Posted Aug 28th 2005 11:15PM by Russell Shaw
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, HBO, Six Feet Under
On Tuesday, Six Feet Under creator Alan Ball did an interview with Terry Gross, host of NPR's Fresh Air.
During the interview (link to the audio archive launch page below this post) Ball mentions eight plot and character-destiny details that didn't come up during the course of the series - or even in the final obits posted on the Six Feet Under website.
Continue reading Six Feet Under's creator reveals 8 new character facts
Posted Aug 22nd 2005 3:15PM by Russell Shaw
Filed under: HBO, Six Feet Under
If you've watched last night's series-ending episode of
Six Feet Under, you'll already know that the story line did not end with Claire Fisher driving to New York in pursuit of an art career. But even if you did watch the last ten minutes of "Everyone's Waiting" to see how each character is to die, I'll bet you missed some details that were not available until today. Read on for the scoop.
Continue reading Six Feet Under: ten Fisher family future details you didn't see last night
Posted Aug 21st 2005 11:30PM by Russell Shaw
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, HBO, Six Feet Under
Yes, it is over, as it was and is meant to be.
And what a worthy send off it was. Pure art, a thing of beauty.
The final episode of
Six Feet Under started out with an arc of thwarted change...
Continue reading Six Feet Under: Everyone's Waiting
Posted Aug 15th 2005 4:13PM by Russell Shaw
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, HBO, Six Feet Under
With some sort of grand character-arc closure possible in next week's 75-minute series-ender, "Static" represented one final opportunity for
Six Feet Under to episodically explore how Nate's death evokes even new dimensions of character angst among his grieving survivors.
To me, the beauty of "Static" hangs on two almost incaluably tense and stunning moments involving two of these survivors.
Continue reading Six Feet Under: Static
Posted Aug 8th 2005 2:58PM by Russell Shaw
Filed under: HBO, Six Feet Under
"All Alone" is far more an acting episode than a plot-driven story line.
That's because we already knew- or at least thought we knew - what was going to happen. Nate, who died last week in "
Ecotone", would now be buried. And because grief was the understandably dominant emotion, the outpouring of grief required and indeed got, some great acting.
Continue reading Six Feet Under: All Alone
Posted Aug 5th 2005 11:47AM by Russell Shaw
Filed under: HBO, Six Feet Under, TV Squad Polls
As most of you know, Nate's death was depicted at the conclusion of "
Ecotone," last week's
Six Feet Under episode. Scores of you have been commenting on this development, and wondering what it means for the remaining three episodes (you can see results of the last poll on Nate's fate
here).
One thing is certain- or at least as certain as certain can be in this quixotic show. Given that
Six Feet Under is centered around a funeral home, the decision on how and where to bury Nate will surely be a major component of SFU's concluding story arc.
There are many possibilities. We have some clues. You can cast your vote below.
Continue reading TV Squad Poll: Where will Nate on Six Feet Under be buried?
Posted Jul 31st 2005 10:41PM by Russell Shaw
Filed under: HBO, Six Feet Under
If you haven't seen "Ecotone" yet, I won't spoil it for you. Not at least - to use a newspaper term for the top half of the front page - above the fold.
But if you have already seen "Ecotone," or even perhaps if you haven't, then you will want to read on.
Continue reading Six Feet Under: Ecotone
Posted Jul 27th 2005 8:53AM by Russell Shaw
Filed under: HBO, Six Feet Under
At the end of
Six Feet Under's most recent episode "Singing For Our Lives," Nate collapses and appears to be fighting for his own life.
Will Nate die?
We have some clues.
Continue reading TV Squad Poll: Will Nate die on Six Feet Under next week?
Posted Jul 25th 2005 6:06PM by Russell Shaw
Filed under: HBO, Six Feet Under
OK, now here's a doozy of a question for your moral compass.
When you are on the downside of a turbulent or failing marriage - but still married- is it
ever OK to seek shelter in the arms of a seemingly gentle lover?
Theologians, family counselors, lawyers, bartenders and hair stylists would all have their answers to that most thorny of dilemmas-one that was played out not once, but twice on "Singing For Our Lives."
Continue reading Six Feet Under: Singing For Our Lives
Posted Jul 18th 2005 11:39AM by Russell Shaw
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, HBO, Six Feet Under
The concept of "The Silence" refers to the Quaker practice of mostly silent, meditative contemplation at meetings- rather than the verbal sermons and the singing of hymns at church services. Peter Thomas Burns, who passed on at the start of this memorable episode, was a Quaker. My profound and very similar personal experience with this "silence" struck a deep chord with me, but that's for another conversation at another time and place.
But the overall concept of "silence" can be extended to at least one of this intricate episode's other plot lines.
Continue reading Six Feet Under: The Silence
Posted Jul 11th 2005 5:41PM by Russell Shaw
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, HBO, Six Feet Under
Some
Six Feet Under episodes are writing-driven, character-plot showcases.
"The Rainbow Of Her Reasons" is a bit different. This latest episode is acting-driven, namely a showcase for three of the most emotive actors working on any screen in this generation.
I'm talking about Patricia Clarkson, who plays Ruth's sister Sarah O'Conner; James Cromwell, who portrays Ruth's husband George Sibley; and yes, Lauren Ambrose, who, of course, is Claire Fisher.
Continue reading Six Feet Under: The Rainbow Of Her Reasons
Posted Jul 5th 2005 4:49PM by Russell Shaw
Filed under: HBO, Six Feet Under
Well, no "recurring character" dies in
Eat A Peach. I'm almost certain that a character
will pass on in next week's episode
The Rainbow Of Her Reasons, but more let's not get ahead of ourselves.
First, let's dispense with the episode title. Unlike so many other
Six Feet Under eppy liveries, this one should be taken literally. Think diabetic shock. And not anyone you know.
The important thing is after last week's silly yawner "Time Flies,"
Six Feet Under now has its groove back. Characters are undergoing transition, and seem to be headed toward the abyss. In short, everything is back to "normal"-
Six Feet Under's skewed definition of whatever that term means in the first place.
Continue reading Six Feet Under: Eat A Peach
Posted Jun 30th 2005 6:59PM by Russell Shaw
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, HBO, Six Feet Under
It's being widely surmised that a "recurring"
Six Feet Under character will meet their demise in the next episode (
Eat A Peach).
Note the scuttlebutt says "recurring," not "regular."
So let us look at some "recurring character" candidates for an early grave:
Continue reading Six Feet Under: Here's my REVISED guess on who dies next
Posted Jun 28th 2005 12:21PM by Russell Shaw
Filed under: HBO, Six Feet Under
On the website
Jump The Shark, you can vote for the scene or episode in which a once-quality show turned ridiculous - and never recovered. (The term "jump the shark," incidentally, got its name from an inane
Happy Days episode in which Fonzie hit the water and did exactly what the phrase entails.)
I now state for the record that - barring improvement,
Time Flies is a way serious candidate for
Six Feet Under's "Jump The Shark" episode. The repeated scenes of Nate, acting morose on his 40th birthday, is insufferable enough. Yet when a bird flies into the Fisher house during Nate's birthday party, and Nate inexplicably takes out his rage by terrorizing and then, apparently, killing the unfortunate creature - that's a Jump The Shark moment.
The title of this episode implies some sort of metaphoric relationship between a bird who is stuck in a house doesn't seem to want to fly away - and Nate's trapped circumstances. A trapped bird, a trapped husband.. get it? College sophomores get "C's" for short stories with plots that transparent. How such a device got a whole episode wrapped around it is beyond me.
That said, Nate's bird-bashing behavior defies conventional analysis. Brenda is, after all, pregnant again. For some reason Nate is not jumping for joy. In fact, considering how well Brenda seems to be accepting of
his child (Maya), the fact that Nate is less than pumped about Brenda being pregnant with
their child, shows what a self-absorbed, inconsiderate jerk Nate can be.
Continue reading Six Feet Under: Time Flies
Posted Jun 26th 2005 11:53PM by Russell Shaw
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, HBO, Six Feet Under
I've just read "Under and Out,"
TV Guide critic Matt Roush's blast at
Six Feet Under. Apparently, he doesn't like the show, largely because there's too much "depression, mental illness and domestic angst."
I've always had great respect for Matt as a critic. Even worked with him more eons ago than I care to reveal. But I think he's got this one wrong.
I think the fascination of the show has much to do with the fact that they can take such subjects as "depression" "mental illness" and "domestic angst," and exaggerate it to the point of view of guerilla theater absurdity.
Dunno about you, but I have seen families where depression, alcoholism, drug use, and suicidal tendencies span multiple generatios. Like, the Sibleys. And the fact that Rush married George Sibley without a clue to the inconstant that raged in his genes - I have seen that close up. Not first hand, but second-hand enough times to know that this stuff happens.
Substance abuse? I know a brilliant, educated woman - a fan of
Six Feet Under, incidentally, who has been in and out of detox, jails, and treatment centers for years. And who I haven't heard from in months and who may be back in the clink.
Depression? Yea. Not me, but I once loved a woman for whom Prozac didn't work. She worked her ya-ya's out with fine wine, a series of misbegotten sexual affairs, occasional giggle weed. Kind of like Brenda, ya know?
Domestic angst? Seen it closer than second-hand.
So, when you see these tendencies reflected in story arcs, maybe you don't go "oh, that's depressing." Maybe you go, "ouch, I knew someone who was going through the same exact thing.."
Or, look and the mirror and remember...
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