H.A.V.O.C.#9

This is something I've touched on before so bear with me........

What are the parameters,limits,boundaries,criteria,demarcations of H.A.V.O.C.?

An American friend of mine,from now on we'll call him THE SHUTTERBUG,says I can write on any subject at all once I've got some vague cinematic reference in it, it being my random musings - rant - blog.

OK so I'll rant about the economy..............no no no I wont do that........had you worried there.

I'll keep my specificity to films (yes there is such a word as specificity one of the characters in INCEPTION used it).

Right so back to business,film business that is.Well not strictly film business how about T.V.for a change? Like film there has always been good and bad T.V. so in the tradition that H.A.V.O.C. tries to maintain lets concentrate on the good.

Last Christmas I received a box-set of the HBO series DEADWOOD (thank you children).Up to that point I hadn't been much of a box-set kinda guy.Don't get me wrong I love most of the HBO stuff. I watched THE SOPRANOS from the get go. I championed THE WIRE when it was on TG4 and so on.

But the whole idea of the box-sets and owning them never really appealed to me. I enjoyed watching programmes when the great programming god in the sky meant us to watch them! I liked the idea of having to keep a certain hour free to watch your favourite programme, of not missing a vital episode. So having the box-set took away some of that urgency or whatever.

Anyway DEADWOOD changed my - our, my wife is also a big fan - viewing habits.

You see, now when the T.V. was crap we would just stick on an episode,one at a time now mind,you have to savour quality T.V.

Its a great series but beware its a bit rough in parts,lots of violence and profanity - have I been here before? - but a magnificent script/story,fabulous acting and top-notch production values. Its a pity they stopped after series 3.

Subsequently I purchased BREAKING BAD a Sony series about a chemistry teacher,played  by BRYAN CRANSTON who played the dad HAL in MALCOLM IN THE MIDDLE,when diagnosed with a terminal illness decides to produce illegal drugs (crystal meth) to finance his family's future welfare.

Yet again a little gory,violent,profane etc. but really really good. It can be bought relatively cheap online, you know where, no plugs from me until they pay me. I cant be bought that easily then again maybe I can.This was recommended to me a year ago by THE SHUTTERBUG but I only acted on his recommendation recently.Better late.................

If you like what I've written about so far in film you will probably like this,a list,with little descriptions, of my recommendations for GOOD T.V. box-sets.

TWIN PEAKS: The granpappy of em all,when this hit our small screens in the early 90's we didn't know what to make of it.Truly baffling,stylish,clever,frustrating and way before its time.

THE SOPRANOS: Not much more can be said that hasn't already been said about THE SOPRANOS,great music too.

SIX FEET UNDER: Nearest in tone to TWIN PEAKS as you'll get from something produced in the 2000's.Really well written darkly humorous and again great music.

THE WIRE: Awesome in its scope.The language (nearly like a local dialect!) was uncompromising,you had to listen and pay attention to the plot.A small detail that was mentioned in series1 might only be picked up again in series 4.Great forward vision.

ENTOURAGE & CALIFORNICATION: These two series only came in short half-hour episodes.Very funny irreverent humour. ENTOURAGE ,abut a film star and his group of buddies.CALIFORNICATION is about a writer (DAVID DUCHOVNY from THE X-FILES) with writers block.Both are strictly over 18's  so beware.

DEADWOOD: I've already told you about.

BREAKING BAD: The same.

A few others worth a mention are TRUE BLOOD (vampire romance) HOMICIDE (90's precursor to THE WIRE) and little seen STREET TIME (about a drug dealer and his parole officer).

If I didn't mention something well known you can take it for granted that I didn't think much of it.There are lots of them!Lets hope that this golden age of T.V. lasts a good while longer.
All the shows I've mentioned are American cable subscription shows on HBO,SHOWTIME  or the like.

For some reason they don't make shows like this this side of the Atlantic.Don't get me wrong there are some great Irish and British T.V.shows ,but no great (my opinion) hour long multi episode series like what I've just been writing about.

Signing off now
Hugh Hyland.