A Statement About Burn Notice

Credit where credit is due: TheMovieDad got me hooked on a show.
Like, hook-line-and-sinkered.

One not-yet-terribly-hot-Saturday when I had shockingly little to do, there was a Burn Notice marathon on USA. While waiting for an afternoon barbecue to start, the Dad and I sat down to watch, and I am unashamed to admit that I didn't get up for the rest of the afternoon. (Indeed, I did peel myself off the couch to attend the party for an hour, before using an errant beagle as an excuse to run home again)

So this show Burn Notice. I had tried watching it on the recommendation of a certain nameless Pittsburgh Conservative, who loved it on sight. When I tried it before I knew exactly why he loved it: the wry, witty narration and bone-dry delivery of just about every line emerging from Jeffrey Donovan's incredibly handsome mouth have a certain Pittsburgh-Conservative appeal (well, not the handsome mouth part... you know that I mean).

But I wasn't grabbed. I think I was in a rush, on my way to London, and way too distracted to jump into another series.

Not so on this fateful Saturday.

Jeffrey Donovan's aforementioned handsomeness should in no way deflect from how perfect he is in the role of Michael Westen, a "burned" CIA operative who has been dumped in Miami, out of money, out of contacts, out of the loop. He sets about trying to make a living the best way he knows how, stealing secrets, running ops, intimidating local scam artists who have been fleecing his mother's friends.

Joining him are his former IRA girlfriend Fiona (whose accent changed remarkably between 1.01 and 1.02) and Sam, a former SEAL who is... er... washed up, but still infinitely helpful when not tipping off the FBI to Michael's actions.

Quite frankly, it's not exactly heavy viewing-- it's all the fun that Alias was having without being bogged down by the mythology. There is an ongoing back-story (who burned Michael, what happened, how he's going to get back in the game), but the show falls squarely between procedurals (every week there is a "client" who requires Michael's services, he assembles the team, complications ensue, etc.) and more intensive serials.

I am not even close to caught up (I think I managed to see most of season 3 that day, and have since gone back to season 1 on iTunes), but I am seriously looking forward to more of Michael and the gang. And I already can't wait for more next summer.