Still Waiting to be Rescued by Tommy Gavin

Season six of Rescue Me, the dark FDNY saga, begins tomorrow night (June 29th) on fX at 10PM. The new season picks up after last year's cliff hanger close, with Tommy Gavin (Denis Leary) about to join the ghosts that have plagued his life since this series began. He's been shot in his local saloon and now the white light approaches.

Here on the Flaming Nose, we've had many discussions about who rules the roost among TV's bad boys. Contenders have included Dr. House on Fox, Dexter the serial killer on Showtime and Walter White, the meth dealing Science teacher from Albuquerque (AMC). I have always hypothesized that Tommy Gavin is the most compelling sociopath in the group, mostly because his type is so common. It's unlikely that we'll ever run across a Dexter or Walter
White in real life. That kind of true duplicity (friendly family man by day, killer by night) is mercifully rare outside of television. Tommy G., on the other hand, is an archetype that walks among us. He cheats (on everyone...his family, his friends, his co-workers), he drinks to excess,
he has extreme difficulty forming any kind of emotional attachment to fellow human beings. From time to time his job calls him to run into flaming buildings to save complete strangers. He's heroic, yet anhedonic. He cares enough to risk his life for strangers, yet is incapable of showing the slightest warmth to family and lovers. He would probably be completely unpalatable, were it not for his pitch black and pitch perfect, charming NY Irish wit. While we ponder Tommy's emotional pathology, we are also laughing our asses off over his latest banter with the boys in the firehouse.

Looking forward to how Mr. Gavin will resolve his continued substance abuse this season, and we are especially eager to welcome back the excellent ensemble cast. John Scurti (Lou Shea) has long been our favorite, and he'll face his own life defining battles in the sixth season of Rescue Me.

Rescue Me Resurgence in Season Five

It's very rare for a TV series to lose its way several years into its life, and then come back with (in this case) a ferocious vengeance. Last year, Rescue Me (Tuesday night, 10pm on fX was foundering and lost. The series, which started as an inside look and homage to the humor and horror that NYC firemen (post 9-11) live every day, had gone off into a surreal, almost daytime soap opera zone that became, (even for this die hard fan) nearly unwatchable.

Thanks to Denis Leary's writing, producing and unfailing eye for the dark side of humor, Rescue Me is back. In fact, as a fan who has never missed a single episode, this is without question the best season ever.

The most recent episode, "Iceman", opened with the theatrical existentialism of Eugene O'Neil's The Iceman Cometh, where Tommy Gavin faced his demons and ghosts in a NYC bar. And it ended with more blood, fire, explosions, and drama than you would pay good money to see for one of those Jerry Bruckheimer action flicks at your local movie palace. In between, there was profane, swallow your tongue humor and...quite frankly...the best banter on TV.

Last week's episode found our beloved Tommy Gavin (Denis Leary) tossing his AA chip for the siren call of ghosts and alcohol once again. This is not a new theme, and could have been tedious, except for a phenomenal moment between Tommy, and fellow firehouse buddy (and now room-mate) Lou. Confronting T. Gavin, Lou launches into a flaming put down of all his faults, and lays it on the line.

"Sober...you're a great fireman. And a selfish, spiteful, hit the nail on the head, no bullshit kind of guy. Drunk...you're a great fireman. And a selfish, spiteful, hit the nail on the head, no bullshit kind of guy. But funny. And I like funny."

This may be my favorite TV line of the season. Played by John Scurti (Lou), Shea is a revelation. He's a solid, hilarious, down-to-earth dude who seems more real than any other character on the series. I think he is sexy as hell, and I don't wonder why the mean French journalist was attracted to him. If she didn't give Lou a roll in the sheets, that's one more reason why folks here in the USA might resent the French. I hope Emmy award nominations are around the corner for both Denis Leary and Scurti this Fall.

This is superb television, and as we wait for some of our other favorites to come back, there isn't anything better on TV. Please visit the website too, as Denis Leary wants to funnel the recognition for this fantastic program into support for real life firefighters and their missions.

Viral Video: Hulu's New Commercial with Denis Leary Won't Rot Your Brain

Have you seen this wonderful commercial yet? Hulu has been rocking the airwaves as one of the few big Internet sites to advertise on TV. They rolled out some great advertising in this year's Superbowl. But because Hulu is all about television, it walks a gossamer thin line in this spot; poking fun at TV...while simultaneously making it seem like the coolest thing on earth. And what better spokesperson could they have gotten for THAT message than Mr. Denis Leary? If you look up the word cool on Wikipedia, you'll find a picture of Denis, who can be found every week in the gritty FDNY series "Rescue Me" (Tuesday nights on fX).

Hulu's online traffic has been growing faster than you can say the word Twitter. It really makes you wonder why more big web sites don't spit shine their brands and send them off to TV Land. With most advertisers fretting about "clutter", TV is a wide open frontier when it comes to this category.

Don't Forget -- "Rescue Me" Season Five Premieres Tonight on FX!

As Jane reminded us here earlier, FX Network's prickly dramedy Rescue Me returns for its fifth season tonight, with a full order of 22 episodes on tap for us. Rescue Me tends to make every other drama seem a little anemic, don't you think, and it's Denis Leary's sexy and searing portrayal of troubled firefighter Tommy Gavin that sets this one on fire.

Here's an early review from today's New York Times -- can't wait to see Michael J. Fox in this exciting and often daring series!

Rescue Me airs at Tuesdays at 10pm on FX. Visit the Rescue Me website for great extras and more info.

Denis Leary Comes to the Rescue

Only one week left until Rescue Me returns to fX, Tuesday nights at 10pm. We all could use a savior these days, and this Denis Leary gem offers the best formula for escape from lives beset by lay-offs, buy-outs, and stimulus plans that have yet to stimulate.
The Rescue Me recipe for success should continue into Season Five, with noir humor, exasperating family drama and harrowing action scenes where someone usually falls head first into the smoking maw of a building engulfed in flames. Most of the popular ensemble group will return this season and plot lines will include a new hangout bar for the firefighters and Tommy Gavin's continuing battle for sobriety. Music will also continue to have a special role, with songs from hot NYC based band Apache Stone featured throughout the new season.

The Rescue Me website is worth a visit with plenty of wallpaper and screen saver downloads as well as some very iconic pictures of the cast taking over Manhattan, Godzilla style (see above). Leary is very committed to supporting real life firefighters; for more on that, the website has a special gallery.

I noticed this towering billboard for Rescue Me in Times Square last week and thought it looked right at home on the streets of New York as the dawn broke. It's hard to believe that Rescue Me, one of the first television programs to reference 9-11 as a serious part of its character's development, is now entering a fifth season. Although this series has had some frustrating plot lines (Tatum O'Neal as the endlessly inebriated sister saying "No No No" to rehab comes to mind) it's still
generally compelling and should be great escape programming in the coming weeks.

Rescue Me Returns

Those of you who live in NY or LA, may have noticed some interesting billboards trumpeting the return of Rescue Me on fX (Wednesday, 6-13-07 at 10pm). Am I the only one who thinks that Denis Leary is channeling the giant mother bug from the movie "Alien" in this picture? The long, muscular neck...the mouth opened wide enough to swallow almost an entire human. And those teeth! All it needs is a gooey strand of poisonous alien drool, dripping from his chin and ready to burn a hole through the deck of his fire engine. I'm not sure if it means that Rescue Me is going to have a sci-fi flavor this season, but boy-oh-boy, does Denis have an extra long neck. Stay tuned for the first episode Nose Fans!