Profit on DVD

[dlgood]

Have finally got my copy and started watching.

After viewing the four episodes that aired in 1996, I have determined that this show is exactly as awesome as I remembered it being. After finishing, I'll try to actually write some reviews or something.

Once again, I really can't believe this show ever made it to air. It's just so outside the bounds of anything I ever remember watching, certainly up to that point in time. I will have to note, however, how fandom has really changed the way I watch TV shows.

Among other things, Lisa Zane as Joanne Meltzer. A great performance, and a really neat character. Zane's acting highlights for me, how underwhelming Elizabeth Rohm was as Kate Lockley. I liked the Kate character, and I didn't really mind Rohm at the time - but Lisa Zane does so much better a job with a character that is really similar in a lot of ways.

Man, it really is hard not to root for Jim Profit, because really, this show is so awesome.

Comments

[glumpish.livejournal.com]

>It's just so outside the bounds of anything I ever remember watching,

I know. It's crazy! I only saw it a couple of years ago, and kept saying, "My god, I cannot believe this was on TV." When you get to the commentaries, which are pretty entertaining, you'll hear that they were thinking the same thing throughout the production, heh.

I may have to get one of Lisa Zane's albums, because the way she delivers lines is memorable enough that I'm curious to hear her sing.

[dlgood.livejournal.com]

I've only seen the Pilot Commentary so far. It just amazes me. By all rights - this is the sort of show where, normally, Profit would be the antagonist and either Meltzer or Sykes would be the star. I'm up through "Chinese Box" and Jeff Sykes should be the hero - and yet I keep rooting for Profit to "win" their confrontations. It's awesome.

And I had no idea Lisa Zane sings.

[glumpish.livejournal.com]

I think "Healing" is where I just couldn't believe they were doing the stuff they were doing. It's all so wrong. And I'm trying to not talk about anything else until you've seen the rest, so... hurry up!

I only know about Zane singing because they mention it somewhere in the commentaries, or extras. Or both. And then after mentioning it I caved in last night because there's an album on iTunes, so I got it. It's very night-club-y, and I was expecting more blues-flavored, so that's a little disconcerting.

I'm really awful at describing music, if you haven't noticed. I'm enjoying it, but listening to it is making me feel like I should be in a dive bar in Vegas. Possibly in a movie. If you want to try a sample, I'd probably recommend "Law of Desire" right now, but I really need to hear it all a bit more.

[dlgood.livejournal.com]

I remember Healing, because it was the last episode I ever saw, and it was awesome. Awesome. The scenes with Profit and Joanne kick such ass. I'm, gonna finish "Security" tonight, and then it'll just be Forgiveness left.

And then I'm going to try to corrupt a coworker or two, because I want to have more acolytes to gush with over the awesomeness of this show. I can pick a bunch of nitpicks and concerns, but it's just so damn cool.

[dlgood.livejournal.com]

I really need to have a Profit Party. If I can find friends who will actually watch this show.

[glumpish.livejournal.com]

Oh, that would be so much fun! I was serious about wanting to do an all-night marathon thing. Well, pretty serious. Kind of. I think. I showed the pilot to one person who said she liked it, but hasn't returned an email since (which is probably a coincidence since she's been busy). And I have a couple of friends who I think would enjoy it, but I need to clean a lot before I can have them over. Stupid home-owning.

The only thing that really bothers me is that the secretary sometimes seems to like Profit too much, since at other times she's terrified of him. Which isn't a big deal, but it distracts me in a couple of episodes. And the virtual reality stuff is goofy, but I watched Max Headroom, so who am I to judge?

[dlgood.livejournal.com]

Oh, there are definitely flaws with the show, and places where I have issues. Gail, who worked for a wonderful guy like Jack Walters taking such a shine to a (albeit personable) scumbag like Jim Profit is just one of them. There are some places where I think the plotting and writing is a bit uneven.... But, it's just so awesome that I can't seem to be disappointed.

I ended up watching "Forgiveness" during the second half of the Redskins-Cowboys game last night, so now all I have left to watch are the extras and commentaries. (Outside of the pilot, which I've gotten to.)

There are some very interesting things they did with the characters. Except for Chas, who gets less interesting and more fatuous as the series progresses.

[glumpish.livejournal.com]

They kind of explain Gail a bit in one of the commentaries (probably "Healing," in fact -- that might be where Pasdar says she's his Moneypenny) and I'm okay with the concept, but she plays the character as a bit too frightened for that to work. I can see the problem, where it's funny to have her so frightened, but it does make her behavior confusing.

Oh, and yeah, I didn't mean it was without flaw, but no more than any other very good drama. And given how crazy it is, it's impressive that the writing is as tight as it is.

>Except for Chas, who gets less interesting and more fatuous as the series progresses.
Huh. Y'know, I hadn't thought of that, but it's true. Although it makes a certain amount of sense; everyone starts out screwed up & miserable and then their issues get resolved, one way or another, via Profit. Whereas Chas was probably perfectly comfortable with his situation at the start, so there's not much fun in either building him up or tearing him down. (But when you get to the commentaries, they talk about what would have happened if the show had gone on, and it's... intriguing.)

You should do reviews. Or I should set up forums on my site. Or maybe both. That might make a good project for next weekend, and it'd be nice if we can lure other people to watch because I could talk about the show for hours. Hm. I must ponder that.

[dlgood.livejournal.com]

I'm down to just having to watch the Disc 2 commentaries. I'll post some scattered thoughts on the characters this week.

The transformation with Gail is... I suppose she's seduced because Profit really gives her stuff to do, whereas she was always just a nobody secretary. He gives her actual latitude and she gets the chance to feel important because she's doing work that's really important to him. And I guess it overrides her moral qualms and it overrides her fear. Really, it's the triumph of human spirit stuff... except that she's abetting white slavery and murder. (Though, granted, of scumbags by scumbags...)

And also - were you totally taken by (1) how tiny Keith Szarabajka is, and (2) secretly thrilled since the commentary finally taught us how to pronounce his name?

[glumpish.livejournal.com]

Heh. From what they say, I think it's not so much a seduction as that she's just... always frightened of him but also aware that she can benefit from his influence. So she's trying to ride his wake, kind of. Which makes sense conceptually, but her portrayal doesn't really mesh with that because she seems to genuinely like him too much for it to be a purely strategic decision. I think they just fell in love with her playing it as pure comedy, which I can understand.

Oh god, that bit where he messes his collar just so she can straighten it maternally... hee.

Well, we knew Szarabajka wasn't overly tall. Or I did, because the dialogue from "Angel" is BURNED INTO MY BRAIN. Ahem. I *think* I knew how to pronounce his name before. Or I was pretty close. I may have been pronouncing the J, actually. And (I'm now on random) I loved the bit in the pilot commentary where Pasdar said he thought KS was making fun of him at first, with the low scary voice. I'm very sad that he doesn't turn up in the extras at all. Sniff.

[dlgood.livejournal.com]

Which makes sense conceptually, but her portrayal doesn't really mesh with that because she seems to genuinely like him too much for it to be a purely strategic decision. I think they just fell in love with her playing it as pure comedy, which I can understand.

This does seem definitely to me be a case of that. Probably, could have benefitted from a little more portrayal of Gail having conflicts... something that pushed or pulled her a little outside of just her direct scenes with Jim. It's funny how Profit seems to be the only character aware of how important secretaries can actually be... and how that really helps him with Gail.

Maybe we could have gotten some future episode with a subplot of Gail and Sykes' (heretofore invisible) assistant or something.

[dlgood.livejournal.com]

I don't really know. I'd assume that, whomever was contracted to do the Contigency Planning - whenever it actually popped up - they'd want that person in the field and directly involved. Perhaps, they'd have underlings actually on location and managing from remote if the fallout/landing zone was super-unsafe... but I'm sort of going on speculation. I don't really know.