• by David Goetzl  @dgoetzl, December 1, 2010

Part of the brilliance of "Mad Men" is you can blast away after an episode that it's too unrealistic, not enough exploration of a character. And then at some point, you'll be cut off with: "They must be doing something right. We've been talking about it for 40 minutes!"

Nevertheless, some recent complaints:

It's becoming way too predictable with Don. Does he have to sleep with every new woman that comes into his life?

Joan was on a path to moving from secretary into a more substantive role at the agency. Why did that potentially rich storyline stop? It's too easy to say that's how it was back then. The 1960s was when many women who would become industry stars started ascending.

Can we please know more about the creepy relationship Sally had with her grandfather?

Why is the ever-boozing, sexually and ethically depraved Roger Sterling always so pathetic? Does he have any redemptive qualities? Then again, the character is set up for some heroic work going forward.

In any case, it was a treat to have Sterling join the conversation himself on Tuesday. He looked as if he'd been off the sauce. And he had traded his impeccable three-piece suits for jeans, and his blade-shave for a gray beard, but there he was on a stage in Manhattan.

Sort of. The remarkable John Slattery, who plays Sterling, sat for a one-on-one interview with Piers Morgan at Advertising Age's Media Evolved conference, opining on topics from how long the series will go, to whether he admires or detests his character.

First things first. Slattery suggested AMC's "Mad Men" may only have 26 episodes left. The recently completed season went through 1965. And Slattery said he expects next season to go until 1968, with a final season until 1970.

Does Slattery admire Sterling? Yes. "He has a gift of a very concise and pointed sense of humor. And the courage to say what he thinks in the moment, regardless of how it will play."

What makes show creator Matthew Weiner such a talent? Slattery: "He's a great writer. Like a great writer, [he'll] steal anything that anyone tells him -- anywhere they are. You have to be really careful, because if you tell him how your parents were divorced, it will be on television next week."

Further, Slattery said Weiner has a cocky streak: "He's someone that is every bit as good as he thinks he is. He knows he's good."

Slattery said Weiner had to convince him to take the Sterling part. He read to be Draper, which went to Jon Hamm. The pilot had Sterling in maybe two scenes with five lines, and he wasn't so keen.

"I promise you this will be a great part," Weiner pitched. And Weiner had to employ the same salesmanship with January Jones, whose character Betty Draper (Don's wife) had little to do in the pilot.

Years later, Slattery said joining "Mad Men" has been "the best job I've ever had." Besides the acting accolades and rush of other opportunities, there have been suggestions he's got a sex-symbol thing going, which he called "ridiculous."

There is a Roger Sterling Barbie doll on sale and one person in the audience bought one for about $85. Seems a lot, but apparently she got a good deal. Amazon has it for about $190.

Perhaps little known is that Slattery's real-life wife, Talia Balsam, plays his now ex-wife -- "Mona" -- on the show. Mona hasn't appeared since episode nine in 2009. But Slattery thinks there could have been more to explore with the character.

Not lost in Slattery's appearance with Piers Morgan on Tuesday at the Ad Age event is how sterling an interviewer Morgan is. When he takes over for Larry King in January, CNN may have a hit. He's smart, witty, probing and will not stand for dullness. He keeps the conversation moving.

Yet with the next "Mad Men" season not until next summer, the conversation served as sort of a "Mad Men" hot-stove league, intriguing fans about what's to come.