HBO used to be the holy grail for television. It had The Sopranos, Six Feet Under, Deadwood, The Wire, and Sex and the City. All groundbreaking shows in their own respect. Band of Brothers showed us war from beginning to end and pushed the limits for what a miniseries could do. And Entourage was good, if brainless, fun. But those shows have since ended (or fizzled out if you're talking about Entourage) and a new crop of shows started to try to fill the gaps.
Alan Ball's True Blood tried to cash in on the country's vampire phase, but never really caught on (though it the show does have some very loyal followers that swear by it), and Big Love always felt like a Six Feet Under rip off. Other than those two, all of HBO's newer shows (John from Cincinatti , Tell Me You Love Me, In Treatment ) struck out. None could capture the allure, the weight, the quality of the premium channel's previous shows. In short, there was nothing new in these shows, nothing groundbreaking. And we have come to expect nothing less from HBO. After a few years we began to lose faith.
And then last night the premiere episode of David Simon's (The Wire)Treme premiered. We had been waiting for the second coming of HBO and I believe it came last night soaked in jazz and flood water. The sprawling premiere introduced us to people who were coming back home, to find that their home had been changed. The watermarks were over their heads, everything they owned had been destroyed. Loved ones were still missing and the city's infrastructure was virtually nonexistant. Reporters came to the city trying to understand the tragedy, but they just cant. To really feel the heartache of losing your home, you had to be a native of "The City That Care Forgot".
The writing is naturalistic and on-point, the acting subtle and heartbreaking, and the soundtrack pulses like no other. The music and culture of New Orleans are just as much a character in the show as any living thing. The parades that take place in the streets are an enigma at first. How on earth can people parade in their city after it has been leveled by floods. But at the end of the show you understand. These people parade because they have to. They parade because it is in their blood, in their soul.
And the show will not leave out the politics, it is of course about the after effects of Hurricane Katrina. However, what is interesting is that the show doesnt seem to point fingers at any one person. As one character (played by John Goodman) booms "this was a Federal fuck-up of epic proportions." Everyone is to blame for this catastrophe. The Federal Government, FEMA, the Local Government, the Police. Everyone.
Treme premiered just after one of the most intense episodes of The Pacific (another fantastic miniseries that adds to the regeneration of HBO). I looked over to my fiance and whispered about how Treme now had a lot to live up to. From the first blast of the trombone, Treme hit it's stride and never let up. We are being brought along on a journey, a rebirth of the soul as we watch these people return to their lives to pick up where they left off. The pain is real as characters are being portrayed by real Katrina survivors (most of which were in the Spike Lee documentary When The Levees Broke).
With Boardwalk Empire, (a gangster series from the minds of Timothy Van Patten and Martin Scorsese) premiering in the fall we can only expect the best. The thing is, Treme has set the bar unbelievably high. Treme is art on a television screen. Time will only tell if it will live up to it's expectations. If it will indeed mark a new beginning for HBO.
Count this viewer in the believer category.
4 comments:
Dave, I'm willing to believe you about Treme. I must say, though, that In Treatment certainly is not a wash-out. Critics and viewers alike rave about this series and it has been renewed for a third season. Have you watched it? I would suggest that you sit down, put on your thinking cap, and give In Treatment your undivided attention. If you care about drama, then you will be a happy man. You will not see better writing, acting, or direction on television. Well, maybe you will with Treme. We shall have to wait and see.
Stella: I have watched In Treatment, and while I will admit the writing and acting (especially from Byrne) were excellent, I didnt find myself drawn back repeatedly like other shows. This may just be a personal taste thing and perhaps the show just wan't for me. Who knows. I will definitely say In Treatment is miles ahead of John from Cincinatti and Tell Me you Love Me. But thank you for reading my blog!
Treme, was brilliant, but I think HBO still has a long way to go before they have completely redeemed themselves. Two good shows don't make a network, especially if one of them is only here for a little while. I think they are still big misses, like with How to make it in America.
Hith: You're right, HBO has a ways to go to be what it once was, and while The Pacific will only be on for a few more weeks, Boardwalk Empire is a full blown series. The thing I like about Boardwalk Empire is that it is a gangster series, but instead of making it a Sopranos retread, they set it during the prohibition era where the words mafia and politics were interchangable. Plus Scorsese is directing the Pilot.
You have to start somewhere. Remember when The Sopranos came on we had to wait a year for another brilliant series to begin (Six Feet Under).
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