Crash – Season 2

Starz's remake of the 2004 movie aired in late 2009

Don’t confuse this little TV series with the British half-hour dramedy show about young doctors, which I reviewed a few months back, this is the remake of the 2004 same-named movie.

Los Angeles. In this city, it’s dangerous to have a dream but impossible not to follow one. And that constant pursuit of the unattainable will make the most unlikely characters connect and collide in a diverse social mosaic. From chance encounters to dramatic interactions, L.A. is the fuel that can change lives forever.
The second season of “Crash” features a mix of individuals from very different sides of the city. Among the new cast members are Eric Roberts as Seth, a billionaire entrepreneur; Linda Park as Maggie, Seth’s beautiful wife; Dana Ashbrook playing Jimmy, a charismatic gambler; and Jake McLaughlin as Bo, a former pitching ace.
Returning cast members include Dennis Hopper as the newly-sober Ben Cendars; Jocko Sims as Anthony, Ben’s reluctant ally; Ross McCall as Kenny, a security guard looking for a second chance; and Moran Atias as Inez, now the hostess of an exclusive men’s club.

Episode 01: You Set the Scene
A good season opener and more promising than most parts of the first seasons. I just hope the writers didn’t do the same mistakes again like in season one and did not introduce us to characters in the first episode who will be in the main cast later.
The interesting characters came back, even though I surely can do it without Inez. She was just part of Kenny’s problems last season and now she has an own storyline? Well, ironically her story was the least interesting one, but I don’t know if I want to see the Inez/Kenny drama again, because her new boyfriend Jimmy is just a stereotype character, boring as hell and I hope he is gone very fast.
Ben’s and Anthony’s story was alright, just a setup to Ben’s revenge plans (this will be interesting though, because when the writers handle with clichés, the murderer of his daughter is probably somebody from the main or recurring cast). Kenny’s story wasn’t really interesting, because I knew his plans to get back to is ex-wife Amy (Heather Mazur) will be part of the story. And now he has a story with Seth, who has seen God (awkward story). The rest is pretty much at the beginning and uninteresting yet, and I hope the writers don’t fuck that up and make the same mistakes again.
I miss the character drama though, and the long title intro (I loved it), but for the start I was well entertained. 7,5/10

Entourage – Season 5

HBO's fifth season of "Entourage" aired during the summer months 2008

Click here for my review of the fourth season.

Entourage’s fifth season leaves our movie star in a pickle: his big Oscar shot, Medellin, is a dismal failure, and Vincent (Adrian Grenier) has burrowed away to Mexico to drown his sorrows in booze and women. How does a once-promising actor get his confidence, legitimacy, and bankability back? That’s the key premise this time around, and like some of its previous seasons, is always more interesting when Vince is struggling than when he’s on top. Once his boys, manager Eric (Kevin Connolly), big brother Johnny Drama (Kevin Dillon), agent Ari (Jeremy Piven), and driver Turtle (Jerry Ferrara), convince Vince to get back in the game, he finds many once-welcoming doors closed.
In this season, can the guys put the Medellin fiasco behind them and orchestrate a career comeback for Vince?

Episode 01: Fantasy Island
A good season opener with a bit of Medellin aftermath and a back-to-business story. I liked Vince on the Mexican beach, partly trying to forget Medellin, party having his fun with Turtle and lots of girls. And with the beard, Adrian Grenier looked a few years older – very nice. and now I am hungry for a deserted Mexican beach with hot girls, that just looked awesome.
The rest of the episode was good as well. E has a client, which he is trying to get into the TV business; Ari is mad as hell (I loved his yell moment, when he came into the office, and especially his “I skull-fuck you” to Adam Davies [Jordan Belfi]). That Vince was just set up to get Emilie Hirsch the role for a new movie was a story for half of an episode, but it was alright – as long as it got Vince back home from Mexico. Now, the boys can start rolling again and begin to go up the way of fame again.
Drama’s little side plot with the photo shoot was okay, too. Not really the burner, but I liked Ben Silverman‘s cameo in here, and not just because he was named the “party king” of all network CEOs, especially a few years, before he got “fired”…
The episode wasn’t used for more, so it was a good introduction into the story. The Medellin story is over, time to begin a new one. 7,5/10