By now, it seems safe to say that there have been few shows on television quite like Mad Men. The only comparable in scope, detail, and character development is The Sopranos. With its fourth season just beginning, the 1960s period drama has yet to lose its luster.

For a show as fast and classy as Mad Men, its fourth season began on a slower and almost unusual note. As a refresher, last season ended with Betty (January Jones) finally going through with her divorce from Don (Jon Hamm) and marrying Henry Francis (Christopher Stanley). Meanwhile, as Sterling Cooper heads toward disaster, Don and others jump ship and form their own ad agency.

The season premiere certainly had a lot to live up to. The end of season three announced a whole new beginning for the show, a chance to start fresh. Interestingly, creator Matthew Weiner decided not to begin this season directly where the previous season left off; instead there has been a rather big jump in time. This moveprobably annoyed some, but it adds to the continued sense of mystery lingering on the show.

In the time we missed, Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce has gone from a hotel room to an office that’s a little too small. Don has also changed quite a bit: the cool, calm, and together man we once knew has an even more reckless, go-for-broke attitude. Because of the unfilled gap between seasons, the reason for this transformation must be somewhat assumed. It’s likely the result of both his deteriorating relationship with his family and the new stress of being in charge of the company.

Or, maybe the new Don Draper is a byproduct of a changing world. That’s what Mad Men does best--fitting its characters so accurately into a historical context. Now that it’s 1964, America has already witnessed the assassination of JFK and the bloody moments of the Civil Rights Movement. The innocence that once masked the decadence of the earlier part of the decade is beginning to fade. The rebelliousness and anger seen in this episode feels like a pretty good precursor of things to come.

Even with the darker-than-usual atmosphere, this is still the same old Mad Men. There are still cigarettes, scotch guzzling, and sex galore. And Don Draper, even when he’s tripping over words in an interview, can still mesmerize with the sleek, cool style that Hamm adds to him. Even as the show heads in a new direction, some things on Mad Men will never change.