Mad Men jumps into the future

Every show seems to be on a time-jump jag lately. Lost, of course, and even Desperate Housewives jumped five years into the future in its season finale. Now you can add Mad Men to the list.

OK, so they're not jumping several years, but creator Matthew Weiner discloses that when the show returns for its second season on July 27 (now on Sunday nights), the show will pick up at some point in the future. Weiner won't say when, exactly, but it could be anywhere from a few months to a year. So expect some changes in the way characters interact. For example, now that Betty knows about Don's womanizing, that changes their relationship.

And fans worried that John Slattery wouldn't be back after his character's heart attack can rest easy. He'll be back as will all of the other regulars on the show. Peggy has become a junior copywriter at Sterling Cooper (not sure what's up with the baby she gave up) and new guy Duck is head of accounts.

It will be interesting to see what this time jump does to the show. The first season was set in 1960 and led up to the Kennedy/Nixon election. Maybe they're jumping ahead ever so slightly so they can take advantage of all of the changes that occurred later.