Entourage Season Seven Review

Entourage Season 7

It was a bit of a mixed season for HBO's longest running show. It was actually the season that perhaps had the most depth as it showed all the boys with separate and specific arcs, something which the show has been criticised for not having. However not all of these storylines worked as well as they'd hoped. This was perhaps a crucial season in that it is the penultimate one and they are now only going to have a limited amount of episodes to round up the story.

Ari: Ari dealt with the fallout of Lizzie Grant wanting a promotion and him refusing to give it, considering her affair with his best friend Andrew Klein in the previous season. She took her wrath to Ari's long term enemy from season 3 Amanda Daniels. This led to some damaging details about Ari's behaviour being released to the press, which in turn lost him the NBA deal he was eying. In addition a foul mouthed and misogynist public rant at Amanda and in front of his wife, resulted in Mrs Ari walking out on Ari.
Considering some of Ari's behaviour over the years, it could be argued that it was only a matter of time before his foul mouthed rants and behaviour towards his wife landed him in hot water and honestly it was fun to watch, especially towards the end of the season where the outcome became a little more visible.I fully expect the couple to patch things up in the shows final season however.

Drama: Drama was mostly in the background this season; there were quite a few episodes where he had very little to do which was a little disappointing. His main storyline though was enjoyable. He had just a month to find a show for his holding deal with the network (the CW I think). He eventually found a show in which he was a lead; cartoon Johnny Bananas. He was reluctantly agreed to this idea and I can't wait to see some footage from the show- even if it's just viral as it will be a brilliant tie-in for the show.

Eric: As usual, E's storylines were mostly tied up in supporting the other members of the Entourage, specifically Vince and more recently Drama. However E also had his own personal storylines- a rivalry with Scott Wick at his company and Sloane, who was mostly a background character this year. This actually worked quite well, as at least we didn't have to deal with the drama of their relationship, which is when they are most enjoyable. E definitely grew in confidence and has come a long way from the season 1 playing at manager character he used to be. He should've dealt with the Vince issue a lot sooner though.

Turtle: This was probably the worst storyline of the season. After trying for so long to get his limo business off the ground, this was swiftly dropped in favour of the Avion Tequila storyline which pretty much went nowhere. It felt that they didn't really know how they wanted to wrap up the storyline and not wanting to go the predictable route of having Carlos be defrauding Turtle, they came up with a celebrity buyout that petered into nothing. This whole storyline was a real shame as I really wanted to see Turtle's Limo business go somewhere- instead he became a slacker again depending on Vince. His relationship with Alex was probably worse though as she was very annoying and I hope she doesn't return next season.

Vince: This was the main story for the season and it charted Vince's decline into drugs and self destructive behaviour. An excellent analysis I read elsewhere on the web (read the comments not the actual review), said that this downward spiral didn't just originate from Vince's car crash in the season premiere but from last season where he is effectively abandoned by the other members of the entourage as they pursue their own lives. Vince has always been a co-dependent character and take away his friends and he starts to fail.
Vince bad a series of bad choices over the course of the season, from daredevil stunts to taking prescription drugs, and from the porn star girlfriend to snorting coke and getting punched out by Eminem.
It's an interesting subject to watch and it's something that many Hollywood actors have gone through, so I liked that they looked at this with Vince. It also changed up his character a little which made it more fascinating to watch. As for Sasha Grey, she wasn't too awful, though she is clearly not a good girlfriend for Vince so I'm hoping she doesn't return next season, no matter how much creator Doug Ellin may love her!

I'm sad that we didn't see more of Lloyd this season, especially in the finale, though I do see how it would be hard to organically work him into the storyline. I must say I quite liked the return of a sober Billy Walsh, who was a lot more palatable than the drugged one.
I think that the premise underlying the season- the gang falling apart- is ultimately what hindered the show as there so few group scenes, only substantially in the premiere and and finale episodes I think. For a show that is based in this, it's obvious when the gang aren't all together. Whilst I appreciate the risk and the necessity of this to the storyline, I would like to see more group scenes as the show heads towards it's final episode next year.
I would also like to see less of the random celebrities- whilst some work (the the final for example Eminem and John Cleese), some really do not (e.g those sports stars Turtle calls) and feel forced into the show. With so few episodes left, only meaningful cameos would be nice, not just stars trying to get their faces on the show.
Overall this was definitely an uneven season, which definitely saw improvement once the storylines took hold and the end was in sight. It was a slightly shortened season and it definitely felt concentrated because of that; perhaps extra episodes would've given back the comedy injection needed this season. However there it wasn't all bad and mostly I did like the darker direction the show took as it showed that this show is more than just celebrity fluff.

Mini Reviews- August

It has been a little quieter on the TV front this month, but I've had a few TV shows to keep me going as you can see on my profile to the right of this post. I'll do a quick summary of them:

Chuck (season 3 part 1)
Chuck hit it's 13th episode mark last week- the original finale episode before the show was given a reprieve.
It had been a good and fast moving 13 episodes. Awesome became involved in the spy world, Morgan found out Chuck's secret, Casey got fired, both Chuck and Sarah got involved with other people and then (finally) each other and Chuck became a real spy. The plot and character development really was a whirlwind and has done creative wonders for a show that was becoming very formulaic. I know that the next few episodes may not be as good, seeing that they are an addendum to the season, but I'm looking forward to them nonetheless.

Entourage (season 7)
HBO's short seasons means that Entourage will be over in just a few episodes even though it feels like the season has just started. The season is a lot darker than previous seasons and generally there is a very different tone about it. There have been very few scenes with all the guys together as all the boys are pursuing their own lives/dreams. This isn't a bad thing, though after watching previous seasons on DVD, it does make me miss the boys' camaraderie.
The darker tone comes from Vince, who after a lucky escape from a dangerous stunt goes of the rails a little, popping Vicodins, snorting coke and jumping out of planes. I'm quite enjoying his descent into the Hollywood maddness and it feels that this could be a great setup for the final season next year.

Leverage (season 3)
I have caught up fully with Leverage now, and I am feeling the effects of catching up too fast as waiting a whole week for a new episode is proving difficult! However the show is continuing to be fun and the most recent episode I watched 'The Roshomon Job' in which each character told their side of a particular job, was one of the best episodes they've done. Some of the recent plot devices have become a little bit wacky and unrealistic, but amongst all the capers, the show has real heart which is keeping it grounded. According to twitter the show recently wrapped up filming and the mid season finale will air next week in the States. After that expect a blog reviewing season 2 and 3 (since I never got around to doing the season 2 blog)


Mad Men (season 1)
Everyone raves about this show, so when the BBC decided to rerun episodes from the beginning on Sunday nights in anticipation for the newest season, I decided to tune in. It's not hard to see why everybody loves this show and why it won the Emmy for best drama show this week. The characters are all perfectly drawn and its fun to see a little bit more of their characters every episode. The show doesn't pander to idiots so a lot is left unexplained and though some of it may be going over my head, I enjoy that I have to work a little to understand it. Plus the excellent cast make it very easy to watch.

Ugly Betty (season 4)
This show has only just kicked off here in the UK but it has been enjoyable so far.
Betty trying (and failing) in her new job feels a lot like season 1 (in a good way) and it's nice to see the other characters getting meatier storylines, especially Amanda and Justin, who have largely been comedy relief in the past. Amanda's quest for a better job/ more stable life will be interesting to watch and shows she is more than just a caricature. Justin's trouble in his high school was painful but endearing to watch. I look forward to seeing more of both storylines in future episodes.

Bad News for UK Entourage fans

Entourage started last week in the US (although annoyingly it's taking a break this week for 4th July celebrations).

ITV2 had not scheduled showings of Entourage so I emailed to find out why; I got this disappointing reply:

Dear Natalia

Thank you for your email regarding Entourage season 7.

We have no information regarding season 7 being acquired for transmission on ITV.

Sorry we can not assist further on this occasion.

May I take this opportunity to thank you for taking the time to contact us here at ITV.

Regards

ITV Viewer Services - TT

To confirm the news that ITV2 haven't picked up the show is this article posted at tv.com.

This is pretty sad if you ask me. Not just because I have to watch online now if I want to watch the show (also this will make getting the DVD's harder- I need to complete my collection!) but because Entourage is BAFTA winning- how many other shows on ITV2 can say that?

Entourage was the only show I watched on ITV. Now I really have no use for this suite of channels. Sad really.

Entourage Season 7 Premiere Party Photos- Whedon Alum to star?

One of my favourite things about HBO (and other cable networks) shows is that they hold cast premieres for each season of the show. True Blood recently had theirs and now is the turn of Entourage.



Their photos can be viewed here thanks to spoilertv. Along with the usual pictures of the boys and their girls on the show, lots of the seasons guest stars will pop up at the party. Case in point there are pictures of Autumn Reeser (reprising her role as agent Lizzie), Lenny Kravitz (starring as himself) Constance Zimmer (reprising her role as head of studio Dana Gordon as well as many others who will undoubtedly appear in the show.


However I was very intrigued to see the following photo... of Whedon alum Nathan Fillion. Now I'm a big Fillion fan and I would love to see him on the show, but I haven't heard any rumours about this. Now he might've just turned up for some HBO fun or because he's dating someone else appearing on the show. However since HBO don't tend to release many details about their shows too early, it could be entirely possible that he will be appearing in the show. If he is it will be very exciting and I look forward to see if he will be in character or playing himself. Due to his recent success with Castle, he might just be famous enough to appear on the show as himself.



Watch this space for updates!

Entourage Season 7 poster

Saw this on facebook... and yeah I had to post it!! (won't let me embed though)

http://tinyurl.com/3yb829m


One thing I have to say- Ari's been photoshopped!! :O

New Entourage trailer

An uncharacteristically subdued trailer from the show now going into it's 7th season. The show are moving away a little from the excesses of Hollywood life (recession induced perhaps) and this trailer feels a little more arty. Also their outfits feel very season 2 for some reason.

Entourage Season 8 to be last?/ Hires Porn Star

I like to think of myself as pretty up on Entourage new. Its one of my favourite shows so I pretty much read everything about it. However I was a little shocked after reading this Digital Spy article in which they say that the end of the article that season 8 will be Entourage's last.

Now the show has been in decline of for a little while and it's had a good run for an HBO show, but I wasn't aware that any decision had been made. Now this could be speculation on DS's part, but honestly it's also quite likely to be true. Ratings and creative quality have slipped and the show can't go on forever. Still I'll be quite sad to see this show go and curious to see how the show will end. Its not a show that invites a natural ending, the 'entourage' will all still be together no doubt but beyond that anything could happen.


Also to comment on the main body of the article, the show have hired a porn star to play Vince's love interest. The show have dabbled in the adult entertainment industry before for actors, so whilst this isn't a surprise, her main role is. Plus it will be a little sad to see all the boys settled down as part of what makes the show fun is their womanising (this coming from a girl!). Hopefully Drama and Turtle can keep it up!! (Eric obviously became engaged to Sloane in the sixth season finale, wonder how that will turn out!!)

Entourage Season 6 Review

Entourage season 6: This finished recently and it was a mixed season. Whilst being better than 5, it still wasn’t as good as the first 3 seasons. Now I love Entourage- I even have a poster of the show in my room (!) but perhaps it is not a show that has the fundamental ability to go on for multiple episodes as intrinsically it is about 4 guys having fun in LA. There is drama, but maybe not enough to go on for as long as it has.

The season started well, the Drama, Turtle and E moving away from Vince and living their own lives. However this meant that for most of the season Vince had nothing to do except have sex with random girls- literally that’s all we saw him do. Even the stalker storyline turned out to actually involve Turtle and have more significance for his storyline. I did like that Vince didn’t have any movie drama this season as it was the first season this hasn’t happened so it made for a nice change.

I enjoyed Drama’s work storylines for the most part, it did get a bit shaky when he got out of his contract for the new Melrose Place (love that in-joke) but having him get tied to a network exclusively could be interesting for next season.

Turtle probably had the most enjoyable storyline of the season with his relationship with Jamie Lynn (though it ended very sadly) and very promising entry into college to learn how to run a business. I like that he had to go to college to do this and didn’t just his Vince’s Hollywood connections and money to start up a business straight away.

Eric probably had the worst storylines. Professionally I didn’t really like how he closed down his own shop so quickly, but I liked him joining a bigger management firm. His relationships though were ridiculous- constant to and fro-ing between Sloane and the annoying Ashley before finally becoming engaged to Sloane. I’ll forgive it though if E and Sloane stay together though as I think having a wife/fiancé in the mix will really affect the boys and I hope that we get to see the consequences of that next season.

Ari’s storylines were good and bad- the torturing of Lloyd was funny but harsh to watch but I liked the outcome. Wasn’t as sure about how involved he became in Andrew’s affair with the younger agent and how it affected his own life. Felt a bit teenage to me and not in a good way. Still it did provide some good comedic moments.

On the guest star front- the good: David Schwimmer, Jeffery Tambor, Doug Ellin, Melinda Clarke and Dean Cain

the bad: Bono (absolutely cringeworthy and one of the worst and most forced celebrity moments of Entourage)

the slightly awkward: Mark Wahlberg, Tom Brady and Matt Damon (kinda funny but if he wasn’t promoting a worthwhile charity it would’ve been bad)

Overall the season was decent enough and I'll probably like it better on re-watch like I have woth all Entourage seasons. In some ways it was a real return to form, but it was almost like they were trying to hard with storylines and some of them just didn't work. There's a lot of potential for next season though so I'm excited.

At the moment I've been watching...

At the moment I've been watching:

Chuck season 2- Over halfway now and whilst its not my favourite show I still really like it and its a lot of fun. I absolutely adore Casey- he only has to growl and I laugh (though my Casey love has a lot to do with the actor playing him!!) but I must admit I’m finding the constant to-ing and fro-ing between Chuck and Sarah and little tiresome, its a bit too much will they won’t they for me. I’m loving most of the BuyMore storylines though, I would like to see Chuck actually working there more, his storylines seem to be a little disconnected from the rest of the show.

Greek chapter 5- only a couple of episodes in and even though its still a fun show, they are relying way too much of the Cappie/Casey relationship which to be frank is getting very dull. Some of the other storylines are interesting but I’m reserving full judgement until I’ve seen a few more episodes.

Ugly Betty season 3- also over halfway and I’m understanding the dip in quality that most people talked about. I’m enjoying certain aspects of the show- Amanda and Betty living together was a real highlight, and there have been a few good episodes but the show has a very odd feel. It could be the move to New York and the show trying to shoe-horn in as much of the city as possible; it just doesn’t have the natural feel that Sex and the City had to it when the show was on. Also I’m really not loving the shows fashion anymore; I know being a fashion magazine they have to be a bit fashion forward, but some of the outfits look worse than many of Betty’s ensembles!

Entourage season 6- A slight dip in quality (says a lot even from me an avid fan of the show) I’m just not sure where some of the storylines are going. I’m enjoying Turtle and Eric’s storylines but Vince’s stalker storyline burned out and wasn’t nearly as exciting as I hoped. I’m glad Lloyd is standing up for himself finally. (in the last episode Security Briefs) Since he’s a fully fledge cast member I expect he’ll be back at MGA soon enough. Only a few episodes are left and I hope the storylines start to take shape soon.

Glee season 1- After a hugely successful pilot the two following episodes, whilst decent enough haven’t lived up to expectations which is hardly surprising considering all the hype meant that it was bound to disappoint a little. It’s still one of the most enjoyable shows out there and absolutely hilarious. The performances are great as well, even if some are auto-tuned a little too much. Here are a couple of my favourite performances from the 2 newest episodes (sorry for the quality of the videos):

The boys singing I Wanna Sex You Up- lets just say I’m starting to see the attraction of Puck after this performance... ;)

Rachel singing Take A Bow- amazing and perhaps even better than the Rihanna version

The Wire season 5- if a thing such as perfection actually exists, The Wire might possibly be the perfect TV show. Thought season 5 wasn’t its best season; the show from start to finish was amazing, simply incredible. The DVD’s have moved to the top of my DVD’s-to-Buy list and I can’t wait to watch the whole show again. Everything about this show- writing, acting, casting, settings- everything was sensational. I was a little worried that the show was overrated, but this is one of the rare times when the praise that is heaped on the show actually is true.

I want to do a show blog on it, but there is just so much to blog on, I’m not sure I could, maybe after my re-watch. I’ll probably do a favourite characters list at some point thought it will probably be very long!!

The final few episodes of the show left me numb, completely in tears and blown away. The final episode wasn’t perfect, it was very bittersweet, a few happy endings but not many; quality wise, it was excellent and a nice tribute the city of Baltimore.

If I give you any advice it would be to watch this show-start to finish and do your best to avoid spoilers. You won’t regret it!!