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| Available at Amazon.com |
One of the best shows on television can be found on the FX Network. Rescue Me is a show that could only be on cable television. It could easily be on HBO, but fortunately it’s on “free cable TV”. Always controversial and edgy, Rescue Me has been both critically-acclaimed and heavily praised by anyone who has watched it. Season four had a lot to live up to after three seasons of compelling television.
Rescue Me focuses mainly on the professional and personal lives of New York City firefighters after the trauma of the September 11, 2001 attacks. The show stars Denis Leary, who plays the role of New York City firefighter Tommy Gavin, a character whose life is full of torment and chaos. Tommy has to struggle with the loss of his cousin and best friend, Jimmy Keefe, who died on 9/11 and frequently visits Tommy in visions. Tommy is ill-tempered, self destructive, hypocritical, manipulative, and a relapsed alcoholic. He has gone through so much during the first three seasons, it’s a wonder that he is still alive. Firefighting is hard on relationships, and professional traumas can have such far-reaching effects that they can begin to create personal ones. That not only goes for Tommy, but for all of his co-workers as well. They are extremely politically incorrect, but through the years they have formed a close-knit family.
As the fourth season begins, Tommy is in the fight of his life, defending himself against arson and insurance fraud. He also struggles to raise his new baby while facing paternity questions and fighting to keep his family together. Franco seems ready to settle into a steady relationship, but is shaken when he loses custody of his daughter. Alcoholism has taken a toll on Sean and Maggie’s marriage, while Lou’s newfound love threatens to put him in the hospital. And Chief Reilly fights back from a stroke only to find himself facing a decision that could change the fate of Truck Company 62 forever.
Denis Leary is the star of the show and has been nominated for multiple Emmy Awards for his role as Tommy. There is a good reason for that as Leary has developed this flawed “hero” to the point where you can’t think of Tommy Garvin being played by anyone but Denis Leary. But the success of the show has more to do with all the strong supporting actors around Leary. Each character on the show is interesting to watch as each one has their own problems. That continues in season four as viewers continue to get emotionally attached to all the characters on the show. Besides the regular cast of characters, though, season four also featured guest appearances from Susan Sarandon, Gina Gershon, and Jennifer Esposito as well.
This series has always tackled controversial subjects. Just when you think you have seen it all, Rescue Me shocks you once more. That trend continues in season four of the show. The unpredictability continues, but sometimes during season four it starts to feel a little too melodramatic. The dialogue doesn’t feel has witty either. Compared to previous seasons, season four falls a little short. But that being said, the performances are still fantastic and Rescue Me is still one of the edgiest and best shows on cable television that everyone should give a chance to. Unless you just like “family-friendly” TV, of course.
Episodes:
Disc One:
Episode 1 – Babyface
It’s bad enough that that a beach house fire at the end of Season 3 almost kills him, but then Tommy comes under suspicion when he can’t piece together the events preceding the fire. Meanwhile, Janet begins to worry that her newborn son likes Tommy more than her, and the baby might not be Tommy’s after all. Meanwhile, the volunteer firefighter (Jennifer Esposito) who rescued Tommy expresses an interest in him.
Episode 2 – Tuesday
Tommy figures out what happened but is embarrassed to tell investigators. Meanwhile, Teddy is released from prison, Mike gets an impossible request from his mother, and Tommy and Janet learn how out of touch they are with their daughter.
Episode 3 – Commitment
The crew puts their heads together to come up with a plan to bring Tommy together again with Colleen. Mike convinces Tommy to spend some time together outside of the firehouse, and that seems fine with Tommy, since he’s trying to avoid Nona (Esposito).
Episode 4 – Pussified
The crew learns about Jerry’s death and tempers flare. Meanwhile, Sean tells Maggie she needs help with her drinking problem, Tommy is in need of Viagra, and Lou tries blackmail in order to land a recruit for the firehouse basketball team.
Disc Two:
Episode 5 – Black
After Jerry’s death the crew gets a new chief, Franco gets close to proposing to Natalie, Sean tries to keep Maggie from divorcing him, and Sheila makes a surprising proposition to Janet. Needless to say, surprises are part of this series’ structure.
Episode 6 – Balance
Tommy and Janet cope with new knowledge about their baby, while Garrity discovers a secret about Mike, and a new probie makes the guys stick to their agreement about doing no “probie” work.
Episode 7 – Seven
As Tommy wrestles with his feelings about the Baby, Alicia has a proposition for Franco and the whole crew has trouble coping with a devastating fire. In addition, Sean fesses up about a fire that he set that had tragic consequences.
Disc Three:
Episode 8 – Solo
When Janet learns that Tommy gave her baby to Sheila, she wants to get back at him. Meanwhile, Tommy tries to live with his past, and Franco has problems plotting his future.
Episode 9 – Animal
Janet tries to get her baby back, Tommy runs into a mysterious woman (Gina Gershon), the Gavins stage an intervention for two family members, and Mike is counting on Tommy to help him through his own tough time.
Episode 10 – High
AA, Gavin style, isn’t exactly a success. Meanwhile, Tommy pays Colleen to tell her things about Janet, and Franco learns something about Natalie, and Lou thinks about getting revenge on Mike.
Disc Four:
Episode 11 – Cycle
Beth and Tommy go out on a date to make the crew feel better, Dad gives Tommy insight into his childhood, and Franco wises up.
Episode 12 – Keefe
Colleen gets upset with Tommy again, who for whatever reason decides to hit on Chief Feinberg’s daughter. Meanwhile, Natalie wants a favor from Franco, and the whole place gets strange after Tommy plays hero using someone else’s uniform.
Episode 13 – Yaz
Jimmy’s ghost appears, everyone at the firehouse is talking about it, and Sheila decides to investigate. Meanwhile, Colleen blames Tommy because her relationship is in the tank, but Tommy has enough problems with his own relationship. So why not spend time with dad, instead? Yeah, just another typical season for the firefighters of 62 Truck.
The video is given in widescreen color with an aspect ratio of 1.78:1. Transfer is good with minimal distortion. The quality is pretty fantastic for a TV show on cable television.
The audio included is available in English Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo sound. There are subtitles available in English. Again, it’s pretty standard quality for a TV show. The dialogue and music come out crisp and clear.
“Walking Thru Fire: The Stories of Season 4” Featurette –
This runs 30 minutes and it’s your standard “behind-the-scenes” featurette. The cast & crew talk about what they saw as important season four highlights.
“Captains” Featurette –
This runs 8 minutes and it’s about the directors of the show and not actually the fire captains. Still it’s fairly insightful.
“”Welcome to the Set” Featurette –
This runs 14 minutes and it’s a behind-the-scenes look at the show, featuring interviews with the cast and crew. This is okay, but the video quality is a little subpar.
“Firehouse: Real Stories from America’s Bravest”” Featurette –
This runs 35 minutes and it features real-life firefighters offering small tidbits from their experiences.
“Burning Embers: Gavin’s Girls” Featurette –
This runs 10 minutes and it’s a look at all of Tommy’s girlfriends from the show.
“This is Not a Drill: Breaking Down ‘Seven'” Featurette –
This runs 12 minutes and the cast and crew break down episode seven called “Seven”.
“Tools of the Trade” Featurette –
This runs 5 minutes and it’s all about the equipment used by firefighters. Short, but interesting.
Deleted Scenes –
These total 30 minutes and were all cut for a reason. There is actually some scenes that add a little more to certain storylines in the episodes they were cut from, so check these out.
Gag Reel –
This runs 4 minutes and it is all the funny bloopers and mistakes from the fourth season. Always good for a laugh.
Minisodes –
There are a couple “mini-episodes” for Married With Children and Starsky & Hutch. Not sure why they are on here, except for these shows being produced by Sony Home Entertainment as well. But they are there if you like these shows.
This is a real show that is edgy and refreshing, but season four is a slight step down than previous seasons. So if you haven’t seen the show yet, you may want to start with another season before you watch this one. That being said, everyone should give this show a chance so rent it at least, and more than likely you will like it enough to purchase it.
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Sony Home Video presents Rescue Me: The Complete Fourth Season.
Created by Denis Leary and Peter Tolan. Starring Denis Leary, Andrea Roth, Steven Pasquale, Natalie Distler, Michael Lombardi, Larenz Tate, Charles Durning, John Scurti, Daniel Sunjata, Trevor Heins, and Olivia Crocicchia. Running time: 560 minutes. NOT RATED. Released on DVD: June 3, 2008. Available at Amazon.com
About Josh Clinton
