TVSquad

A high profile family like the Bluth clan requires a large staff to meet its needs. They need to keep up the image (make that illusion) of their lifestyle, after all. Yacht crews, maids, and Segway repairmen are basic necessities. The skilled professionals were the ones that kept the Bluths going. Here are a few of my favorites:

Gene Parmesan (Martin Mull) - As private eyes go, Gene was not a top-notch detective. If he spent more time investigating and less time on his disguises, he might have discovered George Sr.'s infidelity back in the day. I can't decide which is funnier: Gene's satisfied smirk whenever he took off his disguise, or Lucille's screams when he tricked her. It's a shame that Martin Mull only stuck around for a single episode. Perhaps the writers wanted to let Gene leave on high note after locating George Sr. and hanging out with G.O.B.

Shannon Lucio (The O.C.)has bounced back after getting axed from the perpetually transitioning Moonlight to land in Oaks over at Fox. It's a pretty good gig as the show will be run Shawn Ryan of The Shield, and the network has already given a series commitment. Oaks tells the story of three different families, in three different decades, all living in the same house. Not enough for you? Well, what if the house is haunted by a spirit that all of the families have to deal with? Matt Lanter (Heroes) and Bahar Soomekh (Day Break) have also been added to the cast.

Over at TNT, they know drama, and apparently are set to get to know Martin Mull. They've already picked up William H. Macy's Family Man, and now Mull has been added to the cast. He'll play the intellectual older brother of Macy's character, who used to run hotels, but now can't hold down a job.

I remember when this show premiered like it was yesterday. My mom was really interested in watching it, but I thought it looked just looked like a dumb soap opera (this was before I began my two decade long obsession with Guiding Light). I watched a handful of the episodes, and I didn't like it at all. It was too weird for me. But I'm curious to watch it again, as I'll probably have a different take on it since I'm no longer, you know, 10 years old.

Vol. 1 of the series - a 3 disc set - will be released by Sony on March 27. This set will be 25 episodes, which sounds like a lot until you realize that over its two seasons, the show had 325 episodes. Yikes, I had no idea it had that many shows.

The show starred Louise Lasser as Mary, along with Greg Mullavey, Mary Kay Place, Dody Goodman, Debralee Scott, Philip Bruns, Claudia Lamb, and Dabney Coleman.