Although the Mad Men storyline isn't dependent on shock value as much as other popular TV shows, this season has been kicking it up with amputated nipples and drunken meltdowns. All of this madness seems to be building up to a full-blown breakdown, and we think Don Draper's going to end it on his own terms before the times a-change too much for him.
Here's why. Also, yes, this is full of spoilers.
See also: Mad Men: Five Academic Theories Explaining Life at SCDP
5. Don Draper's general downward spiral
For a man with unreasonable amounts of pride, Draper's new submissive role in the office is a lot to handle. His drinking has gotten out of control, and he looks sad all of the time. He's also beginning to feel a little obsolete, though the computer is just a small part of it. None of that lends to a particularly healthy frame of mind.
Even before all of this, Don's time in Hawaii was consumed with deadly imagery. His tagline for the Hawaiian hotel? "The jumping off point." His book of choice on vacation? Dante's Inferno.
4. Jon Hamm's reactions in this Seth Meyers interview
Bear with us on this one, but Hamm's reactions to Meyers' questions about how the series will end just seemed a little fishy. Finding "some sort of peace"? Yeah, we bet it's by jumping out of a window.
3. He took over Lane Pryce's office.
They made it a point to really make sure you knew whose office Don was moving into once he (kind of) got his job back. It was Lane Pryce's. You know, that guy that tried to kill himself once and actually did kill himself the second time in that exact office. The series as a whole has a love of cycles and repetition of themes, so the office just might strike again.
2. This guy in the opening credits
We really don't have to say more. Some people say the falling man just symbolizes Don losing touch, but it also just feels like one of those funny little things that'll smack you in the face if Don really does off himself in the end. After all, we've all watched him do it a million times.
1. Matthew Weiner's been saying all along that it wouldn't happen.
Although show creator Matthew Weiner said that's totally not going to happen in an interview in 2011, like any good conspiracy theory, we think that's exactly what he would say if he planned on killing Don off. And, hey, even if Don does live to be an old man, it doesn't mean he can't kill himself then.
