Let Me Roll It To You

Showtime's been pushing this series for weeks now, giving us little tastes here and there, just enough to leave us wanting more, shrewd dealers that they are. And they most definitely have the goods, you've gotta hand it to 'em. This is a great product.

Weeds has it all: provocative and witty dialog, deeply conflicted characters, lust, blatant sexuality (straight and otherwise), drugs and, above all, it's got a lethal ace in the hole: its star, the supremely delightful Mary Louise Parker, perfectly cast as the recently widowed Nancy Botwin, who's begun dealing pot in her suburban neighborhood to help make ends meet.

In the shrewdly written premiere episode, we see what kind of complex character we're getting here; she's a mass of contradictions, which makes her all the more appealing, of course, all the more human. The others - both the adults and the kids - are just as conflicted, and what I liked the most (besides Parker) was that none of them came across as caricatures. We're in good hands here, definitely, and I for one can hardly wait for more.

So 3 seasons have gone by already, I've seen each episode at least twice, and this show has never disappointed. Jenji Kohan never lets her material get stale; she keeps it fresh by constantly upping the ante in the situations, making the series more and more outrageous while never losing sight of its core appeal, which is Parker's spot on characterization of Nancy. And I love the different versions of the Little Boxes song - waiting for Loudon Wainwright III's take on it, maybe next season.

July '08 - I have to say, I'm not enjoying the show at all, this new season. It's just no fun anymore, what with Nancy being owned by Guillermo - I mean is this a major step backward for our heroine or what? Very disappointed, even dropped my rating from a 9 to a 7.

August '08 - So the last two episodes have perked considerably, what with Nancy hooking up with the very attractive Mexican Mayor for some kinky-and-only-getting-kinkier escapades. Back to an 8, my rating. I also have to say I love the creative way they've been displaying the title of the show, having done away with the Little Boxes song, which was no long appropriate with the new locale.