sholio: sun on winter trees (Wiseguy-Vinnie moodlit)
Sholio ([personal profile] sholio) wrote2008-12-22 10:22 am
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Random thing I love about Wiseguy

I love the way this show deals with physical disability.

I hadn't really thought about it until their second double-amputee character shows up. But it's kind of awesome, really. One of the main characters is missing both legs from the knees down (the actor is Jim Byrnes from Highlander, if any Highlander people are reading this), and the way they deal with it is wonderfully matter-of-face and casual, where it's neither the defining feature of his character nor ignored completely. It comes up in small, everyday ways -- you'll see him putting on his prostheses, or having a little trouble navigating stairs, and there's the nifty little detail, not remarked upon but visually apparent, that there are no chairs in his apartment (since he uses a wheelchair at home). But in general, he's just *him*, a laid-back ex-hippie-ish sort of guy with a sharp sense of humor and a slow-burning fuse; we've seen him camping, getting into bar brawls, making love to a woman, fighting with his friends and family, and of course doing undercover work, as they all do.

And one of the major recurring characters in the arc we're now watching is a guy with one arm and one leg -- and it's the same deal, really; his character is the nosy reporter poking around our guys' investigation, and that's who he *is*, disability optional.

It's really cool, and awfully sad that it's so rare on TV that I notice when a disabled character isn't just used as a plot point.

[identity profile] kodiak-bear.livejournal.com 2008-12-22 05:16 pm (UTC)(link)
Where are you watching these? Netflix doesn't have all the seasons available which was a bummer to see. I can get some on itunes but I think it was just one season.
ext_1981: (Art-red blue leaves)

[identity profile] friendshipper.livejournal.com 2008-12-22 05:27 pm (UTC)(link)
All three seasons are available from Amazon Unbox (streaming/downloadable video) and I think most of seasons 2/3 are on Netflix.

I also came across a comm that has the first season for download but I don't want to post it unlocked (even though the comm itself is unlocked). Let me know if you want the link.

OMG, iTunes does have season one! That's awesome! I'd been wondering what I was going to do when I went home, because Amazon Unbox doesn't work with Macs and I want to *own* it. All the DVDs are out of print and hard to get.

[identity profile] greyias.livejournal.com 2008-12-22 06:50 pm (UTC)(link)
Well, it's a long shot, but do you have a Tivo by any chance? One of the really cool features it has when you hook it up to a wireless network is to be able to download/transfer shows and movies to it, so you can watch them on your regular TV.

(By the way, that icon is made of utter cuteness.)
ext_1981: (Art-red blue leaves)

[identity profile] friendshipper.livejournal.com 2008-12-22 08:02 pm (UTC)(link)
That scene is made of utter cuteness. *loves show*

No, sadly, we don't have a Tivo. But that's an interesting option -- my hubby is a geek, and I ought to find out if he can do anything technobabbly with the streaming episodes.

[identity profile] greyias.livejournal.com 2008-12-22 08:06 pm (UTC)(link)
*needs to find time to watch show, badly*

Oh, I'm pretty sure he can, from what I've read. I'm investigating a few, ah, avenues for myself to see if I can free myself from the proprietary player. I've found I actually like the quality on the Unbox downloads better than Amazon, but I definitely prefer iTunes as a player to Unbox, so I haven't figured out which one to get the first season from yet.

[identity profile] kodiak-bear.livejournal.com 2008-12-23 06:02 pm (UTC)(link)
So all the episodes are available on amazon, the way they grouped them together makes it difficult to puzzle out! They don't have everything by season, it's listed as 'this arc' and this arc. Confusing to someone who knows nothing about the show!

I think I might try the first ones on amazon and then if I like it I can buy on itunes and get the rest via netflix or amazon.

[identity profile] wildcat88.livejournal.com 2008-12-22 10:36 pm (UTC)(link)
Hey, if you're interested, Jim Byrnes guest starred on the last Sanctuary...
ext_1981: (Whaleverse-pretty Rodney)

[identity profile] friendshipper.livejournal.com 2008-12-23 01:56 am (UTC)(link)
Did he really? Ooh! I'm fangirling him madly right now (though I don't have any icons for him yet...). I was never really interested in watching Highlander, but now I kinda want to see it just for him.

[identity profile] flingslass.livejournal.com 2008-12-23 11:16 am (UTC)(link)
He was great in Highlander, especially bouncing off Peter Wingfield (Methos)
ext_1981: (SGA-Sheppard rain)

[identity profile] friendshipper.livejournal.com 2008-12-24 11:59 pm (UTC)(link)
I've been wondering if he's in it enough to be worth watching it just for him. (I mean, obviously I *hope* I'd get into the other characters too, but if he's only in every third episode for five minutes, maybe I'll hold off a bit.)

[identity profile] flingslass.livejournal.com 2008-12-26 12:08 pm (UTC)(link)
He joins as a costar from season two onwards.