back in may for my birthday, calli surprised me with all four seasons of
my name is earl. i was thrilled to get them because there were so many episodes i had not yet seen. i never watched the show before it got cancelled, though i had heard how funny it was from a co-worker. i am always reluctant to start watching a new show. it's another show to commit to, tape so you won't miss it, etc. but when TBS started running them in the afternoons, i began to watch it and fell in love with it from the first one i saw.
last night i watched the last episode from season four, that wrenching cliff hanger that left us all wondering who fathered joy's son if it was not darnell. and to learn earl really was the father of dodge (awesome redneck name) - we had no follow up to go on.
the show kind of reminded me of
the simpsons in a weird way - they did the same thing with adding characters to the show bit by bit - you would meet someone from earl's list who became regulars on the show, which built a whole weird, yet wonderful community. i loved the writing, the coen brothers vibe, the obscure humor and the heart of the show more and more with every episode i watched.
i liked how you still got to see what earl was like before his list through the many flashbacks - what his and joy's marriage was like, and i also loved seeing the flashbacks of when earl and randy were kids. stories that put unlilkely characters together - like randy and joy realizing they were each other's first love, or when randy was in love with catalina. it was a great way for the writers to add depth to the characters and make them even funnier and more endearing.
i know a number of people didn't care for the storyline of earl in prison, followed by the coma and marriage to billie. i, too, preferred it when earl kept to his list - the storyline possibilities were endless - but i can understand the writers wanting to try something different. i imagine the die hard fans stuck with the show, nonetheless. i still found it funny and unpredictable. it also added some new characters to watch - i absolutely loved craig t. nelson as the warden, for instance.
he was just one of many characters i loved - giovanni ribisi as ralph - i wished he had been a regular on
earl, really. tv's tim stack, gregg binkley as kenny, dale dickey as patti, the daytime hooker. and i know beau bridges has done a lot in his career, but he could not have been funnier than his role as earl and randy's dad. the guest stars they had were awesome too - betty white, danny glover - john leguizamo was hilarious as catalina's cousin, as was norm mcdonald as li'l chubby, christian slater and david arquette, just to name a few.
i loved the two part episodes they did with the parody of
cops and the
inside probe with geraldo rivera. and the one about earl and randy going to mexico to rescue catalina is one of my favorites. it just proved more and more what the writers, directors and actors created together.
i also liked learning the little things - randy's fear of birds - crabman's love of mr. turtle - catalina's bizarre stories of her home - and joy. she stole every scene she was in. and few people could play a drunk like jaime pressly. it was all gold.
i don't understand why the hell this show had to end. as i said and as we all know, the storylines could have been endless with earl's list. the characters were hiliarious, the writing both funny as hell and touching at the right times. it's a shame it had to end, but at least we got four seasons of riding the karma train - for that i will always be grateful.
