Dirty Sexy Money

This has become my favorite show on television. It has its own special charm to it. I love the characters in the Darling family. The acting is superb for nearly all of them. Donald Sutherland is incredible as always in the role of Tripp, the tactful businessman. Then you have Glenn Fitzgerald as Brian, the flawed priest; William Baldwin as Patrick, the spineless politician; Samaire Armstrong as Juliet, the spoiled daughter; Seth Gabel as Jeremy, the reluctant playboy; Natalie Zea as Karen, the impetuous harlot; and Jill Clayburgh as Letitia, the spaced-out mother.

The character of Brian is the one I find the most entertaining. He perfectly pulls off being a complete jerk, which makes his contrasting moments of humanity that much more impressive. His relationship with his son brought some of the funniest and most heartfelt moments of the season, which is really saying something considering the strength of the rest of the show. The character of Jeremy is intriguing as well, as he's somewhat of a security blanket for Juliet. Fitzgerald and Gabel show off their acting talents in these roles, but it's Sutherland that steals the show.

The well-acted characters don't stop there, though. Peter Krause nails the role of Nick, the lawyer/babysitter for the family. Will Shadley is adorable as Brian Jr. Blair Underwood adds mystery as the rival billionaire. Daniel Cosgrove gave a memorable performance as Karen's boytoy Freddy. Shawn Michael Patrick adds even more talent as the obedient limo driver. Zoe McLellan is stuck in that middle as Nick's wife Lisa, along with fascinated-by-rich-life daughter Kiki, portrayed by Chloe Moretz.

There are precious few flaws with this show. Leticia, Patrick, Juliet, and Karen can grow tiresome, partly because their characters are sometimes intended to annoy the viewers with their actions. However, the truth is that Clayburgh, Baldwin, Armstrong, and Zea simply don't possess the acting talent of the rest of the cast. I can hate and love Brian at the same time, and I can't say that for the rest of these characters who are supposed to elicit similar feelings.

The only reason I gave it a 9 instead of a 10 is because the latest episodes haven't been quite as good as the early ones. Still, I think that speaks more to the excellence of the show's beginning more than anything else. There's plenty of potential to develop all the characters much further, as you could make a lesser series based on any one of the characters. I don't know what the future holds for this show, but I can only hope that we haven't seen the last of it. If they give this enough of a chance, I think it will be truly great.

I worry, though, because nearly everyone I try to talk to about it hasn't heard of it, and we're going on a few weeks now without a new episode. It seems pretty high-budget as well. I think a little more promotion or patience could save the show. I fear the worst, but I'll breathe a sigh of relief if I see another new episode in the new year.

Please, ABC, keep this show going. If it disappears, it will be sorely missed.

I starting watching this show with the expectation that it would be driven only by it's star power and would leave little to the mind, however, that said - Dirty, Sexy, Money far exceeded my expectations. It is an intriguing drama with plots than only become more interesting at the season progresses. The Darling's are not a 1-Dimensional family - we get a balanced view of each family member's bizarre, twisted and occasionally desirable life styles with a plot that only becomes darker as the weaves of truth and deception spin their way onto our TV sets. Out of the many new shows that were aired this year, DSM is certainly one I would place up in the top 3. My final word? - this is definitely a show you want on your TiVo.

Nick George (Peter Krause) follows his late father's footstep as the legal fixer for the scandal ridden New York Darling family. Tripp (Donald Sutherland) and Tish (Jill Clayburgh) are the heads of the family. Their son Patrick (William Baldwin) is the reluctant politician with closeted secrets. Karen (Natalie Zea) is the jet setting daughter who has a lifelong crush on Nick despite his marriage to Lisa (Zoe McLellan). Juliet (Samaire Armstrong) is struggling with issues (including real-life ones) along with twin Jeremy. Brian has an illegitimate son. Simon Elder (Blair Underwood) is Tripp's rival.

The concept is promising but it's reliant on the likability of the characters. They can't be all be douches and mostly they're not. Mostly they're just damaged by the secrets they're keeping. There are probably a few too many characters. The show lasted two seasons. The first season does well. It has a nice balance of comedy and darker revelations. The second season gets weighted down by too much revelations. Sadly it's the usual way for a failing TV show to ramp up the drama.

I said it in the title & I'll say it again, "The 1st season Excellent, the 2nd awful." It is amazing how a fun although quite Soap Opera-y show the first year could turn to such garbage the 2nd year. I really can't compare the two seasons because the are completely different shows! If you have a chance to see both seasons, DO NOT WATCH SEASON 2! I'm not sure who left or who started working on the show in the second season but they killed it. The whole casting of Lucy Liu was stupid & her character was utterly useless. They also got rid of Samaire Armstrong which was a good character & she was good but w/out any sort of explanation or what happened to his twin sister? C'mon now! 8/10 for the 1st year 4/10 for the ridiculously dumb Second season.

In all honesty, I didn't even know what channel ABC was on before I sought out this show, but it made me look! I missed the initial airing so I caught up via "OnDemand" and was hooked--I ended up watching all the episodes twice. I love everybody in it, although Peter Krause alone would have been enough for me. It's apt that he's the designated voice of reason: he always brings such a sense of realness & believability to whatever he's in. Although some of it is over-the-top, I think it'll be like peering in on how the other half live. (I remember reading that one of the Kennedy in-laws--maybe Shriver?--was the go-to guy for all the Kennedys--they didn't even know how to renew a drivers' license without him.) The rich are like you and me in that neither of us has a clue how the other lives (e.g., Paris Hilton asking if WalMart was where you go to get anything you need for your walls). I'm looking forward to finding out how/why the evil Brian became a priest -- I find that more amazing than the fact that he's a father. I also like that Donald Sutherland doesn't seem intrinsically bad--just clueless about child-rearing. This show will only get more interesting, & will probably almost write itself. With Bryan Singer and so many other heavy-hitters behind it, I can't imagine it doing poorly unless it the audience doesn't have the attention span to absorb it all.