relevant way to think about Mad Men-- do I know these people? Is my grandmother Betty Draper? Did my mom date Bobby Draper? Is Megan my hippy lesbian neighbor?
I think this one of the most compelling things about the show. It's not a fairy tale, it isn't as fictional as we'd like to believe. The world Weiner and Co have produced is continuous with the one we live in, even if it's not contemporary.
I think it would be awesome if Don turned out to be a notorious hijacker who was never caught, indeed, who never really existed. However, I think the beauty of the series (while heartbreaking) is that nothing like that will ever happen to these characters.
The real question is, will we be satisfied with what does happen to them?
