What I'm Watching

Obviously, all the shows in the sidebar's "On The Box" are the big TV shows I'm tuning into every week and reviewing. But on top of those I'm also still watching The Good Wife (usually a few weeks behind Channel 4 HD, dipping in when I get the chance), Damages (which I'm liking, but don't feel all that gripped by now) and FlashForward (which has gone equal parts crazy and terrible.) Yesterday I also started watching In Treatment, mainly because all 43 episodes of season 1 are available on HD through Virgin Media's VOD service..

In Treatment has a very unique format: every half-hour's a simple two-hander between therapist Paul (Gabriel Byrne) and a client, which means that every day you get a new character's psyche to explore. But, mirroring a psychiatrist's schedule, every character returns the following week for their next session. So you basically spend a week getting to know all these new faces, and in the ensuing weeks they all return and you get to have a deeper understanding of them as people and the problems/issues they have. Adding a further kink, every week Paul himself has a session with his own psychiatrist Gina (Dianne Wiest), but I haven't got that far yet.

In fact, I'm only a few episodes into the run, but considering I only really expected to watch one episode last night... that goes to show how more-ish In Treatment is. Despite the fact it's just listening to two people talk for 25-minutes in a single room, that's quite an achievement. There are no flashbacks or any other dramatic crutches you might have expected, this is more stage-like. Just actors bringing scripts to life.

Anyway, I'm not going to say anything else, because I suspect I'll be reviewing In Treatment's first season once I finish all the episodes. Like Nurse Jackie, the fact they're just half-hours make them easy to "snack" on when you have some spare time, but I'd be lying if I said the prospect of 43 episodes isn't a little daunting, because that still equals 21-hours of programming. We'll see how it goes.

But yes, so far I'm recommending In Treatment if you have Virgin Media's VOD or feel like splashing out on a box-set. The series airs on Sky Arts here in the UK, but I'm not sure if it's still on-air right now, or ever repeated. There have already been 3 seasons on HBO, too, so there's plenty to enjoy.

Oh, and a week or so ago I finished The Wire Season 2 box-set, so now I just need to find the time to write a full review. My schedule's a bit more manageable just now, and I have some time-off next week, so I'll hopefully be able to set some hours aside.

So anyway, that's what's turning my eyes square just lately, but what are you guys watching and what do you recommend to others?