I'm an actor in a bad Showtime series

...or so says Blackthirt13en. As much as that idea horrifies me I can't really argue with it. My life has taken a turn in the last year that's almost stranger than fiction.

This Showtime series starts in Pittsburgh early 2006 where this average every-day guy (me) goes through a devastating breakup with his girlfriend of 7 years, due in part, because she cheated on him. She moves out and our main character struggles to keep his home, reestablish his identity, and rebuild his broken dreams.

The story progresses and you discover two of his closest friends are a gay couple. They provide tremendous perspective in our main characters life in everything from how to play the dating game, how to know about pop culture, and how to dress (the makeover episode was a good one).

The main character eventually gets a new roommate who happens to be a stripper; Aries who he meets in a strip club. Aries is an extremely cool girl and full of life. She brings drama to the series in the form of a weird ex boyfriend who eggs the main characters house, shows up on his doorstep at 3:00am, and generally becomes a nuisance. She has a little dog that is lovable but can be a bastard. She also brings sex-appeal to the series in herself and her extremely hot friends (the episode where the main character helps Aries and her friend put on a show at her club is also a fantastic episode I recommend everyone watch, I look forward to reruns!). This plot thread is taking quite a turn as Aries new boyfriend becomes a more prominent character.

There was a recent plot thread where the main character got to experience dating a single mother of four children; Diane who is going through a divorce with a man who is completely irresponsible and inconsiderate. Our main character is a good guy and watching him deal with this unique situation was intriguing. Sadly that relationship had to end but the main character and Diane are still friends.

A significant plot thread involved the main character's friend Heather who is going through a breakup and has to move in with her friend who is ALSO going through an extremely messy divorce. Things get very dramatic when Heather discovers a man wanted by U.S. Marshals for contract killing has broken into their house. She escapes to the main characters house where she desperately tries to convince her friend to be more cautious and leave. Fortunately nothing bad happens to Heather or her friend. Heather contributes tremendous sex appeal to the series (you can't have a woman in a Showtime series who isn't sexy!) and a bit of dark comic relief in the form of an ex boyfriend who is completely insane from a relationship before the one that she just ended.

There are some other less significant plot threads. The main character plays poker a lot and does well (there was an episode where the main character nearly gets in a fist fight with a drunk guy he's playing poker with). He's participating in a Halloween Haunted House with elaborate special effect makeup (the episode where the main character and Haunted House crew do a promotional event at a Roller Derby was a good episode). He dated a chick who text messaged him about 400 times a day (very funny episode). He dated another chick who was on the rebound (that was the episode where he went to Vegas). He dated another chick who was hot but completely nuts (also a funny episode).

I can't think of anything else offhand about the series. I'm on the edge of my seat wanting to know what happens next!

Tagged with: Contract Killing, Haunted House, Poker, Sex, Showtime, Stripper