House of Lies

Whom ever suggested that porn is better must not watch porn at all. As an adult I am tired of having television shows watered down to please those who are afraid of adult content. I love the savvy business talk,the fact that the consultants do what they have to do to get what they want. We all know that that's not the real world but it's a TV show. The banter is brilliant and the humor is memorable. Don Cheadel's character is so unapologetically ruthless that you can't help but like him. A welcome break from mindless reality shows. This now my favorite Showtime Series. The only reason I gave it a 9 and not a 10 is because I wish it were an hour long.

People say this show has a lot of sex, slurs ... who cares? This show is pure Showtime, so, if you like Californication, you will like House of Lies. If you like Downtown Abbey, maybe you will not. Another reason to watch this show is the cast. Don Cheadle is a great actor, and having the possibility of watching him in this kind of show is awesome. No more "Hotel for Dogs", Don. And Kristen Bell. Everyone loves Kristen Bell. Natural beauty and great actress. Can't wait to see if both characters end up having some kind of relationship ( aka sex ) We'll see how the plot resumes, but the groundwork is done. Showtime is back. The sex, the slurs are back. Who cares?

This has to be one of the most lewd and rude shows I have ever seen. Push that aside for a tick and discount the machine gun humour that's leaving gaping holes across the corporate back drop in which this is set. Move to the foreground to where I want to dwell. The great mix of self absorbed characters with more hang ups than a normal closet. A dollop of kid dealing with coming out of a closet, or is that his dad and dad's dad that are dealing with it? Those two generations of fathers are definitely not sure how to do the job. Only seen two episodes but I am hooked, line and sinker. Sprinkle the whole thing with a reasonably good support cast. Greg Germann was so good in Episode one, good to see a reprise in next weeks. Kristen Bell is OK as is Ben Swatz & Josh Lawson in full geek mode.

But what is with the on again off relationship with Don Cheddie and Dawn Olivieri who plays his hot ex? Gold, pure gold! This is one of those multi layered comedies that I look for from the UK.

Bravo ShoTime for making, what is at present, my new favourite TV show. Keep it strong!

What started out as a scathing, hilarious indictment of the management consulting racket within just a few episodes has unfortunately turned into a heart-warming/-wrenching story about dysfunctional family life and damaged people.

Even the remnant veneer of business-side stories are beginning to cast the consultants as good guys, working hard to save troubled businesses rather than the leaches and scum of the original premise.

Also, very regrettably the show falls for the false premise that gender-bending is automatically funny and risqué. In fact for those to be funny they have to be, well, funny, as opposed to simply slapped in with a teenage breathlessness about how cool they are.

I'd say the show deserves to stay on air and in the lineup with all of the other Showtime shows. Upon reading other reviews, I realized certain ridiculous things that were being said about the show. What's the name of the show? Oh yeah, "House of Lies", so of course it isn't "Californication". There are several things that are labeled as a comedy that we actually would not agree with. Comedy, in it's original definition, means a story in which the main character(s) end up better off, ultimately. It didn't always mean a show or movie that will make you laugh. Regardless, I do end up laughing especially when Don Cheadle's character starts describing things to the audience while time freezes, the ridiculous banter between Schwartz and Lawson's characters, as well as Kristen Bell's sarcasm. Going along again with the debate of the term "Comedy" and the comparison of this show with other shows that exist, on HBO the show "Entourage" was considered a Comedy. That show made me laugh even less, yet I still enjoyed it. It wasn't busting-at-the-seams funny. So, let's stop being so ridiculous and just ENJOY a show for what it is instead of having expectations of what other show it should be like.