Entourage

The third season of Entourage was the season that really defined what the show was. By the third season, the show had established itself as one of the most popular on television, and in every episode you get a good mix of comedy and drama. The season is officially divided into two parts, with Part One consisting of episodes 1-12 and Part Two episodes 13-20. The season is divided up into two parts because Part One ended in August 2006 and Part Two started April 2007, but the plot continues from Part One to Part Two.

The season starts after Aquaman finishes filming, and star Vincent Chase (Adrian Grenier) is one the verge of superstardom. The first two episodes of the season, “Aquamom” and “One Day in the Valley” are two of my favorite episodes of the whole series, as both have great moments, good laughs, and you really get a sense that Vince is becoming a superstar. In both episodes you also get the feel that Vince’s genuine, “just one of the guys” persona hasn’t been affected by the shallow lifestyles that many of his colleagues live. In “Aquamom”, he takes his mother to his movie premiere as his date, and in “One Day in the Valley”, he gets two less popular high schoolers into a party and spends his night partying with high schoolers (which doesn’t come across as strange as it sounds). In both these episodes, he places friends and family above everything else, and this persona serves as a nice contrast to his newfound starpower. Eric “E” Murphy (Kevin Connolly) grows into his role as Vince’s manager, something that seemed a bit forced earlier in the series, but it seemed more natural this season, as you see Eric become more confident and better at his job. Also, Eric develops a serious relationship with Sloan McQuewick (Emmanuelle Chriqui), which creates a fresh plotline for the show. We also see Johnny “Drama” Chase (Kevin Dillon), Vince’s half brother, continue on with his troubles of being a jobless actor, but he eventually lands a co-starring role on a television show, which was a also nice addition to the plot and gave “Drama” some much needed character development. Turtle’s (Jerry Ferrara) plots are usually only one-episode long, with a couple of exceptions, like when he becomes an underground rapper’s manager. In all honesty, the plots involving Turtle are usually the most boring ones in the show, something that isn’t fixed until Season 5. One wonders if his role more often than not is to remind us that the four are from New York, with Turtle almost always in a Yankees hat and jersey, and he’s the only character that retains his New York accent. And Ari Gold (Jeremy Piven) is a terrific character as always. Ari is Vince’s agent, and we see his newly started agency grow during the season. Scenes with him are almost always great, especially with his assistant Lloyd (Rex Lee). The show would be a lot less funny and a lot less entertaining without these two

Entourage always has multiple storylines going at the same time. Some of these can be terrific entertainment, while during some you’re waiting for the scene to be over with. Season 3 has both, the majority make for pretty good entertainment. The main plotline is Vince’s struggles in getting the starring role in his dream movie, Medellin, which studios are reluctant to make. The plot pretty much personifies Vince, as he has many lucrative offers out there for other projects, but he refuses to let money guide him and chooses movies he’s passionate about. I didn’t love the subplot with the guys’childhood friend, now ex-convict Dom (Domenick Lombardozzi), in the episode titled fittingly enough “Dominated”. Nor did I like the subplot with Ari’s old frat brother (in the episode “Gotcha”), where Ari acts awkward after his frat brother isn’t as much of a loser as he thought he’d be. Ari in this episode made me cringe more than laugh. But like I said before, the majority of the plots are entertaining, so I guess having a couple of bad ones is expected from a show.

Season 3 is enjoyable, to put it simply. The show definitely targets the male audience, so maybe from a different set of eyes it wouldn’t be so enjoyable and entertaining to me. But, to hell with it, I’m a guy, and I love Entourage.

Dramatic-comedies don’t often work in television, because the makers of the show must include enough drama in the show to make the viewer genuinely feel for the characters, but they must also include enough comedy to keep the show from getting too serious. But if the makers of the show succeed at this, then the drama is heightened because the humor in the show makes the characters more likable, so the viewers care about the characters. And the comedy in the show is heightened because it can come in moments when you don’t expect to laugh. So when drama and comedy reach a perfect balance, such as in Entourage, the finished product can be remarkable. It’s tough enough making a show that’s moving enough to be a drama or funny enough to be a comedy, but Entourage gives us both elements with ease. And in the second season of the show, we finally see the show deliver on the potential that we saw in Season One.

This season’s main storyline revolves around Vincent Chase (Grenier) and the new Aquaman movie, which Vince has a good chance to star in. Once he finally realizes that he wants the part, he has to compete with other, more popular actors to get the part. And then once he gets it, he learns that his old flame, Mandy Moore (played by herself), might be the co-star. The only problem is that she’s engaged. Eric Murphy (Connolly) must learn the ropes as he is Vince’s new manager, and he’s forced to deal with Vince as Vince falls back in love with Mandy. Turtle (Ferrara) doesn’t have any significant storylines in the season, but he’s used as comic relief, along with Johnny “Drama” Chase (Dillon). “Drama” is the most outlandish character, as in one episode he’s beating a stranger’s car with a six-iron, and in another he’s trying to find a way into the Playboy Mansion after he received a lifetime ban from there. We also find out about his obsession over having muscular calves and his insecurity over his self-described “chicken legs”. One of the best developments of the season is Jeremy Piven’s growth as Ari Gold, Vince’s agent. Piven is electric as Ari, and he steals the scene anytime he’s in it. It’s not just Ari’s hilarious insults, or his quick temper, or his god-complex that make him great. It’s his whole persona, and the writers of the show wisely used him more than they did in the first season as they saw the potential of the character. We also see Ari’s new assistant, Lloyd (Lee), who adds another source of comedy.

After a short Season One, we finally got to see how great the show can be, as Season Two is the first full-length season. There’s not one bad episode, out of 22, and it’s the week-to-week consistency that makes Entourage what it is. While you can say that the season deals with Vince and his role as Aquaman, it’s really about the smaller storylines that revolve around him as Aquaman. There’s the story arc with him and Mandy, both fighting off obvious feelings for each other. Then there’s Ari’s boss courting Vince to ditch Ari and to sign with him because Vince is about to become a major star due to Aquaman. Its smaller plotlines like these that keep us attached to the show, but also give us fresh stories. We see this first utilized in the second season, and it’s used for the following seasons as well. “Drama” and Turtle usually have new plotlines every episode, so there are always their adventures to look forward to.

Season Two of Entourage was a giant leap forward for the show, and it cemented its status as one of the best shows on television. It’s tough to find a major flaw in the show, and there’s nothing in the show that holds it back. It’s got a laid-back demeanor about it, which lets you just sit back and enjoy one of television’s greatest shows.

Season One of HBO’s hit show Entourage only has eight episodes, but it delivers the solid mix of comedy and drama which would become the trademark of the series. The show follows up-and-coming movie star Vincent Chase (Grenier), and, if you couldn’t guess, his entourage. This entourage consists of childhood friends Turtle (Ferrara), Eric “E” Murphy (Connolly), and Vince’s half-brother, Johnny “Drama” Chase (Dillion). Complementing the cast is co-star Jeremy Piven, who plays Vince’s eccentric but effective agent Ari Gold. The show chronicles Vince, who grew up in a poor neighborhood in Queens, adapting to his new glamorous lifestyle, and follows the others’ various subplots.

Adrian Grenier is not a tremendously talented actor, but he really doesn’t need to be. He has a very talented cast around him, and he has writers that seem to understand Grenier’s strengths and weaknesses. Grenier is never asked to carry the show, and he never tries to dominate the show. His character, Vince, is an easy-going, likable movie star. All the other characters cater to his needs, but the writers do a great job of not making Vince the main character, instead focusing on two or three different subplots each episode. Johnny “Drama” is one of the funniest characters on the show, as he is a struggling actor trying to make it big, but is more known as Vince’s older brother than anything else. He also serves as Vince’s de facto trainer and nutritionist. Johnny “Drama” is also very likable, as he can be overly-sensitive, but then can instantly lose his temper, which often cause hilarious, if not awkward, moments on the show. Turtle serves as Vince’s driver, but really doesn’t do much else. Subplots that focus on him tend to be more comical than serious, as Turtle’s emotional depth is not explored until later seasons. He is, however, shown to be very loyal and would take a bullet for any of his friends. Eric Murphy is seen as the smartest of the four, even though his previous job was as the night manager at Sbarro’s. He is fiery and passionate, and eventually become’s Vince’s manager. He’s not always right, but he does always have Vince’s wishes in mind. Ari Gold might be the best character on television. If not the best, then he has to be in the conversation. Jeremy Piven’s acting ability is not fully seen until the second season, but viewers can definitely see his potential in Season One, and as he grew more comfortable as Ari Gold, a legendary character was made. His rants as Gold are hilarious, but what makes him such a good actor is his ability to be incredibly sincere to being absolutely side-splitting. The show would not be the same without him.

Season One isn’t worthy of a five star grade because it has only eight episodes, instead of being a full season. Also, the actors don’t seem fully comfortable as their characters yet. Given a full season, the show could have done much more, but even in the eight episodes, it was simply great.