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The Practice starring Dylan McDermott, Lara Flynn Boyle, Kelli Williams & Steve Harris

Posted on May 10, 2011 Written by ripitup

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The Practice starring Dylan McDermott, Lara Flynn Boyle, Kelli Williams & Steve Harris
The Practice Cast from left: Camryn Manheim, Steve Harris, Kelli Williams, Michael Williams, Lisa Gay Hamilton & Michael Badalucco. Image via kritikongkiko.files.wordpress.com

Bobby Donnell (Dylan McDermott) is a very sharp and passionate criminal defense lawyer who runs a small firm with other dedicated lawyers, and his old friend/assistant Rebecca (Lisa Gay Hamilton). The lawyers are Ellenor (Camryn Manheim), Eugene (Steve Harris) and Lindsay (Kelli Williams), with Lindsay being the youngest and newest member.
The firm struggles to survive as the gang takes on more and more criminal clients who can hardly pay the fees. But as Bobby puts out, they occasionally get to defend the innocent, or people who don’t deserve to be in jail. Bobby doesn’t always play by the rules, and his tactics aren’t always welcomed by his colleagues, but Bobby almost always wins his cases.
A couple of episodes later, Bobby’s friend Jimmy (Michael Badalucco) gets fired for loaning money he wasn’t supposed to, and he comes to work with the gang, although at first Bobby makes sure he stays in the trenches and help out with the research.
**

The Practice was created by David E. Kelly, the creator of Ally McBeal and Boston Legal. But unlike these two lighter and funnier lawyer shows, The Practice is darker, more intense and intentionally, not very funny. It’s not to say The Practice doesn’t have its highly entertaining moments or one-liners, but the main goal is never to make the audience laugh. It is meant to drive you in, care for the characters and their cases, wonder about how each trial will result and go over the mental dilemmas the characters currently face.

After all The Practice lawyers aren’t that happy about defending murderers, drug-dealers, hookers or other criminals, but it is how they pay the bills. But after a while, more high-profiled cases start coming in, and things get even more complicated.

The Practice is not perfect, but it is pretty solid. But of course you should know that I am big on courtroom dramas/thrillers. I love John Grisham books, and not only I watched the Practice, I also watched almost all the episodes of Ally McBeal and Boston Legal.

If you are big on the romantic aspects, don’t worry- even though Bobby Donnell isn’t a player who sleeps with a different girl every night, he gets his share of his complicated relationships. Especially since both the beautiful D.A. Helen (played by Lara Flynn Boyle, who joins the cast in the second season), and Bobby’s associate Lindsay have a thing for Bobby. To make matters worse, Helen and Lindsey are friends from law school and Lindsay isn’t that open about her feelings.

The Practice went on for 8 (1997-2004) seasons and is currently rated at 7.7 on IMDB.com. The show won 3 Golden Globes in 1999: Best Performance by an Actor in a TV-Series – Drama for Dylan McDermott, Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture for Camryn Manheim & for Best TV Series (Drama).

 

Fun notes:


– Ally McBeal’s Ally McBeal (Calista Flockhart) makes a guest appearance in this sister show of David E. Kelley’s, and Dylan McDermott’s Bobby makes a guest appearance on Ally McBeal.
– Boston Legal’s main character Alan Shore (James Spader) appears on this show Alan Shore, and his character leads to having a show called Boston Legal.

 

– Dylan McDermott’s then wife Shiva Rose guest-stars in an episode as the plaintiff on one of Jimmy’s cases.

 

Also on Dylan McDermott

Dark Blue TV Series

Dylan McDermott Trivia

 

 

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Filed Under: TV shows Tagged With: ally mcbeal, boston legal, boston legal tv series, calista flockhart, Camryn Manheim, crime, david e. Kelly, drama, dylan mcdermott, James Spader, lara Flynn boyle kelli williams, Lisa Gay Hamilton, Michael Badalucco, shiva rose, steve harris, the practice, the practice cast, the practice tv series, the practice tv show, TV shows

Men of a Certain Age starring Ray Romano, Scott Bakula & Andre Braugher

Posted on December 17, 2010 Written by ripitup

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Men of a Certain Age starring Ray Romano, Scott Bakula & , Andre Braugher
Men of a Certain Age starring Ray Romano, Scott Bakula & , Andre Braugher.

Joe (Ray Romano), Terry (Scott Bakula) and Owen (Andre Braugher) have been friends for a long time. Now pushing 50, they are at different crossroads in their lives:

Joe’s wife Sonia (Penelope Ann Miller) has left him and taken their two kids Lucy (Brittany Curran) and Albert (Braeden Lemasters). Joe stays in a hotel and is not exactly over his wife, so he likes to pretend that they might eventually get back together. His party-supplies shop is doing well, despite his fondness for betting on sports games.

Terry is an actor who hasn’t quite made it, so he is working at an office job. He is living the bachelor life – he keeps fit, dates 25-year-olds and can’t get around his head around Owen’s problems, who seems to detest his job as a car salesman.

Owen is working for his father (Richard Gant)’s car dealership company and he is miserable. Forget any nepotism. His father is being the hardest on him and the sales numbers come before family. Owen doesn’t like his working conditions but there’s not much he can do since he and his wife Melissa (Lisa Gay Hamilton) have three kids and just renovated the house.

These men meet quite often, chat about their lives, problems and relationships, while also trying to go hiking in the morning.

Men of a Certain Age was created by Ray Romano and Mike Royce. Romano is no stranger to our TV screens. His sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond – went on for 9 successful seasons (1996-2005). I had first found Everybody Loves Raymond a little too familiar and a little too ordinary at first. But as I watched more episodes, it grew on me. And there were some very hilarious episodes.

Men of a Certain Age takes a different turn. It is not a 20-minute sitcom but a 40-minute comedy/drama. There are some laughs, but the show is more concerned about putting a smile on your face with bittersweet moments rather than consequent hilarity.

It’s refreshing to see Romano in a more lifelike role. OK, so his Ray Barone from Everybody Loves Raymond was very real but it was all laughs and the characters in Men of a Certain Age have more problems than just crazy parents and in-laws.

I enjoyed watching the first couple of episodes, despite not exactly being in the target audience. And while not being a guy of a certain age is won’t necessarily stop you from enjoying the show, it might make you relate much less.

If you are not a big fan of Ray Romano, bittersweet comedy or too life-like situations, I’d suggest watching this show in the background. It is a little slow, but has some very decent moments. Frankly, I’d rather watch this show than Ed O’Neill’s hit comedy Modern Family.

Men of a Certain Age is currently rated 8.2 on IMDB. 6.5 from me.

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Filed Under: TV shows Tagged With: Andre Braugher, Braeden Lemasters, Brittany Curran, comedy, drama, everybody loves raymond, Lisa Gay Hamilton, men of a certain age, men of a certain age cast, men of a certain age tv series, men of a certain age tv show, mike royce, Penelope Ann Miller, ray barone, ray romano, Richard Gant, scott bakula, TV shows

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