Burn Notice

Michael Westen is my hero.

I'm so addicted to Burn Notice. It is a great show. It's fairly light entertainment, but it's done well. The plot is as follows: Michael Westen is a CIA agent that was burned, meaning he was cut off by the CIA. All his assets have been frozen, his job history erased, and he is stuck in Miami. The overall story arc is Michael is trying to figure out who burned him and why. Each episode he uncovers tidbits about the mystery, but otherwise the episodes are fairly episodic. He uses his spy skillz to help people who need it - those who are in danger of being killed, kidnapped, or forced to commit crimes. He's like a modern day MacGuyver with a heart of gold, 'cause he often doesn't charge for his services. He tries to diffuse the situations without resorting to guns a-blazing by being resourceful. I don't recall him ever directly killing someone either. When he does have to use hand to hand combat, they're choreographed quite well, such that you actually believe that someone could disarm or win such a fight without being made of steel. Punches are rarely thrown as he usually uses joint locks and take downs to subdue attackers.

One of the best parts of the shows is he often provides voiceovers to explain what he's doing and why or how to handle oneself in certain situations. He explains what different weapons are good for, how to fabricate snooping devices and weapons, what to do in a fight or car chase, where good places are to hide valuables, and how to sell your character when conning someone. It's certainly not enough information to do it yourself, but you get the overall idea. I don't know how accurate the things he says are, but it's pretty interesting.

Beyond the case of the week, we get to see his interactions with friends and family, which adds a minor bit of drama to the story and humanizes the character. It's enough to add another depth to the show, but without ever becoming a distraction. Oh, and Bruce Campbell is on the show. And for some reason Michael really likes yogurt. It's probably an eccentricity to highlight the fact that he's not an invincible machine. But he always wins. Like me.