30 Days of Television - Day 12

An episode you've watched more than 5 times.

I've probably seen every episode of Terriers more than five times, but I'll go with my favorite episode - "Sins of the Past" for this one. The episode does a great job of paralleling Britt and Hank's present with their past. Only instead of Hank spiraling out of control he's coming out of the shadows... and Britt's the one spiraling. It's smartly written and well acted. We get a glimpse as to how Britt and Hank met, with Hank giving Britt a break on his b&e.

Meanwhile in the present, we see Britt deal with the aftermath of finding out Katie's cheated on him (and his breaking up with her and moving out). He doesn't deal with it well. He finds himself in some very hot water by the end of the episode. At the end the bffs are at odds when Hank reveals to Britt that he's known all along that Katie had cheated, and he even knows who she did it with. I can kinda feel where Britt's coming from. It's a very well played out set of scenes and all I can say is MRJ plays pissed off extremely convincingly (I mean that's pretty much why he gets hired for the roles he gets, right? When he's not there to die, at least.)

The episode also sets up the show for the next three that would ultimately end the series. Though not planned as a series finale, episode 13 ends with Britt taking responsibility for the sins of the very recent past. It's a great way to end on a cliffhanger for a second season - or give the viewer the option of deciding how things played out after the show ended. But I digress, that's not what this prompt is about.

Sadly none of the scenes from Terriers are on youtube (probably thanks to the youtube police), but it's on Netflix, so take the time and watch the 13 episode series. It's a great show. Really wish they could do a tv movie or something just to give us more Hank and Britt.

30 Days of Television - Day 01

Show that shouldn't have been cancelled

Oh there are so many shows that I've been sad to see go - Shark, Smash, Once Upon A Time in Wonderland... to name a few. But I think I have to go with the show that I just rewatched for the countless time... and that's the 13 episode long FX series Terriers. The show aired in 2010 and starred Donal Logue (Gotham) and Michael Raymond-James (Once Upon A Time). It wasn't your typical crime drama - in was kind the anti-hero version of a crime drama - and the two played a couple of down on their luck Private Investigators. The show had nothing to do with yappy little dogs, but was a metaphor for the two main characters' outlook on life.

The dry humor is what gets me, every time. Doesn't matter how many times I see it, I still crack up at the antics and sarcasm. It's the perfect show for me. It got great reviews from critics and viewers alike, but it was poorly marketed by the network and the title was... misleading? A title that has to be explained isn't a good one, IMO, but then again I'm not in the business. However I remember when the show was being promoted as a "must watch" and thinking I knew nothing about it and therefore wasn't interested.

My favorite character is, of course, Britt Pollack played by Raymond-James. He's an "ex-con" who saw the error of his ways and partners up with an ex-cop to work the PI beat. He lives with his girlfriend Katie - whom he met after robbing her house and seeing her picture and thinking she was cute, so she looked her up at the bar she worked at - and we meet the couple dealing with the idea of possibly moving on to become parents. Katie wants a baby, Britt not so much. So he's in a foul mood in the opening scene of the series. Still he's pretty good natured throughout the show and definitely has the best lines. His story is relate-able and compelling, and you can't help but cheer for him.

His buddy (both on the show and in real life), Hank Dolworth played by Donal Logue, is an ex cop who had to leave the force due to his drinking problem. He was drinking on the job, and screwed up a major rape case that got him forced out. Just before that, he met Britt who was caught trying to jack a car. At some point the two partner up and we get to witness them foul up and save the day for 13 awesome episodes.





The only reason I watched it 4 years after it was cancelled and on Netflix was because I fell in love with MRJ in Once Upon A Time and needed something else of his to watch. I wish I'd seen it as it aired, though I have a feeling I'd have been very angry that it didn't get picked up for a full season. Though maybe if more folks had watched it, it'd have made it.

So I'll just keep hoping that FX brings it back for a special event, as there have been rumors for a while now... Donal has found success on Fox's Gotham, and MRJ is currently working on a new show hoping to be picked up for the NBC fall line up "Game of Silence" sounds like a GREAT show. Really have high hopes for him and the show.