"RESCUE ME: SEASON THREE"
DVD Review
by Rachel Buccicone
| MOVIE: **** (out of 5 stars)
DVD EXPERIENCE: ***** (out of 5 stars) STARRING Denis Leary as TOMMY GAVIN Jack McGee as CHIEF JERRY REILLY Steven Pasquale as SEAN GARRITY Andrea Roth as JANET GAVIN Daniel Sunjata as FRANCO RIVERA Mike Lombardi as MIKE SILLETTI/PROBIE John Scurti as KENNY SHEA Not Rated Studio: Sony Created by Denis Leary and Peter Tolan Back to DVD Review Home |  |
“Rescue Me” certainly made a splash during season three with its extreme and often criticized plot lines and shocking finale.
Based on the lives of a crew of firefighters following 9/11, “Rescue Me” focuses mainly on Tommy Gavin (Denis Leary) whose cousin died in the World Trade Center tragedy. Tommy’s alcoholism causes him to see the ghosts of those he has lost, mainly his cousin, with whom he holds full conversations.
By season three, Tommy has gotten his alcoholism under control thus preventing the presence of the dead in most of this season. Not only this, but his wife Janet (Andrea Roth) has officially left him due to the death of their son in season two. One of the first plot twists we discover early on is just who Janet is sleeping with.
Meanwhile, each member of the crew undergoes some changes. The Probie (Mike Lombardi) goes through a brief homosexual phase and spends the entire season trying to transfer out of the house. Garrity (Steven Pasquale) starts dating Tommy’s sister, Franco’s (Daniel Sunjata) daughter is kidnapped by Susan Sarandon’s character, and Chief Reilly (Jack McGee) struggles financially to keep his Alzheimer’s-inflicted wife in the nursing home she loves. Additionally, Lieutenant Shea (John Scurti) goes through a rough time after his wife and prostitute girlfriend left him during season two but manages to pull himself out of it.
I agree with some critics that the events of this season were a bit much, but I side with others when I say that it’s hard not to love this show. The drama is very extreme, but it makes for a good amount of hilarity. Once you’ve become invested in “Rescue Me”, the ridiculous twists in plot only add to the addiction. Although I did forget to mention that this season contains the much despised wife rape scene. That should be taken with a grain of salt.
There is not a poor performance from any member of this cast. Steven Pasquale plays an excellent and hilarious idiot as Garrity. Mike Lombardi is a great, naïve Probie, Daniel Sunjata (“The Devil Wears Prada”) surmounts his real-life homosexuality to play a very masculine Franco. Of course, Denis Leary is stunning as the troubled and very dislikable antihero.
The bonus features for this season are excellent. The featurettes total at five: Behind the Smoke, Being Denis Leary, Going to the Gay Place, The Bravest Traditions, and Fighting Fires in a Vertical City. Add to that an on-set location tour, blooper reel, comedy short, behind-the-scenes clips, and 14 deleted scenes and you’ve got one excellent bonus stash.
If you are into firefighting like me, “Rescue Me” is the equivalent of a video bible. I know a certain amount of “other” people who know no one who fights fires but still enjoy the show. “Rescue Me” is a show about bad boys and super drama, so if you like either of those, you should consider catching season four that just hit the air on FX. The plot is continuous, so if you like what you see of four, you may consider investing in seasons one through three. No matter what occurs during this show’s run, I will always stand by “Rescue Me” as one of the best shows on the air.
Specifications: Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound. Widescreen (1.78:1). English Language Tracks.
