TVSquad

We've waited a long time for season four of The Wire, both with anticipation and apprehension. In anticipation, because the show has been so unbelievably good up to now. And apprehension, because most series fall off in quality eventually don't they? Maybe the wait will have been worth it, if only that it has given many new viewers the chance to discover the series on DVD. The first two seasons have been out for awhile. That's how I found it, at that is the reason I ordered HBO for the first time in my life this summer. The Wire seems positioned finally to receive the accolades it has long deserved.

(S03E12) Despite what (I think) most considered a lackluster season, this was a pretty decent finale. It was tense, loaded with one-liners, and it's the first time Entourage ended with a genuine cliff-hanger. The first two seasons, we left Vince as he went off to make his next film. Now... we don't know what he's going to do next.

(S03E12) Maybe I sit alone with this belief, but I was royally disappointed with this finale. This entire season has been building up to this episode. It was supposed to be a magnificent explosion with guns a blazing as Bullock and Swearengen delivered Deadwood from the clutches of Hearst and his Pinkerton pistoleros. There was none of that. For the most part it was calm. It's clear that this finale was written with a full-length fourth season in mind and I only hope now that the remaining four hours of this wonderful series can do it the justice it deserves.

(S03E11) Forgive the extreme lateness of this review folks, but between work and my cable being out for a day, I just haven't had the opportunity to sit down and watch this episode. But now that I have... wow. Words cannot describe how excited I am for tonight's season three finale. So take this review as sort of a refresher on the season as a whole as we prepare ourselves for the final stand-off between Hearst's men and the camp of Deadwood.

Something tells me Gervais isn't losing any sleep over this.

Seems that hotel heiress/reality show star/professional nightclub visitor Paris Hilton wanted to be on Extras, and Gervais said no. So now Hilton is firing back, calling him insecure and saying: "I guess he's obviously scared of starring alongside an A-lister."

Hilton did not elaborate on who this "A-lister" was.

[via TV Tattle]

I have to admit that I didn't get the connection when I saw the episode, but friends of legendary Hollywood producer Bob Evans say that the dottering old character played by Martin Landau this season is based on him, and he's not happy about it.

Now, at first I would think that it's silly, because there are plenty of old producers in Hollywood, but a friend of Evans says that not only did they use Evans' house in the show, but Entourage producers actually approached him earlier this year to play himself on the show.

HBO says the character is not based on Evans.

The Sopranos may be coming to an end, but Tony ain't goin' nowheres, you got dat? James Gandolfini recently signed an exclusive three-year producing deal with HBO that will see he and his business partner, Alex Ryan (formerly of Paramount) creating original programming for the network. The deal will also give Gandolfini and Ryan a first-look at deals in development for HBO's Picturehouse film distributor. The duo have also been developing a biopic of Ernest Hemingway, titled Hemingway, with Gandolfini in the title role. They've also been working on a documentary titled Occupation Iraq. The deal comes at the same time as the launch of Gandolfini's new production company, Attaboy Films.

If you were casting a miniseries about the American Revolution, concentrating on John Adams, who would be the first person you would think of to play the second president? That's right, the name Paul Giamatti doesn't come to mind right away, does it? Well, Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman did; they're producting a seven-hour HBO miniseries based on the David McCullough book John Adams, and they cast Giamatti in the title role. He'll play Adams during the revolutionary years, when he stoked the revolt behind-the-scenes. The series is set to start shooting in January and will begin airing in March 2008.

I've got to say, resemblance-wise, it doesn't seem to be a match. Even tempermant-wise, I'm not sure. Adams was more of a low-key guy, while almost every role Giamatti's played has been on the high-strung or emotional side. If anyone's got the acting chops to pull this off, though, it's Giamatti. And he'll be the only actor that can say he played both a Founding Father and Pig Vomit.

(UPDATE: I have been taken to task by the readers for calling Adams "low-key." Apparently, my knowledge of American history needs an update, because Adams was supposedly a big pain in the ass. So Giamatti might be perfect for the role.)

(S03E11) It seems only fitting that the week that I fill in for Jonathan, the name of the episode is "What About Bob?" The only thing stranger would be if next week's episode was titled "The Return of Jonathan." (Just checked, it's not.)

While Drama goes to shoot his first scenes for the new Ed Burns flick, Ari, Bob, and Eric go to see a studio head about the Ramones movie, and Vince and Turtle spend the day trying to track down a pair of expensive, limited edition sneakers from a famous Japanese artist.

Some would say it's Jeremy Piven's portrayal as slick agent Ari. Others would choose Adrian Grenier's lead performance as Vince. Still others would choose the goofy charm of Jerry Ferrara's Turtle. But Ron Rosenbaum over at The New York Observer thinks the best thing about the show is Johnny Drama (Kevin Dillon).

I never really thought about it before, but he makes a good case. While I see Entourage as more of an ensemble show (with Piven's character coming in often to bust up the four friends), Dillon does give a great performance, and the character is written just right, a little annoying but not so annoying that you don't care about him. And I think we've all met guys like Johnny.

What do you think is the best thing about Entourage?

Cool link here. It sends you to the homepage for a company called Legend Films. Their specialty? Colorizing old black and white movies so that classic cinema is more appealing to the current crop of film-goers. Anywho, they were tasked with colorizing that one scene from Entourage's "Queens Boulevard." It played a big role in this episode. Vince and Walsh (the director) refused to sanction the release of the film unless it was put out in it's original black and white format. No word yet on whether or not the film will actually be released in the world of Entourage. But if you'd like to see the whole scene in color (past episodes have only given us Vince's "I am Queens Boulevard" line), now you can. It's a little cheesy, but definitely worth seeing if you're a fan of the show. Now all we need is that scene from Aquaman with Vince running down the pier? Anyone?

[Thanks to commenter Barry for pointing this out!]

(S03E10) Well this was certainly a step in the right direction. An episode that actually tied in with the show as a whole. But you knew it was coming. The first two seasons ended with Vince choosing his next project and then going off to make it. So it was only a matter of time before someone stumbled onto it and while Turtle was searching for Saigon, Vince was having a midday romp with an engaged woman, and Drama was being... well Drama, Eric found the next Vincent Chase project.

(S03E10) Once again, great as usual... but man, they are really building up to this season's climax at a snail's pace. As much as that fact has me agitated, you still have to admire it though. Every move, every scene, every choice bit of dialogue in this show means something. It all ties together. It's just so meticulously laid out and that's why we're unfortunately not being treated to a full fourth season. It's too bad that series renewal relies on viewership and not the quality level of the program, because let's face it. Deadwood, along with a few select others (Rescue Me comes to mind), are alone at the top right now.

You probably didn't know this but, according to research performed by Warner Brothers, there will be 25 to 28 million households with HDTV consoles by the end of this year. To all of you I have one thing to say: can you please send some bling my way so I can be added to that list of households? Oh, and add in about $130 so I can purchase The Sopranos Season 6 (Part 1) on hi-def DVD.

Yes, you heard me right! The Sopranos will be the first TV series to be released on the emerging HD-DVD format. HBO Video states that the hi-def set, which will average $129.99, $30 more than the standard DVD version, will arrive in stores on November 7th. HBO also said that a Blu-ray Disc version of Season 6 (Part 1) will be available next year.

For those of you still using those primitive low-def DVD players, HD-DVD and Blu-ray Disc are the next generation optical-disc formats competing for dominance in the the ever growing HDTV market. Currently, there are only two brands of HD-DVD machines in the market, and they are both made by the electronics giant Toshiba.

It turns out it wasn't The End after all. At the end of last season, Curb Your Enthusiasm looked like it was over with a season finale called The End, where Larry David donates a kidney to Richard Lewis and meets his guardian angel. Fans thought it was the final episode of the series since there weren't any plans for a sixth season. Now there's word that HBO and David have reached an agreement for at least one more season of Curb. Filming for ten episodes begins in October but there's no definite air date set.

Is it time for Larry to throw in the towel or do you think he has one last good season in him?