As I have said I get to check out some newer shows during the summer because all my normal faves are on hiatus. Lately I have had some very very good luck with two shows I checked out on a whim.
The first, Burn Notice is a quirky action comedy about a spy who is trying to get his credentials back. Michael Westen has been "burned" which means his integrity and security clearance as a spy for the United States gov't has been put into question. In order to get reinstated he has to figure out who burned him and why. That's the overarching theme in the season but it is the main idea of the show that really drives it though. If you are a spy who has had everything taken away from him, and you are trapped in Miami surrounded by everyday people in various forms of trouble what do you do? You help them of course. He has all the skills of a spy and is a good Samaritan. In one episode a neighbor of his mother (who lives in Miami and doesn't see Michael nearly enough) has been scammed by con artists and lost her life saving so Michael goes after them and cons the cons in a really good example of the show's clever wit and writing. The sidekicks are awesome in the show and add a terrific chemistry. There is the ex-girlfriend who used to be in the IRA and is constantly helping Michael in exchange for a little more commitment. And there's Sam, an ex-spy and friend of Michael's who has been tapped by the FBI to keep tabs on him. Did I mention he's played by Bruce Campbell and that he just chews up all the scenes he's in? Honestly he is why I gave the show a try in the first place. The dialog is accompanied by a humorous and sometimes informative narrative by Michael that has a touch of noir Humphrey Bogart feel to it, but maintains the light self-confident feel of the show.
Burn Notice has just entered its second season, the first can be found on DVD and *AHEM* elsewhere and I have found something enjoyable in every episode. If I had one criticism it would be that Michael, played by a guy named Jeffrey Donovan is somehow very forgettable despite his strong performance. He doesn't have an overly memorable face or a real strong presence but I guess it sort of fits well with the idea that he's a spy. You don't really want to be all that memorable with so many people trying to kill you. He just doesn't ooze charisma like say… Don Draper.
Who is Don Draper? That is a great question and a subplot of the other show I'm recommending, Mad Men. The show has garnered a ridiculous amount of attention in media lately with a gazillion Emmy noms for everything under the sun, and it's second season has been picked up by CTV and will be airing on Sunday nights. Mad Men is a show about ad execs in the 1960s. That is the premise, just that. So why is the show so amazing? Well, it is tough to describe how and why this show is so captivating but I am sure going to try. First of all, from top to bottom the show looks and feels like you have stepped into 1960 (the first season takes place entirely in 1960, the show is planned to go for 5 seasons with each season taking place in a pivotal year in the 60's. The 2nd season from what I read takes place in 1963, the year of some of the most important events of that decade). The dialog, the sets, the fashions, all of it feels ripped right out of that time period where everyone was so concerned about being appropriate and civilized and yet underneath were underhanded, sneaky, and not altogether that nice. At the same time there are some very clever nods to the lunacy of the time when everyone smoked and drank all day. In one memorable scene, Betty Draper, the housewife to the main character is chatting with a friend. Both are smoking and enjoying a cocktail, they chat in close up for a bit and then their kids, who are playing in the other room, come around the corner. As the camera pulls back we see that the friend is about six months pregnant and one of the kids is playing astronaut by having a dry cleaning bag pulled over her head. The mother calls her over to scold her, presumably freaked out that the kid is in serious danger of suffocation, and instead the little girl gets a warning that the clothes that were in the bag had better not be on the floor. After the talking to the girl is shooed out of the room, still sporting her bag of death. I couldn't help but laugh and the show is riddle with these surreal truths. Great lines like, "I can't believe I had a heart attack, I always thought it would be the ulcer that would get me, but I have been eating all the butter and cream that the doctor said would help the ulcer thing soooo…" (that's a paraphrase. The real thing is far more sharp and scintillating but that's the gist of it.)
Jon Hamm, who play the main lead Don Draper, pulls off an amazing performance as the brilliant ad exec with a dark secret. He is troubled and lonely, never really connecting with those around him. The men of the office are all played to perfection by a lot of largely unknown people. There are a few recognizable faces here, but one of the things about this show that really transports you in that you haven't seen most of these people in anything before so you feel like the characters are more real somehow. Vincent Kartheiser pulls off an amazing performance as Pete Campbell, the guy you absolutely love to hate, a young go getter ad exec who is constantly thinking he's better at what he does than the people who are brilliant at what they do. He is an amazingly oblivious weasel, unaware that his carefully thought out little ploys for advancement are ridiculously shortsighted and assume everyone is completely stupid and all of them inevitably hurt him in the end. Yet you cant help but feel sorry for the guy which is what makes the show truly great. The women also give strong performances, most notably Peggy, the new secretary who breaks new ground while getting herself in some serious trouble along the way or Joan, the office pool's boss who struggles with petty jealousy and her role as a woman who has so much power but is told by the world she cant weild it the way she might like. The dilemmas and situations of all the characters are really interesting. The gender roles, the changing nature of society, every little thing is given careful attention and it makes the show irresistible.
So there you have it, two exceptional shows you need to check out. One last thing though, both of these shows are made for adults, and rather than telling me they are made for adults with boat loads of bad language and crazy amounts of nudity as some cable shows are prone to these days, both of these shows are adult because of the themes and storylines. There is a lot of implied sex and shenanigans in Mad Men, just behind closed doors. At times is flirts with some mild impropriety but I never felt that "would I watch this with my parents in the room?" question creep in. Burn Notice has great dialog but seldom strays into even mild harsh language. I am not a person who has issues with those things, Sopranos is one of my all time favorite shows, but both of these shows are great examples of how you don't need those things to make engaging and interesting TV. Both come across as realistic in their own contexts, both are extremely fun to watch. Check em out.
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