I was a fan of 'Mad Men.' I wouldn't say I was raving over it, but I appreciated how it depicted an era and conveyed a certain perspective from that era.
But it wasn't until Tom and Lorenzo's insightful costume analysis ,which gave us costuming as storytelling, that I began to really *watch* the show and digest the story that Janie Bryant was telling (which, to me, often was the most compelling).
That's when I began to really notice how costuming (and lighting, sound, perspectives, angles, music, and really every element in the medium) could add richness and depth to a story, persuasion as well as counterpoint.
Also, Randall is wearing a black and white plaid shirt. An obvious reflection of his life, but perhaps also of the mindset he's in as William's death approaches. It's time for action. Fish or cut bait. Poop or get off the pot. Speak your mind. Take the road trip. Adopt.
Green showed up multiple times to signal family bonds. Maybe like growth of a family tree.
And doing it in that black and white plaid.
Beth is a rainbow of balloons that went free.
The colors she wore echoed the colors of the paper chain most closely, but also of the balloons accidentally set free by Kate. She links the family together in so many ways.
Hamlet with the last word on death.
And a green vest that ties the love of a family together.