The highly anticipated 4K restoration of the award-winning drama Mad Men has hit a snag on HBO Max, with eagle-eyed viewers spotting a series of bizarre technical mistakes that have left fans both amused and bewildered.
Visible Crew and Jumbled Episodes Mar Prestige Launch
Since the sleek new transfer began streaming on the recently rebranded platform, subscribers have reported multiple errors. The most glaring is a post-production gaffe in the first-season episode Red in the Face, where two crew members operating a fake vomit machine are clearly visible in the frame. The scene depicts Roger Sterling, played by John Slattery, becoming unwell after a boozy lunch.
Fans quickly took to social media to share their disbelief. "How is a mistake like that even possible lmao," one Reddit user commented. On X, formerly Twitter, another viewer confirmed they had to check the original broadcast to verify the error. The mistake is believed to stem from the 4K remaster process, which often requires redoing certain digital edits, such as removing crew members for the new aspect ratio—a step apparently missed here.
A History of High-Profile Streaming Goofs
This is not the first time HBO has faced viral attention over a production error preserved in a streaming version. In 2019, during the final season of Game of Thrones, a modern coffee cup was spotted on a table during a Winterfell feast scene, creating an internet sensation. HBO later digitally removed the anachronistic prop.
The issues with Mad Men extend beyond the single visual blunder. The Guardian identified that several episodes in the first season are mislabelled and play out of sequence on HBO Max. For instance, a viewer watching consecutively would see the fourth episode, then the seventh, followed by the fifth and sixth, disrupting the narrative flow.
From HBO Rejection to Emmy-Winning Legacy
Created by Matthew Weiner, Mad Men originally found its home on AMC after being passed over by HBO, where Weiner had previously worked on The Sopranos. The series, starring Jon Hamm as advertising executive Don Draper and Elisabeth Moss as Peggy Olson, ran from 2007 to 2015, winning 16 Emmy Awards, including four consecutive wins for Outstanding Drama.
The show's entire seven-season run, featuring a celebrated cast including Vincent Kartheiser, January Jones, and Christina Hendricks, remains available on AMC+, though not in 4K. The new, albeit flawed, restored version arrived on HBO Max via a licensing deal with Lionsgate TV, introducing the iconic series to a new generation of viewers—technical hiccups and all.
