Books and Movies

The USA Network has come up with two of our all-time favorite series, Monk and Psych, and we weren’t disappointed with their newest offering, Burn Notice. Jeffery Donovan stars as Michael Westen, a government agent who has had a “burn notice” issued on him - which basically means he’s not to be contacted, dealt with, or helped. He’s out - with no resources, and no idea who burned him. Michael ends up in Miami, his home town, where he starts to dig into the clues leading to the person who ruined his career. Along the way, he takes on private investigations and security cases, with the help of his ex-girlfriend, Fiona (played by Gabrielle Anwar), who also happens to be an ex-IRA weapons dealer, and his fellow agent, Sam, who is informing on Michael to the FBI. Throw in Sharon Gless as Michael’s mom, and you’ve got a great cast with perfect chemistry. Like Monk and Psych, the chemistry and comedy are equally as important as the mysteries. Don’t let Fiona’s horrible Lucky Charms Irish accent in the pilot discourage you from watching; she ditches it in the second episode.

We watched the first two seasons of The Unit on TV as they aired. My dad would record them for us while we recorded House for him. He decided he didn’t like it that much, so we had to stop watching, cause nothing comes between House and I. But now that season 3 is available on DVD, we’re catching up. Dennis Haysbert has been a favorite of mine since the very short-lived series Now and Again (anyone else remember that one?), which co-starred Eric Close, star of Without a Trace. Then, of course, Haysbert was everyone’s favorite president, David Palmer, on 24. On The Unit, which is based on the memoir Inside Delta Force, Haysbert is the leader of an elite force of Army Rangers who go on covert missions to keep our country safe. The stories of the wives and families living on base is also told, and the supporting cast is mostly terrific. My favorite is the character Mack, played by Max Martini:

Doesn’t he remind you a little of Sean Bean…… Ahem. Back on track.

Anyway, thanks to Netflix, we’re catching up on these series. What have you been watching lately?

Trackback URI | Comments RSS