Oh, Terriers, To Know You Was To Love You!
If only more people had known you!
I watch a lot of TV but I will do my best to watch good stuff. I realize "good" is my definition but I look for well crafted and scripted shows that make me think, make me laugh and sometimes make me cry. That leaves out reality TV, game shows, local and national news and most network series.
At the beginning of every season (which there are now several seasons throughout the year), I scour entertainment blogs and entertainment columns to look for something new to view. Sometimes, I'll just start watching a new show because it has a favorite actor in it or writer or producer behind it but usually I do my homework to make sure someone whose opinion I respect thinks it's worthy.
My DVR saves time but it still doesn't let me watch everything so I need to avoid the crap.
So, long introduction to explain why I started watching Terriers. It got great advance press and it starred Donal Logue whose work I've enjoyed for years.
I really didn't know what to expect. I knew it was about some private detectives in California but the name wasn't very helpful in explaining that. Part of me wonders if that's a reason it didn't attract a lot of followers. Because the show was awesome!
Logue's Hank Dolworth was a layered, flawed, self-destructive character that I couldn't help rooting for. Michael Raymond-James sidekick role as Britt Pollack took me a while longer to get behind but I was soon in love with that character as well. With a great supporting cast, the show delved into a huge mystery while letting the characters flesh out the smaller, more personal issues.
I let some episodes pile up on my DVR because I'm always disappointed when I only have one episode, watch it then have to wait a week for the next one. It's much more satisfying to crank through several at a time and immerse myself more fully in to their fictional world.
But, then the bad news started coming out. Terriers was in danger of being canceled. Then, it was likely to be canceled. Finally, it was official. The whole season was broadcast but there was no more to come.
Those episodes on my DVR were like newborn babies to me. I wanted to keep them safe and precious and fresh and innocent without knowing what life had in store for them. (Hmmm, not sure I really like that simile but, oh, well, I hope you get what I mean.) I just knew once I watched them, I was done forever.
So, I kept them, unwatched, until yesterday. I took my last vacation day for 2010 and spent most of the afternoon and early evening watching my special episodes. They did not disappoint. The storyline was superb and tragic yet hopeful. The acting was sublime. The ending was complete yet open ended. I was left with the possibilities of what was to come.
Perhaps that's the best I could hope for. My imagination can take the story and the characters wherever I want it to go. But, I'm still sad. With all the crap that's on TV, it's a damn shame that fine shows like Terriers is done.
Blame the marketers, blame the average viewing audience, blame the folks who calculate the ratings...but don't blame the actors, the writers and the producers. They got this show right and I shall miss it dearly.
I watch a lot of TV but I will do my best to watch good stuff. I realize "good" is my definition but I look for well crafted and scripted shows that make me think, make me laugh and sometimes make me cry. That leaves out reality TV, game shows, local and national news and most network series.
At the beginning of every season (which there are now several seasons throughout the year), I scour entertainment blogs and entertainment columns to look for something new to view. Sometimes, I'll just start watching a new show because it has a favorite actor in it or writer or producer behind it but usually I do my homework to make sure someone whose opinion I respect thinks it's worthy.
My DVR saves time but it still doesn't let me watch everything so I need to avoid the crap.
So, long introduction to explain why I started watching Terriers. It got great advance press and it starred Donal Logue whose work I've enjoyed for years.
I really didn't know what to expect. I knew it was about some private detectives in California but the name wasn't very helpful in explaining that. Part of me wonders if that's a reason it didn't attract a lot of followers. Because the show was awesome!
Logue's Hank Dolworth was a layered, flawed, self-destructive character that I couldn't help rooting for. Michael Raymond-James sidekick role as Britt Pollack took me a while longer to get behind but I was soon in love with that character as well. With a great supporting cast, the show delved into a huge mystery while letting the characters flesh out the smaller, more personal issues.
I let some episodes pile up on my DVR because I'm always disappointed when I only have one episode, watch it then have to wait a week for the next one. It's much more satisfying to crank through several at a time and immerse myself more fully in to their fictional world.
But, then the bad news started coming out. Terriers was in danger of being canceled. Then, it was likely to be canceled. Finally, it was official. The whole season was broadcast but there was no more to come.
Those episodes on my DVR were like newborn babies to me. I wanted to keep them safe and precious and fresh and innocent without knowing what life had in store for them. (Hmmm, not sure I really like that simile but, oh, well, I hope you get what I mean.) I just knew once I watched them, I was done forever.
So, I kept them, unwatched, until yesterday. I took my last vacation day for 2010 and spent most of the afternoon and early evening watching my special episodes. They did not disappoint. The storyline was superb and tragic yet hopeful. The acting was sublime. The ending was complete yet open ended. I was left with the possibilities of what was to come.
Perhaps that's the best I could hope for. My imagination can take the story and the characters wherever I want it to go. But, I'm still sad. With all the crap that's on TV, it's a damn shame that fine shows like Terriers is done.
Blame the marketers, blame the average viewing audience, blame the folks who calculate the ratings...but don't blame the actors, the writers and the producers. They got this show right and I shall miss it dearly.
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