---------------Mike Luckovich, Atlanta Journal Constitution

________________________________________________

Rescue Me
I don't usually do reviews unless I feel I have some sort of particularly useful, insightful, thought-provoking, worthwhile, and/or smartass comment to make, such as "Catwoman is a very good movie. My favorite part was the litterbox scene." But I haven't seen "Catwoman," I have no plans to see "Catwoman," I don't know if "Catwoman" even has a litterbox scene, so therefore I won't say a word about "Catwoman."

That said, the following is not so much a review (here's USAToday's review, however) as a recommendation: Watch FX's "Rescue Me."

So much of what is on regular network TV these days is crap, and "Rescue Me" only further demonstrates that the only reason it's still worth having a TV is because of cable. The show stars Denis Leary as Tommy Gavin, a firefighter in post 9/11 New York city. It's raw, edgy, and let's just say the language is realistic.

He's also an alcoholic with a marriage on the rocks. And if that's not enough, he's also coping with the occasional visits of dead comrades, or fire victims that he somehow failed to save over the years. The most memorable of the deceased visitors is Gavin's cousin Jimmy, one of four firefighters from that particular station killed at Ground Zero. In the opening scene, as Gavin berates a incoming class of firefighters, he mentions that the only remains of his cousin recovered consisted of a single finger. Consequently, whenever the "ghost" of Jimmy appears, he has a bandage where the missing digit used to be.

The show normally airs on Wednesday nights. FX is rerunning the first episode Sunday night at 11 (Eastern), Monday night at 10:30, and Tuesday at 11 PM.

Check it out if you get the chance.