Guts
New York City fire-fighter, Tommy Gavin, cannot escape the ghosts
of those who have died around him as he faces the everyday challenge
of saving lives while trying to fix his own.
Gay
When a retired gay fire-fighter makes a published claim that
several firemen who died in 9/11 were closeted gays, Chief Reilly
is determined to set the record straight. While attempting to
mask the pain of losing his wife and kids, Tommy does Jimmy
a favour and spies on his widow which leads to a surprising
discovery. The probie must deal with the unexpected repercussions
of being a hero after making his first save in a fire.
Kansas
Tommy decides to make life a living hell for his wife's new
boyfriend by wreaking havoc on his business and finances. Meanwhile,
Chief Reilly faces possible suspension as the result of an altercation
with a fellow fire-fighter and Lou decides to share his poetry.
DNA
A "friendly" date between Tommy and the widow of his
dead cousin takes an unexpected turn when she makes a move on
Tommy. Franco's ex-girlfriend shows up at the firehouse and
claims he's the father of her five-year-old daughter, turning
his life upside down.
Orphans
Tommy comes to terms with the reality of his broken family as
a result of a shocking experience with his father. When a freak
accident occurs, Franco must make a life-changing decision,
and Chief Reilly is forced to expose a family secret in order
to save his career.
Revenge
Tommy takes one step forward by convincing Janet to leave Roger
but two steps backward when she stumbles onto his latest fling.
The boys convince Sean to date a woman but neglect to tell him
that she is actually a he. Franco discovers he can't shake his
newfound fatherly instincts.
Butterfly
When Tommy asks for extra vacation time, Chief Reilly tips him
off on how to get a free two-week vacation from headquarters.
While building a deck for Tommy's neighbour, Tommy takes advantage
of his "free" advice, which leads him to make a bold
move in reconciling with Janet.
Inches
Tommy attempts to handle the insanity of his father while defending
Colleen's new lifestyle to Janet. At the firehouse, Sean and
Mike the Probie unknowingly launch a full-blown wager among
the crew.
Alarm
When Tommy discovers a secret that Janet is keeping from him,
he must come to terms with the possible consequences. At the
firehouse, Chief Reilly preps the boys for their new female
replacement. With the help of Franco and Sean, Tommy tracks
down the man responsible for
Immortal
When Tommy struggles to help Janet in a financial crunch, he
must turn to his Uncle Teddy to help him out. The new female
addition to the house fights to be accepted by the guys while
they do everything they can to drive her nuts. Just as Mike
is getting fed up from sleeping on the firehouse couch, he is
offered a helping hand with a free place to stay... at a steep
price.
Mom
While Tommy attempts to make reason of the chaos in his life,
he continues to defy death while pulling dangerous stunts on
the job. Lou admits his infidelity to his wife and receives
an unexpected surprise. When tragedy strikes his family, Tommy
must come to the rescue of his father.
Leaving
When Janet needs more money to cover house repairs, Tommy turns
to Uncle Teddy and his "little" friend to help him
out with extra cash. When Franco's father has a stroke, Franco
finds himself trying to juggle work and raising his daughter
on his own. Meanwhile, a goodwill tribute to the fire-fighters
lost in 9/11 goes awry and the firehouse is put in jeopardy.
Sanctuary
The hockey game rematch between the NYPD and the FDNY is right
around the corner and Tommy must figure out a plan to save himself
from being pummelled by the cops who have it out for him. Tommy's
relationship with Sheila is discovered by the guys and they
must adhere to tradition to handle it in their own way. When
Tommy is visited by his demons during a fire, Franco comes to
his aid... with devastating results.
Once in a while a
new show comes along that just hits the ground running, instantly
drawing you in and making you a die-hard fan. ‘Rescue
Me’ is one of those shows.
Comedian turned actor
Denis Leary and his writing partner Peter Tolan move from the
police to the fire service to produce a show that is filled
with as much comedy as it is drama. As with their previous collaboration,
‘The Job’, Leary and Tolan create salt of the earth
characters that are bound by the job. This is a bond that is
prevalent across most of the public services and is shown here
with all its camaraderie. It is their sense of fun and the banter
between the men of the station that draws you however, making
you instantly connect with the characters.
The show succeeds
because of the comedy that ensues from the high jinx within
the station. The constant practical jokes, ribbing and mickey
taking reflects what it is really like within an environment
such as that but you know that the men are consummate professionals
while on the job. Drama is injected into the show via their
lives outside of the station. Most of it revolves around Tommy
Gavin, Denis Leary’s character, as he tries to come to
terms with life after the events of September 11th 2001, when
he and his watch went into the World Trade Centre where they
lost one of their own.
It is this that drives
Leary’s character to be reckless and take unnecessary
risks, making him complicated and at times not very likeable.
Tommy’s anti-hero persona is strangely appealing however,
as he throws convention, trust and his own self dignity to the
mire and drowns in a pool of self pity, guilt and regret. The
rest of the watch also have their problems, some just as personal
but other not so.
The ensemble cast
is superb. Leary leads the line as Tommy but the rest of the
watch also earn their own place in the scheme of things. John
Scurti plays Lt. Kenneth "Lou" Shea, the man who is
just about to put a little more adventure in his life by striking
up an affair with another woman. Mike Lombardi is the new probie
of the watch, Mike Silletti and therefore the butt of everyone’s
jokes. Steven Pasquale is Sean Garrity, the easy influenced
member of the team and the one who is slightly devoid of the
standard number of brain cells. Franco Rivera is played by Daniel
Sunjata. He is the playboy of the group who is about to get
the shock of his life. Finally we have Jack McGee as Chief Jerry
Reilly, the old school fire-fighter who definitely thinks that
change is not good.
The first season
of ‘Rescue Me’ is superb. Successfully combining
comedy and drama and with the excellent ensemble cast drawing
you into the show from the off, this is another fine example
of excellent, must see television.
Season Star Rating
= * * * * *
PICTURE & SOUND
Presented in Anamorphic
Widescreen 16x9 with Dolby Digital 5.1, the series looks great,
reflecting the fact that it is shot using high definition digital
tape.
BONUS FEATURES
Commentary with Denis
Leary and Peter Tolan for the pilot and final episode, ‘Guts’
and ‘Sanctuary’
The co-writers of the series come together to talk about the
first and last episodes of season one of ‘Rescue Me’.
As you would aspect, these are very funny commentaries, intermixed
with fascinating facts about the production of the show. During
the pilot commentary the pair reveal where the idea for the
show same from and talk about casting, the characters and making
the show as authentic as they can. For the final show in the
season, they talk about how the show has evolved and how the
characters have grown throughout. These are both excellent commentaries
and come from two extremely talented writers.
Gag Reel (6.54 mins)
Watch Denis Leary and the rest of the cast muck up their lines
and goof around on set.
Featurettes (58.32
mins)
Entitled ‘How it all began’, ‘Authenticity’,
‘The Cast’ and ‘The Look’, co-writer/director
Peter Tolan, executive producer Jim Serpico, co-producer Tom
Sellitti, stunt coordinator Danny Aiello III and stars Denis
Leary, Mike Lombardi, Jack McGee, Steven Pasquale, John Scurti,
Daniel Sunjata and Andrea Roth take you through the production
of the show. The four featurettes cover all aspects of the show’s
production from the development of the script and the characters
to showing the FDNY as authentically as possible, offering an
insight into how a cable show is produced. The featurettes are
funny and informative, highlighting the quality of the cast
and the writing.
Deleted Scenes
Watch a collection of deleted or extended scenes from season
one. Unfortunately none of these have either a commentary track
or an introduction and you don’t even know which episode
they are from.
Sneak Peek at Season
2 (3.45 mins)
A preview of the new season of ‘Rescue Me’
OVERALL
The DVD package for
the first season of ‘Rescue Me’ is excellent. Many
TV shows that head to DVD are never really accompanied by good
bonus features but this is the exception. With excellent featurettes
and commentary tracks, fans of the show will be really pleased
with this package and those of you who missed the show on TV
this is the perfect way to watch this brilliant series.
