squir1y

SPOILERS! I'm somewhat of a turn off your brain and watch TV kind of guy. At one point I would watch only The Simpsons, Futurama, Beavis and Butt-Head, Married...with Children and MST3K. Some people would be able to find a link between my shows of choice and rapidly plummeting IQ points, but I've never been the type for drama. I like to laugh. I don't like touchy feely programming with the same characters crying every episode.

But when I saw FX running previews for their upcoming series Rescue Me on FX in 2004, it ran as if it was a hardcore cable drama but something intrigued me. That something was the show's star, Denis Leary. Denis Leary is my all time favorite comedian and I remember catching a couple episodes of The Job (also another great show) and knowing that Denis could pull off a great show, I decided to give Rescue Me a try and to this day, I'm happy I did.

I remember watching the pilot episode "Guts" and thinking that I've never seen anything like this before. No TV show has ever shocked me before, but when I saw Leary's character pull a live severed head of a fallen comrade from a pile of wreckage at Ground Zero and the Chief throw a dead puppy in the trash so it's owner wouldn't see it, I was like WOW! I couldn't take my eyes off it. I was actually heavily into a television drama.

I watched the whole first season just get better and better. I was into the intense dying relationship between Tommy and Janet, Chief Reilly dealing with his homophobia by beating up a gay firefighter, Tommy's conflict of entering a relationship with his dead cousin's widow, Franco's growing relationship with his estranged daughter, Mike the Probie's stalker, Lou trying to deal with his feelings about 9/11 through poetry and pretty much anything with Sean Garrity, my favorite character.

I never thought anything could top The Simpsons as my all time favorite show, but Denis Leary and Peter Tolan managed to climb their way to the top. This is a show that is so chock full of moments that you'll never forget from a drunk Janet bedding Tommy to her leaving him at the end of the first season. You'll be laughing as the guys enter a contest to see who has the biggest "equipment" and crying when Tommy's son is tragically killed by a drunk driver. It is an emotionally powerful show that balances out so perfectly with gut busting humor that it makes it more than just your average TV drama.

I couldn't in good conscience give this show anything less than a 10/10. Bravo, Mr. Leary.

Just like everyone else, I had my doubts about this movie. Basically, for the same reasons as everyone else. But damn, this was good.

I love the Terminator flicks. I've been a big fan since I was ten. Yeah, my parents weren't too restrictive when it came to the movies I watch. I love action films and I love Arnold. This guy will always be cool to me. I even forgave him for Batman and Robin.

This movie was really great. It has a great story, outstanding action and good performances. Hence, it's a Terminator movie. In fact, I don't think I've ever been so impressed by action scenes in some of the more recent movies. Watching that bathroom fight, I started thinking to myself,"You know, I don't care if you are a machine. That had to hurt!" As for the performances, I can't say enough about Arnold. The new character I liked the most was Claire Danes' Kate Brewster. I really felt for her character. Her fear, her grief and her confusion. She really gave a great performance. Nick Stahl was good, even though he looked nothing like the John Connor in the previous film. Kristanna Loken is awesome as the T-X. I didn't think her character would be as ominous as the previous Terminators. I was wrong.

If I have any gripes, it's the pacing. This movie just jumped too quickly into the plot and it leaves some questions unanswered. I want to know how Arnold got his shotgun and how he found John and Kate at the beginning. But the ending more than made up for it. It really made me think. In fact, I better turn off my computer now before it's too late! I'll just leave by saying this: They can make as many action movies as they want, but none will ever top the excitement and entertainment of the Terminator series. Bring on T4! 10/10