Netflix is exactly how I got to rewatch Wiseguy which was my first real fan experience too!
The episodes Wahl directed were Reunion...the black and white one where he plays his own father. It was an interesting concept but it really drug in bits and the commentary (truly terrible) makes it clear that Ken's reverence for his own work kind of got in the way.
Another, and honestly the worst episode EVER, was called Romp and featured about a dozen repititions of the same scene of Vinny and two of his high school friends running round back alleys and jumping over fences as they try to figure out how to save a friend of theirs from a mob beating on the day of his wedding. They were supposedly having fun, (lotsa beer n broads) but the audience...okay, maybe only me...was bored into senselessness. It seemed to be Ken's homage to "Help" but without the good music or the humor. Yech.
I do highly recommend rewatching the Sonny Steelgrave arc. Damn, that was good teevee. And while I still really enjoy the Mel Proffit (Kevin Spacey) arc, it has not aged as well as some of the others. But still...Joan Severenece...so there ya go!
As with most of my favorite shows, it's the supporting cast that really does it for me. (Alexis, I'm lookin' at you, Honey) Wiseguy is a great example of that. The eps that feature Jonathan Banks and Jim Byrnes are true teevee gold.
Oh, and I'm totally with you on the CK/DB admiration thang. Not that I'm sure DB isn't a barrel of monkeys to work with (dead or no) but that, tragically, doesn't make him a great director. Maybe someday. Look at Clark Johnson...he turned out to be pretty good. And Dennis Dugan.
Hm. I wonder who the other series teevee actors who became successful directors might be.
Off to imdb...
Personally I think DB did a really good job in his directorial debut. But I'll agree that waxing rhapsodic about one's own fabulousness in a media forum is a bit much. Perhaps he was just caught up in the excitement, as every firsthand report I've ever heard about him mentions what a great and down-to-earth guy he is?
I've heard that too, which is what made the commentary so jarring.
That's a charitable, and no doubt more accurate, deduction Matt. Maybe it was just the excitement of the moment.
And, to be honest, I have an unfortunate bias when it comes to commentaries. I want them to talk about what I want to hear about!
t /selfish fangirl
I loved John McTiernan's commentary on the Thomas Crown Affair...not because he made himself look good (he really didn't), but because it was so bleeding informative.
Which episode did DB direct? I'm totally memfaulting on it. (I assume the initials are SP, so I suppose I could just go check my season 5 set).
Perhaps he was just caught up in the excitement, as every firsthand report I've ever heard about him mentions what a great and down-to-earth guy he is?
Probably, as your firsthand reports match with the ones I saw last year from a friend who had family working on one of his projects.
I wonder if he was trying to be over the top in a goofy way, because I've only ever heard he's absolutely lovely, too. A friend of mine was a valet at one of his parties, and couldn't say enough nice things about both him, and his father. She is a valet at a lot of business functions, and she's not particularly star-struck, and has also told stories about some real asshats.
Probably, as your firsthand reports match with the ones I saw last year from a friend who had family working on one of his projects.
Aside from other people's tales, I've had maybe 10 minutes of face-time with him myself over the years. Some of them back in early '98 when he wasn't yet a good enough actor to have fooled me if he were really a jerk rather than jovial and friendly.
I wonder if he was trying to be over the top in a goofy way
That's my take on it. But in an audio-only format, it's sometiimes difficult to get the goofy across.
I think the DB commentary was scripted and he read it.
