Playlist: Entourage (Season 6)

Why? I'm a glutton for punishment

We talked a little about this show on our last podcast and we all agreed that while none of us actually liked it, we also couldn't stop watching. For me, it has an almost comfort food quality about it. It's solid and predictable and (content aside) competently made. The other factor, of course, is that we hate the characters because we want to be them. Any of them. It's every guy's fantasy to be able to live that life with his friends in tow and while seemingly not being asked to make any compromises or suffer any consequences. It's a load of crap, is what it is, but god how we want it to be our crap. Not to mention the fact that while the odds of such a stroke of fortune happening for us are microscopic, they're not literally outside the possible.

Season 6 played up those excesses of fame, but more importantly it did so while playing up the most appealing characteristics of the main characters (finally). Vinny Chase, a bigger star than ever and between gigs, was relegated to tagging along with his friends and picking up random girls. Really, that's all he did and it worked because the less acting Adrian Grenier is forced to do, the better.

Johnny Drama was the best thing about this show at one time, but then the writers couldn't help themselves and turned his neuroticism into obnoxiousness. Here, he had more professionally vulnerable moments that gave him some much forgotten depth (though the good news he gets int he finale almost negates the whole thing).

Turtle was the most bearable he has ever been. He's always come off as a sad little poser, but we finally got to see a little of the nice guy under the Yankees cap thanks to his relationship with Jamie-Lynn Soprano.

E was still a tool, but not as big of one as usual. I never understood this character. There's nothing about him to suggest he's be able to survive on his own in the Industry, yet they insist on making him some sort of power player. It's especially misguided when you juxtapose him with uberagent Ari Gold. Love him or hate him, that's a guy who can get things done. It was a big season for Ari and Jeremy Piven brought the goods as he always has (still seems like a jerk though).

The thing that bothered me the most about this season was the strange casting of Alexis Dziena as E's love interest. Out of all the young actresses in Hollywood (not to mention models and random girls off the street), why would they go with a weirder-looking Fiona Apple? And then to make her an overpossessive nutcase? Don't ruin the fantasy, idiots.

Best Episode: "Fore" (The celebrity golf outing with an F-bomb dropping Jeffrey Tambor)

Best Celeb Guest: Matt Damon ("Give a Little Bit")