Entourage, HBO, Airs Sundays 10pm E/P
Episode: “Fire Sale” (Season Five, Episode Four)
Synopsis: Ari finally shows interest in Eric’s screenwriters and their script, but it may be too late. The writing duo see this additional interest and decide that they should be making more money. Drama has come to terms with his recent break-up and is preparing to make an appearance on The View. Turtle doesn’t whine about sex.
Review: I may be alone in this view, but this was easily the best episode of the new season so far. The depth of Vince’s situation is becoming more than just a surface reality. When he and Ari shop themselves around town without a single job offer, Vince makes one of his first adult decisions and suggests he take a supporting role instead of a lead. Yes, he’s been in supposed dire straits before… but they were never all that believable. The quartet still behaved irresponsibly and outside of their means, and the situation was never portrayed as serious. But as Vince says, we’ve never seen Ari unable to spin the shit into gold before this episode, and it’s a refreshing dose of reality in the otherwise fantasy-world that is Entourage. Running alongside Vince and Ari’s quest for an acting job is Eric’s quest to balance his various clients’ interest. The screenplay he’s trying to sell for his redneck writer clients is continuing to attract interest and conflict. As usual, Carla Gugino is fantastic (and sexy) as a competing agent, and her clash with Eric in the restaurant is brutal. Kevin Connolly does a great job of showing the facial melt from confidence to insecurity to defeat as he watches his sure-fire deal fall apart.
When the dust settles (for this episode at least) he has Vince attached to the script in a possible career-saving supporting role on one hand, and an incredible offer for his writers involving a studio that doesn’t want Vince on the other. It’s a beautiful thing that for the first time I don’t know what Eric will do. Will he choose Vince’s friendship over the logically correct choice of a million dollar deal with Ed Norton? Will Norton make a guest appearance on the show? (He always seems so serious about his craft, it’d be good for him to come make fun of himself.) Instead of simply being entertained for a single episode, I’m now eager to see next week’s show to find out what happens. In case you’ve forgotten, there are two other characters on the show… and they continue to be pretty much pointless time-fillers. Drama’s mildly entertaining appearance on The View was the episode’s low point due mostly to the spread-legged shot of Whoopi Goldberg wearing shorts, but also because it wasn’t funny or interesting. On the bright side, Turtle didn’t bitch and moan once about sex? I believe that’s a first.
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Related Topics: Control Freaks, HBO
