The Wisdom of Denis

I never expected to be a big Denis Leary fan. I’ve always admired his fuming, but I could never take too much of it. But here I am, cheering like a teenybopper about his Emmy nomination and hanging on his every word.

In this week’s Entertainment Weekly, Leary made a fascinating statement about his fantasy ending for “Rescue Me”: “I'd love to do a fifth season where people think you're doing 13 episodes, and, in week 6, there's a giant fire and half the crew's dead – and the show's over. You tune in and the … thing’s gone. I don't think they'll ever let us. But that would be great television.”

What I love about Leary’s comment is that he’s so right; that would be the perfect ending for this show. How better to capture the unpredictable and sometimes unpredictably short lives of firemen? How better to viscerally recall 9/11, which has defined the series? And how better to make viewers feel the shock of the sudden death of a loved one?

Also, Leary points to one of series television’s biggest problems. If a show is successful, the network wants to keep it going as long as possible despite creative realities. Timely endings and bold risks are not supported. Mark my words, that need for more-more-more is what will turn “Lost” from great TV into a mess.