Californication: Season Two
The show about an extreme writer plays it safe
Tags: Misc DVD 2009 Categories: DVD/TV Reviews, Reviews
Posted by Mike "Two Tone" McConnell on Sep 28th, 2009
Californication is a show all about wish fulfillment. Not the characters’ mind you, but Hank Moody personifies every mythical aspect of being a “Writer.” That’s in quotes with a capital W. This myth is the one that Jack Kerouac tired to sell the world, and what people believed about Bukowski. He drinks, he mourns lost loves, he sleeps with anything that moves, and he rails against the dumb culture he’s forced to deal with. He does everything but write.
Well he’s written one thing since the show started, which was promptly stolen from him. The point is moot because Hank has gotten a new beginning with his ex-lover Karen. They ran off in a spectacular fashion from her wedding to another man, with their child Becca in tow. The show doesn’t work if the grizzled alcoholic writer is now happy and putting his life back together so it isn’t long before things go awry.
Hank also meets rock producer Lew Ashby. Ashby recruit Hank to pen his biography. Ashby wants details of his escapades in rock stardom, but Hank looks to try and find the real guy underneath. There is an excellent subplot with Lew, his lost love, Karen, and Hank. The dance card becomes dangerously mixed up, and the result is one of the better moments from the season.
Hank’s friend and agent Charlie has a long and drawn out subplot about him producing and managing a porn star, but it really is just filler. Charlie isn’t that engaging of a character, and what’s worse is this seems to be put in to add sex in place of what Hank’s not having.
Duchovny casts a large shadow on this show. However, the real show stealer is Callum Keith Rennie, who plays Lew Ashby. Ashby’s character is crude and obnoxious, and it takes a lot of charm to make that sort of character likable.
The special features are pretty slim, just some interviews and commentaries. There are commercials for Showtime’s other shows in the form of episodes. If you haven’t gotten into this show, I would pick up the masterful first season, in the case of season two, it is optional. The story and the format seem at odds here. Television is about recognizable characters within new circumstances. Character dramas require change to the characters to remain interesting, Showtime doesn’t seem to know what it wants from this show, which is a shame since it’s still a great show, it just needs to break its holding pattern.
| What Works | Score |
|---|---|
| + Cast is still great especially guest star, Callum Keith Rennie | 7.5 |
| What Doesn't | |
|
- Story plays it safe, and is padded to keep it formulaic - Showtime needs to learn commercials are not special features |
|
| Under the Shrink-wrap | |
| This show still has a good heart, though this season does a lot to try and smash it. The season pulls it together at the end, giving is some payoff on Hank's character, but it isn't enough. I hope that in season three they discover that this isn't a sit-com. | |
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Tags: Misc DVD 2009
Posted by Mike "Two Tone" McConnell on Sep 28th, 2009 and is filed under DVD/TV Reviews, Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.
