E, Vincent, and Walsh, whose retouched T-shirt read SUITS SUCK as we recall, in last night’s Entourage.Courtesy of HBO
The ‘Entourage’ Guilt/Pleasure Index: Elvis Mitchell’s Cherry-Red Convertible
Have you ever found yourself watching Entourage and thinking, “Sure, it’s entertaining — but where are the cameos by former New York Times movie critics?†Well, your prayers were answered last night, with an appearance by (as Ari describes him) the “former superstar Times critic†Elvis Mitchell. Entourage has always been prone to kiss-ass-y cameos, but is the show now letting people write their own intros? No wonder this is the one show we can’t stop watching–slash–can’t stop hating ourselves for watching!
Episode: “The Dream Teamâ€
Pleasure: When the Medellin trailer is leaked on YouTube, Billy naturally blames Eric and the two come to blows in Barneys. But get this — everyone loves the trailer, and suddenly Vince is the hottest property in town! Thus, Ari sets out to sabotage a Heath Ledger project so Vince can swoop in as the lead.
Also, Drama decides that a souvenir trucker hat from a medicinal marijuana facility is the perfect accessory to prove his youth-culture bona fides. In a related development, Drama has fallen into a wormhole and traveled back to 2001.
The most pleasurable moment in this episode? Billy Walsh gets a huge Medellin tattoo across his back. A funny visual gag, even though it underscores the fact that every character on this show is only allowed two personality traits (Billy: obsessive, insane).
Guilt: Where to begin? Should we start with “jokes†like this one from Ari: “That’s not good news. Good news is when your wife agrees to eat box on your birthday.†(Ha! Get it? Wives! They hate sex!) Or with the unending parade of self-congratulatory cameos? (Finally, Snoop Dogg and Brian Grazer share an IMDb entry!)
Or how about Elvis Mitchell’s cringe-inducing scene, in which he chortles along to E and Billy’s hilarious sparring, before driving off in a cherry-red convertible? Or the whaa-whaa ending, when E declares he’ll never work with Billy again. Cue cell-phone ring — oops, it’s Ari calling to say he’s sold E to produce on Vince’s next film, with Billy directing! Who could have seen that coming, except for everyone? —Adam Sternbergh
The Guilt/Pleasure Index:
