The Strange World of Thomas P. Coombe

What I've Been Watching, Part III

  When Mad Men returns to TV next month, chances are I'll find it the smartest show on TV. Lost, due to start its final season in 2010, is probably the most compelling and addictive. Breaking Bad, which I've written about here, wins the Best in Show.

 But the show that's the most just plain fun: USA's spy series Burn Notice. Now in its third season, Burn Notice is the story of Michael Westen, a spy who gets blacklisted by the CIA. Forced home to Miami, he takes on a series of jobs -- private investigator style -- while trying to get his old life back.

 It's a pleasure each week, watching Michael outfight, outshoot but mainly outsmart a parade of lowlife Floridians, whether they're drug cartels, Russian mobsters, other (less noble) ex-spies or run-of-the-mill con men. 

 

At the Movies: Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

  ...or Harry 6, as the theater described it. Half Blood Prince was in fact the sixth of the seven Harry Potter movies. However this movie, it's the sixth of eight film adaptations of the Potter stories.

 And that was my only problem with it: it doesn't quite have the "eleventh hour, things are about to get really, really bad" feeling it needs to, despite the way it ends. (With the death of a major character, and a life changing decision by Harry, both of which seem like afterthoughts.)

 I suppose director David Yates is saving that feeling for the next movie (the first half of a two-part version of the final novel).

Vic Mackey Vs. The Emmys

 The following contains spoilers for the final episodes of The Shield. They aired months ago, but are just now out on DVD, so anyone who's been waiting to watch may not want to read this. 

Over the course of seven seasons of The Shield, Det. Vic Mackey murdered three people, planned and executed a multi-million dollar heist, and committed countless other crimes.

  It was all done in the name of some greater good, whether it was -- in the case of the more serious acts -- providing for his family or simply being a more effective cop.

At the Movies: Public Enemies/Pelham 123

In films such as Manhunter, Collateral and Heat, Michael Mann has shown us he can create tense crime thrillers that also work as solid character studies.

 So why doesn't his new movie, the John Dillinger semi-biopic Public Enemies, seem to work as either?

 As disappointing a movie as I've seen in a long time, Public Enemies boasts a great cast, immensely talented writer/director and an exciting subject matter.

What I've Been Watching, Part II

  In the summer time, there's rarely any shows I want to follow from week to week. Since the advent of Netflix, I've been using the months between June and September to catch up on shows I never got around to when they originally aired.

 It all started in 2007, with the Summer of Buffy. (Although my girlfriend and I liked the vampire slayer's show so much that the Summer of Buffyquickly morphed into the Year of the Whedon, with Angel and Firefly following).

 This summer's viewing schedule also includes a vampire show, although one that hasn't -- at least so far -- done anything as fun or interesting as Buffy.  Still, I think True Blood really started to find its footing by the time its first season finished up.