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Haven starring Emily Rose, Lucas Bryant & Eric Belfour

Posted on October 13, 2011 Written by ripitup

Haven starrng Lucas Bryant, Emily Rose & Eric Belfour. — Lucas Bryant as Nathan of Haven.

Young FBI agent Audrey Parker (Emily Rose) is sent to Maine on a mission to capture an escaped convict. However, the convict is already dead when she gets there, and despite the sheriff’s determination that it is an accident, he reluctantly lends her deputy chief/his son Nathan (Lucas Bryant).

Almost as soon as they start searching for clues, Audrey realizes that something isn’t quite right about the residents. Some of them have supernatural powers, such as mood swings affecting the weather or the ability to shove you a couple of feet with one little push. Oh, and her new friend Nathan can’t feel pain. Or anything else for that matter…

When the mystery is solved, another mystery-possibly one that can unlock Audrey’s past surfaces. She asks a couple of weeks from her boss, who lets her all too willingly to stay.

Then there is Duke (Eric Balfour), the charming, and not-always law-abiding guy who Nathan isn’t fond of.

The sheriff is impressed by case-solving skills, so Audrey joins Nathan in his office. They become good friends, with implications that maybe we might expect more in the future.

But our main concern in Haven is not if Nathan and Audrey will get together. We want to know about Lucy Ripley, who looks exactly like Lucy- and looks to be the same age as Lucy. Yet she was here when Nathan and Duke were just kids and they don’t remember anything about the day (the day The Colorado Kid was murdered)….

Loosely based on Stephen King’s The Colorado Kid, Haven has found a nice balance between the micro events we deal with each episode and the clues as we try to solve who Audrey is, and also learn that maybe things about Nathan and Luke aren’t so straightforward either. The effects could have been better, but the drama/mystery /relationships are well balanced. Some episodes are better than others, but overall it is great for anyone who loves his supernatural without the horror or extreme romances.

As much as I love my vampires and werewolves, it is refreshing and fun where the supernatural come from humans who are just “troubled”. We are curious to see why it started, and how it is all related to Lucy.

Favorite Episodes

– Season 2, Episode 6- Audrey Parker’s Day Off offers the appropriate reference to Bill Murray’s Groundhog Day, it had the right amount of comedy, mystery and drama

Fun Facts about the Show and the Cast

– Haven is set in Maine, USA but shot in Canada.

– Emily Rose (Audrey) and Eric Balfour (Duke) are American and Lucas Bryant is Canadian.

– Broadcasted on the same network as (the North American version of) Being Human.

– Original Beverly Hills 90210 (1990-2000)’s Brandon Jason Priestly appears in 4 episodes, serving both as a “troubled” guy and a love interest for Audrey.

– Wrestler Adam Copeland is a frequent co-star.

Being Human starring Sam Witwer, Sam Huntington and Meaghan Rath

Posted on August 22, 2011 Written by ripitup

Being Human starring Sam Witwer, Sam Huntington and Meaghan Rath. Don't freak out by how ridiculous Sam Witmer looks in the picture. He is actually really good-looking.

Vampire Aidan (Sam Witwer) works as a nurse and survives on the blood he takes from the hospital. He doesn’t kill people…most of the time.

Werewolf Josh (Sam Huntington) hates being a monster and is a neurotic mess when he is human. He works at the hospital, and is friends with Aidan. They know about each other’s condition, and they are each other’s only ally.

Aidan, by nature, is the opposite of Josh. He is cool, confident and sociable. But he also wants to feel more normal, so he talks Josh into getting a place together. Their new house, unfortunately comes with its own ghost, Sally (Meaghan Rath).

Josh is at first reluctant to extend the monster friendship, but Sally has nowhere to go, and has the ghost skills of Patrick Swayze’s Sam (from the movie Ghost) when he first died.

Aidan, being more comfortable and friendly, welcomes Sally to their group and Josh also ultimately bonds with Sally. For the most part, the friendship is the only thing they have close to being human.

And of course, in addition to our wonderfully grey protagonists, we also have highly annoying and sadistic villains. For instance, the vampires are run by a vampire called Bishop, who also has a day job. As a cop. And yes, they can compel people.

Screw IMDB’s horror label. Sure, it has some its very dark moments (such as when Aidan loses his cool around a human or when he has sex with a vampire. Then the bloodbath is something to write home about.) But the occasional darkness and some thrills aside, Being Human doesn’t have a scary bone in it, and this is fine. Because it is immensely entertaining, occasionally very funny; with cool one-liners and some pop culture references. And it doesn’t have a romantic love story at heart. Love, guilt, regret, courage, fear, friendship, jealousy and lust equally dominate the season.

And it has violence and nudity, just not in the caricature-like, exaggerated way that True Blood does. And I love Being Human for that.

And our good vampire is neither Damon (raising hell for the sheer fun of it), nor Stefan (the impossibly strong reserve and self-control) of Stefan. He slips and harms people, but he doesn’t do it for fun. He just loses control, and feels bad afterwards. But he doesn’t feel as bad as Angel (who only fed on animals) after going “vegan”.

And he can walk outside without shining, and without having to wear a ring. He doesn’t hate/fear werewolves out of principle. Aidan is well… a breath of fresh air.

Yes, it is the North American version of a British show. I chose to watch this for two reasons: 1) It felt darker and more compelling, and 2) It is not all that under its original version, where user rating is considered. The original is rated at 8.2, and this one is at 7.6. Which should say enough if you consider the British comedy Coupling (a show I adored) is rated at 9, and its American version is at 3.6.

So it might be annoying to some fans of the original, but for those who haven’t, it really is pretty cool and awesome, currently lacking all the pitfalls of other vampire shows, even of the ones that I liked.

Go Being Human! May you get many seasons, and all your seasons be just as good!

(It is returning for season 2!)

Currently, my rating is 9/10- and that is if I have to be harsh: )

My Favorite Lines

Josh: (sarcastic) I’m awesome. I mean who wouldn’t want to meet their weredad?

Sally: (on realizing what her new roommates are) You are not going to go all Twilight on each other, right?

Aidan: She learned everything about being a ghost from Whoopi Goldberg.

Aidan: (when Sally recites from Bon Jovi) Are you trying to scare us with Bon Jovi?

My Favorite Episode: 7

I love all episodes, but episode 7 is just marvelous.

Josh goes home with his sister and tries to persuade his parents that he is not crazy and he doesn’t think he is a werewolf. And Aidan comes to rescue, portraying a healthy lifestyle for Josh. Unfortunately, food has garlic, his fangs come out, and Marcus, Aidan’s ultimate enemy, comes to attack Josh’s family.

The expressions of Josh’s family as he tries to make weapons out of furniture, hide Aidan’s situation and fight off Marcus are just priceless!

We also learn some sad but important facts about Aidan’s past.

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

Posted on May 10, 2011 Written by ripitup

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

Dark Blue starring Dylan McDermott, Logan Marshall-Green, Nicki Aycox & Omari Hardwick

Posted on April 27, 2011 Written by ripitup

Dark Blue Cast - Nicki Aycox, Dylan McDermott, Logan Marshall-Green & Omari Hardwick — Dark Blue Cast (from left): Nicki Aycox, Dylan McDermott, Logan Marshall-Green & Omari Hardwick. Image via justpic.info.

Lt. Carter Shaw (Dylan McDermott) is running a team of cops that specialize in undercover missions. This team is made of the newly married Ty (Omari Hardwick)- who is often the voice of reason and the one with most doubts, the adrenalin-loving Dean (Logan Marshall-Green), and the rookie cop Jaimie (Nicki Aycox), who has a dark past, and has managed to fake a whole new resume- and her ability to lie so well is what made Carter hire her in the first place.

Dark Blue is a solid crime show where our cops always need to make the most dangerous, risky and often greyest choices, such as choosing not to interrupt a shooting because their cover might be blown, exposing decorated yet dirty cops, or trying to make a white gang the news drug lords of a neighborhood (because the current lord is much smarter and more dangerous).

They are sort of friends, but they are mostly people on a mission.

Jamie and Dean have a complicated relationship as they go from colleagues to bed buddies to colleagues again. Jaimie tries to have a normal relationship with her boyfriend, and Ty tries not to screw up his marriage. Dean had the most normal childhood, yet his teammates are often afraid that he might lose it and go dark side on them.

Carter once valued normalcy- he had a wife he loved, but we are assuming she was killed. Now he spends most of his time in the office, sleeps few hours and focuses on getting the job done. As Ty once puts it to Jamie, there is nothing Carter wouldn’t to watch their backs, and there’s nothing he wouldn’t do to get results. The problem is you can’t always tell which comes first.

But Carter is not exactly safe and sound in the office, as he provides back-up and surveillance to his undercover cop(s), and he himself often gets to pose as a criminal or victim.

Dark Blue is intriguing and fun. It’s exciting to watch a show where things aren’t black and white, where cops rob criminals or use them in their cases. If you like your show intense, this is the one for you.

8/10 from me. Currently 7.7. on IMDB.com.

Dark Blue only lasted 2 seasons (and has a total of 20 Episodes). But it is worth every minute invested in it.

Fun notes:

* Nicki Aycox guest-starred in the show Supernatural as Meg Masters for 5 episodes, and Sam and Dean Winchester quite a hard time.

*Dylan McDermott is used to playing intense, job-focused characters. He is best known for his role as Bobby Donnell in the crime series The Practice.

*In one episode, Ty’s wife refers to Carter as the Prince of Darkness.

*Carter reads F.B.I. as Federal Bureau of Intimidation. He is not a big fan.