Exciting 'Mad Men' Season nears its end

After a well-crafted and moving episode set against the assassination of John F. Kennedy, the best drama on television ends its third season on Sunday.

"Mad Men" wraps up at 10 p.m. Sunday on AMC with "Shut the Door. Have a Seat," which may give fans a cliffhanger or two to mull over until the fourth season begins next summer.

But it will be hard to top this past episode, which recalled the shocking murder of Kennedy on Nov. 22, 1963, a day when the whole country came to a halt.

Using actual TV news footage from that day, the episode captured the way Americans were caught up in the tragedy.

The death of this popular president became a backdrop for the shock, grief and turmoil in the characters' personal lives.

Set in the 1960s, "Mad Men" nails the angst of that decade as no other series has. Even those who were not around to experience the initial shock and the shared grief got an idea of what it was like from the episode.

And just as Kennedy's death signaled the end of Camelot, lead protagonist Don Draper (Jon Hamm) is facing the end of his own Camelot.

His wife, Betty (January Jones), has discovered he has been lying about his identity. She tells him she doesn't love him anymore. Another man is interested in her. The usually cool, dispassionate Don is devastated, even though he has cheated on her numerous times.

The title of the episode, "The Grown-Ups," refers to the Kennedy assassination causing people to grow up and grow out of the roles that defined men and women in the 1950s.

Change is about to sweep the country. Social, political and culture changes are coming.

Changes also are coming for the characters that populate the Madison Avenue offices of Sterling Cooper. How will the season end? AMC offers few clues: Don has a pivotal meeting with his client Connie Hilton (Chelcie Ross). Betty, who may leave Don, gets some intriguing advice. Pete Campbell (Vincent Kartheiser), who may leave Sterling Cooper, has a serious meeting with his clients.

TAKE NO PRISONER

AMC has a hit in "Mad Men" but the upcoming Nov. 15-17 miniseries "The Prisoner" is a dud.

After wading through all six hours, I came away with a headache. This has got to be one the biggest disappointments of the TV season so far.

Tedious, confusing, disjointed and often incomprehensible, "The Prisoner" is a murky, pretentious retelling of a great 1967 classic that was created by and starred actor Patrick McGoohan.

McGoohan plays a British spy who resigns, is kidnapped and is taken to a mysterious island to live in The Village with other ex-spies. Instead of a name, he is called Number Six. No one on the island can leave. They are under constant surveillance. All are supposed to accept their fate and live in harmony under the rule of Number Two. But crafty Number Six refuses to obey as he plays a series of mind games with Number Two while trying to escape.

In the retelling, Jim Caviezel plays Six as a confused, whiny guy who keeps losing his grip on reality. Instead of an island, this village is in a desert where surreal events take place often without explanation.