What’s so good about Mad Men? It does better than any show I’ve ever seen when it comes to capturing the feel of a past time (in this case, the “past time” is 1960’s New York).

Mad Men follows the lives of Madison Ave ad execs and their glamorous/tumultuous lives. I don’t know, because I didn’t work in advertising in the 1960s (I didn’t even exist in the 1960’s), but it seems that the details of the show are quite authentic. It is shot using film; a detail that adds to the “this is taking place in the past” feel. In this long gone age, everyone smokes, and smokes, and smokes. Wasn’t the 1960’s the time when everyone thought cigarettes made you look smart.

The titular mad men, led by Creative Director Don Draper, live dramatic lives. There’s plenty of womanizing, backstabbing, drinking, smoking, and more smoking. Draper’s own shady past (let’s just say he isn’t who he says he is) gives us a glimpse into his complex psyche. So there is good narrative, skilled characterization, and a sense of fun that goes along with the period details.

The best thing about Mad Men? It’s set in the 60s, which is supposed to be a time when the morals of America loosened. This idea is evident in the show, but so is the idea that morals were always loose, certain things were just hidden and not often talked about.

AMC has renewed Mad Men for another season, which is slated to begin sometime this summer..