Der Job

...it's been three years, and I still miss this show. Watching the premiere of "Rescue Me" on FX last night only reminded me of how badly I miss Leary's NyQuil-addicted cop. No matter what else he does from this point on, I will always measure all shows by "The Job." It's funny how something so short lived can have such an impact - the show constantly comes up in conversations at work and when I'm out with friends. I've yet to find someone who didn't like the show, so I'm not sure how it is the network did.

In the end, it doesn't really matter. Those of us who watched the show can appreciate it for what it truly was - Leary at his best.

It's 20 years since "The Job" aired on ABC and those dimwitted nitwits cancelled this unparalleled brilliant comedy series after 19 perfect pitched episodes. In my wisdom I bought the DVDs and find the show to be as funny and relevant today. Dennis Leary and Peter Tolan never compromised on their vision. The scripts and the jokes are sharp, fast, sophisticated and hilarious. The cast, oh the cast, so perfect, so completely comfortable with themselves in their characters, convey so much in a smirk, an ebrow raised, a flared nostril. This is one of the best comedies ever produced for American TV. An immediate classic. Subsequently, came Leary's "Rescue Me," but the characters did not have the same depth and most too adolescent for my taste. Nothing comes close to "The Job."

This type of show is not supposed to happen on television. This is the type of edginess usually reserved for independent film. This is what only HBO is supposed to do. Fact is that Denis Leary has managed to come up with one of the best television shows ever, easily joining the ranks of THE SOPRANOS, OZ, ED etc.. Kudos the gang at ABC for showing that NYPD Blue was not a fluke, and to Mr. Leary and his gang for creating a truly unique viewing experience. My only complaint is that the show is not long enough ... an hour would make it better, but I can't wait for the next episode!

This short lived half hour lasted for parts of two seasons. It has been called a Sitcom, but was it really? It had no added sound laugh track. It was not filmed in front of a live audience in order to get their reaction. All incidents portrayed, although some what exaggerated, could occur in one of our big cities.

The attitudes and interaction of characters were the greatest source of both the laughs and the heart of the stories. The characters ranged from being manic (Leary's character) to very lazy, as portrayed by the old,kinda paunchy detective. Whereas Leary was high strung and even overloaded in his life, the other guy would avoid work at all costs.

In our favourite episode, the older detective and his partner are wrapped up in trying to dump off a corpse that they think was dragged into their precinct by an equally lazy but highly conniving detective named Fennessey from an adjacent precinct.

Leary's Detective was burning the candle at both ends.He was high strung, edgy. It didn't take much to get his 'Irish' up.(loose his temper) He was married with family, but also had a girlfriend on the side. He exercised to keep in shape, yet was a chain smoker. It looked as though he was headed for a heart attack. It was only a matter of time.

But,alas! The network intervened and we can only wonder what was in store for this Detective Squad. "THE JOB" got the ax and has not been seen in re-runs or video since. It's too bad. A lot of cops* said the series was closer to real life than one would have thought.

* The author (now retired) is a 34 year veteran of the Chicago Police Department.He served his time in some of the most impoverished,crime ridden neighborhoods in the country, as well as in the Central Business District (The Loop). During his career he was assigned to Patrol Division, Traffic Division, Youth Division and The Missing Persons Bureau of The Detective Division.

After just two episodes, Denis Leary's "The Job" has become a must-see part of my Wednesday nights.

Perhaps the most remarkable element of the show is Leary's almost ego-free presence at the center. He co-produces, he co-writes, he stars, and yet the character he creates is, unquestionably, a jerk. He's a caustically funny and charismatic jerk, but he's a jerk nonetheless. Leary is quite aware of this, allowing the other characters to call him on his jerkiness; one actually slaps him.

In a strange way, this liberates the show. We know Leary as a star, and we already like him, so the show doesn't feel the need to prop him up as a fake hero. Leary finds all sorts of nuances, demonstrating that he's a much better actor than anyone gave him credit for being. He finds the laughs, of course -- many, many laughs -- but he also finds a measure of pathos and sympathy in this aggressively selfish and self-centered man.

If I have any complaint about the show, it's that it's too short. Half an hour isn't enough time to truly develop the policework, to set up and follow a complex, involving case. In this, the apotheosis of the television police program, "Homicide: Life on the Street," doesn't need to worry about being unseated from its throne as the best damn cop show ever. Leary's "The Job," though, has much of the same energy, the loosey-goosey character-centered approach and gritty realism of "Homicide," and that's high praise indeed.

That, of course, is ABC's cue to cancel the show as soon as possible, as they did with "Sports Night" and other quality programs. Tune into "The Job," and hope ABC lets it live.