Those are two of my favorite shows. What I will say I think speaks for both of them. I can agree there is a particular slowness or drawl to those shows. But in a time where much of television is highly charged it does not give us time to look past the surface. We watch Real World for screaming and yelling and we watch it again during the slow motion replay. Mad Men is slower paced and I feel just as exciting but over multiple shows. This leaves the story lines open for several episodes or even the whole season. But sometimes when they are wrapped up they can feel underwhelming. More than a few story arcs of The Wire ended with someone getting shot. No crying, no funeral, just everyone going on with their lives. Underwhelming indeed.