Thoughts on the end of Rescue Me
Note, there are spoilers of the finale in here.
Rescue Me was a frustrating show to watch. It had such great promise and reached such great highs. But it was also hard to watch when it sunk about as low as a drama could go.
The women were written badly. People were forgotten within half a season of dying. Plots were forgotten even quicker.
But, man, when the show was on, it was on. The scenes in fires? Nearly anything with Lou giving a monologue? The guys giving each other crap around the table or in the truck or, well, anywhere two or more of them gathered? Great TV.
The show was true to Rescue Me.
It had the good (who didn’t tear up at Lou’s monologue in the beginning or smile at the BSing around the table in the firehouse?), the bad (Shiela taunting Tommy with drinks?) and the ugly (the whole playground scene, from the homophobia to, well, Tommy being Tommy). But it was true to the series. And there was more good in the finale than bad or ugly, which was a pleasant way to end.
The finale was true to Rescue Me. It had great scenes, it had good scenes, it had ridiculous scenes, it had bad scenes and it had ridiculously bad scenes. But almost all the scenes had some sort of redeeming value.
The scene with Lou giving his monologue in the beginning? Lump in the throat from beginning to end. The scene at the playground? Cringe-inducing from beginning to end.
Subtlety was never the show’s strong suit. A couple of things were almost too-on-the-nose in the finale. Like when the guys were sitting around the table, all beat up, nursing injuries but still just giving each other crap.
“This is what I’m gonna miss right here,” Mike said. “I mean, us busting each other’s balls around the table. These were some of the best times, guys.”
Yeah, those were some of the best times.
But another line, one where Tommy was reading from Lou’s letter, struck me as more on-the-nose for how I feel about the show. It wasn’t intended as such, but it worked.
“With you,” Lou wrote to Tommy but it could have been me writing to the show, “the goods are up enough that I’ll take the downs.”
That’s what kept me coming back.
I couldn’t help but tear up several times during the episode, some of which were because I knew this was the last time I’d see these idiotic, brave, hurtful, valiant firefighters.
I’ll miss you Rescue Me. But, man, part of me can’t help but think you could have been one of the all-time greats.
