Caffeinated Clint
Of all the chapters on the “Entourage: Season 3” disc, there’s not one that’s worth skipping over. In short, missing a moment of it – would hurt as much as missing your first-born, and the embolic fluid, coming out from where its been hiding.
Jeremy Piven, Adrian Grenier, Kevin Connolly, Kevin Dillon, Jerry Ferrera
Of all the chapters on the “Entourage: Season 3” disc, there’s not one that’s worth skipping over. In short, missing a moment of it – would hurt as much as missing your first-born, and the embolic fluid, coming out from where its been hiding.
“Entourage” – dreamt up by actor Mark Wahlberg and pal, Doug Ellin – is the coolest series since, well, Lee Majors called himself ‘The Fall Guy’ and wrestled Heather Thomas every week. It’s the show that all of Hollywood talks about.. and beyond; a universally appealing series that’s as funny as it is informative. Think “Larry Sanders” by way of “The Player” (1991) and you get the picture.
Hollywood is a wicked beast… and this exposes every pussy pimple of its ugliness. From the prick agents, the single-minded managers, egoistical actors, and of course, those who stick close to anyone with money, it’s frighteningly spot-on. The games these people play are ludicrous… but true.
In the first season, we watched as young actor Vinnie Chase (Adrien Grenier) received a huge career booster in the form of an acclaimed independent film. His arrogant over-the-top manager Ari (Jeremy Piven) suddenly saw him as a goldmine, as did his two friends and older brother (Kevin Connolly, Jerry Ferrara and Kevin Dillon), who all live at Chase’s house – and out of his pocket. Chase was suddenly a product – wanted by studios, wanted by directors, and wanted by females. He was, it seemed, hotter than a freshly cooked toasted spaghetti sandwich.
The second season saw Chase’s star rise even higher, as he was offered the lead role in James Cameron’s uber-budgeted “Aquaman” movie. The thrust of the season dealt with scoring the role; Chase having to work with an old flame (Mandy Moore) on the movie, and anything else to do with spruiking the pic. The funniest moment, for my money, was when the guys headed to Comic Con. That was spot-on – the unethical behaviour of [online] journalists, the spazzy behaviour of pre-pubescent fanboys, and notably, the inability for TV nerds to see a has-been for what he is (Vinnie’s brother, Johnny, a star on a show called “Viking Quest” about a decade ago, is still a legend on the floor). Priceless.
At the start of Season 3, we learn that “Aquaman” is a monster hit – and it’s now up to Vinnie to choose his next movie… carefully. Everyone, including his manager, wants him to do the sequel. Vinnie doesn’t care for that though. Instead, he’s offered the lead role in a film based on ‘The Ramones’, and sets out trying to get that off the ground – with a bit of trouble.
The show just gets better as it goes along – I so hope they continue it for a couple more seasons – and funnier, too. “Entourage” seems intent on mirroring anything going on in Hollywood at the time, and it does a terrific job of it. It never comes across as a dud skit, or plays too forced, but just “like it is” – which is where the humour comes from.
The performances are also rather grand. Piven, playing Ari Gold, is the standout of the show. He’s terrific. The other boys are good too though, don’t get me wrong, they’re just not a shade on Piven’s turn though – he is a monster here. It’s the performance of his career – and he’s had quite a career – no doubt about it.
Guest-appearances this season include Martin Landau (as a Robert Evans type), Seth Green, Penny Marshall and James Woods.
This season of “Entourage” is a little longer than the others, and it’s also been split into two (i.e. the second half of the season will air about 6 months later than the first season), so I’m not going to fault the studio for releasing two volumes of Season 3. I don’t like it. But there’s nothing one can do about it. They’ve could’ve waited, I suppose, but this is OK – after all, there’s a good dozen or so episodes here, that’s about as many as the first couple of seasons had too, so it’s not like this one’s any different… or a rip-off.
Includes a featurette on the ‘Vegas’ episode.
Rating : 
Reviewer : Clint Morris
