Ranking the Top 10 Mad Men Season 1 Characters
Ever since the beginning, Mad Men was a show filled with rich characterization and fantastic performances. And even though everyone in the ensemble is a horrible person, we still love the Sterling Cooper gang no matter what. Here are the definitive Top 10 Mad Men Season 1 characters:
10. Joan Holloway
Joan Holloway is the most buxom TV character since Jessica Rabbit. She knows how to use her beauty to her advantage, and so does Mad Men itself for that matter. She’s the embodiment of the show’s seductive style.
9. Freddy Rumsen
Everyone loves alcoholic copywriters! Despite being the biggest boozer at the office, Freddy is one of Sterling Cooper’s most upstanding employees. He’s also the first one to notice Peggy’s talent for writing.
8. Trudy Campbell
Despite only appearing in a few episodes, Trudy Campbell is the nicest, sweetest and most respectable character in all of Mad Men. It truly sucks that she’s married to Pete Campbell. And she’s actually in love with the guy, too. A thing like that.
7. Betty Draper
For the first eight episodes of the series, Betty Draper was boring as hell. But then she killed a bunch of pigeons and became one of Mad Men’s more interesting characters. Negative points for her weird relationship with the nine-year-old next door, however.
6. Peter Campbell
First time watching Mad Men, I absolutely despised Pete Campbell. Now that I’m on my third rewatch, I can still see why I ended up liking him so much by the end — even though he’s the closest thing we have to a villain in season one. You might hate him now, but he’s also the character you love to hate.
5. Rachel Menken
Rachel was too good for Don. She finally realized it and immediately ended their rapturous affair. Even though her storyline was given an abrupt and unceremonious conclusion, Rachel still remains one of the most noble characters in Mad Men history (and the most desirable of all the ‘Don girls’).
4. Peggy Olson
The series premiere shows Peggy’s first day of work as Don’s new secretary. In the season finale, she’s promoted to junior copywriter. Peggy is often the smartest and hardest-working employee at Sterling Cooper. But outside of the office, she’s one of the dumbest: a questionable affair with Pete Campbell leads to an unexpected delivery nine months later.
3. Roger Sterling
Roger Sterling is a smooth-talking ad man that loves to fuck, drink and smoke — so basically Don Draper but richer and older. He’s also more at peace with who he is, especially after he suffers two heart attacks and a near-death experience. He’s also Mad Men‘s funniest character.
2. Bertram Cooper
Simply put, Bert Cooper is badass. He’s the Madison Avenue version of Yoda, Gandalf and Dumbledore — a wise old CEO that possesses infinite knowledge. Even though he doesn’t appear too often, he always makes the most of his screen time.
1. Donald Draper (a.k.a. Dick Whitman)
Women want him, and men want to be him (and vice versa). That’s because Don Draper’s appeal is universal. He’s not just an advertising executive; he’s a way of life. Even though he accidentally killed his sergeant in the Korean War and stole his identity by prying away the dog tag from his charred corpse, Don easily takes the top spot in these rankings — and it isn’t particularly close.