GabrielleAnwar-related stories
Posted Aug 7th 2009 1:43AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Episode Reviews, Reality-Free, Burn Notice
(S03E09) Wow! Talk about a powerful finale. There were a lot of plot points and emotional issues addressed, and if you had any question about Michael's true loyalty, this show answered it.
Burn Notice goes on hiatus -- is that what they call it? -- till the winter, and it's going to be a long rest of the summer and fall waiting for the story to resume. There was change in the air, what with Michael inching closer to a return to the CIA -- or so it seemed. More on all that and the blistering finale after the jump.
Continue reading Burn Notice: Long Way Back (summer finale)
Posted Jul 31st 2009 3:02AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Episode Reviews, Reality-Free, Burn Notice
(S03E08) In the latest Michael adventure, our hero was hell-bent on getting back into intelligence work – nothing new, really. However, that meant dancing with Strickler, a foxtrot that Fiona was reluctant to take part in ...
More on Fiona's vulnerabilities after the jump. Meanwhile, another job popped up when Barry, money launderer and occasional member of the Michael troupe of operatives, called in all his favors and became the client.
Continue reading Burn Notice: Friends Like These
Posted Jul 29th 2009 12:03PM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, Pickups and Renewals, Reality-Free, Burn Notice
USA has to be rather pleased. Last week, the
top rated show on cable was Burn Notice. And their newest series
Royal Pains is hanging in there impressively in fourth place, creating a powerful Thursday night lineup. As a reward, word has it that
USA has renewed both Burn Notice and Royal Pains.
I first fell into
Royal Pains because I have this bizarre fascination with the Hamptons. I hadn't even heard of it until a few years ago, and now it's just fascinating to me. Here's a place full of people I will never get to mingle with, living and partying somewhere that I will never go. It's
Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous with a plot.
Burn Notice I've not watched because I didn't jump in when it first started (regular readers may remember that I have a thing about that), though I should probably just get over it and check it out. It has Bruce Campbell in it, and he's always a blast and I've heard nothing but good things about it. Regardless, it's more good news for cable broadcasting while the networks keep crying away the summer.
Posted Jul 24th 2009 10:02AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Episode Reviews, Reality-Free, Burn Notice
(S03E07) Burn Notice usually stays on the fun side of spying. This episode was all about getting back to doing a Robin Hood job, and since it tapped into Michael's psychology so perfectly, it added a good dollop of emotion to the fun.
And there was also that preview from last week that left fans gasping. Was one of the gang of three going down? Fortunately, in the world of spoilers and such, if that were true it would have been all over the net. Fortunately, it was all part of the con. More on that after the jump.
Continue reading Burn Notice: Shot in the Dark
Posted Jul 10th 2009 10:08AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Episode Reviews, Reality-Free, Burn Notice
(S03E05) Michael Weston met Michael Westen. How cool was it that
Burn Notice cast actor Michael Weston -- remember him as the private eye who helped
House last year? As a psycho/math genius/code breaker/pattern spotter named Spencer Witawski, he was sort of a detective here, too, good enough to have tracked down Michael and become the latest client.
As integral episodes go, this was a major one. Major for Michael and his desire to return to government work and major for the status of Fiona and Michael's relationship. And did I mention that it was a major league great show, too? More after the jump.
Continue reading Burn Notice: Signals and Codes
Posted Feb 10th 2009 1:31PM by Debra McDuffee
Filed under: OpEd, TV Squad Lists, Reality-Free
The
new fall pilots don't excite me very much, what with all of the cops, doctors and lawyers. But I know networks, and original ideas aren't exactly the "in" thing.
So, why can't we design some spin-offs? You know, the networks might go for some ideas based on hit shows, and we can make them a little bit unique, right? Let's add in some elements that excite us to some familiar characters and see if we can't create some new spin-off pilots better than the actual ones.
Continue reading Six spinoffs you'll probably never see ... but sure would be fun
Posted Feb 6th 2009 10:13AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Episode Reviews, Reality-Free, Burn Notice
(S02E12) "That's the thing about spies. You never know who they are." -- Michael
Michael Westen with money troubles? Boy, now you really know how bad the economy is when a burned super spy has to dig up a job to keep himself in Armani suits. Actually, I thought it was a refreshing change of pace that Michael actively pursued an assignment rather than just wait for somebody to come along -- to Sam or Madeline or Fiona -- who needs help that seemingly only Michael can provide.
What was weird is that for much of the episode, the case was much less important than the subtext between Fiona and Michael. This is an interesting development and so different from other classic TV pairings. Watching Fiona and Michael you don't wonder if they'll ever do it, because they've done it. No, you wonder what the heck does it mean and how do they deal with the emotions stirred up by Fiona's near death and Michael's reaction to possibly losing her?
Continue reading Burn Notice: Seek and Destroy
Posted Jan 30th 2009 10:29AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Episode Reviews, Reality-Free, Burn Notice
(S02E11) "The one who burned you is closer than you think." -- Fiona
A year ago, the idea of anybody doing anything for a pair of 50-yard line tickets to watch the Miami Dolphins play football would have been a joke. Fortunately for
Burn Notice, the Fins won the AFC East and are relevant again. Therefore, Sam's Good Samaritan act -- which got a major boost when Fiona got involved -- had a decent payoff, beyond the idea of them doing something nice for a friend.
Were you thinking
Men in Black when you saw Fiona, Sam and Michael in their uniform black suits complete with sunglasses and heavy weaponry? They really do find a way to make the three of them seem like a much more formidable force. Even more than the old
Mission: Impossible team, Michael, Fiona and Sam are like the IMF trio deluxe, with each of them more than able to handle adversity. More on that adversity after the jump.
Continue reading Burn Notice: Hot Spot
Posted Jan 23rd 2009 10:33AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Episode Reviews, Reality-Free, Burn Notice
(S02E10) "Brushes with death are like snowflakes. Each one is unique and icy cold." -- Michael
Well, if you think Michael was ticked off about being burned, you should take his temperature after there's an attempt on his life. This episode, which picked up right after a bomb went off in Michael's loft doorway, had a little bit of everything that makes
Burn Notice one of the best shows on TV. In short, it was great to have it back on the schedule
. And yes, there was little doubt that Michael would survive the blast. It's good to see the Charger and the loft did, too.
Michael has a lot of reasons to be bent out of shape. Carla's still yanking him around and now she's involved his family by having Nate arrested. In one of the few times I can remember on the show, he really lost his cool when he screamed at her, "I want my brother out of jail. I want my life back!" Carla got the message.
Continue reading Burn Notice: Do No Harm (winter premiere)
Posted Aug 8th 2008 8:42AM by Paul Goebel
Filed under: Episode Reviews, Reality-Free, Burn Notice
(S02E05) "Sammy's gettin' some hammy tonight." - Sam Axe
How great was it seeing Michael and Fi still sitting in that car? I like to imagine that they were sitting there for an entire week while we waited for the new episode.
Not that I didn't enjoy Michael's how-to on exposing covert security but I feel bad for the delivery guy. As if it isn't bad enough to get to the delivery and realize you've been pranked, this poor guy is also going to get the crap beaten out of him. No wonder Michael helps everyone he meets. He has a lot of bad karma to make up for.
Continue reading Burn Notice: Scatter Point
Posted Jul 20th 2008 2:27PM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: TV on DVD, Reality-Free, Burn Notice
I'd like to think that I'm the kind of person that gets in on cool things at the start, you know? There's just something about jumping on the bandwagon that's less attractive than being able to say, "Oh, yes. I was into that from day one." So, while I can proudly declare that I was a charter member of the
Mad Men audience, I was late to
Burn Notice. I missed the boat on
Burn Notice, okay! There, I said it.
Fortunately for me, I've had the chance to catch up. I even got to
visit the set. The USA Network rebroadcasts and occasional marathons have helped -- hooray for DVRs -- but I really think it was the
Burn Notice Season One DVD set that filled in all the blanks. Reasonably priced and recently released, the set has become one of my favorites, as had the tale of Michael Westen, professional spy who has been inexplicably fired -- burned -- and dumped in Miami. There's a lot to like in this show, and in this DVD set.
Continue reading Burn Notice Season One - DVD Review
Posted Jul 10th 2008 11:19PM by Paul Goebel
Filed under: Episode Reviews, Reality-Free, Burn Notice
(S02E01) Man, it's been a long time since last season. I remembered very little of what they showed in the recap and after being reminded, I was hungry for the new season.
It occurs to me as I'm watching this episode that Michael Westen is a less philanthropic MacGyver. He knows a lot of tricks that will help you in sticky situations but he's smart enough to keep most of them to himself. I, personally, have never had to run from the police but if I ever do, I now know the best way to stop the airbags from going off.
Continue reading Burn Notice: Breaking and Entering (season premiere)
Posted Jun 27th 2008 10:41AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Interviews, Celebrities, Reality-Free, Burn Notice
On my recent
visit to the set of Burn Notice, I had the pleasure of meeting the cast, including the irrepressible
Bruce Campbell, the plucky Gabrielle Anwar, and the fascinating star of the show, Jeffrey Donovan. They were all wonderful and I was thrilled to participate in a round-table interview with them. However, when I had the chance to shake the hand of
Sharon Gless, the Emmy-winning actress who starred in
Cagney & Lacey, The Trials of Rosie O'Neill and played amazing characters on
Queer as Folk and Nip/Tuck, I have to confess -- I gushed. I couldn't help it. She's Sharon Gless!
I discovered that as brilliant as she is a performer, Sharon Gless is also a class act with the media. She talked about another
Cagney & Lacey, Tyne Daly, acting, playing villains,
Kim Cattrall and much more. Read on and you'll see -- as I did -- why you'd gush to if you were face-to-face with Sharon Gless.
Continue reading Sharon Gless: The TV Squad Interview
Posted Jun 24th 2008 10:57AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Industry, OpEd, Interviews, Celebrities, Reality-Free, Burn Notice
Miami in June is hot. Very hot. On the set of
Burn Notice, however, everything is cool. In fact, when I arrive at the Coconut Grove studios where the USA spy drama is shot, I find myself smack dab in the middle of a full-fledged film studio.
The old convention center, where I remember going to an indoor flea market in the late 1970s, has been completely transformed. There are trailers, production offices, standing sets, all geared up and working to bring
Burn Notice back for season two.
Continue reading Burn Notice: A day on the set
Posted Jun 20th 2008 8:02AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Interviews, Celebrities, Reality-Free, Burn Notice
On USA's spy-action-comedy series
Burn Notice, there are great actors all around. Recently, I had the chance to spend a day on the set of
Burn Notice (more on that next week!), and share in round-table interviews with the stars of the show.
Here's one of those wonderful actors, the irreverent and brilliant Bruce Campbell. As Sam, Jeffrey's old friend -- and sometime nemesis -- from the spy wars, Campbell is having a ball filming in South Florida and stealing scenes like nobody's business. Oh, and he smells good, just like
Old Spice.
Q: What is the character of Sam about?
Bruce Campbell: He's about 50. No, he's like the other characters in the show, damaged goods, which is why I like him.
Continue reading Bruce Campbell: The TV Squad Interview
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