Huff

I wanted to talk some more about Huff. I wrote appreciations of the Showtime drama's first season last year at the old blog, and more recently here, so I'll be trying not to repeat myself.

There is a moment at the end of Huff's first season when the title character speaks two words, and it's almost a throwaway. They don't pause for even a whole beat. But if you've been watching all the episodes leading up to it, it's chilling. The subtlety of that moment, and the pleasure it takes in paying off a characterization, is everything that a certain series that shall remain nameless (but starts with "L") is missing.

In his commentary track on the recently-released DVDs, series lead Hank Azaria calls that episode one of the best, if not the best, things he's ever been involved with in his career. And here is a guy who, although he may not always have had the best luck picking movie projects, can point to Robert Redford's Quiz Show, working with Mike Nichols both on film and on stage (where he got a Tony nomination), and (playing a writer better than I've ever seen one played) Tim Robbins' Cradle Will Rock. Plus several Emmy nominations for his almost 20 years on The Simpsons, a featured part on Friends (I still say Phoebe should have married him)...and I haven't even mentioned Mad About You's Nat ("Hey there, hi there, ho there.")

And he says Huff is "Creatively...the best job I've ever had." Are you beginning to get why those of us who have become its fans think it's so extraordinary?

One of the reasons I think Huff's first season may have had trouble attracting the viewers it deserves is because it lacks a hook, it's determinedly "low-concept." It's not "Melrose Place, only with lesbian softcore sex" (The L Word). It's not "Family politics, and family politics, of a mob boss" (The Sopranos). It's not "single mother in the suburbs becomes pot dealer" (Weeds).

It's just-who would've thunk of it?-a really well-made, strong show. How strong? Let me put it this way-I think it's the best TV drama since the first few seasons of The West Wing. And if you know how I feel about The West Wing, you know what a compliment that is.

I will qualify it slightly by defining my terms-there have certainly been other series since that I've had a lot of time for. But to me, 24 is not a drama-it's a suspense series. Gilmore Girls is not a drama, it's a "dramedy" or if you prefer, "human comedy." Boston Legal is not a drama, it's a...well, I'm actually not sure what Boston Legal is; neither are they, and that's part of its appeal. Veronica Mars, at its height, was not a drama, it's a mystery series. Okay, Bones is probably a drama, and one that I'm increasingly enjoying, but it's nowhere near as good as Huff.

Which brings me back to the question of why I think Huff is so good. Well, first of all, it's one of the first hour-long drama series since The West Wing that I've wanted to watch over and over. Most such series, no matter how well-made, simply don't invite repeat viewing-that's why sitcoms do so much better in syndication.

Huff does, and rewards it. I was re-watching the first season as they broadcast it ramping up for the second season premiere, and I still found it terribly moving, and noticed things I'd missed the first time.

Plus there is the ensemble cast. I've praised Azaria, female lead Paget Brewster and Blythe Danner, who won an Emmy for her role, in the first post linked above. So here I'll say keep an eye on Anton Yelchin, who plays Byrd, Huff's teenage son. Those of you who know my work: I think if I were casting for the You & Me, Baby section of Girlfriend's Boyfriend, this guy would be on my wish list to play the high school-aged Colley. His hair shouldn't be quite so long and curly, and he's only about 17 so there'd be a problem with him playing the adult version. But what the hell, it's all pie-in-the-sky anyway, and my point is, it's a great performance. Byrd is someone who is in some ways wise beyond his years, but at the same time very much a teenager.

Speaking of my work, I don't think I can say that Huff is an influence on it-although it may very well prove to be. It's more that the writing, done and/or supervised by series creator Bob Lowry, has a quality to it that I respond to. And recognize as appearing in parts of my own work.

I think it's a-way of seeing the joke even in something quite serious (and vice-versa) while still-I hope to god-maintaining the integrity of the characters.

The second season is starting in a few days (Sundays, 10pm) and I gather Showtime is running another one of their free weekend previews. So I wanted to give you these few more reasons why I'm so keen on it.

With the admission that the last time I promoted the second season of a prized but low-rated series so heavily to you, it was Veronica Mars. And that show's ended up spinning way too many plates this year, and has lost a certain emotional cohesion as a result.

Though the last couple episodes have been improvements, but that's another post.