Take 4 TV: Nip/Tuck

Nip/Tuck: Season One (2003)

What's Going On?: Nip/Tuck follows the personal and professional lives of two best friends and plastic surgeons in Miami. Sean is the professional and conservative surgeon, with no lack of talent, while Christian is the "oversexed anti-Christ" (as one of his one-night stands puts it) that oozes charm...but will do anything for his friend. The first season follows the growth of their own practice, despite pressure from a sleazy competitor, criminal interference, marital infidelity and difficult patients.

Leading the Line-Up: Dylan Walsh and Julian McMahon play Sean and Christian, the two lead plastic surgeons. The part of conservative Dr. Sean was written with Walsh in mind, but the writers were pleasantly surprised with McMahon's portrayal of Christian...here you have a character who could easily have come off as evil and villainous, but despite his no-holds-barred approach to getting women, there are just as many moments where you see the good man inside who will do anything for his friend and his friend's family.

Things to Look Out For: Very graphic plastic surgery scenes. Apparently a leading body-effects company helped with the replicas for the surgeries, and the actors didn't actually work on the dummy bodies until well into the season because they were a bit queasy at the thought. Professional surgeons commented that the surgery scenes were bloodier than they actually are in real life...but recognized the need for dramatic enhancement for television.

Special Features to Catch: Many of the episodes have clips of scenes that were cut, which is kind of interesting to check out, because you can see how an entire storyline can be eliminated with just a couple snips here and there. Ironic, given the topic of the show. Also, a couple cool features on the last disc, including a simple behind-the-scenes look at the show, as well as a focus on how some of the plastic surgery scenes are crafted. There is an outtake/blooper reel...but it's pretty lame.

Random Trivia: Several characters were only meant to have a one-time appearance...but had such an impact on-screen and with fans of the show that they became recurring characters. Gina (the Sexaholiccs Anonymous girl) and Sofia Lopez (the trans-gendered Hispanic) are two examples.

And I Quote: Christian: "Can I buy you a drink?" Kimber: "I don't drink." Christian: "May I buy you an appetizer?"

Life Lessons from Nip/Tuck: 1) To get board-certified in plastic surgery, you have to operate on a decapitated head. Pass. 2) It's tough giving CPR to a dog. 3) Never trust a drug runner to give you implants.

Curt's Take: "Worth Considering" - I was very surprised that I liked this series as much as I did. I thought I was going to be turned off by the surgical scenes...and don't get me wrong, I didn't play them in slo-mo or anything. But the dialogue and characters and relationships were all so well-crafted and thought out, I definitely felt engaged with what was going on, despite the "gross out" factor. Don't go into this thinking it's just about breast implants...the surgeries cover the range of medical situations. If you are easily grossed out, you may end up passing on this, but you may want to catch an episode or two and see if you get hooked. Be warned...this show isn't episodic in nature, so just hopping in anywhere is a little more difficult than watching them sequentially.

On Our Next Episode: Death isn't what it's cracked up to be...

Take 4 TV: Family Dysfuctions

Arrested Development: Season One (2003)

What's Going on Here: The head of the Bluth family is incarcerated for using his housing development company as his own personal piggy bank, leaving his son Michael responsible for keeping the company on its feet, despite the interference of his extremely dysfuctional family.

Disc Space: Three DVDs of televisions shows, containing 22 episodes...each just under half an hour long.

Special Features to Consider: Well, first off, don't watch the pilot episode on Disc One. Instead, make sure you watch the extended pilot found in the special features section. The cast/crew commentaries aren't anything to write home about, so you can skip those...unless you enjoy the banter of comedic actors. Do watch the deleted and extended scenes on each DVD. Finally, the behind-the-scenes featurette on Disc One is kind of interesting, and the "Arrested Development: The Making of a Future Classic" featurette on Disc Three is fun stuff.

Random Trivia: Ron Howard is the voice of the narrator. However, this was never the actual plan. He was merely filling in on the pilot and his voice just "worked".

In So Many Words: Lucille Bluth: "You tricked me." Michael Bluth: "I deceived you, mother. 'Tricked' makes it sound like we have a playful relationship." Lucille: "Touché."

And What Did We Learn Today, Class?: 1) Carl Weathers makes a poor acting coach. 2) Although you say you're in Newport Beach, people from the South Bay will be able to tell you're shooting in Marina del Rey. 3) Girls With Low Self-Esteem is probably immeasurably more entertaining than Girls Gone Wild.

Curt's Take: "Must See" - Great cast of comedic actors and innovative camera work (for a sitcom). You can just tell these folks are having a blast. Also, great writing and improvisation...the quote above is one of my favorites from the season, but there are many more that could have gone in there, too. It's not as story-based as 24 is, but there is some continuity from episode to episode, so it's not completely episodic, either. So, just a warning...if you try to watch all the episodes straight through in a short period of time (as I do with these reviews), you may get tired of the series fast. Looking forward to renting Season Two of Arrested Development.

On Our Next Episode...: Watch as Curt cringes his way through episode after episode of drama and plastic surgery

Take 4 TV: All in a Day's Work

Happy New Year, everyone! And with the dawn of a new year comes the dawn of a new take on Take 4. For the next several reviews, I'm going to be focusing on DVDs of some popular (and some not-so-popular) television shows. I have a ton of these in my list, so thought I'd give them the attention they are due.

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24: Season Four (2005)

What's Going on Here?: Jack Bauer, no longer working for the Counter-Terrorist Unit (CTU), comes into contact with former co-workers on an assignment for the Secretary of Defense, for whom he now works. His relationship with the secretary's daughter is put to the test as another ugly day unfolds in Los Angeles, one cliffhanging hour at a time.

Disc Space: We're talking six DVDs here...seven if you want to watch the bonus disc.

How is This Season Different?: Jack is on the outside looking in, no longer a part of CTU, which makes for some interesting conflict. We also have a fresh batch of folks working at CTU...although viewers of Season Three will remember Chloe O'Brian, who still works there.

Bonus Time: Added features on the six main DVDs include deleted scenes and cast/crew commentary. The seventh disc includes more (much more) deleted content, documentaries on two of the larger action scenes in the series, and the 24 minute-long episodes that formed the "Conspiracy" mini-series that were created as a promotion to send to subscribers' cell phones. Main thing to look for on this disc, though, is the 13-minute bridge/prequel to Season Five. Got me in the mood to watch the new series starting in mid-January. Also, there was a preview for the 24 video game...which I only watched part of because I didn't want the game ruined for me. Apparently, it takes place between Seasons Two and Three and fills in some of the info gaps that come up during that time period.

Random Trivia: Each episode is supposed to take one hour of real time, but in actuality, three minutes are gradually added to the timer during the commercial breaks. The last three minutes of air time are used for viewing commercials, station identification, and scenes from the next episode.

In So Many Words: Bill Buchanan: "Chloe, we don't have time for your personality disorder!"

And What Did We Learn Today, Class?: 1) Behind the bad guy you're looking for, there is probably a bad-der guy. Or girl. 2) If the first six hours of your day suck...be prepared for the next 18 hours to really bite it hard. 3) Trust Jack.

Curt's Take: "Must See" - Not a big surprise, since I've considered each of the seasons to be a "Must See," with Season One bordering on "Buy. Watch. Repeat." For those of you not familiar with what 24 is all about, each season is in fact a single day in the life of Jack Bauer and his associates. Season Four, for example, runs from 7am of one morning through 7am of the next morning, with each hour comprising a single hour-long episode. I've never seen a story with so many twists, turns, adrenaline surges and cliffhangers. Each episode has at least one "Oh, crap..." moment for the audience, and the makers of the show try their hardest not to let the viewers get too far ahead of the characters regarding knowing what is going on. I wouldn't start out with this season (although my mom got hooked on it when I brought the DVDs home over Christmas break). Instead, go check out Season One. Just commit to watching the first two discs (eight episodes), and see if you aren't hooked. Then you just have three more seasons to make it through before Season Five starts later this month...good luck.