The Rescue Me Thread: Seasons 1 & 2

[webteam]

The latest foray for the entertainment industry into a drama about Firefighting premieres Wednesday night on the FX Cable Network.

Post comments about the first episode...how does it compare to other firefighting programs in the past (i.e. Third Watch, Emergency!)? What image do you think it will portray the fire service to the general public?

Feel free to post your comments right here.

Thanks
WebTeam

[RspctFrmCalgary]

OK I'm NOT having a fun day at all, and it keeps getting worse and worse, then I go to post again on a thread I've just posted on twice and its gone ... I think I'm losing my bloody mind!!!!!!!!!!!!!

*sigh*

It looks like we won't be getting it in Canada or at least this part. I checked tomorrow's schedule and then the FX website. All the hype and anticipation the past few months for nothing grrrrrrrrrrrr


Rant off

[TheHealingOne]

I don't think it's going to do good. When the character says, "I've seen it all," well that's out of context. I haven't talked to a Firefighter yet who has "seen it all". That statement turned off all interest for me in the show.

It's been my view that all Firefighter dramas fail. It's not like cops and robbers where you shoot people; there's time of peace, silence, pratical jokes, and then a fire or two. People try to make the Fire Service high-speed 24/7...it just doesn't work like that. I've done ride-alongs where all we do all day is watch the clock go by and then the Captain jumps up at about 3 PM and starts asking his FF's questions out of the blue about Fire Fighting. Unless you had interest in the Fire Service, I think most people would fall asleep watching that.

[pvfire424]

Did I miss an advance screening for this show? I was under the impression that it started tonight (Wed). I will have to form my opinion of the show after I see it. I am optimistic however as I do like Leary's form of humor. I will let you know tomorrow what I thought of it. (providing we dont get toned out! )

"I know enough to know I dont know nearly enough !"

[jthomas]

Originally posted by TheHealingOne
It's been my view that all Firefighter dramas fail. It's not like cops and robbers where you shoot people; there's time of peace, silence, pratical jokes, and then a fire or two. People try to make the Fire Service high-speed 24/7...it just doesn't work like that.

Keep in mind that in the real world the vast majority of police officers in this country NEVER fire their weapons in actual hostile conditions. So the business of police shooting someone on almost every show is there purely for entertainment value. Police have their own rhythms of sitting in their patrol cars for hours, issuing traffic citations, etc. punctuated by brief, sporadic bursts of "activity". I think even the NYPD could fit into this generalization, and they must be among the busiest cops in the world.
TV has invented the concept of compressing years of actual events into a season or so, just to keep us hooked. If every show was "true to life" nobody would watch. Just make it "true enough" where it counts.
I'll be watching!

[Dalmatian90]

It's not like cops and robbers where you shoot people; there's time of peace, silence, pratical jokes, and then a fire or two. People try to make the Fire Service high-speed 24/7...

Nah, that's not it at all.

We fight fires -- serious fires -- much more frequently than the Police deal with "headline" crimes like murder or bank robberies.

The "action" for police style films (include things like Westerns and military movies) can usually be portrayed very one-on-one, the viewer can follow it easier and with more interest 'cause it can be made personal -- me against him.

Firefighting is different. It's much more team oriented, just to move up a line needs 2, 3, 4 guys. It's about people vs. a thing -- and that's not as interesting to most people as people vs. people. Even the CSI type shows is people vs. people while they're trying to figure out "things" to get to that person. "Backdraft" is the most succesful firefighting film I can think of...and they needed DeNiro to make fire into a "living, breathing thing..." The choreography of a fireground too can be confusing -- yes, military stuff can be too but I'd venture that when Tom Hanks is giving his orders for who to cover whom from where on the beach in Saving Private Ryan most people could figure out pretty quick, "Ok, so they'll shoot from there to keep the German's heads down..." while saying, "Go vent the roof" would elicit a "Why the heck are they cutting a hole in the roof?" from many of those same people.

Police work is about people. Firefighting is about things -- yes, people too, but primarily we deal with things affecting them like the fire trapping them, the car wrapped around them, or the knife sticking out of them. Police work is mostly about what they're thinking and that has a natural dramatic element to it.

It's not that it's impossible to do, but you've got to find a way to bring out drama in firefighting...that isn't necessarily the firefighting itself.

I have to say this is one of the few TV shows I've ever been looking forward too -- which says a lot since I dropped cable from my house 2 years ago while I was going to school part-time in the evenings and have yet to bother hooking it up! Guess I'll stay at the station after officers' meeting tonite.

[firenresq77]

My VCR is set to tape it tonight........ Hope it lives up to all the talk.... I am looing forward to seeing it.

[RspctFrmCalgary]

Originally posted by firenresq77
My VCR is set to tape it tonight........ Hope it lives up to all the talk.... I am looing forward to seeing it.

hmmmmm ..... oooohhhhhhh Brian, ol' pal ol' buddy Don't suppose you'd be wanting to tape them all would ya? Anyone else?? Perhaps someone in the Seattle area is reading this???? Just a hop skip and jump over da water if someone wouldn't mind recording it and lending me your tapes. Pretty please!!

[TheHealingOne]

BackDraft had it's own police drama to it; without the "who did it?" part, BackDraft would never of made it. Although BackDraft is a VERY GOOD movie.


I'll watch it most likely. It's going to be interesting to see what they come up with over the seasons. I don't think it will last long, but I am also hopefull that it will have a few good shows.


And yes, the Police have a pretty boaring job as well, just like Fire Fighting. Like my instructor of Intro To Fire Science said, the only difference between Police and Fire Fighters is that one carries a gun and the other carries a hose (a course there are more differences, but the point got across).

[ftfdverbenec770]

im looking forward to seeing it tonight, but im not really setting the bar that high for this one. it might be entertaining just to watch, but you never know.

guess we are just goin to have to watch and see

[MIKEYLIKESIT]

If it is half as good as "The Job", it should be pretty entertaining. We all know firefighters who are screw-ups outside the firehouse but are the ones you want to be with inside a burning building. Leary does not take firefighting lightly. It will be good to see a little less "rah rah" and a little more "realism".

[ChiefReason]

Just watched the first episode of Rescue Me.
I liked it ALOT.
Funny though; whenever I like a TV show ALOT, it isn't around for very long.
Leary showed an entire range of emotion. He was brilliant.
Him talking to his dead cousine Jimmy Keefe is a little freaky, but manageable.
If the censors doesn't force him to soften it up, it's going to be a winner.
I give it two thumbs up!
Awesome.
CR

[skid13]

I personally liked the show. I hope it does well. It's more then just fighting fires---which makes it more realistic then Third Watch for instance. I will def. follow this show through the season.

[FijalkowskiA]

I thought the show had a lot of disconcerting situations that can make us firefighters look like bad guys in the public eye. Some of the things they did should not be shown on television, because thats not the way we work together. We are a team and treat each other as such. I watched the show with my fellow fighters in the station tonight, and we all agreed that it had its good and bad parts, but all in all it should be a very moving series. We look forward to sitting in and watching it next week.

-OOH RAH-

[ADSNWFLD]

I thought it was pretty good. I think we can recognize guys we work with in some of the parts seen tonight.
I love the pool on the divorce, I think we have some active ones on some of the guys now.
It is the little one liners that really made it relate.
I just hope the public doesn't take it as the gospel.

Overall, I'll tune in next week.

[fieldseng2]

I liked the show....I hope it lasts..

my only opinion is I think they tried to hard to jam in the 1st episode to introduce every character and their issues.

as far as Leary's character spouting off he has seen it all..Im sure it was intended to be tounge in cheek to F%$& with the probies.

[LRFireE135]

I agree with Chief R....That show kicked serious tail!!! Realistic and dramatic but with the side you would want to be portrayed as well!

I'm glad FX picked it up and not NBC....Although I don't always agree with the language, you do hear it around the firehouse...ALOT!!! Like it or not...I think Rescue Me is here to stay!

[BCmdepas3280]

I can relate to alot of the humor...taking the cookies to the firehouse for the guys and the betting on the games are part of every day firehouse life. I hope the show sticks around for awhile.

[RspctFrmCalgary]

Originally posted by LRFireE135
I'm glad FX picked it up and not NBC....

I'M NOT!!! sob sob *sniffle*

[truck6alpha]

I thought it was good, but I can already hear the gnashing of teeth. Just to preempt some of that- It's a TV show. Hopefully people will understand that 99.9999% of the American fire service isn't drinking our way to alarms, (or lighting fires, or insert any other bad thing here as portrayed in the media) but if they believe everything they see on TV, then they probably weren't very enlightened to begin with.

The humor is dark, but you know, I've heard that humor before in many firehouses not just in the US, but in other countries as well. I'll be watching next week.