← Mad Men Mad Men: The climb Pete Campbell wants in - to the partnership, the clients, the family name's worth, the life next door - and this is every episode where he gets nearer or further from it. A thread through an ensemble show, not a way to watch Mad Men - the series cross-cuts less than most, which is why this works at all, but you will be missing everything happening in the other offices. If this is your first time, take The Essentials instead.
For following Pete, or rewatching the show for him.
Open episode checklist ↓ The Essentials · 92 The speed run · 19 Out of the typing pool · 23 The account man · 21 Running the floor · 19 The house in Ossining · 19 The climb · 21 Path details & story map Episode lengths vary. Plan viewing days at your own pace →
Updated September 1, 2026
Where the story lives numbers below are seasons · hover any mark for the episode
The path Tick episodes off to track where you are. Future titles, stills and notes stay hidden until you reach them, unless you choose to reveal them.
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Hide what’s ahead of me Titles, stills and notes unlock as you tick episodes off Season 1 5 in the path
2 skipped
🔒 S01E03 Marriage of Figaro Reveal S01E03 details Back from honeymoon and already unable to want what he has. The engine of the character, running in episode three.
🔒 S01E04 New Amsterdam Reveal S01E04 details He goes over Don's head to a client using his family name, and finds out what that name is worth here.
2 skipped
🔒 S01E07 Red in the Face Reveal S01E07 details A wedding gift returned, a rifle bought instead, and a marriage neither of them is ready for.
3 skipped
🔒 S01E11 Indian Summer Reveal S01E11 details Frustrated at home and passed over at the office, in the same week.
🔒 S01E12 Nixon vs. Kennedy Reveal S01E12 details He plays the only card he has against Don, in front of the man who can least afford to care.
Season 2 4 in the path
5 skipped
🔒 S02E05 The New Girl Reveal S02E05 details A fertility specialist, and the first thing he has wanted that ambition cannot get him.
3 skipped
🔒 S02E09 Six Month Leave Reveal S02E09 details An opening at the office, seized with a speed that startles even the people who like him.
🔒 S02E10 The Inheritance Reveal S02E10 details His mother, the family money, and the discovery of what the Campbell name actually amounts to.
1 skipped
🔒 S02E12 The Mountain King Reveal S02E12 details His private life spills into a major account, and he is the only one surprised.
Season 3 4 in the path
1 skipped
🔒 S03E01 Out of Town Reveal S03E01 details A restructure hands him half of what he wanted and gives the other half to a friend.
6 skipped
🔒 S03E08 Souvenir Reveal S03E08 details A neighbour in his building, an evening alone in the city, and the worst thing he does in the first three seasons.
3 skipped
🔒 S03E12 The Grown-Ups Reveal S03E12 details A weekend of national grief, and a decision about his career made inside it.
🔒 S03E13 Shut the Door. Have a Seat. Reveal S03E13 details The new agency is assembled overnight, and he finds out where he ranks when the list is written.
Season 4 1 in the path
3 skipped
🔒 S04E04 The Rejected Reveal S04E04 details An edict from the partners forces a choice between a client and his own family's connections.
Season 5 2 in the path
13 skipped
🔒 S05E05 Signal 30 Reveal S05E05 details A dinner party in the suburbs, a dripping tap and a fistfight in the office. The show's funniest and bleakest hour about him.
7 skipped
🔒 S05E13 The Phantom Reveal S05E13 details The season ends with everyone getting what they asked for, and him discovering what his came with.
Season 6 2 in the path
5 skipped
🔒 S06E06 For Immediate Release Reveal S06E06 details A client run-in he cannot smooth over, in the middle of a merger nobody consulted him about.
🔒 S06E07 Man with a Plan Reveal S06E07 details An unexpected guest in his apartment, and a domestic situation he has no idea how to manage.
Season 7 3 in the path
11 skipped
🔒 S07E06 The Strategy Reveal S07E06 details An invitation to a club he has wanted his whole life, arriving when he has stopped enjoying that sort of thing.
6 skipped
🔒 S07E13 The Milk and Honey Route Reveal S07E13 details A friend blindsides him with an offer, and he says the thing about his own life he has never said out loud.
🔒 S07E14 Person to Person Reveal S07E14 details The finale. His is the ending the show is least cynical about, and he has done nothing obvious to deserve it.
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