It is near time to saying

She was a fantastic foil for Phil Hartman

Goodbye to Treme for at least a year.  HBO signed on for a third year but the ratings have not been very good, despite the excellent Game of Thrones lead-in.

Still, I expect that David Simon's cache should be enough to let him see his way to a proper conclusion of the series.  At least, I hope so.

The second season has been better than the first and I think hit its peak about halfway through.  It stalled a little bit then unloaded an absolute Masterpiece Mardi Gras episode and has then been getting just a tad bit gushy and sentimental in the last couple of episodes regarding two arcs in the same family.

I would like to throw out some heavy props to two of the actresses in the series:  Foul mouthed Oscar winner, Melissa Leo keeps showing the world what an amazing talent she is and Khandi Alexander, who has been severely under-appreciated her whole career, are both absolute joys to live with every week.

The Back of Town blog and Dave Walker's Treme Explained are absolute essentials for cultists.

The second season of Treme

Has gotten off to such a wonderful start.  You know, I have noticed that when I start nitpicking tiny little things about movies or books as I am enjoying them that that tends to be a good sign that I am witnessing something of great value or beauty.

One example would be The Kids Are Alright.  Julianne Moore's monologue near the end of the film, rambling about literature fell flat on my ears as I sat in the theater.  Still, it is a fantastic motion picture.

The Treme example was episode one where the Parish Head (?) of Police was talking to the New York press about the situation in NOLA at the time.  It was so expository it made me cringe a little.  But it still had a nice linking phrase at the end to take us to Greenwich Village a couple of scenes later.

Perhaps these "failures" stand out because they are surrounded by such greatness, or perhaps it is just a question of my super-high expectations?

Treme, this season, has been all about greatness.  This season is really reminding me of John Sayles and City of Hope; all the arcs linked together as the arcs literally bump in to each other in the street.

Love it love it love it.  Keep it coming, bros. & sisters.

This was amazing to learn and is essential reading for any serious fan of David Simon's TV work.

Countdown continues:  Got the rings today.  Eleven days.  It is a new kind of magic number.


Mwah, ...