Mad Men revived body-conscious formal menswear by recoding it as straight masculine power.

Evidence

Then Mad Men arrived, making body-conscious formalwear accessible and, crucially, straight. A well-tailored charcoal suit became a symbol of masculine power—armor for negotiating, drinking, and seduction. As British GQ wrote in 2022, “No TV show has had as much impact on men’s style as Mad Men.” The show introduced everyday men to “too-tailored suits, pocket squares, monk-strap shoes, whisky rocks, tie bars and high and tight haircuts.” Simultaneously, menswear blogs emerged, reviving long-forgotten knowledge of these items. The Mad Men aesthetic dovetailed with the rise of American Thom Browne, whose boxy gray wool suits with cropped jackets and high-cuffed trousers—paired with chunky wing tips and no socks—modernized the classic American look. Over the next decade, he would outfit stars from Hollywood and K-pop to LeBron James. — W. David Marx, Blank Space, 397