I knew this was going to happen. For all the rumblings about next year being the final season, there was enough uncertainty over it that I had a feeling they would pull something different and sure enough, here's the twist: Mad Men's last season will be 14 episodes split into two parts, according to the LA Times. The first 7 episodes will air in Spring 2014, to be titled "The Beginning," and the last 7 will air the following spring, in 2015 and be called "The End of an Era."
Of course, this a response to the success of Breaking Bad's final season, which has brought them their biggest ratings ever this year, and the president of AMC, Charlie Collier, says they're "determined to give Mad Men a similar showcase." For his part, creator Matthew Weiner is on board with it as well, saying, "We plan to take advantage of this chance to have a more elaborate story told in two parts, which can resonate a little bit longer in the minds of our audience."
I'm pretty sure Breaking Bad's last season split in two parts was a result of contract issues and had nothing to do with the storytelling, but I guess the 102% ratings spike has kicked off a trend. To be honest, I seriously doubt Mad Men can pull off a similar feat in the ratings, as it's pulled in close to the same number of viewers for about 7 years now, and it's not really the kind of show you feel the urgency to "catch up on" through bingewatching, but I guess we'll see how this goes. It seems totally unnecessary to me though. Everyone will know it's Mad Men's last season, no matter if it airs all at once or not.
