Mad Men

Today it was decreed that no one is allowed to be the least bit shocked that the TV show Mad Men is a critical hit and that, regardless of this fact, no one watches it.  

Critical hit because:

1.  Deep characters.

2.  Complex storyline.

3.  Accurately estimated depictions of historical events and times.

4.  Involves greasy hair.

5.  Quaint cultural references only understood by people who know something about history.

6.  No good guy.  As a corollary, No bad guy.

7.  Ends on an ambiguous yet unsurprising note.

8.  It's on AMC.

No one watches it because:

1.  Deep characters.

2.  Complex storyline.

3.  Accurately estimated depictions of historical events and times.

4.  Involves greasy hair.

5.  Quaint cultural references only understood by people who know something about history.

6.  No good guy.  As a corollary, No bad guy.

7.  Ends on an ambiguous yet unsurprising note.

8.  It's on AMC.

And yet the critics are surprised that no one watches, and the people who don't watch it have no idea what all the fuss is about.

Another interesting option, if you reject my theory, is that Mad Men is unsuccessful because it has been poorly marketed.  And if you have the slightest idea of what Mad Men is about... that there is some powerful irony.