Entourage returns to HBO, hilarious as ever.

I'm tired of hearing that HBO's Entourage is Sex and the City for guys.  It's not, I repeat NOT, just for guys.  It narrates very convincingly and humanly the rollercoaster ride that is stardom and life in LA. You can lose a couple million dollar movie deal in a day, have to sell your house just as your 80 inch TV is arriving, but no matter what, you'll always have your friends. Sure, the decadent and carefree life that the four bachelor protagonists lead is something of a male fantasy, with supermodels draped over ever sofa and luxury cars around every corner, but Entourage merely uses that as a backdrop for buildling substantive relationships between characters who we genuinely care for and love hanging out with.  

Granted, I joined this poker game a little late, but boy have my chips gone to good use.  Watching seasons one through four of the livin' large antics of Vince, E, Drama, and Turtle in fairly quick succession this past fall, I came to the end with a screeching halt and bewilderment, remorseful that I'd gone through the episodes so hastily and nearly devastated that I had to wait indefinitely for more.  (The air date for the next season was uncertain at that point.)

But the gang's all back, and as hilarious as ever.  This past week Entourage returned for its fifth season, and all my happy memories came flooding back to me.  Banter, banter, and more banter! If you have a small group of friends with whom you spend every waking moment, revel in being politically incorrect (or perhaps just immature), and constantly give them a hard time, you'll feel right at home here.

The cliffhanger from the previous season, where the film our friends have been pouring their hearts and souls into completely flops at the Cannes Film Festival, was a bold move, as many shows would have chosen to play it safe and end the season with an uplifting success or at least the red herring that everything would work out at the end of the day.  Similarly, in beginning its newest season, Entourage does not do, again, what so many shows would - it does not open with business as usual.  

We find Eric still struggling to start his own agency, Ari more irascible than we've ever seen trying to handle bad press, and Vince left with no choice but to go into hiding on a remote beach in Mexico.  Granted, he's hanging out with a hoard of bikini-clad professional sun bathers and riding around on jet skis all day, but we still get the sense that this indulgence is a sign of desperation, a sign that his career is in a world of trouble.

The only problem I had with this episode was its pacing.  It builds, it builds, it builds, and then it stops abruptly.  When all was said and done we didn't really get very far in the new storyline.  Maybe I'm just spoiled and my first fix in such a long time leaves me unfulfilled.   Also, there was not nearly enough Ari Gold.  Jeremy Piven, in performing his role as the ruthless  (he's a complete jerk, but we can't help but cheer him on somehow) always commandeers the spotlight as a supposedly minor character on this show.  He may even be the primary reason I watch it.

I eagerly await next week's episode.  Bango out.